Hi everyone!

I'll be out today doing errands, but will check in this evening to see if anyone has posted. Early tomorrow morning I'm leaving for the West Coast for five days, but I'll have my laptop with me and will be able to stay in touch.

Technology is amazing, isn't it? When my youngest son was studying in Sweden last winter, we Instant Messaged almost every day. Even though he was practically on the other side of the world, I felt as though I knew more about what he was up to in Sweden than I do when he’s in Philly. ‘Course with kids, that’s not always a good thing.

I’ll leave you this morning with another piece of advice from one of the women in the book. This morsel comes from Jean Karotkin, who started off her interview with me by saying, “My life began the day I was diagnosed with breast cancer.”

After surviving breast cancer, Jean became a professional photographer. She’s on my mind today because we spoke on the phone yesterday.

Here’s what she wrote: “My photography teacher, mentor and friend Rick Eilers told me from the beginning, ‘Keep it simple.’ He was referring to my camera and lighting equipment and the way I shoot. His advice helped me immensely, especially when I started traveling to photograph my subjects for the book. I was such a beginner to the craft, and keeping it simple allowed me to focus on creating the image with my eye rather than be confused with technical issues. Because I worked without assistance, keeping it simple also meant less equipment to schlep around.”

Keeping it simple is good advice under almost any circumstances.

By the way, let me put in a plug for Jean’s new photography book: Body & Soul. (web page ) Think the best way for me to describe it is to quote from my review on Amazon:

“Ms. Karotkin's powerful photographs truly capture the spirit of her subjects, whose stories of coping with breast cancer are told through brief vignettes. This is an inspiring, provocative book that challenges American ideals of physical perfection and redefines what it means to be beautiful. I imagine Body & Soul will resonate with anyone who has either experienced breast-cancer first-hand or known someone who has; but I hope that all those teenage girls who aren't happy with their bodies will also read this book and take its message to heart.”

P.S. Jaw Jaw-- Has anyone told you lately how cute and loveable you are?