Ann Seeber

I asked Bing Copilot to convert the C to F and got this answer... "−18.4°F Brrr! That's pretty chilly! ❄️"

Poncho in a poncho! 😁 I feel I would know this dog anywhere. I love simple layouts like this, Marie-Claire.

Oh, thank you, Julie, for validating my choice. My "adopted son" Joe, Thor's owner, is very enthusiastic and is now taking this layout to Staples to print on glossy paper to frame. Makes me feel I helped him with his grief. He said at the time he "felt broken" when he lost Thor. Joe worked for us at the theater for years when he was in high school and visited our home frequently, even after going in the Navy to guide submarines. Joe is also a good amateur photographer, so I see his work often on his Facebook page.

Thank you, everyone, who recognized the milkweed that I erroneously labeled thistle. Unable to leave it with a glaring error, I went back and re-did the title.

My daughter, Deb, who is a graduate from R.P.I. with two degrees, one in architecture and one in building trades, STILL uses her slide rule and hates the computer. She hires someone to use Auto-Cad for building designs that she does initially with ruler and pencil. I teasingly call her My Luddite!

Like Mary, my B is for Book. I had many hardcovers that I donated to my library when we moved to this condo complex. I had two tall bookcases for years but, sadly, had to sell them before we moved. I never counted my collection but once I started with digital books the list grew much longer. I refused to spend more than five dollars on a book (to start, now my base is ten) and I soon discovered I had close to 1000 books! It's easy when your bookseller stores them for you. When I was a child I was horse crazy. My mother said I would try to jump out of her arms when we walked in New York City because the mounted police were everywhere. I was particularly fond of horse books, and this one was my favorite for many years. It was the start of a series and I read them all but I could quote the first line from The Black Stallion from memory. I tried to read Black Beauty but stopped because the horse was abused and I couldn't read about that. I do still have this original hard-cover copy of The Black Stallion in a place of honor.

As promised, I fiddled with the Mighty Thor layout by adding an extracted portrait of him with a reduced opacity to indicate he's gone. I cleaned up the truck extraction a bit and fiddled with the positioning of the empty leash. Here we go...

Thank you. I'm already thinking of an addition. Nice to have time between assignments to fiddle... 😉

You're probably right, Linda. Ed didn't say, exactly. He's always off in the marshes photo-shooting birds, mostly kestrels. He showed up at my granddaughter's animal park to shoot the animals there, too.

@Cassel - I know these are to be posted every two weeks. I posted my A on Thursday Jan. 9 but don't know if that was late or early. LOL What sort of schedule do you envision? When should I post my "B?" or does each letter get a new topic?

A good friend recently lost his loyal pug that had accompanied him all over the USA behind the wheel of his big purple semi. The Mighty Thor will be sorely missed. 😢

I was poking around in the folder for AASPN supplies and was surprised to see what looks like an .abr brush file. It only shows up when I use Affinity but not with PSP. What can we do with these brushes? Here's a screenshot of that folder.

Wow, I never would have guessed that the woman in the framed photo was 100 years old! I hope I look that good in 16 years! Beautiful layout, Julie. Those AASPN materials work so well for you.

Nice kitty! Glad to see another "cut" sandwich; I couldn't handle eating a whole one without it being cut! 😉

We have all been in the same boat, Jannette. Welcome back!

Gerry, that looks like a unique cat tree. I could use one with a basket to lounge like that. I have two towers and they have several platforms but my clueless cats tend to roll over and fall off the edge if I go anywhere near - they are begging for belly rubs and instead try to learn to fly!

Here is Layout #1 - Last Thistle Standing - I added a snowy owl I got from pngegg. The font is Bauhaus, the scatters are from AHA-Somewhere in time - the background is from the Iceland Mega Kit.

Rene, I had that exact same table for many years. It started out as a piece of marble my folks brought back from a trip to Vermont which was then affixed to a wrought iron Singer Sewing Machine base (with treadle). I had it as an accent table for many years and upon moving to smaller quarters it has now been passed on to my daughter, Laurey, who has it in her entryway. Sadly, I don't have a photo. The sewing machine base was used by my Mom for many years with her wired-up Singer and a separate foot pedal. I do think in the years past it was not electric and the treadle was used.

I'm looking into a different print house. I used Staples last year and it worked fine. This year, I can't go to the store and work it out in person; everything has to be done remotely. I would appreciate suggestions for anywhere in the USA, I guess.

Testing -- Yay, it's fixed!

Here is my Layers Lesson - Table and setting. I do like these components better than the PSP version. I played with my sandwich a bit... 😉 The table decor is from an African kit.

While not exactly tech gremlins, my order for my Nashville Zoo calendar, which was intended as a gift for my granddaughter, Jackie, is going through the THIRD attempt to get the order printed correctly at Staples. I created it here in October when we had a calendar workshop and next time I'll send it out right away because of the delays I'm experiencing now from Staples having to re-do the print job over and over again. I created 14 pages (12 months + a cover and back page) which are to be printed edge to edge on glossy stock and bound at the top with a black plastic coil. The first delivery came bound with staples down the left side of 8 identical booklets! After speaking to their help desk they had me re-order it online and gave me credit for the first order. The second order arrived Monday and turned out to be 15 pages (they added a black final page, for some reason) and it was bound with black coil ALL DOWN THE LEFT SIDE! *sigh* As this couldn't be hung on a wall I spoke to a rep and she looked it up and agreed with me but requested I take a photo of the incorrect product and send it on to their print team. That was yesterday, so now I'm awaiting the next iteration of their attempt to fill my order. I messaged Jackie, who was here Sunday from Tennessee with her husband for another family Christmas (that makes 3 this year!). I had hoped to have the calendar for her but it was not to be. She answered me "no worries." I will have to ship it to her when the time comes that Staples actually produces a usable wall calendar. Cross your fingers for me, please? 🙏 (I've also posted the photo of the second wrong order that Staples asked me to send.)

Those waves work perfectly, Mary. Glad you had a chance to play with them!

Here's my Lesson One - Setup Affinity Photo 2 workspace. I prefer the dark background, and I toggled to the color and the layers palettes. I'm not sure what the Navigator at the bottom right is for.