Wednesday, July 16, 2014


Residual Income
 What Is It and How Does It Work? By Suzanne Flynn
 
A residual income will earn you money even when you're not on the clock. Owning rental units, collecting royalties or investing in a savings and investment program are examples of what is called "passive income".
Wouldn’t it be nice to earn money while not working? That money is called residual, or recurring, income. It's what can happen after you put a lot of time, effort and sometimes money into a job to continue to get paid for the work months or years after it's done. (Salary jobs are part of linear income. This income is directly related to the number of hours you work. If you work 40 hours, you get paid for 40 hours of work.) Once you set up your business to earn residual income, you continue to make money while doing other things – maybe even starting a new business to generate more residual income!
Types of Residual Income
Some examples of residual income sources include:
•Royalties from intellectual property, such as books and patents
•Subscriptions, advertisements, donations or affiliate links from your blog or website
•Transferring the rights to a song you recorded, a book you wrote, a software program you created or a gadget you invented to a company agreeing to pay you a percentage of each copy of your work sold
•Purchasing an office or apartment building and leasing or renting out the properties
•A savings and investment program that earns interest
•E-book sales
•Stock photography royalties


If you think about it, you can take 3000 bucks and sock it away in an annuity at 3% to 7% interest annually. That means your money you have saved all year only earned you 90 to 180 dollars as residual income. Not much but in about 25 years you might have doubled your money if you live long enough to see it to 6000 dollars.

Well Melissa and I went to a meeting on Sat. evening and I saw a heck of a lot of people from all walks of life who believe in this. I saw someone who is there and who is able to stay home with his kids, drives a nice car, and lives in a really nice home I might add, and all he does is help people learn how to do exactly the same things he did. He doesn't sell anything to anyone. He hosts meetings in his home, and shows a couple of videos on a large screen TV, drinks a Vodka and Tonic and answers questions. I want that job!

Even if you just do the minimum, the residual income is almost twice what I make every month at my regular full time job. I was astounded when I saw the breakdown and how it works. I was also astounded when my sponsor told me he has only been doing this for about 4 months and he was able to go out and buy a new car with his earnings. Not a brand new off the lot car mind you, but he paid cash for a great late model used car. That to me is sucess. (A car with a working AC right now would be sucess!) The new car can always come later because residual means that money he used will be there again like clockwork next month, and the next month, and the next month and is very likely to increase as associates and customers increase. Making sense yet?

So you don't want to be an associate? Big deal! How about if you can get your electricity charges for free just for being a customer and referring a few close friends or family. Yes you still have to pay a small delivery charge because OnCor still owns the production and powerlines but still you can get your energy portion significantly reduced, or even free. Thats pretty cool if you ask me. I could think of a lot of other things I could do with an extra 250 simolians a month, couldnt you? (Hey there's a new car payment, or a bathroom remodel.). Even though I'm not an associate and just a customer, Im still getting something like a residual income just from the free energy. No down-side there either! Is it getting any clearer yet? I thought so. Does any of this interest you?

Oh yeah, how many people do you have to refer to qualify? Do you know 3 people who use electricity and pay an electric bill each month? Unless you are a hermit I would just about bet you do. That's all I'm going to say for now. If you are interested then you will have to contact me or Melissa at email me   texasredphotography@gmail.com , or call 254-744-5196 and just say, "So whats all this stuff about residual income you are talking about, and how can I get me some too?" we will be glad to help you. Or better yet just go to our site and sign up! Sign up or Join! http://melissaarnold.myignite.com/index.asp?CO_LA=US_EN

Join a fantastic team that is learning and enjoying  what true freedom is all about.

Lets do this thing together!

Dale and Melissa Arnold

Friday, June 6, 2014

Hateful Words


I went to photograph a gig that I have at The Courtyard Theater in Plano, Texas for their Texas Music Series yesterday. Radney Foster was on the calendar and is a favorite of mine but I had not seen him live until about 3 weeks ago at Love and War In Texas located in Plano, Texas I took my daughter along on a job to photograph his performance to the later and was so moved by this song he recently wrote that it about made me lose my composure while working. That is not an easy task. I do not know if it was because he wrote it after his 11 year old daughter went to him after hearing a hateful word or because I have an 11 year old daughter that I wish I could make deaf to those kinds of words that seem to resonate in and through humanity and so many times try to annihilate those who someone might disagree with. It so deeply cuts my heart on a normal day, but after standing in the foyer of the theater, and listening to Radney explain the night his daughter came to him with one of these words...it has haunted my soul for hours.  I have a lot of kids by any standards foreign or domestic, and I have often tried to analyze why I chose to have a large family. At 46 now, I think at the deepest part of who I am are these words of hate that I heard so many times loud and whispered throughout my life and I just wanted to grow some better humans.  I am in the process of accomplishing this and can only wonder what hurt will cross their paths in love for others.What I have learned is that some people hurt because they hurt on the inside. Kids learn from watching their broken adults hurt and bleed on others only to be heard. I've learned that a hug is good medicine and a prolonged hug is mystical. Looking into someone's eyes with a genuine smile makes a day go better or opens up a black box that should have never been kept but can be empty in minutes. I am a fan of people in love or in friendship or in an intensely honest relationship. When I photograph an event, my focus seems to be catching the good stuff. We need more. We need better words. We need to know that no matter what color you are, or where you are from, or what darkness has your life in captivity that the words needed are                                                            

YOU ARE AWESOME!                       I'm here for you

          I Understand        You Are Beautiful
I Care               I Love you           You Rock!
You are not alone        Let me help you
Amazing           So Smart!       You can do it!
         Gorgeous       I believe in you


 Children have such an innocence about them unless they were born into pain. It is the world around them that takes away the ability to see clearly. My Grace, who is almost 12, has the beautiful in her to love those in need. I would like to say that I have done something right but the truth is that she has taught me on several occasions what love looks like when it is done with a genuine heart. She is only one of 12 children that God has blessed me with and I bet  that is a direct reflection on the love I needed to learn after surviving my childhood. Seems evil goes after the purest of beings in our world...children. So we as the adults in charge, need to watch the way children play. We need to watch over those entrusted to us as guardians in a learning state of mind. We all come from diverse places and blood lines and cultures...but we cannot deny we are all human. Lets start there.

Photo found on sandycturk.blogspot.com















Not In My House
(Radney Foster/Allen Shamblin)

I’m a son of the south who heard that word too much
growing up.
Something down in my soul knew that was a stove
you shouldn’t touch
All that hate, all that shame, all that anger, all that pain
Redneck racist, hip hop rapper or some kid using it just for laughter

Not in my house, not from my mouth,
I’m gonna sing for the souls who get kicked around
Words aren’t a weapon just to cut you down
Not In my house

There’s a guy on the street with a sign that says
“God hates fags” and that’s so wrong
And it crushes my soul to see evil burn so strong
Stones and sticks, politics, the devil holds your coat while you get in your licks
Why do we think so small when God’s so big

Not in my house, not from my mouth,
I’m gonna sing for the souls that get kicked around
Words shouldn’t be a weapon just to cut you down
Not In my house

Tonight I own this stage
And me and this six string machine
are gonna kill some hate
‘Cause you don’t talk to my friends that way
You don’t talk to my brother that way
And you damn sure don’t talk to my daughter that way

Not in my house, not from my mouth,
Not on my watch, not when I’m around
Words aren’t a weapon just to cut a woman down
Not in my house, not from my mouth
I’m gonna sing for the souls that get kicked around
Words shouldn’t ve a weapon just to cut you down
Not In my house

©2014 Alamo Lounge Music (ASCAP), All rights administered by Kobalt Songs Music Publishing/Built On Rock Music (ASCAP) (admin. by Clear Box Rights)

Radney Foster – electric guitar, vocals

Monday, September 9, 2013

Hangers and Wet Laundry

Many years ago, I had several images impact my heart. Have you ever just been standing still and felt time wind to a stop as if it were intentionally trying to get  your attention? I have. I remember coming home one night from work on I-30 and watching a car spin out of control in front of me. As it bounced off the concrete median, I could not help but notice how slow it seemed to spin.  My heart sure was not beating slowly. My reactions to jerk my own steering wheel in a safe direction sure was not slow.  Although this very short occurrence in the past moments of my life seem to resemble one of these images burned into my brain that I have been trapped by tonight, it is not. I have, however: been able to travel back to several "dits" on my life's timeline to similar ones. The birth of my first daughter. My eyes cry even as I sit and briefly remember how precious that was. Even further back I can see out my window at 9 years of age as if there has been no time passed waiting on my first pet I lost to return home.  I had a friend at 12 years of age that came to my house one night, very late, only to tell me that her step brother had just raped her and her father hit her until she promised not to tell anyone. She told me. The horror of that moment was so innocent but burned into my heart with such helpless devotion to my friend. Years later I saw her at a neighborhood pool. The exchange of words spoken through childhood eyes was still saturated in a deep secret shamefully kept and she looked like the wreckage my heart felt for her years before. When I was 6, my new daddy, had hidden some Easter eggs in the yard. His delight was to see me frantically searching for the ever mischievous bunny that was just around the corner but I was not fast enough to catch him. I learned to be faster. My dad was watching me, but somehow, even through such young eyes, I have a vision of his very animated face cheering me on to catch that bunny! That very same yard is also where I found my first treasure, a silver dollar. I often wonder if he did not plant it in my favorite digging hole just so I could find the treasure that I KNEW was out there somewhere. I loved feeling the cold dirt and even mud on my hands!  I sure love him for those times. When I was young, I felt safe because he was my dad. I cannot explain why, I just did. He taught me to run into what I was afraid of. A friend is often defined by the trouble they help you avoid, but I love the partnership of defying that which strikes fear into the depths of our souls. Many dark passageways. I grew up going to the lake at my grandparents lake house in central Texas. The sun was hot and the water was ICE COLD! The ledge was a good 15 feet off the water and underneath was the unknown. The first time I determined in my gut and jumped into that scary shark infested LAKE, I must have been in the air for at least 5 minutes! Hitting the icy water sure made me wish I had been. It was one of many times that I would have a love affair with water or maybe just the exhilaration I felt while immersed in it. Still, this is just one of those memories that are time coded at half speed but not at a dead halt. I used to volunteer at an "old folks home". I know it is not politically correct to say that  now days but it has such sweet connotation to me. It has been lost to our children now to see things as they are and be able to share it appropriately from our their perspectives in a search to find a way to make all people happy. All people are not happy. All people are not equal in so many things. It is why we need each other. I miss those days terribly. Well, one day , while running into the rooms of old folks that could not leave their rooms nor did they have family to visit, I came across a man who was standing by his chair near a window. He was very tall and thin with the blackest hair I had ever seen on a face with so many wrinkles. He smiled so big when I walked in. Leaving his room at that point was not an option. We miss such sweet insight to the past and future when we run past careless pieces of our life that have no real rhyme or reason. At least , it seems that way at the time. That afternoon is a blur. It really was. Somewhere during that day I did leave but not until I heard that he was an Italian Officer in WWII, saw some pretty buttons that he caressed like an old friend, told me about men he had lost through a trembling voice, and a wife he missed dearly. At 14, I could not process those words of images, but now , much later, I often think of his smile. So few people smile like that anymore at anyone they do not know. I have always felt connected to something that I cannot explain but it always has a real face. His was one of them. That same year, I spent time with my Great Grandma by marriage only but she never, not one time, made me feel less important than any of the other great grand children. Man, did she have stories. Between General Hospital and As The World Turns, I heard of coming to Texas in a covered wagon. One time she took her shotgun to her sons after they broke a tree, I think. She looked at me and told me that she hit the ground on purpose cause she wasn't aimin' at any one of them boys  anyways. I was in awe of her. One of her 10 or 11 kids lived with her til she passed. Aunt Neil never married that I know of but she sure knew something about mothering a young girl. Taught me the proper way to snap peas and how amazing fried squash from your own garden tastes with a big glass of sweet tea. Too few years left at that point but I did not know such things. I laid on her bed with the cotton bedspread. You know the kind that feels so soft and  has loops all over it in designs. Huge windows and sweet summer breezes in Nanny's house one summer out of 45 or so now.  I don't have to close my eyes to live that moment again.  There was a day that stood out from some just like it  for some reason. I felt fear. I had felt fear before and walked in the darkness to conquer it before, but this was different. I had fallen in love and now had been thrown aside as if my love was not good enough. My sweet precious children were crying and the sirens were going off. A tornado had just touched down not 1 mile from my house. I had no car because he left it with the friend who took him to the airport to meet her for the first time. He never returned.  Two in diapers, and four looking at me in fright and I was scared for the first time in forever. I remember choking back the tears and calming my kids down with many prayers. Standing at the kitchen door, I was my laundry. I had no dryer and my laundry was getting wet and rained on and tossed about. I do not know what the wind speed was measured at, but there were only a few items of clothing left on the line by morning. It rained for a few days and I just watched my laundry get wet then dry, wet then dry. I did not even attempt to bring it in. It seemed so unreal that my laundry was still a complete family of clothes and we were not. Trees went down that first day and then again on the third day. The house next to ours had a tree that had been severed in two. A coat hanger was hangin on a knot of this broken tree. Just sitting there through the entire storm. It stayed on that tree knot through the wind and rain. I had no where to go so I watched my laundry not dry and the hanger not fall. The first day of sun, I discovered that my laundry was in the trees and I had boys underwear in places that I could not even go up to take down. This moment is frozen in time. This moment was when I was afraid and time stopped and  said, "Look!".  People are precious, no matter where they are or who they are or what pain they feel. The eyes of others have seen things that don't change with time.

 Take some time to borrow someone else's eyes~Mel

Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Words.

The Constitution is not an instrument for the government to restrain the people, it is an instrument for the people to restrain the government – lest it come to dominate our lives and interests. –
Patrick Henry


I chose to answer a post on my own wall this morning about a comment made last night by myself....it was curiously and mysteriously interrupted and disallowed by the facebook gremlins. So, I decided to write it somewhere safe and then link it like everything said should be done anyways. : )

Written last night by me:

"I FIND IT QUITE INTERESTING TO READ WHAT THE MEN WHO FOUNDED OUR GREAT COUNTRY WROTE AND PUBLICLY PROCLAIMED, WHEN WE ARE NOW GIVEN THE RIGHT TO SPEAK FREELY AND QUICKLY TOLD TO HUSH IN THE NAME OF PEACE."

       response from a fb friend:

       The freedom is there, but that doesn't mean everyone will like it. I may not agree with      
       (whoever)  but I say go ahead and say it. People getting irritated is not the same as it
       being illegal. You're not responsible for other people's reactions.

While this sounds good it started me thinking about the legalities of free speech. Why, in our country, can you go to jail or have your wallet raped by the powers that be, for something you say.


                                                                      Words.

"Sticks and stones may brake my bones, but words will never hurt me"
 
 
How many of us, as children cried, prissed, and yelled these words back at some other kid trying to hurt our feelings?  I sure had my fair share of it being the fat, little red- headed,  freckled, poor kid in school while my mom waited tables and my dad went to school and bar tended. Our forefathers spoke out generously with warnings and ideals often and until they were heard. Why, today is it legal to file against someone in court for something that is mere letters. There are words I loathe. The word nigger is one I do detest, not because I am black (I am not)or because I am ignorant (I am not), or because it evokes some personal pain I feel for a people wronged, but because it produces an arrogant wardrobe to those who use it and have no right to wear that wardrobe  for a difference in skin pigmentation. Should someone go to jail, I do not think so. I am a chunky, red-headed, Christian, conservative (in most things), mother of 11 children, who also believes that abortion for any reason is murder, homosexuality is a choice and not genetics, and that spanking children is a must when done without anger and as a last resort to teach bad behavior consequences. I hold dear my Bible and all who have gone before me and been killed for it along with the reverence of the soil I lay my head on and the blood shed to protect it.  I have had some of the most awful things said to my face in public by those compelled to try and make me feel bad for something they felt by my very presence. Should I file a lawsuit? No. Should I take the opportunity to speak and refute those possibly misplaced angers, yes. So many people today spout about their own rights, but fail miserably in my opinion to look at the possible addition they can contribute to society and posterity. My Nanny called it a legacy.
 
Legacy:
 
 anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor
 
I have heard the words Entitlement Generation used alot in the last few years. It rang in my brain as I watched the political monster move thru our country this election. Political promises to people who do not understand it is an impossibility to fullfill. The culture of our country is being redefined by a weakness to address the issues instead of pacify the incessant "toddler" in the room. Haven't you ever seen the frantic mother or father in the grocery store running around with the screaming brat of a kid, trying to buy their silence instead of turning that kid over their knee and rewarding that bad behavior with something as a reminder of what NOT to do? I have. That very minute (the one of panic buying), a parent has lost the honor and ability to effect and teach that child (future Americans) correctly. Government has never been an institution to be trusted. Ours is no different. Time and change has left us with people in charge that are stealing the safe and giving it to the neighbor across the street while shoving ice cream after ice cream down the screaming brat's face who wants nothing more than what it wants to feel good reguardless the consequence. So many people with their hands out wanting them filled with little to no reguard of the consequence to the security of the economy or future of our country and a pen in the other to check mark the box of who fills it more.
 
Entitlement at it's best (or worst).
 
I am not sad today because the guy I voted for, lost. I am sad today for the policies that are going to change our country from liberty and true freedom to dream, to a controlled and enslaved lifestyle that will not be known til it bares it's nasty teeth. Little ones, those who chose to live apart from the responsibilities of our country but want everything in return, will be the first to say ouch and wonder what and why.  I would look behind the curtain before you sound that cheer too loud. Money is not free,it cost someone.  Maybe you don't care about the future, have no kids, and want to party on what you can get from anyone first.....I am not.  That is all I have to say today. ~Mel
 
 
 
 

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Rash Of The Titans: Two Tons of Steel

Rash of the Titans by Dale Arnold of hwy82musicreview.com


There are rumors, and there are rumors, but the fact of the matter is one of the greatest icon bands in Texas music, Two Tons of Steel, has gone their separate ways. At least with the members we all have grown to know and love that is. Knowing this kind of thing happens frequently in the industry this is no shock to me and is to be expected. Musicians have great passion for their art and it can create huge riffs in the fabric of the space-time continuum when a group as well rounded and famous as Two Tons of Steel turns supernova. What most folks do not realize is the sacrifice our friends go through to stay on the top. The endless hours traveling from town to town, and gig to gig in the close confines of a van can take their toll. Staying away from home and loved ones for such long periods along with other issues that come up just from being around the same people day in and day out can be hard on even the best of friends. Musical interests change over time and every band member has a personal idea of what they want their career to be, and an opinion of how to get it there. I have seen it happen many times over the years as members change and morph into other bands, and great bands separate looking for that ever-elusive perfect sound that propels them into the high-dollar arenas. Let us face a fact that is what the quest for the true final nirvana is; Finding the one great opportunity; the one big break that propels a band into stardom. It is a quaint idea most of us blissfully entertain that musicians play simply for the love of the song, but in today’s world that is growing more increasingly rare. It is naiveté for all of us on this side of the fence to think our favorite musicians and bands do not want; nay need this to be able to continue to bring us the wonderful sounds and lyrics we all enjoy so much.
This is where we come in as friends and fans that support these high-spirited folks and show them that no matter what the reasons were for the dissection were still out here and still listening. Sure, it is hard to grasp that the band members will not be the same anymore. Sure, it is a little un-nerving to think the sound may change from what we know and love. Sure, we may have alliances to some of the jilted members for whatever reasons. But putting all of the selfish and prideful issues aside, just think of all of the new and even greater possibilities. Change is an opportunity to grow. We have the opportunity to dissipate the differences and anxieties. We have an opportunity to move in a different direction under an entirely new set of circumstances.
From the bands perspective the separation can produce new music, and new sounds. The time apart can give the space needed to heal any wounds caused in the name of passion. The infusion of new members not only adds some fresh new sound to the mix but new direction and new ideas. The separate musicians are now able to pursue personal interests related to family, musical careers, or primary jobs. New bands formed and new friendships are forged. I say there is more to gain all around from the dissolve of a group so we should not pine and despair. Seize the day my fellow Two Tons fans. Pray for all of the guys and hope them the best. Look forward to new territory and new beginnings. The Beatles, the Eagles, Crosby Stills and Nash, John David Kent and The Dumb Angles, Two Bar Town, Whiskey Road Show, Miles From Nowhere, and now Two Tons of Steel, it has happed to us all at one time of another. A meeting of the minds and a parting of the ways is sometimes necessary. I wish Kevin, Dennis, Chris R., and Doddsy all of the best as I know everyone of their die-hard fans out here do. I look forward to hearing and seeing each one of them again out on the circuit alone, or together. I am proud to call them my friends, and I will support them in whatever endeavors they have. I’ll be the loudest one in the front row when the reunion tour comes around. Two Tons! Two Tons!

Dale Arnold
Co-owner, CIS officer
Texas Red Productions
Texas Red Photography
www.hwy82musicreview.com





Monday, July 2, 2012

Breathing, when you want to hold it or scream!

For all my grammar freaky friends, this blog will undoubtedly drive you batty. I will be as unethically grammatically wrong as possible to make my point with pictures, runons, and inappropriately placed punctuation. Jus' sayin' ahead of time: )

I slowed down today, when on a normal day, I wake up racing to the coffee pot, drink one cup really fast while making breakfast for my brood, start a few projects on the computer, answer more than a few phone calls, run someone to somewhere that needs to be there NOW, only to do the same repetition of activities two more times during the day. At the tail end of that day, take a shower that puts me to sleep before I stumble to the bed. Today was a different travel for me and an intentional one at that. I realized that my little one was asking me to look at him in the face. One of my teenagers mumbled something in passing that did not even register until he was headed up the stairs. My 5 year old daughter said she did not feel special today...........................that one hurt a little more than I wanted to admit to at first. It is true that I "have alot on my plate" with 9 kids at home, a husband worn smooth out, and a business to run almost alone. I thrive on the activity of it all  most days, but TODAY I had to tell myself

STOP!!

     STOP!!!    STOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
                                                            STOP!!!                               
STOP!!!!                                                                 STOP!!!!!


I took a deep breath, which I reccommend to all who have over-achieving brain activity in order to allow more oxygen in.  I called a friend who could relate to most of all what I was going through, but certainly not the kid factor. My goodness, how easily we dive into the activity that surrounds those we love without much thought to how the activity may just be a selfish endeavor covered up by a blanket of reasons why we love those people in our lives. Might be is all I said becuase I certainly don't think I am only doing these things for myself. I am saying that once in a while, look into those little eyes and love 'em back no matter how inconvienent it might seem. Sip the coffee instead of down it for the next two or three.(Some of us are also guilty of the monster addiction: )) The handholding and kissing in a normal day is far over looked by those in my position too. So very little investment that I almost overlooked the HUGE returns! Life is crazy enough.....I KNOW because I actually stopped and read some news today. THIS I DO NOT RECCOMMEND TOO OFTEN. I don't know who realy cares anymore or who truly listens to my rants, but I do know that we all seem to be hurting and hurting the wrong people in our lives...not that you should hurt ANYONE, but it is inevitable if you chose to love someone else. Sometimes, we hurt those closest to us because we cannot see past the last one we loved that hurt us. Seems to me that it is all so messed up way too often and it makes my heart sad at being anything remotely close to a hurt for someone I say I love dearly..........stay connected. Stay soft. Don't buy into that line of thought that the HURTING ONES have to believe in to survive. I took a deep breath today. Loved on my little ones more. Went to McDonalds with my 5 yr old(which I cannot personally stand!) Took time to pray with them before bed. (Even though my two youngest boys decided to secretly get their older brothers super glue and proceed to stick it to their TEETH!!!!! Where do they come up with this stuff!) I sent my husband a "sweet text" and then a hug. I am going to practice, just tomorrow, looking at who is talking to me. Hug my husband when I see him (He is one of the hurting ones without eyes to see me,YET) I am going to listen more than I speak (HAHA I will just write more I think! but that doesn't count : ) The world is just as crazy, the mean lady at the grocery store will still burn a hole in my head for being in her way, and I will still be behind on my projects until they are done. I will still have just as much to do, but maybe, just maybe! those little changes will change how what I am doing is percieved by the LOVED ONES in my circle of life. I stopped, and took a deep breath.

NOTATION:
Some elements of my rant may not make sense to some, hit spot on for others and be completely picked apart by a few left.....but I sure hope that it was condusive enough for YOU to have taken something with you when you finished. We, NONE OF  US, are perfect, but don't settle for the UN'S IM'S and IN'S at all.

unloving
inconsiderate
unattentive
intolerant
unappreciative
inappropriate
uncaring
untrusting
impatient
unsharing
impertinant
unreasonable

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Thank you Mark Allan Atwood.....the most eloquently spoken description of my work...... EVER.


"Melissa's work www.texasrephotography.com brings to photography what songwriters and performers can only hope their art brings to the ears and hearts of their fans. There's a vibe, an 'aliveness' to her live music photographs that literally steals the moment, places it captive in her hands and then allows later viewers to relive more than merely the look of that second in time. Her grasp of colors, contrast, angles and the very emotions that ripple across the faces and bodies of the performers she photographs, allows her to tell a story as powerful as any of her subjects. Further, her understanding of those same requirements to capturing great live shots helps her still photo work to be anything but still, brimming with life and a realness hard to translate through a lens. Simply put, she has a gift for both creating and recreating, that elevates her work to the top of my list."   
                                                                                   

                                                                                    Mark Allan Atwood www.markallanatwood.com