Winter Tree Reflected in Raindrop

Photo shot in the rain at Robson Harrington Park Gardens

Rose Hips - Variations on a Theme

Top:  Rose hip photographed in Berkeley Botanical Garden 2/2017 with Lucy's legs from the 1970s merged with a recent rose photo

Bottom:  Lucy 1956, photo by E.A. Autrey, with same 2/2017 rose hips layered on top.

Republicans Aren't Thinking Straight on Overturning Gun Laws to SSDI Recipients

     According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), as of 2013, approx. 35.2% of recipients of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) receive it for mental health reasons vs 64.8% who receive SSDI for physical disability.  On Feb 2, 2017, according to Politicu Usa, House Republicans voted to overturn an Obama administration ruling that blocked disability recipients with mental disorders from buying guns.  This move surprised me, not because the Republican Party always sides with gun manufactures, regardless of the societal cost, but because it doesn’t make sense financially – something the Republicans espouse.  

     I was surprised when I retired, after nearly 50 years of working, to find I would have received more money from Social Security if I were disabled than I was going to receive from all of my years of working and contributing.  I have no problem helping out people who need extra help - within reason. But this doesn’t make much sense to me.  And the situation has gotten worse over time.  Based on a study by the Cato Institute in 2013, titled ‘The Rising Cost of Social Disability Insurance,’ “the number of SSDI beneficiaries jumped from 4.3 million in 1990, to 6.7 million in 2000, to 10.9 million in 2012, and the ratio of SSDI beneficiaries to all working-age people has doubled in the last two decades.”  This upward trend is not because there are more disabled people around, as the report states “the share of the U.S. working-age population reporting a severe disability has remained stable,” it is because more people are relying on SSDI permanently who are capable of working but can’t find a job, which is clearly a problem.

     Since Republicans would prefer to have fewer people taking SSDI payments, why not keep a policy that does not allow them to possess fire arms.  That would reduce the number of people who file for SSDI, who don’t really qualify, and who are obsessed with their right to bear arms.  It would also keep guns out of the hands of the 33% of SSDI recipients who do have mental health issues and should not be running around armed and dangerous.  This is a win win for people who would welcome more intelligent gun controls, and for people looking for ways to cut government costs. 

Some other gun statistics I learned when doing research for the George Lucas Books title "Cause of Death" here:

http://causeofdeathbook.blogspot.com/2008/11/how-americans-use-guns.html

Beauty Rises From the Thorns

Recent picture from the Berkeley Botanical Gardens.

Someone Has Lost Their Marbles

Photo collage with underwater shot of glass marbles and B&W photo taken around 1967

Beautiful Green Nature Textures

One of a series of photos taken around the neighborhood in Marin County after the rain.  More from this photo session at https://www.shutterstock.com/g/Lucy+Autrey+Wilson

Fear of the Future

E.A. Autrey photo from the 1950s with a night shot in Marin County in 2015

Quilted Art Panels

E.A. Autrey "Self Portrait" pastel 

Lucy Autrey Wilson "Independent Bee" pen & ink

Lucy Autrey Wilson "Mouth, Nose and Boots" pencil

Lucy Autrey Wilson "The Taylor Twins School Daze" photo

J.A. Autrey "Abstract" watercolor with glitter

J.L. Autrey "Baby Tiger" watercolor

J.L. Autrey "Blue Bird" watercolor with button

E.A. Autrey "Gas Pump" watercolor and "All American Shoe" etching

Between Storms

View of Phoenix Lake from the climb up Bald Hill

Moss and Lichen Growing Over Everything

Robson-Harrington old door with lichen covered brick wall.  Big contrast from the last several drought years.  Now there is too much water!

Mt. Vision Winter Fern

One of a number of new photos up at https://www.shutterstock.com/g/Lucy+Autrey+Wilson

Corte Madera Creek Raging Through Downtown San Anselmo

Day after the big storm, the river has gone down a bit.

1950s Embroidered Photos

Photos by the late, great E.A. Autrey.  Printed 8 1/2 x 11 on Hiromi MM-5 Shiramine paper, then embroidered.  Color pencil added to the top picture only.

Top:  Lucy in the backyard in Santa Barbara, July, 1954
Bottom:  Lucy posing in our messy house, all dressed up, in June, 1958.

I like what some artists are doing with found photos and added embroidery.  But, I'd rather work with photos taken by my father, than pictures of people I don't even know.  So as not to upset my siblings, I'm forced to work on pictures of myself - not because I'm an egocentric person, like some people I won't name, who should not be running the country.

Layered Blurry Photos

The experimentation continues

Taking Appealing Blurry Photos is Harder Than it Looks!

Anticipating a very stormy, blurry, weekend, I ventured into the backyard today, while the sun was out, to experiment with blurry photos using my Nikon digital camera and a 100mm macro lens.  More results are here:  https://www.facebook.com/lucyautreywilsonart/