I've been on the computer a lot, but working on our local story group's website. I finally got it on the Internet (bristolstorytellers.org) but since I'd started before Christmas, it had holiday images on it. When I attempted to edit it, I was forced to call for technical help and found that although I still had the file on my desktop, the posted file had been "corrupted," and could not be edited. (As a writer, I find computer language like "corrupted" eerily metaphorical.) This meant that I would have to re-do the file information, so that's what I've been working on.
Complicating all this was the fact that I was running out of memory on my hard disk (that's what had corrupted the web files, the techies told me) so I had to increase memory. I threw away all the software I could spare, then thanks to good friend Molly moved almost all my photos to Flash Drives. Not even that did the trick, so I pulled out the external hard drive my son-in-law had given me for a Christmas gift in 2007 (!) but which had intimidated me so I wasn't using it. I took a deep breath and went step by step and hey! it was easy! Especially when I called on the techies again twice yesterday and once during the week. So by Sat. I was ready to re-work the website and got half of it done. Hope to finish today, but I had to take a break and do something else for awhile. Thus, this post.
I do want to report on the storytelling event I was supposed to take part in on Feb. 5. Remember? The snow and ice kept me isolated for two days. Well, the event (Arts Array program at Virginia Highlands Community College) was highly successful without me. Honestly, I'm not sure I should rejoice or grieve, but practically, I am rejoicing. In spite of the harshly cold evening, between 80 and 100 people came to hear four of my colleagues who are members of our Beaver Creek Storytellers. Reportedly, the storytelling was excellent, the audience entertained and appreciative, and the storytellers made enough money to cover their gas and meals plus change for their pockets.
Our guild operates differently than many storytelling organizations. We are not incorporated, but we do have some policies just so we stay on the same page. One of which is that if there is any payment involved, or a "gate" from admission charges, after expenses are paid and if our treasury has enough in it for expected annual expenses, then storytellers, musicians if any, and the M.C. divvy up the "take" (except for fundraisers) minus 10 per cent for the BCS treasury. In the case of the Arts Array program, the college paid us $250 which was divided by five storytellers. The M.C. was our member, Paul, who is an employee of the college so he did not get paid by the college. The five storytellers included me, but I didn't tell. So in lieu of the 10% that should have gone to our Treasury, I endorsed my check over to BCS to make it fair. Whew! High finance!
In the beginning, I struggled with this idea of paying the storytellers, because I was used to tellers doing their telling out of the goodness of their hearts for their organization. However, our members did not agree with me, and I finally realized that many of our members, not all but many, cannot spare any money for gasoline, or meals, even coffee that is often involved in doing a gig. So instead of a fat treasury out of which we might buy t-shirts, or select one person (who? who? who? of several who would like to go?) to send to a conference, or record a cd that fewer than 100 people will buy, or put out a fancy brochure, we let our storytellers defray their expenses. The longer I've lived with this policy, the better I like it.
Well I did not mean to write about Beaver Creek Storytellers, but I wanted you to know that we had a good program on Feb. 5--without my presence! Ironically, I did not get to watch the Westminster Dog Show that night because it wasn't on. I had made a mistake and had to wait a week to see it.
Now for some bird pictures! Mimi
