[Leica] A Better 2011

[jayanand at gmail.com (Jayanand Govindaraj)]

Bill,
Here's hoping 2011 treats you better.

I, too, am in the queue for the book!

Cheers
Jayanand

p.s. That Happy Ewe Near sounds like something Isaac Asimov would have
dreamt up.


On Sat, Jan 1, 2011 at 12:03 PM, Bill Clough <bill_clough at yahoo.com> 
wrote:

> USA
> TEXAS
> VICTORIA
> 01 January 2011
>
> Dear LUG family--
>
>     Two stories--both unfinished.
>
>     In 1984 I was the feature editor for the Estes Park Trail Gazette,
> adjacent
> to Rocky Mountain Nation Park in Colorado. In late December, just at dusk,
> the
> snows brought the mountain sheep down from the high country. I took a
> picture
> >similar< to this one, of a female sheep with her head slightly turned
> because
> she was trying to figure out what that reflection was she was seeing in my
> 500mm
> f8 mirror lens.
>
>     She stood full frame in the falling snow. We waited to run until
> January 1,
> 1985 with the headline:
>
>     HAPPY EWE NEAR
>
>     The paper kept the best negatives. So all I can offer is one of the
> shots I
> managed to keep:
>
>     http://gallery.leica-users.org/v/Bill1941/Happy+Ewe+Near.jpg.html
>
>     In the 1990s the family that owned the paper sold it to the Denver
> Post. One
> of the first decisions the new dorkwad of a publisher made was to announce
> from
> now on the paper was to be running only color photographs. And, he said, he
> needed storage. So, he ordered five decades of black-and-white negatives
> thrown
> into the dumptster, along with all the back copies of the paper dating back
> to
> 1914.
>
>     This stupid example of inhumanity was fired because of public outrage.
> But
> by then, of course, it was too late.
>
>     The second story:  Earlier this month, my wife lost her job and, on
> December
> 28th, the editor of the Victoria Advocate fired me. He has been on a long
> campaign to rid himself of those he inherited when he took over the paper.
> Last
> month, it was my turn.
>
>     Being nearly 70, I find the options limited but refuse to believe my
> only
> choice is at which Walmart would I like to be a greeter.
>
>     The good news--I now have time to finally, finally, start working on
> that
> promised book of Texas Panhandle photos. Stay tuned.
>
>     I have no idea what 2011 holds. But two truths are evident: It's got to
> be
> better than 2010 and I am NOT going to sell the Leicas.
>
>     My best wishes to all for a Happy New Year.
>
> --Bill
>
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