Perspective and Technology

I'm taking a writing class. It started today. The name of it is, "Writing in the digital age". I've always been an outdoor person and the fact that I started to use computers in1992 is a little contradictionary to my person. In high school it was only "the nerds" that were interested in computers. I was a snowboarder and did not fit well with "the nerd" stereotype. Therefore I believe it surprised some of my friends when I choose "Advanced Computer Science" and "How to Build a Webpage" as side classes. I actually had a "blog" in1995. I didn't know about the concept of blogging, of course. What I had was an online snowboard diary. I see no difference in what I did back then and modern blogging, except everything is a lot easier to do now. 

Technology actually has a great impact on my every day life. I'm still an outdoor person. I need to be outdoors everyday, otherwise I feel sick. Still I also find myself using a lot of modern technology while practicing my outdoor activities. I always have a GPS, for safety. I sometimes use a GoPro (a little film camera you can attach on your head/helmet/board etc.) to film my adventures. I have a Nikon D5100 to capture my animals and the magical sceneries I encounter on my adventures. I have a MacBook Pro to edit/store pictures and for blogging.

My husband Philip

I met my husband online, on a horse forum (discussing a cross country ride), before meeting him in real life. I also met other amazing people with similar interests online. Like Cindy Hartzell, one of my guest bloggers on http://discoveringranchlife.blogspot.com. I first "met her" on Facebook. We've been discussing horse related topics for over a year now. Last weekend Cindy and her husband, Bruce, came and stayed with us over the weekend. It was awesome to meet her in real life. I love the networking opportunities that the internet opens up for likeminded people. That's the major reason why I like blogging.

Cindy and Bruce Hartzell

I'm very excited about this writing class I'm taking. Today's assignment was about events that affected our perspective.

There are several life changing events that changed my perspective, and made me reevaluate them over and over again. 

• I remember being12 years old and having my whole existence turned upside down. My mother died in cancer. 

• A few years later when I was 19 I ran away from home to escape the rage of my violent stepfather, and the captivating cult he belonged to.  

• The number one thing that changed my life forever is of course the birth of my two children. Life is never going to be the same after being blessed with the gift of motherhood.

• Moving to another continent, leaving family, friends, a good job, my culture, country and native language also opened up my mind to different points of view I never imagined. The most challenging thing for me is probably the language. Going from being a teacher to not being able to express myself the way I want to is extremely frustrating. 

• However my hope is that the realization that I can live my dreams despite my past, is the one thing that has the biggest impact on my life. That's what I want to capture with my camera and write about. 

All these events are about finding freedom. In that process, nature is where I have found that freedom and peace of mind. My horses have enhanced my connection with nature.

I'm well aware of that all these themes affect who I am and what I write about. 

Trigger and I, in Eldorado National Forest.