2 weeks later.....

It's been 2 weeks since I spent 4 days in a desert oasis.  2 weeks to process the pictures and sort out the things that were good about being in Palm Springs with 85 women.  And 1 man.

There was a lot of anxious anticipation before the event unfolded for me.  I suppose that comes with the territory.

I traveled on a Sunday, meeting for the first time one of my fellow collaborators for the Focusing on Life blog, and 3 other ladies bound for the same destination.  Once in Palm Springs, I went to a lunch and met 4 other collaborators and several other ladies I had come to know online.

What was I worried about?  Everyone was just the same in person as they were online.  Kind, genuine, interesting and caring.

Once I arrived at the event site, we attended a meet and greet.  It was a little surreal in that I was meeting people that I had learned so much from online, people who knew what they were doing and people who were good at what they did.  And they were kind, genuine, interesting and caring.

I found myself wondering, more than once during that 4 days, what was I doing there?  There were many people that were professional photographers.  They got paid for their pictures.  They paid their bills with the money they made from their pictures.  I just take random pictures, for fun.  What was I thinking when I signed up for this?

Palm Springs is a desert oasis.  The weather was very nice while we were there.  I went out in search of a beautiful sunrise, but since there is a lack of clouds and moisture in the air, the show was not as spectacular as I'm used to.  There was some good color and lots of palm tree silhouettes though.

The architecture is mid-century modern.  It's like Palm Springs is stuck in the 60's.  The hotel we stayed at used to be a Howard-Johnsons.  The hotels that were 2 stories and you walked outside when you left your room.  I remember staying at those when I was a kid.  This isn't the hotel we stayed at.  It was across the street, I just liked it.   Did I mention there are palm trees everywhere?

We stayed at the Ace Hotel and Resort.  We had an area to ourselves called the "Commune" and our own pool.  We met there and played there and ate there everyday.  It was nice.

And mountains.  Mountains all around the city.  We were treated to a tram ride to the top of the mountain.  I enjoyed that.  Pine trees, much cooler temperatures and terrific views awaited us at the top.

We were fed all but 2 meals and were treated to a couple of cocktail hours, a stories and sweets evening and a movie and dessert night.  The commune also held the computers, printers and supplies to print out pictures.  The 1 man present was the HP IT guy, Jason.  He was very helpful and a lot of fun.  I can't imagine having to keep paper and ink in the printers and keep 85 women happy as they print pictures!

We had a learning session in the mornings and a hands on session in the afternoons.  There was polaroid cameras, lensbaby's and Lifeproof cases to try.  I wish I had tried the Lifeproof case!  I didn't bring a swimsuit, but if I had known about the Lifeproof cases, I might have!

It was so nice to be able to meet so many people I have known online for so long!  It was so nice to be with people that wanted to share information and tips and tricks.  People that didn't care if I was taking pictures with my phone or what I was taking a picture of!

Downtown Palm Springs has this giant statue of Ms Monroe.  This is one of my favorite pictures from my trip!

Many people who attended Shutter Sisters Oasis experienced a little difficulty re-entering their daily lives.  I didn't have trouble getting back in the swing of things but I did have difficulty explaining to people about my trip when they would ask how it was.  I knew that as soon as I tried, their eyes would glaze over.  It was one of those things where "you had to be there".   I finally decided to just answer that I had a good time.

I can't believe this trip has come and gone.  It went by fast.  As I left, I wondered if I would go to another event like this.  As a little time has passed and I have thought through what Shutter Sisters Oasis meant to me, I think I might go again next year.