A Year Ago (and the story) A little over a year ago (January, 2018), I returned from a trip to the middle east. It was a very active trip with lots of hiking and exploring. Before the trip, my friend's wife and kids all had the flu. During the trip, he came down with the flu (he brought with him from home), and after the trip, I got it. While recovering from the flu, I got an email saying I could get a HUGE discount from Smith Micro on Poser 11. So, I bought it to try it out. (Note: back when Poser 1 came out, I tried it and shoved it aside. But, laying in bed recovering I decided 10 releases later, why not give it a try again.) I wasn't fully recovering from the flu. I had more time on my hands than I knew what to do with, so I started diving in to Poser, and discovered DAZ3D. With both on my laptop, I began to experiment with both. This picture is one of my first serious attempts to create a story. The story -- the Farmer's Daughter. Months went by and I thought I was just out of shape from the H3N2 flu virus, but my wife convinced me to go to the doctor. A few more months passed and I finally got to see a specialist who diagnosed me with Myasthenia Gravis, a neuromuscular disease in the muscular dystrophy family. Basically, the more I use a muscle, the weaker that muscle gets. They think the flu triggered this disease. (They don't know what causes MG. It's not contagious. You don't inherit it. It usually strikes women in their 20s-30s, and men in their 60s. When people contract it, there is normally some physical trauma right before hand. For me, they think the flu set it off.) Making adaptations, which I had to to survive, we mounted my computer monitor and keyboard so I don't have to do much movement to use my computer. Part of my disease's symptoms is cognitive dysfunction (I call it brain fog) which makes it difficult for me to do stuff that requires concentration, but painting and drawing are things I can tolerate and do in a reclined position. DAZ and Poser kind of fit in that painting and drawing. This cognitive dysfunction may make it difficult for me to balance my checkbook, but what I do with art isn't an exact science. (Sometimes... no, often, I'll miss pokies, or a figure will look like it's 3 inches off the ground, but I can always go back and adjust it on one of my good days.) This picture, the Farmer's Daughter, reminds me of how far I've come with DAZ and Poser. While I mourn for the guy I used to be -- active, on the go all the time, strong -- it gives me a sense of satisfaction knowing I'm doing something meaningful with my time. The fact that many of you comment on my pictures really makes my day. I read every comment. I may not always reply, because replying is difficult at times, but I always read them AND appreciate them. Well, enough said. Reading small text on the screen causes my eyes to cross (a symptom of MG), and that's starting to happen, so it's time to close my eyes and take a break.