From the Haugen Heart

"All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them" This is a quote from Walt Disney, a man with unfailing determination and vision. I used to look down my nose at the vast Disney empire with its amusement parks, cutesy fuzzy animals, and too formulaic movies. I was especially annoyed when he took my favorite children's stories of all time, A.A. Milne's, Winnie the Pooh and "Disneyfied" them. In the original, the characters have depth and the humor is sweet but sophisticated. Not so in Disney's version. As I have grown older and wiser, I have to admit that good, old Walt was quite a guy. There was a lot more to him than a keen sense of what would sell to the masses. He truly was a visionary and had the single mindedness and perseverance to bring his dreams to fruition.  He knew exactly what he was about.... what "Disney" was about, and knew how to lead others along with him without falling into the traps that most of u...

Sonia just joined the ranks of high school graduates. I have photographed her older sisters, her little niece, the family....what's next? I hope you are heading out into the world to do great things, Sonia! Can you tell that Sonia has a thing for Nike's?

I better start out by saying that I am no Martha Stewart. You won't find me creating perfect centerpieces and creative name cards for all my soirees. My cooking is basic, my home is hardly pristine and the decorating is less than picture perfect. I hardly dare to say that I like gardening. That might cause one to come to my home with visions of lush flower beds brimming with color and a neat and tidy vegetable garden laid in symetrical, neat, weed-free rows. The reality is that I am still trying to figure out how to keep the flowers from drying up in the heat of summer, how to keep the deer from eating the tulips and tomatoes, and how to keep THE WEED from taking over my garden. I have been doing battle with THE WEED when I can squeeze in time between photography and family time. I don't know what it is but it has been slowly taking over my garden for the last three years. Maybe someone will tell me what it is and I really hope they will tell me about some nasty chemical tha...

    I get to know the most interesting people! Yesterday it was Janie. Janie Martin is an entertainer. I first met her as a singer with the Salem Big Band a few years back but her singing goes far beyond the big band style. She can croon or belt a song and have a crowd eating out of her hand. When she contacted me about doing photographs for her new website, I knew that the images had to sell her dynamic personality and the way she comes to life in front of an audience. They had to show how her eyes dance and sparkle. They had to make you sit up and take notice and want to listen to her. Janie is also a hypnotist! How cool is that? If you need a good hypnotist, be sure to visit her website. If you want to hear her sing Big Band, you can give her a listen on YouTube. You can also hear some more recent vocals on her new singing website.