NYC and Thanksgiving

I took a trip to NYC the week before Thanksgiving for a photography workshop. You know how something works out so much better than you ever imagined?  That happened here - the combination of the photographer who led the workshop and his team, the combination of people who attended, the mind set I had going in...they all made for a very special time.  

Returning home I thought a short week of work would be fairly easy but that was not to be - it turned out to be fairly hectic.

Thanksgiving was at my house this year with my mother, sister's and brother's families.  It is always a wonderful time, and this year the star of the show was the chocolate cake my sister in law brought.  Oh my, that cake was amazing! And Gus didn't steal anything - last year he helped himself to coconut cake which we now know is not life threatening to dogs, though it is a bit, ahem, rich.

Much to think about over the balance of the holiday weekend.

I hope you had a memorable Thanksgiving.

Budding Photographer

The friends of the park have hired experts in weed control.  The herd of sheep includes a few goats and a  billy goat.  And perhaps most importantly, Anatolian Shepherds. These dogs are mixed into the flock at a very young age and grow up thinking they are sheep.  And protect them.

I told Olivia about them, and of course we had to go see them.  They had made short work of the creek section they were in and were having a Sunday siesta.

After getting a good look on both sides of the creek, Olivia had to go back and get her Leapster camera.

Triplets

Shepherd in the flock.

This has really drawn the whole neighborhood out - people come by to just sit and watch the sheep.  They hop across the rocks in the creek, bleat for each other, the bells on the necks of some of the goats clang now and then...it's a really peaceful scene.  Contrast that with the cacophony of mowers and weed eaters.

This way is better.  

Definitely.

Heart

I've been saying a lot of prayers lately.  I've got some things on my mind.  We had a humdinger of a thunderstorm late Sunday afternoon, and the normally sanguine goldens retreated to their comfort zones of choice (one on the bed and one right next to me wherever that was).  When I let them out well after the winds, thunder and rain had subsided, I found this as we were coming back in.

No where else on the deck were other tulip poplar leaves that looked like this - I looked.

This is not an answer to prayer...but I think it's a response.

And one more thing:  I got a 365 day photo prompt afterward - after it was long dark outside -  that said take a photo of a heart.

Day 2 of Denis Reggie workshop

Today was the last day of a 2 day seminar with Denis Reggie, who is an internationally renowned wedding photographer.  His clientele list ranges from prominent American families to celebrities to the girl next door.  He is generous, gregarious and passionate about what he does.  He photographed Maria Shriver's wedding.  The wonderful photo of JFK, Jr kissing his bride's hand on Cumberland Island, GA?  That was Denis.

It was a wonderful time spent with photographers who want to get to their next level. And I am fortunate that he offers seminars like this where I live. No luggage or hotel.  No getting camera equipment through airport security. 

Awesome.

Happy Thanksgiving to You!

This historic proclamation was issued by George Washington during his first year as President. It sets aside Thursday, November 26 as "A Day of Publick Thanksgiving and Prayer."


Signed by Washington on October 3, 1789 and entitled "General Thanksgiving," the decree appointed the day "to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God."



While there were Thanksgiving observances in America both before and after Washington's proclamation, this represents the first to be so designated by the new national government.



After their first harvest, the colonists of the Plymouth Plantation held a celebration of food and feasting in the fall of 1621. Indian chiefs Massassoit, Squanto and Samoset joined in the celebration with ninety of their men in the three-day event.



The first recorded Thanksgiving observance was held on June 29, 1671 at Charlestown, Massachusetts by proclamation of the town's governing council.



During the 1700s, it was common practice for individual colonies to observe days of thanksgiving throughout each year. A Thanksgiving Day two hundred years ago was a day set aside for prayer and fasting, not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is today's custom. Later in the 18th century each of the states periodically would designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of a military victory, an adoption of a state constitution or an exceptionally bountiful crop.

Such a Thanksgiving Day celebration celebration was held in December of 1777 by the colonies nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga.



Later, on October 3, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling for the observance of the fourth Tuesday of November as a national holiday.



In 1939, President Franklin D. Roosevelt moved the holiday to the third Thursday of November (to extend the Christmas shopping season and boost the economy). After a storm of protest, Roosevelt changed the holiday again in 1941 to the fourth Thursday in November, where it stands today.

May we all be mindful of our many blessings.

I wish you all a day of family, friends and peace.

Company Day

Every year my company has Company Day.  The purpose was for everyone to get together from all our various offices and spend time together having fun.  This year's was one of the best, I think because the event returned to its roots.

We had group events:

We climbed walls:

Saw old friends:

Hung out and watched:

Raced tricycles:

and relaxed after lunch:

I'm fortunate to work for a company that takes time out to have fun.  It's an investment in the team. 

Old Buildings

I like old buildings.  It's rare to find an old building being rehabbed in downtown Atlanta.  One of the reasons is the cost is prohibitive.  Spacing of columns in old buildings prevents the 'open' floorplans so popular today.

But look at the brick work on this guy.  It's so much more attractive at its core than today's I-beams and concrete.

I really hope that the slow economy prevents this one coming down before someone with some imagination and a passion for old buildings can figure out a solution that both makes money and preserves history.

And that's a rare combination.

iPhone fun

I have the Scout Mob app on my iPhone.  A part of that is a camera option that lets you pick a mustache and then take a portrait shot of someone with the desired mustache.  My niece thought that was so much fun, she wanted to model with all the 'staches...

My other niece actually smiled for a photo with another app I have - the Hipstamatic app.  I love this one because of the smile, but also because it looks as if it could have been taken back in the 1970s.

About the time the photo fun was waning, the food arrived. 

So, there you have it:  how to make time pass when you're waiting for your order to arrive.  Play with an iPhone or equivalent!

Post Cards

I think I mentioned that I signed up for two pen pals on the Shutter Sisters site, and one of my interweb friends wanted to be a pen pal also.  That was the impetus to have some of my photos turned into post cards.

The arrival of my order from Moo gave me such a lift.  I had sent cards in the first round of snail mailing because my postcard order got held up; but when the postcards came in, I promptly wrote 3 of them.  At work Monday, I walked down to the post office and bought post card stamps.  And found that somewhere along the line I had lost one of my post cards.  So, ME, the one that I wrote to you is on the lower left side - the impatien ballerina ;)  I put a replacement in the mail to you today, and so regret that I lost the post card!

Coming home to check the mail is so much more fun now. 

In one of my art magazines, I found an idea for making letters from junk mail.  I have an idea to blend that and some of my photos...

Make someone's day - mail a card.  It's so much more than an email.

Wedding Photography

This weekend the daughter of a dear friend gathered her bridesmaids for a fitting and to share her wedding dress choice with them.  I got to play photographer (yay!). As is tradition, no photos of the dress are shown lest they spoil the surprise for the groom.  From what I saw this weekend, it will be a lovely wedding party in January, and the groom will have a beautiful bride.

I offer you a glass of champagne to join in a toast to romance and the happy couple. And to the stamina of the mother of the bride.

Below is a reaction shot - Julia is coming out of the dressing room...this is a series of 4-5 photos that I think turned out very well, and if you only could see those few photos, you'd know the complete story of the day.

It was fun to put a toe in the shallows of wedding photography.  I've often thought that might be one of the most pressure filled assignments, and this weekend confirmed it.  The stakes are so high - it's a high point in any couple's life and to miss a moment or fumble a photo would be so disappointing. It also proved that I'm going to have to break down and learn flash photography if I want to do much event photography.  I'll have to mull that one over.

Treat Yourself

Nothin' says self-lovin' like somethin' from the oven.

Remember the Pillsbury Dough Boy saying that? 

Well, sort of that. 

This was strictly in pursuit of today's photo assignment.  No other cookies were baked other than the 5 in the shot.

Otherwise I would have been perfectly content with the luscious canteloupe I got at the farmer's market Saturday.

Really.

Sprinklers & Sparklers

When I think of summertime play, I think of running through sprinklers or water fights with the hose. Water figured prominently in summertime, whether we had a pool or not. 

And we always had those Black Cat firecrackers that we used to...well, I'm not sure the statute of limitations has run on that.  And sparklers - they were magical.  We lit them and held them, wondering at the magic of light, and as we got older, wrote words or made shapes in the dark with them.

That was when the prospect of summer stretched out before us, limitless like the Gulf of Mexico when we went  to Panama City Beach for the day.

My birthday each summer was bittersweet: a day just for me but the knowledge that shopping for school clothes and school itself was only 3 weeks away (that was when we started after Labor Day).

Now summer means better traffic. 

And fresh vegetables at the weekly neighborhood market or stands on the side of the road:  corn and beans and, most importantly, tomatoes. And fruit:  apples, peaches, berries and melons. 

Vacation is a week, or two if I'm lucky,  and I have that same sense of limitless time as I did in childhood, even if it's just for a while.

And sprinklers and sparklers are still magic.

Everyday Beauty

Do you remember those things that were popular in the 70s and 80s that showed you a seemingly random number of geographic shapes that once you 'saw' it the right way became a word?  Or the ones that if you let your eyes go slightly out of focus the secret image appeared?  There was one that was a letter sized series of lines that ended up being a wizened old crone-like woman.

Once you 'saw' it and knew it was there you didn't miss it again.

I have things like that in my day.  Things that are easy to overlook, but once you notice, you wonder how it escaped you.

In this house, built in 1936, it's almost 50-50 between good and bad.  I try to overlook the bad.  Like the way the toe mold doesn't hug the floor, but floats a good half inch away from the floor.  Or the crack in the bathroom floor that is slowly lengthening. 

Then there are the good things.  The cool plaster walls. The wavy glass window panes.  The floor in the attic.  The glass or crystal door knobs throughout with brass fixtures.  Except for the one on the back of the bathroom door, which is chrome and must be as bright as the day it was installed.  The smaller glass knobs on the built in corner cabinet.  The built in corner cabinet itself.  The bowed out windows in the dining room. The french doors to the screened porch. 

What do you see in your everyday?

Spring Color

Not quite what you expected?  Well, I got this as a Christmas gift from my sister and resolved to save it for Spring.  Last Monday, I decided that Spring had finally committed, and tranferred all my stuff to this bag.  Each time I look at it, I get a little spark from the color.

Do you have something that signals Spring when you put it on or get it out?

Good Friday Morning

Every morning I make a cup of coffee in one of my Disney mugs, feed the dogs and sit down at my desk to see what the feed reader brings me from my favorite blogs.  Design, crafts, humor, faith, life...I find myself thinking over these things throughout the day.

Today I'm mulling over the events of Good Friday and what I can learn from them.

What do you do every morning?

[And thanks for the comments yesterday Mom, Sorrow and Merry.  That building is one my company built, and when I saw it that day, I grabbed my camera and snapped away.  I had a little fun with it at work.]

Grace Notes

Hi, there.  My two classes are over, so I have time to take some pictures and I have really missed it. Every day has grace notes in it.  Little things that give you a moment to pause, refresh, let go or just enjoy. I thought I'd share some of mine from the past few days. 

Not sure which was brighter, the daffodil or the sun...I'm also not sure where I was focusing

And these always make me think of the yard on Elm Street. Those tiny little green dots are just perfect.

And by now I can hear my cousin singing "this is my Father's world" at age 10 or so as we walked down her street in Birmingham.

Didn't see that coming did you?  Me, either.  While I changed into dogwalking attire, Gus made off with a pump and promptly mistreated the lining.  Like he usually does.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming.

Love, love, love mossy pots.

This last one captivated me.  When I got home from dog walking, the sky was a lovely pinky rosey shade from the out of sight horizon up about a third of the sky.  By the time I got back out to photograph it, this is what I saw.

'Night, all.

From the Files...looking forward to summer

iPod II

I am on my second iPod.  The first one just sort of wore out.  The second one is a 60 gig video capable one.

It holds my free digital copy of Mamma Mia the movie.  I make that distinction because now I've seen the stage show and while they are the same story, they are very different.  I think it's the energy.  But the point is, I can carry around the story of my inner dancing queen.

So I've had the second iPod for at least a year.  But for a while there, it lost its luster.  Not sure why, but it did. 

Lately, I've rediscovered its magic.  The way it creates a bubble for you to move through time and be in whatever world you want to be while normalcy perks along outside.

Podcasts.  These are the addiction right now. 

Book reviews by Nancy Pearl.  Although these don't come out as often as they once did. I love Nancy Pearl.  She helped me find that I do like some Science Fiction.  And she has her own Librarian action figure. Sort of like Wonder Woman but without the pre-Madonna Jean-Paul Gaultier pointy bo$om.

Barnes and Noble Meet the Writers.

The Guardian Books Podcast.

Speaking of Faith.  This is a probationary podcast until I figure out what it's thing is.  I found it when someone mentioned listening to their iPod to an episode about John O'Donohue which was about Beauty and God. 

Lightroom Killer Tips.  Self explanatory.  But oh, so valuable. A tip and a video of how to do it.

Design for the Real World.  It tells about things like tract houses and stop signs.

Rick Steves Travel.  Only the ones on Italy.  And Provence.

So whenever I need to get away, I reach into my bag for my iPod.  Click on a podcast. 

Tune out the noise.

What are you saying? 

I can't hear you.

The Very Gloomy Day

It is gray and rainy outside, and the view from my office window is a wall of gray. It is a day that should end with this, but instead I have to go out to dinner.  Boy would I rather curl up on the sofa in my comfy clothes and read.  Do you find yourself wanting to hibernate in gloomy weather?

Oh - and this is the first homemade vegetable soup I've ever made that was worth eating! I'm so excited. 

That is all.

Bright Lights

Orange and purple and cobwebs, oh my! I'm noticing that the skeleton escaping from the ground is popular this year. The traditional pumpkins is always popular, but spiders and their webs seem to be the big decorating item this year. I haven't seen many of those inflatables this year, but maybe when I venture into the other neighborhoods I'll see some.

Have a great weekend!