A picture, they say, is worth a thousand words. For every picture there is a thousand different words.
This past weekend I spent time behind a camera capturing the world the way I see it. Ok, rephrase that, trying to get the camera to capture the world the way I see it.
I have always thought in terms of pictures when I look at the world. That may seem strange, but have you ever taken a mental picture? Saved a moment in time that you wanted to remember, or sometimes ones you would prefer to forget but are etched on your mind forever?
I try and see the world in picture because, to me, the world is just that a series of moments that are captured in mental snapshots. Some good, others bad, but all with a beauty and potency that gives me joy in being alive.
Being able to look at the world this way, took me a long time. I have thought that life was too hard, the happy moments too short and the pain too much. Why would I want to remember the pain? What’s the point?
The point is that life is beautiful. In all ways, at all times. Life is not all one thing or all another. Life is shadows and light. Life is a kaleidoscope of colors that run throughout everyday living and breathing human interactions. Life is all of the black, all of the white, all of the gray and all of the rainbow.
Think about photos you have seen. Can you see the flaws in the subject? Can you see the beauty even with those flaws?
Go through the next week and try and see your days as you might through the lens of a camera. Is there beauty in the mundane? Does it put a different twist on the life you thought you knew every angle of?
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Saturday, January 29, 2011
The Foodie in Me
Like most people, I LOVE food. Unlike most people I love making it more than I love eating it. Yeah, yeah I know weird. Not that eating good food is not one of the world's greatest pleasures, just that knowing I make the food that people like to eat is better then eating it myself.
Problem: I am a single female. Yes, I do on occasion get to cook for friends, but more often then not, it is cooking for one. Which I am not good at. I make WAY to much food for one person to eat. So when I cook, I end up with leftovers for days and sometimes even weeks, depending on the meal. I am a fan of leftovers, don't get me wrong, but after about the 3rd day of eating the same thing I am done. I need something new.
I am also a huge fan of watching cooking shows. I love to see all of the things that those chefs come up with. Then when I get to trying some of my favorites I can make my own little modifications to the recipes.
My love of cooking comes naturally from not just my mother or grandmothers, but my dad, and even to a certain extent my step father. I can say without hesitation that I have some of the most amazing cooks in my family. Family meals I have eaten have gone above and beyond any meal I have had in a restaurant. (Not that restaurant meals are not a great treat). I have been lucky with the cooks in my family simple because they all have a different approach to cooking. I have Italian and Hungarian influences, Southern flavor and mid western sensibilities. Added to all of the family flavor, there are the things I have picked up all on my own.
Lets just say the flavor that comes out of my kitchen is not necessarily something that you would expect every time. I do like my comfort foods, and I try not to change much about them but sometimes an unexpected flavor will sneak in.
Food is something that we all need, but it really is a joy to make as well. Take some time to make something, see if it isn't just as much to make as it is to eat it.
Problem: I am a single female. Yes, I do on occasion get to cook for friends, but more often then not, it is cooking for one. Which I am not good at. I make WAY to much food for one person to eat. So when I cook, I end up with leftovers for days and sometimes even weeks, depending on the meal. I am a fan of leftovers, don't get me wrong, but after about the 3rd day of eating the same thing I am done. I need something new.
I am also a huge fan of watching cooking shows. I love to see all of the things that those chefs come up with. Then when I get to trying some of my favorites I can make my own little modifications to the recipes.
My love of cooking comes naturally from not just my mother or grandmothers, but my dad, and even to a certain extent my step father. I can say without hesitation that I have some of the most amazing cooks in my family. Family meals I have eaten have gone above and beyond any meal I have had in a restaurant. (Not that restaurant meals are not a great treat). I have been lucky with the cooks in my family simple because they all have a different approach to cooking. I have Italian and Hungarian influences, Southern flavor and mid western sensibilities. Added to all of the family flavor, there are the things I have picked up all on my own.
Lets just say the flavor that comes out of my kitchen is not necessarily something that you would expect every time. I do like my comfort foods, and I try not to change much about them but sometimes an unexpected flavor will sneak in.
Food is something that we all need, but it really is a joy to make as well. Take some time to make something, see if it isn't just as much to make as it is to eat it.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Happy New Year...
I have been sadly negligent in posting, mostly because I can't seem to think of anything I really want to say.
But today I am going to think of something...
At some point it will come to me...
I am sure of it...
...
OH! Hey!
The New Year! Yay! I can tell you about my resolutions. Ok, my resolution, which actually covers a lot of different things but is still vague enough that I can feel that I accomplished it at the end of the year.
So here it is: I am resolving to be a better me.
How about that? Covering a number of things, yet still vague.
The things I have planned to be a better me are again slightly vague but all good goals. These include; being healthier in 2011 than I was in 2010, and expanding my mind in fun and entertaining ways.
Being healthier could include the old standby resolution of losing weight ;). Expanding my mind in fun and entertaining ways could just be going out with new friends or old ones to new places.
I think that resolutions should be vague, then you don't think you failed when it comes round to looking at the past year. 2010 was hard on a lot of people, but then again you can say that about every year. Bad things happen, you should not have to look back on some silly promise you made yourself and think, "I could not even keep a promise to myself."
So think, hard about your resolutions, are they something that you can easily look back on and say, "yes, actually I did keep that promise to myself"?
I believe that we can all do that this year! So have a Happy and Resolute 2011, everyone!
But today I am going to think of something...
At some point it will come to me...
I am sure of it...
...
OH! Hey!
The New Year! Yay! I can tell you about my resolutions. Ok, my resolution, which actually covers a lot of different things but is still vague enough that I can feel that I accomplished it at the end of the year.
So here it is: I am resolving to be a better me.
How about that? Covering a number of things, yet still vague.
The things I have planned to be a better me are again slightly vague but all good goals. These include; being healthier in 2011 than I was in 2010, and expanding my mind in fun and entertaining ways.
Being healthier could include the old standby resolution of losing weight ;). Expanding my mind in fun and entertaining ways could just be going out with new friends or old ones to new places.
I think that resolutions should be vague, then you don't think you failed when it comes round to looking at the past year. 2010 was hard on a lot of people, but then again you can say that about every year. Bad things happen, you should not have to look back on some silly promise you made yourself and think, "I could not even keep a promise to myself."
So think, hard about your resolutions, are they something that you can easily look back on and say, "yes, actually I did keep that promise to myself"?
I believe that we can all do that this year! So have a Happy and Resolute 2011, everyone!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Writing Pains
I need to write.
Ok, that does not seem like a hard problem to solve, right? Just write you say? Well... I can't seem to find the words.
I have the stories, I am seeing the characters. They are all running like film strips in my head. But when I pick up my pen, or sit down at the computer to type, the words disappear. The characters are jumbling up and nothing seems clear.
I guess this is some kind of writer's block? Ugh.
It is frustrating me to no end. I need to write these stories, I need to get the film strips to stop running, they are starting to drive me nuts because they are on loop and running into each other.
The only way I know how to make it stop is to write it out. Just trying to work through it and writing what I can is not helping. The more I write the wrong words the more insistent my characters are getting. Angry imaginary people are very hard to get rid of.
I just want to get it all out make the imaginary people happy and myself sane(ish) again.
Ok, that does not seem like a hard problem to solve, right? Just write you say? Well... I can't seem to find the words.
I have the stories, I am seeing the characters. They are all running like film strips in my head. But when I pick up my pen, or sit down at the computer to type, the words disappear. The characters are jumbling up and nothing seems clear.
I guess this is some kind of writer's block? Ugh.
It is frustrating me to no end. I need to write these stories, I need to get the film strips to stop running, they are starting to drive me nuts because they are on loop and running into each other.
The only way I know how to make it stop is to write it out. Just trying to work through it and writing what I can is not helping. The more I write the wrong words the more insistent my characters are getting. Angry imaginary people are very hard to get rid of.
I just want to get it all out make the imaginary people happy and myself sane(ish) again.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Adventures in Dogsitting
For the last few days I have been sharing my life with a friend's dog. (Said friend is out of town) Although I am a dog lover, and P is a well behaved dog, who knew that I would be so ready to not have an animal?
Night 1- No issues, P slept peacefully and without complaint.
Morning 1- On time to work, did not go to the gym because of the extra time needed to walk the dog and such...no issues.
Afternoon 1- Went on long walk with dog after work. Then relaxed. No issues. P did not have any issues being alone in the apartment by herself all day.
Night 2- GOOD LORD! P was so restless. Kept me up most of the night. No earthly reason why.
Day 2- Running slightly behind because of exhaustion in the morning. Decided in the afternoon to exhaust the dog. So two long walks, lots of playtime, and no unnecessary sleep before going to bed.
Night 3- P slept well, and so did I! Yay!
Day 3- On schedule for the day. Came home from work, walked the dog, then loaded the dog up for a visit to my dad's house. P was fine on the ride to and from.
Now my friend is on her way home from the airport, so I get to have my apartment back! Such a small dog, although not really too many issues can cause such a need for my own life is so telling about me.
Interestingly enough, even knowing that an animal would drive me crazy, I still would love to have one. I think the reason for that is just what is happening right now; I am sitting on my couch with the dog curled up next to me. It's a relaxing thing to have a warm animal next to you. I am going to miss it, but really only that!
Night 1- No issues, P slept peacefully and without complaint.
Morning 1- On time to work, did not go to the gym because of the extra time needed to walk the dog and such...no issues.
Afternoon 1- Went on long walk with dog after work. Then relaxed. No issues. P did not have any issues being alone in the apartment by herself all day.
Night 2- GOOD LORD! P was so restless. Kept me up most of the night. No earthly reason why.
Day 2- Running slightly behind because of exhaustion in the morning. Decided in the afternoon to exhaust the dog. So two long walks, lots of playtime, and no unnecessary sleep before going to bed.
Night 3- P slept well, and so did I! Yay!
Day 3- On schedule for the day. Came home from work, walked the dog, then loaded the dog up for a visit to my dad's house. P was fine on the ride to and from.
Now my friend is on her way home from the airport, so I get to have my apartment back! Such a small dog, although not really too many issues can cause such a need for my own life is so telling about me.
Interestingly enough, even knowing that an animal would drive me crazy, I still would love to have one. I think the reason for that is just what is happening right now; I am sitting on my couch with the dog curled up next to me. It's a relaxing thing to have a warm animal next to you. I am going to miss it, but really only that!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Autumn
Today is the first full day of autumn. Officially my favorite time of the year. Sadly, though, in Northern Virginia, it is very much still summer. Temperatures today are to be in the 90s.
What is it about the changing of seasons that people love? Is it just the change in and of itself? Out with the old, in with the new mentality? People are always saying they can't wait for the weather to warm, yet when it is hot, they can't wait for it to cool. They need the rain, but can't stand the storms. Can we never be content with what Mother Nature deems to grace us with?
My dad is not afraid to stay with one steady season, Summer. He loves it and does not complain when it gets hot, he expects it. He knows he needs rain, but never claims to like it. He does start to mourn the loss of summer when the air chills, and gets excited when it warms.
I, on the other hand, mourn the loss of the chill. I love fall, winter and early spring. Summer is not a favorite season. Too hot, too humid, too sunny. Yes, I did just complain about the sun. I like watery, wintry sunlight that never gets to hot.
I love fall because of the bite that comes into the air as it chills. I love the colors, golds and reds and browns. I adore the scents, rotting leaves, spiced apples, freshly sharpened pencils, and smoke.
I will probably always live in a place that has 4 very distinct seasons, although I would not mind living somewhere that summer was, although distinct, very mild. :)
So, Happy Fall, everyone. Enjoy the season, because it will end all to soon, then we can enjoy another!
What is it about the changing of seasons that people love? Is it just the change in and of itself? Out with the old, in with the new mentality? People are always saying they can't wait for the weather to warm, yet when it is hot, they can't wait for it to cool. They need the rain, but can't stand the storms. Can we never be content with what Mother Nature deems to grace us with?
My dad is not afraid to stay with one steady season, Summer. He loves it and does not complain when it gets hot, he expects it. He knows he needs rain, but never claims to like it. He does start to mourn the loss of summer when the air chills, and gets excited when it warms.
I, on the other hand, mourn the loss of the chill. I love fall, winter and early spring. Summer is not a favorite season. Too hot, too humid, too sunny. Yes, I did just complain about the sun. I like watery, wintry sunlight that never gets to hot.
I love fall because of the bite that comes into the air as it chills. I love the colors, golds and reds and browns. I adore the scents, rotting leaves, spiced apples, freshly sharpened pencils, and smoke.
I will probably always live in a place that has 4 very distinct seasons, although I would not mind living somewhere that summer was, although distinct, very mild. :)
So, Happy Fall, everyone. Enjoy the season, because it will end all to soon, then we can enjoy another!
Saturday, August 14, 2010
I am a sports fan
I am a sports fan.
I thank my father for this. He has regularly told me that unlike most men, he wished that I was a girl, because he knew that he would put too much pressure on a little boy to be an athlete. Dad was a baseball player. He played on all of the little league, high school, all-star teams that they had. I love hearing the stories he tells, mostly because it sounds like a play-by-play with color commentary of some of the most exciting games ever played. I know people make fun of what they call their parents or grandparents "war stories," but for some reason I have always loved listening to my dad's.
I still remember my dad teaching me how to throw a baseball and a football. I also remember a painfully bad attempt to teach me how to shoot a basketball. The football was hard and still is, but I've got it down now. I have small hands now, and of course even smaller ones when I first learned to throw. Because of the size of the football, (and I seem to remember it being a mini football) I could still not get my hand around enough to not let it slip out of my hand. Even today, with a regulation sized ball, my hand is too small it seems to be able to stay in my hand, let alone through a decent spiral, which I do. The baseball was much easier.
Then came catching. Good reflexes made that pretty easy although I remember being scared of ball when my dad threw it. I learned quick that if I kept my eye on the ball, I didn't get hit. Good life lesson there.
Batting was interesting as well. I did have the obligatory swing the bat allllllll the way around, watch the ball sail right on by. But I got that too.
I always figured that my dad would have wanted a boy, and sometimes I felt that I needed to do boy things to make him happy and for him to like me (child of divorce, I got over it). Then I realized I really just love to play the sports and watch the games.
I claim "hometown" sports teams as the ones I follow, mostly. Hometown, because it's Dad's hometown and because I spent most summers out east with him, learning said sports. So, yes, I am a Redskins fan. I am a Caps fan. I am a Nats fan. I am a Wizard fan. I am a United fan. I am a Mystics fan. (for all of you that have no idea what sports those are: in order, football, hockey, baseball, men's basketball, soccer, women's basketball.) The last three I don't necessarily watch regularly, but if I have to choose a team, those are the ones.
The one exception to this rule is that I am also a Boston Red Sox fan. Random, I know. Here is the reasons. My dad was a Senators fan, (Original Washington baseball team), when they moved (long before I was born), he said he would be a Yankee fan until Washington got a team again. I started out being an Baltimore Orioles fan, until Cal Ripkin retired, then I looked at the team and thought "I don't really have an attachment to the team, just him." So I started looking for a new team. I thought about the Yankees, but they were too....bourgeois. I became anti-Yankee fan, meaning as long as the Yankees lost I was happy. From there it was a natural progression to become a Red Sox fan.
I know that when sports come on the television, I easily get sucked in. It does not even matter what sport it is. Golf can suck me in if that's all I have to watch.
So that being said, Go all my sports teams, have good seasons whenever they are!
I thank my father for this. He has regularly told me that unlike most men, he wished that I was a girl, because he knew that he would put too much pressure on a little boy to be an athlete. Dad was a baseball player. He played on all of the little league, high school, all-star teams that they had. I love hearing the stories he tells, mostly because it sounds like a play-by-play with color commentary of some of the most exciting games ever played. I know people make fun of what they call their parents or grandparents "war stories," but for some reason I have always loved listening to my dad's.
I still remember my dad teaching me how to throw a baseball and a football. I also remember a painfully bad attempt to teach me how to shoot a basketball. The football was hard and still is, but I've got it down now. I have small hands now, and of course even smaller ones when I first learned to throw. Because of the size of the football, (and I seem to remember it being a mini football) I could still not get my hand around enough to not let it slip out of my hand. Even today, with a regulation sized ball, my hand is too small it seems to be able to stay in my hand, let alone through a decent spiral, which I do. The baseball was much easier.
Then came catching. Good reflexes made that pretty easy although I remember being scared of ball when my dad threw it. I learned quick that if I kept my eye on the ball, I didn't get hit. Good life lesson there.
Batting was interesting as well. I did have the obligatory swing the bat allllllll the way around, watch the ball sail right on by. But I got that too.
I always figured that my dad would have wanted a boy, and sometimes I felt that I needed to do boy things to make him happy and for him to like me (child of divorce, I got over it). Then I realized I really just love to play the sports and watch the games.
I claim "hometown" sports teams as the ones I follow, mostly. Hometown, because it's Dad's hometown and because I spent most summers out east with him, learning said sports. So, yes, I am a Redskins fan. I am a Caps fan. I am a Nats fan. I am a Wizard fan. I am a United fan. I am a Mystics fan. (for all of you that have no idea what sports those are: in order, football, hockey, baseball, men's basketball, soccer, women's basketball.) The last three I don't necessarily watch regularly, but if I have to choose a team, those are the ones.
The one exception to this rule is that I am also a Boston Red Sox fan. Random, I know. Here is the reasons. My dad was a Senators fan, (Original Washington baseball team), when they moved (long before I was born), he said he would be a Yankee fan until Washington got a team again. I started out being an Baltimore Orioles fan, until Cal Ripkin retired, then I looked at the team and thought "I don't really have an attachment to the team, just him." So I started looking for a new team. I thought about the Yankees, but they were too....bourgeois. I became anti-Yankee fan, meaning as long as the Yankees lost I was happy. From there it was a natural progression to become a Red Sox fan.
I know that when sports come on the television, I easily get sucked in. It does not even matter what sport it is. Golf can suck me in if that's all I have to watch.
So that being said, Go all my sports teams, have good seasons whenever they are!
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