Second Wind

Nope, I’m not giving up. I can not, should not, and will not give up. Turns out I got some fight left in me after all. So life has some bumps…isn’t that what makes us appreciate the good times more than ever? Why on earth should I give up something I love (blogging) just because I’m busy? No sense in moping about it…just do it already. Shut up, and do it.

• • •

Maxed out

After a couple weeks of feeling guilty about not blogging regularly, I’ve decided that I simply cannot handle anything “for fun” in my life right now. Besides, there’s really not much silliness or fun or humor these days, except for when Zozer says things like “hippopotamatus,” and that’s not really enough to carry a blog.

• • •

Busy…but happy

40 hour work week + 20 hour school week + 10 hour image editing week + Mommy time = no time for blogging. Plus last night I went to a kickass lighting seminar hosted by Schiller’s. Fanfreakintastic. They brought in this guy, Will Crockett, who is absolutely amazing with light. And gear. I’ve never seen someone who can so easily churn out a digital image that requires absolutely NO editing in Photoshop. I mean, I don’t do much editing – the basics like curves and levels and sharpness – but this guy does none. I know he’s working primarily in a studio setting and it’s easier to get things right that way (you have much more control over your variables), but still. He threw together gorgeous portraits in minutes and made it look so easy. I’m sure the thousands of dollars of gear he had at his disposal helped, but still, you gotta know how to use all that stuff.

• • •

Balloon Glow

I find myself in the odd state of having a backlog of images to edit and being too tired to do them, thanks to trying to work ahead in school so as to have free time to, you know, edit images. That’s what happens when one writes two papers and a discussion board post (which might as well be called a third paper) in one night. Must’ve had too much caffeine yesterday or sumthin’.

• • •

Sidewalk chalk

Zozer and I cracked open her new giant tub of sidewalk chalk this afternoon (thank you, GG!). She exclaimed, “Look! It’s like a rainbow!” I exclaimed, “Wait! Let me get the camera!” We drew all over our patio…smiley faces, ZOEs, stars, moons, a spider web (and accompanying spider, of course), and yes, a rainbow. Zoe asked me to “draw a hopscotch!” and I’ll be darned if the little bugger didn’t know how to use it.

• • •

Impulse Owls

I am not a shopper. I’ve never been a shopper. Well, except for when I was pregnant with Zoe and apparently had enough estrogen for two of us. I was a pseudo-shopper, and it was temporary, and it quickly left after giving birth. I went back to my regular self who eschews girly-girl and champions photographic gear and comfortable shoes. Shopping for clothes is so not my thing. It’s hell on earth for me, so I do it only when I have to (read: when my clothes are literally falling apart – I once went two years with pants whose hem was held in place by duct tape…hey, no one knew and it was only mildly annoying on cold days when the tape gave my leg a chill). I don’t like buying things for the house as I don’t like clutter. I prefer my glass to be in a lens and not in a ring. I have learned that material things do not make one happy.

• • •

Chuck-A-Zoe

Zoe enjoyed her first trip to Chuck-A-Burger. She announced in the car on the way there, “I like Chuck-A-Burger,” which made us laugh considering she had never been. She got a bowl of chili, but pretty much held out for the chocolate milkshake at the end.

• • •