Spring Moment

Spring growth and rebirth is irresistible; I just cannot help getting as close as possible to the flowers and trees that tell me spring has finally rounded the corner and winter has waved it's good-bye. I definitely have spring fever. I cannot wait to plant my veggies and peel off my fleece socks. My toes need some grass time! So, won't you join me in this celebration of nature's cycle? Snap a spring moment and post it.

Israeli Salad

This Israeli salad is so scrumptious. It is light, tangy, crunchy, refreshing and incredibly easy to make. We love it in the summer with fresh garden veggies, but crave it all year. I suppose you can play with the ingredient ratios to suit your taste, as with any recipe. This one was a "hand me down" from a friend who has always somehow, someway been a part of our family. Much thanks to Courtenay.

Israeli Salad

4 large carrots, shredded
1/2 head lettuce, shredded
1/2 cup radishes, shredded
1 small red onion, diced
1 tomato
*1 small jalapeno, diced (optional)
1-2 T. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
juice from one lemon


Mix first five (six) ingredients. Add salt and pepper. Combine olive oil and lemon juice. Toss with other ingredients.

See, I told you it was easy. Mmmmm.

Artwork Blog No More

Well, I deleted my artwork blog. I guess I had one of my spontaneous moments. I do sort-of regret it now, which is a typical "type a" personality (I swear I can hear my mother right this instant saying that). I know that I am fly by the seat of my pants gal, and often act without thinking, which causes me to beg for forgiveness later, so I am doing the best I can do now: dealing with it. So, I'm going to add my "artwork" images on this blog. And, to rationalize this, I am saying that I had too many 'coals' in the fire anyway. :) Farewell to old photos and digital montages. Here's to the new. Cheers~

original

HDR 2

So, here is HDR #2...For those of you that don't know, I have a thing for skies and the color green. Therefore, this green house is scrumptious to me. I shot this sky two weeks ago when I was leaving my evening class. It was one of those gorgeous pre-spring days and I was pretty bummed because I was not outside playing. When it was leaving time, I hurdled down the stairs and swished the door open, much like an elementary school child races time for recess. When I hit the pavement and looked up, my-oh-my, this is what I saw. I stood on top of the cars in the parking lot, which I'm sure didn't make anyone jump for joy, and shot a few images. After playing with the HDR technique, this is the final result. So, if you're interested, I'll keep playing. Happiness~

Bringing home 2nd!

Sam finally has completed another milestone; today he experienced his first Social Studies Fair and 2nd place award! He worked for days and days on his project. He researched, watched documentaries, searched the internet, made video, typed, glued, duct taped, and won his school social studies fair, which entered him in the county fair. Well, after completing his school fair, he was finished. I think he was just sick of the entire process. However, his father, much to my shock, insisted that he compete at the county level. He bucked and belly-ached (as my mom would say), fretting the 4 hour tour, not to mention the fact that he had to wear a dress shirt (aaaaaahhhhhhhhh! the end of the world!). When I walked into the high school gymnasium, I could hardly control my excitement. I very quickly walked the entire length of the presentation tables in search of his project. When I finally spotted it my heart must have skipped a beat. I was so full of motherly pride; of course I began to cry. I collected myself enough to snap some quick photos and scrambled off to the awards ceremony. Sam, at this point, was just as excited. And, finally, he realized that he, too, was proud of himself. During the ceremony, which, by the way, began with high school, then middle school (single and group awards) and ended with the elementary school awards (single and group), Celia was clapping and giggling. I knew that had to be a good sign. When his name was called, I nearly tripped over the stroller and almost beat him to the stage to take his picture. I just wanted to slap a big bear hug on him, but refrained myself for I knew he would have been totally mortified, being a 5th grader and all! Congratulations to Sam! Hip-hip-hooray!

Late Winter Sunset

Lately, I find myself constantly shooting the most incredible skies. March's full moon seemed full for 4 days; with the unseasonably warm weather I simply could not resist trying to capture it. I know that sunset photos are a dime a dozen, but I truly never tire of their beauty, which is so full of color. Wow. I know this image does not portray the epitome of a mesmerizing sunset, but it is my first try at an HDR image. I just quickly snapped a few shots from my car window just after I pulled into the drive. This is the southwest view from my front yard. I think I'm hooked, once again, on this new technique, and hopefully the images will improve. I don't know how my brain finds room for all this constant learning, but I'm sure glad it does!

Green Week: 7

Today, I give you Johnny, holding a leaf that was tortured by our kitten, Hank. Hank is the cat that climbs curtains, digs in house plants, sleeps under the blankets, purrs so incredibly loud, takes a bath (voluntarily), and hangs from the window screens. There is never a dull moment with Hank in the house. So, farewell, Green Week. My favorite color will surely show it's face soon. Ciao~

Green Week: 6

Last week a fellow educator told me of a hidden little place where I could photograph cars that had become part of the landscape. I really wasn't quite sure of the exact location, but as Johnny and I drove around enjoying the incredible March weather, we just "happened" upon it. Which, of course, is how I love life to happen. We pulled off of the country road and I approached the nearest house, which was quite in shambles itself, not to mention the yard. Now, I am just about as proud as I can be about the area in which I live, but I do admit that sometimes going outside of the city limits leads straight to trash. Really, though, no matter how "trashy" a place might be, somehow I understand that hidden within, below, above, all around the trash are precious jewels. Of course perspective is key. Anyway, I knocked, a bit apprehensively, on the tiny door adorned with a shredded little curtain. The woman who (finally) gave me permission to traverse the land, was just as apprehensive of me. After some ramblings about photography, old cars, being taken advantage of, teaching, friendship, and (believe it or not) trash (literally), I headed up the hillside in search of old cars. It was like climbing a mountain to heaven; it was so steep. Sprinkled along the hillside the entire way up were tires, broken glass, and a whole lot of cars (and car parts that I couldn't even begin to explain). The top of the hill sparkled with old, metal, colorful, cars of yesterday. Their condition was deplorable and the whole area took on an eerie feel. I'd be lying if I said that I didn't at least twice think of a strange mountain hermit that might be hungry enough to eat me living in an abandon bus or car in this glory land. I scurried around adjusting my exposure and wondering just how long those cars were there and thinking of their former lives; of course mirroring my own life and the events that have changed me throughout the years. It certainly was a moment. One old clunker is a Green Week post on Flickr. However, you can only get the story here.

Green Week: 5

Good things come to those who wait...today my green came late. And, to my surprise I just waited patiently for it. Can you believe the temperature was nearly 77 degrees this afternoon? It is so fantastic how warm weather and sunshine make a Friday even more incredible! I was inspired to rid my yard of all the brown, maybe in honor of Green Week. I spent 2.5 hours raking and stuffing black plastic bags full of dead, brown organic matter. And, it felt good. I was spring cleaning outdoors. My lilies are thanking me; I just know it. Anyway, by the time I realized that I had no green shots for today's post, darkness had already begun showing her lovely face. After Rio Grande fajita chicken taco salad and 2 Coronas, these was a couple of my green notices. Happy Weekend! Cheers~

Green Week: 4

As I was browsing through my archive of images, I came across this image of myself, which was taken in 1983. To me, it exemplifies all of those magnificient qualities of springtime as a youth: simple landscape, wind breakers, freedom, and happiness in the form of laughter. The original image of course has those elegant round corners and is a little faded. I freed it from the photo album last year when I met my birth mother and wanted to share with her the images of my life until then. Today when I saw the image, it made me think of Green Week, but I decided to photoshop it and didn't want to add it to the pool for that reason. Thus, it rests here. Here's to spring laughter, green grass, and spinning circles in the air. Love~


Here is my green image for today. It's funny how life swirls around and places us in the most perfect of situations. I can say that I have laughed so many times today that my abs have gotten a workout! After school, I wound up at the Board of Education, armed with camera(as I do every Thursday). As I walked down the empty hallways after closing time, I rounded a turn that met me face to face with a little table. This little table, lonely in the hall, upheld a little bowl of candy and wore such a delicacte & tattered scarf. How could I not capture this lucious green? Green is good! And, sneaking a tiny piece of candy is good, too! Love~

Green Week: 3

Today was so pretty! It was nearly 50 degrees with sunny blue skies. And, an afternoon walk with the entire family couldn't have been more satisfying or perfect. Everyday I find that both of my children amaze me in totally different ways. Samuel is really so dedicated to improving his skateboarding, from which he gets so much pleasure. He makes such daily progress and now skating has become his number one love, outdoing soccer, which was a tough feat. His skateboard was an 11th birthday gift (January 7) but at the present it looks so used and worn. Which I suppose is a good thing. As he stood on the curb, patiently waiting like Frogger (do you remember Atari Frogger?), I couldn't help but notice the scraped and skidded green on the bottom of his board. And, I couldn't help but notice how my little boy has become so independent, which of course is bitter sweet. We raise our children in the best way we know how and their successes are our successes, but I wish I could just bottle that "little boy" for me to secretly visit years from now. Peace~

for Green Week

Green Week: 2

Well, I have to admit, today my green findings were few and far between. I reported to work promptly at 7:13 AM and worked diligently, preparing for the third annual "Art Hop," which was held at my school. I left work tonight at exactly 7:58 PM! The art hop featured work from my art classes, poetry, poetry readings, musical duets & solos, skits from the Drama Club, and photography from the Photo Club. So, in addition to all of the evening's events, I was focused on making sure my camera was capturing "Art Hop" images every 15 seconds, for my next time lapse video (hopefully up shortly for you). Tomorrow, I have high hopes for some green time! Peace~

Green Week:1

I have been thinking and pondering all day my simple commitment to Green Week. I also often dream about committing myself to one of those 365 photos deals that I am constantly sucked into on Flickr. However, in the most realistic of terms, I do accept the fact that I'm mostly exhausted, a little lazy, and really quite fond of my freedom. Who would have thought that a simple one week devotion to something I love so much would create so much anxiety? It's certainly not that I worry about finding images, it's that I am so eager to shoot that I hardly can focus on my daily routine. Being a middle school teacher is something that does require focus! Especially on days like today when everything seemed "red." But aside from the itch (as I like to call it) to wonder around finding little moments or notices, and aside from the thought that today was very obviously red in my world, I have come to enjoy the moment when I come home and just sit for a few moments. Sometimes, I think, it's okay to let it all swirl around me, while I escape in thoughts, if for only brief moments.

So, merry March to you all. And, happy Green Week. I'm up for the commitment and ready to "get my Green on!"

Time Lapse

Well, here you have it: my first time lapse. I've been researching this for a while, and admittedly slobbering over quite a few time lapses on the internet. I decided to try my hand at this process last night at my father-in-law's birthday gathering. I captured photos every 30 seconds and of course missed the birthday cake! Also, not caught on tape were the lovely table settings. I basically just caught the family room hub-bub. Oh, well. All's well that ends well. Enjoy....