Sunday, December 4, 2011

under the canopy of a dying season

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Gone so long it hardly seems logical to return.  
I suppose just like the seasons, we transition in and out seamlessly.



Thursday, September 8, 2011

Sunday, September 4, 2011

you're not who I thought you were

you're not who I thought you were

or maybe just not who I wanted you to be. 

Friday, August 26, 2011

Loop d Loop

8.26

soothing the savage beast.

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Radio Evolution

8.25
89.1 WIDR with a twist of lime

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Soar

8.24

and no cage shall ever contain you, little bird.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Aftermath

8.23


of long overdue yard work!  When I say overdue, I mean I haven't mowed my lawn in about six weeks, or weeded the flower beds....at all, this year!  At least my "natural" look now seems intentional.

Monday, August 22, 2011

Chocolate

8.22

is for silly Girls!  Anna and I met Meg for Lunch on her way back home to Chicago.  We had a wonderful time!  There was food, conversation, laughter, computer games and chocolate cake (which Anna didn't share). I predict many more  meet-ups in our future.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Tailgating

8.21

at the "nuclear" outlet mall? What better place!  Every year my friends and I set out on a back-to-school shopping spree.  
We pack a picnic lunch complete with cocktails and head out.
We shop for a couple of hours, have lunch and then head back for a couple more hours of shopping.  I have to admit, Ann Taylor is never as much fun as it is post-tailgate lunch! 

Saturday, August 20, 2011

Friday, August 19, 2011

Dinner With Friends

8.19

For the past, I can't remember how many years, at least 10, there has been a standing dinner date every Friday night among our group of friends.  Some weeks it is extremely large, some weeks it is much more intimate.  Over the years this group has evolved and sadly devolved, with good friends moving away.  This week we had the pleasure of dining with visiting friends, ones who have moved very far away.  
There is never pressure to attend dinner, but, when you do make it, you are guaranteed to be welcomed with open arms and entertaining conversation. 

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Old Paint

8.18

Today found me in a very strange place emotionally.  No reason in particular, just one of those days.  

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Coffee Talk

8.17

I had the pleasure of spending three hours chatting about: movies, music, books, relationships, family and philosophy, with two of my favorite former students.  How lucky am I to have built these relationships?

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Anna

8.16

Today I framed and hung this amazing painting, it was based on a photograph I took of my daughter looking into a koi pond.  It is an oil painting by a former student of mine, Lauren.  I can't tell you how much I love this, and how fortunate I am to be able to look at it every day.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Sunday, August 14, 2011

Rufus

8.14

This past Sunday I was fortunate enough to be able to spend the afternoon at Ravinia, and watch one of my favorite performers, Rufus Wainwright. 
The first part of the show he sang with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, songs he had been commissioned to write for 5 of Shakespeare's sonnets.  The second half of the show was just him on piano and guitar.

If you are not familiar with him, you should be!

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Heart Strings

8.13


Another live music shot, from the Brown Cow show at Louie's on Saturday.  From where I was sitting I became mezmerized by the picks tied to the bass, they looked like hearts.  I made it my goal to get a shot of them. Not an easy task, shooting a moving object in low-light, but I got it and it I love it!

Friday, August 12, 2011

I Wish

img189

It could always be like this.

Thursday, August 11, 2011

A Beginning

8.11

that knows no end. 

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Eve

8.10

I am not the first woman, nor will I be the last. I console myself in a dream that is now; no longer what has been, nor what will be. 

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Metamorphosis

8.9

This past week has been spent transforming my home.  It was time for much needed change.  I am retracting most of the color from the walls.  Previously my home was filled with rich warm color, it gave off a certain kind of comfort.  I have moved to a much "cleaner" look, hoping to emphasize the artwork in the room.  I always said I would never have white walls, well, it appears I have chosen an off-white.  I'm not sure how I feel about the new look.  Once everything is in it's place,  I am hoping I will feel comfort in the change.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Succulent

8.8

Are there instances when our best defense shouldn't be a good offense?  

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Stone Love

8.7
"love doesn't sit there like a stone, it has to be made, like bread"    
                                                                         ~Og Mandino

Saturday, August 6, 2011

No Bails!

8.6

For many years I have been around the music scene in my town.  I feel so extremely fortunate that I have so many friends who continue to be involved in and support local music, in one way or another.  
Being so deeply immersed in the music world, it sometimes surprises me that I never learned to play an instrument.  Though, I suppose my instrument is my camera.  Shooting live music shows is one of my all time favorite things to do.  
Not only do I get to capture my friends and their craft, I get to hear a lot of great music.   


Friday, August 5, 2011

Lost In Translation

8.5

Do you ever find that the words in your head come out completely different when spoken from the heart?

Thursday, August 4, 2011

Carnivorous

8.4

"If you can't convince them, confuse them"
                                                                    ~Harry S. Truman

Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Tears

DSC_6782

Each month I participate in a photo scavenger hunt, this month one of the words is "tears".  Initially I thought this would be one of the last shots I would get.  Though working on some projects and listening to music today, I found a certain song made me cry. Like nothing else, it always amazes me the emotional impact music can have. 


the culprit

Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Still Life with Weeds

8.2

Anna created this little still life around a weed growing in the patio, she said "take a picture of this, it's artistic!"  who was I to argue?  

Monday, August 1, 2011

August Break

DSC_6670

I'm tossing my hat into the ring of August Break, once again.  While this is taking a break from blogging and just posting photos for most, I always see it as inspiration to post on my blog for the entire month of August.
Some days may be just photos, though there will be words tossed in here and there.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Middle Way

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It has been a long time since I have posted. This summer has been full of many sad things and many happy things. I have been trying to adhere to what buddhists refer to as the "middle way" - moderation between extremes. While this philosphy has deep meaning and takes much mindful practice, I like to think of it as things being not good or bad, but just what they are.

Someone recently said to me that they view three as a balanced number. I had a difficult time understanding this. Though, in retrospect, I suppose he was right. In this realm of being, remaining in the middle is balance.

Is this difficult to manage? It is. It takes discipline to keep the mind from straying from the middle and becoming absorbed in one side or the other; becoming unbalanced. As I sit here writing this post, I find it difficult to remain in the middle.

Monday, May 23, 2011

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Dust

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Still falling
Breathless and on again
Inside today
Inside me today
Around broken in two
Til your eyes share into dust
Like two strangers turning into dust
Til my hand shook with the weight of fear
I could possibly be fading
Or have something more to gain
I could feel myself growing colder
I could feel myself under your fate
Under your fate
It was you, breathless and torn
I could feel my eyes turning into dust
Into strangers, turning into dust
Turning into dust
Turning into dust


                                 ~ Mazzy Star

Friday, April 8, 2011

Grace

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elegance or beauty of form, manner, motion, or action.


Monday, April 4, 2011

Tiny

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Impossible to miss. The small signs of spring are popping up and sprinkling my yard with hints of color. It is spring break, and though it is chilly and rainy, I am enjoying it to the fullest. It is a much needed break from the weekly routine.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Frozen

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This shot was taken with my iPhone after last weeks ice storm. Everything was so sparkly and beautiful.
I happened to be outside late at night a couple of days later, once it started to warm up. The sound of the ice cracking and falling off of the trees was eerily wonderous.
I am currently working on some painting ideas in my sketch book, based on this photo.

Saturday, February 26, 2011

Scribble Scrabble

Just a little bit of what has been happening in my sketchbook.

Sunday, February 20, 2011

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lines in my face are blurred by the lines around my heart

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

TWOsday:2

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Housebound on a snow day. One has tea, one has a ringpop!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Form

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a. The essence of something.
b. The mode in which a thing exists, acts, or manifests itself; kind


Wednesday, February 2, 2011

Sketchbook

sketchbook page watercolor - pen and ink

I have signed up for an online sketchbook class. It starts this weekend, but I wanted to get a jump start, so I bought some new supplies and sketched a couple of pages. Even though I have endless supplies surrounding me, there is nothing quite like a blank sketchbook and unused tools to start fresh.
I lost the motivation to keep/work in a sketchbook a couple of years ago, I would like to get that back; this is an extremely important process for many reasons.

sketchbook page  watercolor - pen and ink

Here's to another new adventure and rediscovering my creative mojo!

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Painterly

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By the end of January I am usually ready for the snow to be gone and spring to make it's way home. This year is different. I have been taken by the beauty of winter and the feel of the air. It feels softer some how, gentler and kinder.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Clarity

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"What seems like a people problem is often a situation problem"

I read that the other day in a magazine, and it really struck me, especially the teacher in me. With the start of this new semester I have adopted it as my motto. I have to look beyond my students and look at the situation. It all makes perfect sense to me at this moment in time.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Virus

my computer has a crazy virus, which means no posts or photos for now.

*Update
I was somehow amazingly able to fix my own computer. Long story, but I got rid of the "bug" that was not allowing me to open any of my programs or files.

It was pretty frustrating, the whole thing came at a time when I needed to edit several senior head shots for the yearbook! Which I was able to do at work, for the most part. But not having the comfort of my own computer, program and tools left me feeling less than satisfied with most of them.

Oh well, time to move on and be thankful I was able to resolve the problem on my own!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Sometimes

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"Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something, and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent" - Dalai Lama

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Fleeting

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in perfect moments
words go gently unspoken
actions left undone

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

TWOsday: 1

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TWOsdays are back! My dyptichs with Anna. I would like to do this for the year so I can make a book for her. But, like any six year old, she is interested in doing something one week and then not the next. We shall see how it goes.
I chose this set for the first week, because both just happened to be on my phone and I liked the feel of them. The two of us cuddling one lazy Sunday afternoon, and a shot of "dad" later that day.
It seems as if my blog is missing people. People like seeing people though, don't they? I have a really hard time posting photos of people. First of all, are they okay with it? It just seems like a privacy issue. When I started this blog, I wanted to display photos that I had taken that capture the beauty in the everyday. I never wanted to include images of my daughter, or family for that matter. I'm not sure why really, I had a few weird incidents on Flickr, that may have something to do with it. I do have photos of people floating around out there, I suppose it wouldn't hurt to post a few shots here every now and then.

Sunday, January 9, 2011

Middle of the Road

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Just a Saturday morning trying to capture the beauty of the snow and sunshine with my iPhone. This image got me thinking metaphorically about neutrality. Staying in the middle is just another form of keeping balance. I am reminded that things are neither good nor bad, they are merely what we perceive them to be.

Friday, January 7, 2011

One Word One Book

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I knew when I chose my word for the year that I wanted to create an altered book/journal, as a place to document specific areas on which I want to focus over the course of the year. I have been working on the cover and immediate inside of the cover over the past couple of days. This is what evolved from my original design, which was quite simple, I am happy with the outcome.

I don't intend to complete this book in a short period of time, it is my hope that it will come together throughout the course of the year.