Spring

It's the first day of spring and the flowers in my front beds are blooming.  This week they really just came up out of no where and opened up to the world.  I couldn't resist sharing them with you. As I mentioned in my post "I Spy Something..." my Mother helped me plant these flowers last fall.  It was really special to me to be able to spend that time with her.  Although I spent most of the time watching her plant these flowers since I was recovering from surgery, it was just nice to sit and catch up.  These days it's pretty rare that we get time together, just the two of us.  While we were together she told me a story about one of her fondest memories of me as a little girl.  She also told me how she told herself at that moment that she had better remember it.  While she said this I was thinking the same thing about watching her plant these flowers.  I thought to myself, you have to remember this, don't let this memory slip away.  And lucky for me, I have a beautiful reminder.  Each spring, when these flowers bloom, I'll think about that weekend with my Mom and how we planted these together.

Another memory that the flowers in our yard bring, is that of Speed Racer's Grandfather.  He planted most of these flowers, and since I've moved here I've tried very hard to maintain them.  But he must have used the front flower beds for annuals because they were empty before we planted bulbs in them.  Last night though, Speed Racer turned to me as we walked by them in twilight, and said "My Grandfather would have loved to see those flowers, they're really nice.  You did a wonderful job."  That meant the world to me.  When you move into a house that was owned by a family member it's hard to balance the "This is now your house" and the "This holds lots of memories."  So when I look out at my front yard and see the flowers, it just makes me smile.  I just look out and see Speed Racer's Grandfather, and his love for nature; my Mother and I, and the bond that we have; and our future...small little children picking flowers in the front yard.  These are the best parts of home ownership: dreaming, making memories, and keeping memories alive.

Factory Girl

A couple weekends ago, Speed Racer, Speed Racer's Dad, and I went on a little photo trip.  We were all in the mood to get out of the house and take some pictures, despite the bitter cold.  So we headed off and came across this cool factory.  It was creepy, musty, and had huge holes in the floor.  It would have been perfect for a horror film complete with scary scratching metal sound every time the wind blew. Ironically none of brought our tripods.  It was a sunny sunny day and we didn't think we'd be inside.  So some of my pictures didn't turn out, but some were fun anyway.  Also Speed Racer and I were sharing a camera, so some of these are his....and some I can't remember if they are mine or his.  I should have known better, I mean camera 101, ALWAYS HAVE YOUR CAMERA.  I got lured in because I love my husbands camera and it's one of those things, if I had brought mine, we would not have gone out.  Such is life.

This is one of Speed Racer's photos.  Great detail of the glass pipes.

Another of Speed Racer's and probably one of my favorites from the day!  I just love it.

I feel that I must end with a very important note from your sponsor.  DO NOT DO THIS ALONE.  For reals people, as a fellow photographer I understand taking risks to get fun, cool, new, exciting shots.  However, as a former rescue squad volunteer, these shots are not worth your life.  So let's roll over the basics.  When shooting urban terrain whether it's at night or abandoned places, always have a buddy.  Do you have your buddy?  Second, always tell someone who is not with your buddy or your group where you are and around what time you will be back.  I am very serious about this.  It takes one false step to fall down a hole, break a leg, have no reception, and no one know where you are.  So be responsible so that you can have fun and everyone else can enjoy your future photos too!

Downtowner Fudge Pie

Friday night around midnight, I got in the mood to bake.  This happens more often than you would think.  So the only question was, what was I going to make?  The answer was simple.  My FAVORITE chocolate pie.  My mother had made it at Christmas but due to my bout of cluster headaches I was unable to partake ( chocolate + cluster headaches =  even more pain).  It was terrible, no chocolate a christmas!!  The horror.  So, I made up for it this weekend.  This recipe actually came from my Aunt which I'm sure she also got from somewhere.  It's one of those recipes that's just been passed along.  So I'm going to pass it on to you. In mixing bowl, beat 3 eggs until light, beat in 3 T. white caro syrup, 1 1/2 c. sugar, 1/4 t vanilla.  That right there is delicious.

Meanwhile, over low heat melt 1 stick of butter and 3 square of baking chocolate.  NOTE: I do this in the microwave just because it's simpler, but you can do this in a saucepan if you wish.  Also by "3 squares" it turns out that means 3 oz.  Hershey now sells bakers chocolate in 1/2 ounce squares so that can be a little confusing.  I also use unsweetened baker's chocolate.

Now at this point you may be tempted to lick this whole freakin' bowl, ahem, but remember this chocolate is unsweetened.  It will not taste as yummy as it looks.  Not yet.  Add slightly cooked chocolate mixture into mixing bowl.

Stir until combined.

Pour into 9" pie pan and bake at 375 for 45-50 minutes.  Remember this is a chess pie, so be careful not to over bake.  When it is done it should still shake like a custard.

Mine was not very pretty but very very delicious.  I think the reason it fell and cracked was because instead of stirring in the chocolate mixture I beat it in, thus adding more air, so it puffed up a lot.  WARNING:  This chocolate pie is so good you (and maybe your husband) might just eat the whole thing before the weekend is out...and gain 3 pounds...might happen.  Just sayin'.

Sisters

Many of you know I'm a big fan of The Pioneeer Woman.  This week on Pioneer Woman Photography she is hosting a contest for photos of "Sisters."  Now as she mentions, and we all know, there are many women in your life that can qualify as sisters who may not actually be your blood sisters.  I grew up without sisters, although I love my brothers, I always missed out on having a sister.

So it got me thinking about all the ladies in my life who have meant so much to me.  I've always gotten along with boys a little bit better because I'm a bit of a Tom Boy, but there are some woman that I just couldn't live without.

The more I researched on my computer though, the more I realized I don't have pictures of myself with these women, or even pictures of them at all!  Many of these pictures are buried somewhere in our house and not digital.  Many of them I'm the one holding the camera, or, embarrassingly enough, I just didn't take a picture!!  While researching this I realized that I don't even have pictures of just me with my sister in laws.  Now maybe this is a sneaky conspiracy on their part to avoid my camera (I'm catching on Pockets and Olie).  But this is just sad folks.  Why did I not take the time at a photoshoot, wedding, or get together to turn the camera around and document a time with these ladies I love?  Things are gonna start to change, and I'm warning all you ladies out there...be prepared.

SO here are a few of the ones I could find on my laptop.  NOTE: If you are not in this selection it does NOT mean I don't love you or consider you my sister.  It means I either didn't take a picture with you recently, or it's buried in my basement.  Perhaps I will do a little digging and scanning and find a few of these blasts from the past.  There may be an update to this post comin' your way shortly.  Until then, enjoy these.

If you have a lovely lady that has meant a lot to you in your life, feel free do a shout out in the comments.  I'd love to hear your stories and adventures.

I Spy Something...

GREEN!!! Back in October my mother and I spent some time planting bulbs in my front flower beds.   And by my mother and I, I mean, my mother.  This was during the time that I had my tonsils removed, so I was in recovery.  I had a very important job though...I pointed where the flowers should go...yeah...important.  But I digress.  So all through the winter, I was worried they wouldn't come up, and the beds looked all tucked and cozy but well...brown. See Exhibit A.  You really can't tell much is going on there.  But if you look really reeeeally close...

...you can spy some green.

And maybe even a few buds coming up...

And then this is the point where I go, "hmmm I can't remember what type of flowers I planted...hmmm."

But the more I look, the more I see! They're everywhere.  This winter has been a long one and I am so ready for spring to say hello.

In our other bed there is even a tinsy tiny bit of color.  Just a wee bit.

Just enough to remind me that spring will be here soon.  I don't have long to wait.

Mann Again

As I have mentioned in previous posts (see Mann: Keeping Inspired) and will likely  mention in posts to come, I'm a big fan of Sally Mann.  I love the rough quality of her work and at the same time the mystery of it.  I particularly love her wet plate photography series like Deep South, and her newest series Proud Flesh. Her latest series Proud Flesh is done in the same wet plate style, although unlike many wet plate photographers, Mann prefers her glass negative to be imperfect, as well as her camera for that matter.  Proud Flesh is a series of portraits of her husband Larry, whom she has been married to for 40 years.  The series not only reflects on the closeness and intimacy between Larry and Sally, but of the deterioration of Larry's body from Muscular dystrophy.  The result is a heart wrenching series, that is honest and intimate, and will bring tears to your eyes.

I highly recommend checking out the link below to NPR's interview and a video of Sally Mann with her husband Larry.  There is also a HBO documentary on Mann titled What Remains.

Sally Mann: Proud Flesh

It's for fun

Did you know photography is fun?? Crazy! I know.  But it is in fact fun.  Here is a teaser of some shots that I took a couple of weekends ago.  It was a sunny weekend, and it was nice just to go and take some photos for fun.  You should try it sometime.  For realz.

Baby Tuesday

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbke1GHsejQ] Alert! This video will make you want to have babies, lots of babies.  Men, guard your loins.

10 Reasons Why...

...I am trying to get in shape.  The above photograph was taken the fall of my senior year of college.  And from other pictures that I will not share with you, there was a huge difference between the fall and the spring.  Note the flat stomach.  That is surprisingly absent in those other, horrible photographs. So it's official folks. I've been workin' it every day for almost a month and I've lost 9lbs (and apparently that last 1 lb before 10 is super stubborn).  Now I do not consider myself a big lady, or even plump but there are several reasons why I have decided it's time to tone up.  So of course, since this is a blog, I'm going to share them with you.

1. I have always been an athlete.  Yes, that is a picture of me holding an AK47...I've always enjoyed a little target practice.  It's a good stress reliever.  But back to my reason.  I've always been an athlete.  In middle school I prided myself on being able to keep up with the boys in gym class.  Remember the Presidential Fitness Test?  My goal was never to just get the presidential level, it was to get the presidential level in the boys section.  Can you tell I have brothers?  In high school I was a pole vaulter.  For a long time being athletic has been an identity for me, and I miss that.

2. I feel good.  Over the past couple years I have dealt with a slew of health issues.  And now that I have taken care of the majority of them, I'm ready to push on.  I'm not tired, or drugged out, so I want to take advantage of this time and make the most of it.

3. I have bad habits.  For a very long time, even through college, I have been that girl who could eat an entire box of doughnuts, wait an hour and then be ready to eat a large pizza by myself.  Post college...not so much.  But I have developed those bad eating habits.  And I want to change those now before it's too late.  More veggies and more fruit please!  This being said, I think a healthy BALANCED diet is important.  I'm not the kinda girl that says no to cake.  If you invite me to your birthday, I'm going to have cake...now I just might not have the whole cake.

4. Wedding Season.  As a photographer, wedding season is creeping up and wedding season is a busy season.  If you have ever shot a wedding, you know that it is very physical.  As the photographer you are constantly moving, running from place to place, going from kneeling to standing and back again...all with a lot of extra weight on your body.  Those eight hour wedding can exhaust you.  This year I want to be in the best shape I can be so I can deliver the best pictures that I can.

5. Bathing suit season.  I love wearing bikinis.  Always have, always will.  But for now I would like to still comfortable wearing a bikini, so I'm gonna be honest with ya, that's definitely a motivation.

6. Confidence.  When your health is good, then you can tackle everything else.  I have a feeling 2011 is going to be a year of lots of change for me, and I want to feel good about that.  I also want the confidence to do the things I love.  I love hiking, canoeing, camping, biking, and just generally being outdoors.  The past couple of years I have been hesitant about doing some of those things because my health has not been what it should be.

7. Babies.  Now hold the phone before everybody gets their panties in a wad.  I am not pregnant and do not have plans to be pregnant any time soon.  BUT  I would like to enjoy an awesome bod before it changes again in a big way, and I want it to be ready for that change whenever that time does come.  As a woman who wants kids eventually, I feel like it's part of my job to make sure I'm healthy.

8. Jillian Michael's kicks my butt and I like it.  I've been doing some of the Jillian Michael's work out videos, and they are high paced and great.  So reason #8 is that I like to suffer.  For realz.  No, but I do love the feeling of a good work out, and I love that I'm seeing results.  That's what keeps me going.

9. Being Sexy.  Being sexy has many aspects, and I am not an advocate for stick thin women.  I love my curves, and I have no desire to look like I did when I was 13 (crooked bangs, glasses, and legs like a baby colt...no thanks).  The trick is finding whatever helps you feel good about yourself and stick with that.  As the famous line in Working Girl goes, "I have a head for business and a bod for sin, is there anything wrong with that?"  I may not have head for business...or really even a bod for sin...but I've got an eye for photography and a bod that can keep up with me...so that's a start.

10.  Why not?  At the end of the day, why not do what's best for me?

Jellies

If you have never been to the Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, TN then you are missing out.  Not only do they have a fabulous new penguin exhibit, but it's my favorite place in the world to just watch the jelly fish.  They are so relaxing and just beautiful...in the tank. Here are a few of my favorite shots.