March 31, 2010

i had a dream....

where a little neon light
in an all night diner
kept flashing
and
even when i pinched my eyes until they hurt
i could still see it
and
then
there i was on a park bench
surrounded by pigeons
with missing feathers
reading a passage in an old vintage book
whose spine
no longer in tact
that referenced the freedom one can find
by
flying a kite
in an open field
with just the wind at your back
and
the sun in your eyes


and
i decided
this was a dream worth holding onto
even though i've always believed
i should

but
today
i want to live this one

March 30, 2010

body parts can be confusing....

remember
a few weeks ago when i had a scare with my eye
and
they sent me for an orbital ct scan
and
found everything to be alright
~~
well
the eye pain subsided
but
the left side of my face
from my eyebrow to the bottom of my nose
continued to not feel right
~~
enough so
that my doctor ordered another ct scan
this time of my whole head
~~
with contrast
~~
she called it a brain scan
~~
when the nurse called back with the results from the radiologist
she said the report read
findings
"nothing remarkable"
and
as happy as i was that the my ct scan was normal
i laughed at her
and
said
really
because
my hubby thinks my brain is quite remarkable
somedays
so much so
that he wishes he could control the on/off switch to it
~~
oh wait
silly me
that's my mouth
that he'd like to turn off every now and then
not
my brain
*

March 28, 2010

but what does it really mean.....

she believed
that spring was the only season
that could make you look at everything as a new beginning
~~
she believed
that being happy
was the only choice you could ever make
that would ever really mean anything
~~
she believed
that being patient was a gift that people are born with
and
that if it had to be learned
it would never be fully grasped
~~
she believed
that trying to change someone
was the only thing in life that was
truly impossible
~~
she believed
that believing
in herself
was
the only thing she had any control over
and
somedays
that belief
was a slippery little sucker that she had a hard time holding onto
*

March 26, 2010

exercise, being unfaithful and american idol...

i should walk and lift weights the way i used to
but
with the strange positions i get into while talking photos
and
then of course
carrying my camera and all my lenses with me everywhere i go
i work up quite a sweat
~who needs a gym membership~

and
yes
i understand you saying to yourself
"didn't we see enough eggs yesterday"
but
this is a different batch of eggs
~~
these
are old eggs
from about 10 years ago
that i bought at a country living type of store
and
id' forgotten how beautiful and deeply colored they were
and
how
now
mine look really ugly and pale in comparison
oh well
these are the real deal
though
with
marble sized egg yolks inside that move around when you shake them
and
dyed
with something i'll probably never ever know
unless some of you have the secret
~~
do you
do you have the secret

okay
okay
about being unfaithful
~~
forever
i have had a cup of my almond vanilla tea at least twice a day
with
french vanilla creamer perfectly mixed in
and
now i have to confess
i've been cheating on her
~~
she's been replaced
with
chai rooibos
~a yogi tea~
and
now i can't even remember what i ever saw in that almond vanilla gal
~~
and
one of the best parts of the yogi teas
is the little note attached to the tea bag
where the one this morning read
"if your word does not reflect your spirit and honor, do not speak"
and
last but not least
is anyone else disappointed in american idol this season
~~
i think they should just give the amazing
crystal
with her dreads and boho ways
the news
that she's the winner
and
take everyone else out of their misery
~~
i know that sounds harsh
but
as an avid watcher for years
this year so far has really been quite pathetic
~~
i hope the sun is shining where you are today
*

March 25, 2010

it's a mutual love affair....

i tried to be good
i tried to be all natural
i tried to dye my eggs with only food and spice items
but
it wasn't great
and
it took forever and made such a mess
~~
okay
the boiled chili powder created a neat color
as did the blueberry juice
but
the boiled spinach
well
the smell of that
made me hungry
~~
so i mixed up the paas with lemon juice
added rubber bands
for pretty lines
dunked just enough to add a bit more color to what i already had
and
ta-da
eggs for easter
of course
then i needed photos
of the finished product
so
the old brownie
{actually it's a kodak duraflex}
came out to play


i had forgotten how much i love that old camera
since
winter obviously put a cramp in our relationship
{honestly it's all my fault...as i kind of forgot about her}
but
things are looking up

i wish you could have been here
to see all the flirting going on
*

March 24, 2010

i think i'd like to try that shade of pink...

i have
laundry to wash
bills to pay
groceries to buy
floors to clean
furniture to dust
notes to write
emails to return
files to organize
appointments to make
papers to shred
and
flowers to buy
~~
maybe
i'll cross everything off my list
and
pretend it's already been done
except
for
the
flowers to buy
and
then i'll add
photos to take
new shades of lipstick to try
summer shoes to buy
songs to sing
feet to be massaged
and
candles to light
~~
i think maybe i'm onto something
here
~~
want to join me
*





March 23, 2010

i'll be there by ten...

i think
i would love to ride to your house
and
get to know you
~~
i think
we would walk through the woods
and
find fuzzy green moss and beige bumpy fungi growing under the damp trunks of trees
that we'd have to touch
and
photograph
just for fun
~~
i think
watching the sun gently move the clouds out of the way
while we ran through the fields
chasing butterflies
would make us hungry
and
we'd fill our plates with hummus and pita bread
and
sit under an old oak tree
on your grandmother's quilt
with
our legs crossed
while you poured the raspberry iced tea
~~
i think
we'd share stories and feelings
and
maybe even a deep dark secret or two
that would make us feel like friends
that had met in second grade
and
had never lost touch
~~
i think
when the growing navy sky reached low enough to toy with the cooling ground
telling me
it was time to leave
we'd make promises to see each other again
and
we'd hug for a very long time
and
tears would leave streaks on my cheeks
~~
i think
meeting you sounds perfect
*
this vintage vespa i found downtown
and
now i sorta covet it
*


March 22, 2010

they always say yes....

sometimes
they're just sitting out back
on a break from where they work
and
let me get a close up of their amazing tattoos
sometimes
they're sitting right next to me while i'm eating my lunch
sometimes
they want to know what kind of camera i have
and
sometimes
they ask me if i want to take their photo
before
i even have a chance to ask them
if i can
sometimes
they ask what i'll do with their photos
and
sometimes
they're curious about my blog
and
sometimes
they sing a beautiful song
while
i sit on the park bench across from them
just listening
*
these are some photos from friday
while i was out searching for that perfect spot for the book drop
{see earlier post}
~~
i'm not sure what it is that i find so fascinating about strangers
but
they pull me in every time
and
make me smile
and
if strangers can make a photographer smile
well
they must be doing something right
~~
next time
i hope to start adding a little bit of a bio to go along with the photos
thinking
that if i find a photo of them interesting
that their stories or just a little blip about them
would be
amazing
*
and
blew me away
thank you
kiki


March 20, 2010

and then the wind softly blew...

this weekend
i hope the sun illuminates your dancing soul
while
the sound of laughter keeps you awake
and
that you find
there is nothing
that can stand
between
you and your dreams
*
but
if your
weekend
turns out to be cloud filled and cold
while
silence holds you tenderly
and
something does stand in your way
remember you can always
go sideways
::
at least you'll be moving



March 18, 2010

it went down like this.....

i was picked to be a book fairy for
and
yesterday
i was all "mission impossible" while roaming the streets of madison
~~
i had a few ideas as to where i wanted to leave her book to be found
so i staked out a few places
~~
first the hubby
{aka my partner in crime}
and
i ate lunch at
lazy jane's
on willy street
thinking this would be the perfect spot
but
the place was packed and trying to be invisible and sneaky inside that amazing place
was
going to be way impossible
{and there were only the two of us you know}
so
i just left a little
"a little swirly girl like"
note
on the couch
instead

we stopped in at my favorite store
ever
on state street
when i thought about this as a
"maybe let's leave it here spot"
but
in hoping to photograph the person finding it
i decided we had
to keep moving on
but
first i shopped a little bit and took photos because this place is amazing
{see the book hiding in this photo}
and
if you come and visit me i promise to take you here shopping
{okay enough of the bribing}
~~
so anyhow
we moved further down state street where it looked like all the action was
and
that was in front of
urban outfitters
{and yes i'll take you there, too}

here is where i decided to blend in with the crowd
and
really get my tom cruise act together
see
you can hardly notice me
and
then while casually looking side to side
i walked across the street where the hubby had spotted
the
"perfect drop off point"
and
then quickly and discreetly i turned back towards him
hoping nobody
had noticed anything
and
then we sat and watched and sat some more
~~
a few people walking by turned and looked at it
and
one young college kid with his friends really wanted to pick it up
but
they convinced him to keep walking
and
then we thought
how lucky we were that it was gorgeous outside
because
this could take all afternoon
at one point i told the hubby that i really really wanted to get the person taking the book
in a photograph
since i didn't think anyone else had
that had already participated in this world wide totally cool activity
when all of sudden this young girl appears
~~
after looking at it for a minute and then taking a photo of it with her cell phone
{we think}
she reaches for it
goes for the grab
quickly
and
keeps walking
while looking straight ahead
and
then just a bit further up the street
she opens the package and pulls out the book
and
i am like
"oh my gosh we did it....we photographed the person getting the book"
"SCORE"
~~
and
then just like that it was over
and
we headed back up state street with silly little grins on our faces
talking into our wrist watches
wondering if our undercover boss
had another mission ready for us
~~
we were on fire
*


so like, ummmm dude.....

"why do you want to take our pictures"
"i'm gonna leave my board at the bottom so i can get air for ya....are ya ready"
"why are we backwards"
"i call it a johnny hoppin"
"seriously dude...you want us to skate right at your face while you're sitting there"
~~
i love shooting people
~complete strangers~
especially in their own environment and
after the winter's dry spell
it was fantastic to be outside yesterday
~~
i headed to the skateboard park
which is kind of a scary place
but
once again
since i have a "wear my jeans low so you can see my boxers" teenager myself
who doesn't skate
they don't bother me
~~
they are always so curious as to why i want their photos
and
always cooperative to do anything i ask
~~
obviously
the skateboarding photos weren't enough for me
and
i had to have my
tried and true
jumping photos
that i started last year
~~
they were wonderful with my crazy wishes and laughing through each photo
and
then giving the ones who wouldn't jump
a hard time
~~
oh
thank you warm weather
for letting me breathe again