I wanted to give a peek into my life. The stuff that makes me happy and peaceful and full. Days like today. Nights like this one. It just makes me so thankful for the gift of life, for friendships, for wonderfully perfect weather.
I am blessed to have Wednesdays off. Each week, like clockwork, a day off in the middle of the week. How crazy is that? And, for the most part, they are just the best days. Not because it's a chance to sleep-in, or be a bum, or have a marathon TV series session.
The days are much too precious for that. Instead it's my time to be purposeful. There are things that need to be done, of course, but whatever it is - it's done with purpose and joy. Morning Mass, meditation, and restful solitude. The most extraordinary way to begin any day of the week. Calm, peaceful quietness. Coffee with a friend usually follows. Maybe for an hour, more likely two. The farmer's market, which happens to be open Wednesday mornings (hello fresh peaches - yes, more please). Then back home for a few hours of photography-focused progress. Ordering, emailing, editing, educating, planning. And then a nap. Definitely a nap. Thirty minutes to avoid bad-nap grogginess. No one likes bad-nap grogginess.
Roommates come home. Play cribbage and pretend to forget we were going to workout instead. Paint nails with purple sparkly polish. Roommates note how (ahem) classy it looks. Try to shuffle cards with wet nail polish. Fail. Take a walk to make up for the cheese and crackers consumed during cribbage. Soak up the most gorgeous, most perfect temperatured weather known to man, also known as autumn. Exclaim loudly about how awesome it is and how you can't get enough and never want it to end.
Walk to friends' house who's having people over for wine and snacks. Converse too long then walk back in the dark. It's okay - roommate was loaned a head lamp. Talk about boys and God and relationships and bras and joys and frustrations and life all the way home.
Read the comics and the advice column of yesterday and today's paper. Laugh with roommates about our favorites. Successfully complete the Sodoku. Let out a little whoop. Well, it's only Tuesday's puzzle, but still...
Attempt completing roommate's freshman theology exam she recently gave in class. Have little success, but learn things in the process. Write brain-flow post about this day and how all days should be like this. How every day should be purposeful, restful, joyful and, at least part of the time, spent in good company.
Read myself to sleep.
yellow submarine...
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There is nothing I quite enjoy more than spending the weekend with my family. Even when enduring treacherous lake waves, lightning bolts, and full-speed ahead rain pellets against our already shivering and shaking bodies, if we're together, we're happy, and usually laughing. Even when we have to raise the question... "Dad, hypothetically speaking, if this boat were to flip over what, exactly, should we do?" At least it's with the ones I love. Have mercy.
Praise God we made it safely to the dock. Two hours later, blue skies.
autumn soundtrack...
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My roommate and I walked to the library Sunday evening. Amongst our footsteps the sounds of crunching leaves could be heard throughout our journey.
When did that happen?
I wanted to, but there was no denying it. Crunch, crunch. Step, step, crunch.
Fall is on its way.
When did that happen?
I wanted to, but there was no denying it. Crunch, crunch. Step, step, crunch.
Fall is on its way.
where the wild things are...
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Thanks to all my friends who love me during my crazies. Have mercy.
And thank you for laughing with and/or at me when I tell you all the weirdness that run through my head in a given day.
I would be a whole lot less sane without you.
And thank you for laughing with and/or at me when I tell you all the weirdness that run through my head in a given day.
I would be a whole lot less sane without you.
may flowers...
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It's Labor Day, and the rest of Monday will consist of laundering a big ol' pile of camp-fire smoke filled clothing/towels/sleeping bags, finishing up edits on a recent wedding shoot, and practicing diving board tricks until the pool pass expires. But for now, I have one precious hour to blog about this summer. One of my best to date, starting in May. So here's to bathing suits and fro-yo, slalom skiing and many, many cooking adventures:
In May (okay, I just looked this up - it was in April... so not exactly summer, but I'm counting it), my parents and I headed to K-State to celebrate the dedication of the Leadership Studies building. I was part of the program during my time there, and received a minor in Leadership, so it was awesome to see the gorgeous addition to the campus. We used to have classes in an old home that had been (sort-of) renovated to host classes and meetings. The program grew from a few students having an idea, to a flourishing bustle of activity that plays a big role throughout the campus - I think over 1,000 students (or a lot more... I couldn't find the statistic and didn't want to exaggerate). And all of that is wonderful and cool, and I'm happy to see it, but the real reason we made the trip was because a photo taken during Liz and my trip to Kauai was selected as artwork in the space. It was so fun to see that thing blown up and hung in the hall. I was just getting things going with photography and definitely needed a boost in confidence. We had a great time roaming around campus and Aggieville. Every time I return, memories surround me at every turn. Ah, college.
We then left for Kansas City and had to get Mom to some shopping. Poor thing - her nearest shopping strip is in a neighboring town 40 minutes away, and the options... they're slim. You should have seen her eyes when we pulled up at Legends. During lunch at Cheeseburger in Paradise, she was decorated by balloon man as a butterfly. Cracked me up.
Dad and I headed to beautiful California for a mini-vacation. We both needed a break, and had an awesome trip - especially returning to Ocean Beach and all things we loved about that place from our trip a couple years ago. The original reason for the travel was to attend a photography conference in Newport Beach. Escalate Live was very cool - great speakers, inspirational presentations, and total immersion in all things photography. It was intimidating at first, but definitely worth the experience. While I was in sessions, Dad cruised around the area and found fun things for us to do in the evenings. Riding bikes along the beach, taking a baby-cruise around the harbor, and - my favorite - flying kites at night on the sand and watching the blue waves crash in. Pretty much perfect.
And then there was Memorial Weekend. It was incredible!. To celebrate Bridget's upcoming wedding, and her last month as a single lady, the bridesmaids planned a trip to Lake of the Ozarks. It was just what the doctor ordered. Our rental home was perfect - it had a huge, beautiful deck, a sunny dock and paddle boat. We spent two days immersed in sunshine, magazines, books, and girl talk. And our paddle boat only almost capsized once. We had to send out a rescue crew with a 5-gallon bucket and a floaty raft to rescue us.
Okay, my hour is up and we're at the end of May. Next up, June and all it's glory.
In May (okay, I just looked this up - it was in April... so not exactly summer, but I'm counting it), my parents and I headed to K-State to celebrate the dedication of the Leadership Studies building. I was part of the program during my time there, and received a minor in Leadership, so it was awesome to see the gorgeous addition to the campus. We used to have classes in an old home that had been (sort-of) renovated to host classes and meetings. The program grew from a few students having an idea, to a flourishing bustle of activity that plays a big role throughout the campus - I think over 1,000 students (or a lot more... I couldn't find the statistic and didn't want to exaggerate). And all of that is wonderful and cool, and I'm happy to see it, but the real reason we made the trip was because a photo taken during Liz and my trip to Kauai was selected as artwork in the space. It was so fun to see that thing blown up and hung in the hall. I was just getting things going with photography and definitely needed a boost in confidence. We had a great time roaming around campus and Aggieville. Every time I return, memories surround me at every turn. Ah, college.
We then left for Kansas City and had to get Mom to some shopping. Poor thing - her nearest shopping strip is in a neighboring town 40 minutes away, and the options... they're slim. You should have seen her eyes when we pulled up at Legends. During lunch at Cheeseburger in Paradise, she was decorated by balloon man as a butterfly. Cracked me up.
Dad and I headed to beautiful California for a mini-vacation. We both needed a break, and had an awesome trip - especially returning to Ocean Beach and all things we loved about that place from our trip a couple years ago. The original reason for the travel was to attend a photography conference in Newport Beach. Escalate Live was very cool - great speakers, inspirational presentations, and total immersion in all things photography. It was intimidating at first, but definitely worth the experience. While I was in sessions, Dad cruised around the area and found fun things for us to do in the evenings. Riding bikes along the beach, taking a baby-cruise around the harbor, and - my favorite - flying kites at night on the sand and watching the blue waves crash in. Pretty much perfect. 
And then there was Memorial Weekend. It was incredible!. To celebrate Bridget's upcoming wedding, and her last month as a single lady, the bridesmaids planned a trip to Lake of the Ozarks. It was just what the doctor ordered. Our rental home was perfect - it had a huge, beautiful deck, a sunny dock and paddle boat. We spent two days immersed in sunshine, magazines, books, and girl talk. And our paddle boat only almost capsized once. We had to send out a rescue crew with a 5-gallon bucket and a floaty raft to rescue us.
Okay, my hour is up and we're at the end of May. Next up, June and all it's glory.
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