Water >>>> falls

In a dream

A sky of stars is spread out above me

The soft scent of the grass rises up

Winds its way gently between my fingers

And the heavy blanket of the night folds

Itself obediently between my shoulder blades.

I am cool and cloudless against the darkness

With a silent roar, I stretch out against

The rocks of my existence

Heart beating fiercely against my moist skin

A passionate cry flooding my soul

As I reach for you

And fall

(Don't have too much time to devote tonight. This is my take on the waterfalls assignment!)

Foiled by a fence!

My great destiny as a sports photographer was foiled by the dreaded fence around the ball field! I went to see some of my students playing softball hoping for those great sliding shots, leaps of grandeur and amazing swings...but that darn fence was like prison style, blocking everything I was hoping for. Had to settle for these shots. I actually like the fence after a while. It definitely gives a different perspective of the game.

P/S This is how I'm feeling about my research project with

the kids right now:

Trying to get the chair the way I like it!

I had several comments on the chair with the red door from Sunday. I however, was unhappy with the piece because it was crooked. So this evening, I went to try to get it right. It was really tough. Either I am extremely bad at lining up a photo or the porch isn't level or something! I can't seem to get this thing straight:) I tried really hard to get the chair and door straight in the frame but finally had to settle with this shot:

However, I didn't stop there. I kept looking for a better angle or more interesting shot and finally, I've got it to where I'm nearly NEARLY satisfied in this picture.

Which do you like best? I think we are our own worst critics sometimes!

Cemetary...again!

I came across this statue in a cemetary while waiting for my pharmacy order. The first picture I took of just the statue:

Then I tried cloning tool so that just the cross was left with the hand clutching it.

I love cemetaries because they are quiet and beautiful and are places to remember or at least, to imagine the love and lives of those who have gone before us. Today's trip reminded me of a poem from a friend of mine:

Don't Wait- Give Love Now ... Author unknown

I would rather have one small rose

From the garden of a friend

Than to have the choicest flowers

When my stay on Earth must end.

I would rather have one pleasant word

In kindness said to me

Than flattery when my heart is still

And my life on Earth has ceased to be.

I would rather have a loving smile

From friends I know are true

Than tears shed round my casket

When this world I've bid Adieu.

Bring me all your flowers today

Whether pink, white or red:

I'd rather have one blossom now

Than a truckload when I'm dead.

Twilight swamp and Old farm stuff

Last night just before sunset, I took this picture. Think I'm getting the hang of reflections:

Today after church, I spent time with Breanna, Jonny's fiance, and my mom. We walked around the old farmhouse looking for pictures while my stepfather, John, napped inside before leaving for work. It was a great time, just talking and laughing and looking around for some good ideas. I love that there is beauty in disarray and old farmhouses are great places to find that beauty!

A good day!

Today was my last day of teaching on Saturdays for about 2 months! No more Saturday classes for a while...yippeee! I like it but it's also nice to have a full weekend to myself! Mom came with me today and got some shopping done while I taught. Here are some basic pictures from that. Great day with lunch and shopping and girl time...I'm the luckiest daughter in the whole wide world. Do all children think their mothers are so loving and so much fun to be around?

Happy Birthday Sonja

My cousin Sonja turned 24 years old today which meant another get together with priceless memories and fun.

Wisdom

My grandfather runs a small but hearty printing business from his home using old fashioned printing presses. They are beautiful antiques that he is very talented at using. When I started thinking about the assignment as being wisdom, I immediately thought of these old presses. When printing presses were first invented, the written word suddenly became available in ways it had not been before. Wisdom, in a way, began to be distributed widely and the skill of reading became a precious one. Printing presses still churn out the written word everyday, but wisdom now comes not in what is written, but in what we choose to read and expose ourselves to. These old knobs, rollers, and printing tools remind me that wisdom is a gift that we gain as we live through experiences, by what we let into ourselves, and by what we give back of ourselves!

P/S Wisdom is also knowing when to take a well deserved break. Kitty Kit (or Jack as I secretly call him) snoozes as I shoot away:)

On the record...literally

Playing with the records, I took a separate picture of each, concentrating on songs with catchy words. Then, I came up with a message by putting some of the words together in a collage format. I used Photoscape for this since it was the only program I knew how to do a collage in. I also added the antique filter I love so much. These words accurately describe how I'm feeling about love right now. Hope you like the picture.

No idea what to take a picture of!

A friend is selling two big boxes of records and wanted me to take some basic photos of them. I couldn't think of what to take pictures of today, so I decided to get creative with one of the records. I added a noise filter to the first one and the second one, I moved the camera while shooting, changed it to sepia tone and increased the contrast. The sepia one keeps uploading rotated even though it really isn't rotated that way...I CAN'T GET IT TO SHOW UP NORMAL!!! Oh well! They are not great, but I'm feeling overwhelmed today so this is as good as it gets!

Key to another world

Did you ever just want to be in another world? As I was driving home tonight, I kept thinking about this. I stepped from my car and could feel my keys in my raincoat. What if one of them could take me to another place? I slowly started forming this idea in my head. I took a close up photo of one of the keys, a big gold one I use at school. Then I started thinking about places I love to be. The forest immediately jumped into my mind. Steve's old tree from yesterday had been resonating inside me, making me wish trees really could communicate. I used some photoshop magic to insert my golden key into a keyhole within a tree in a dark ancient forest, one I would love to be in. Adding an artistic filter also helped to add some of the dreamlike and lonesome qualities I was feeling.

I want to find this tree, turn the key, and be whisked away.

Here is the picture without the filter so you can see the key more clearly:

Live life

...so that it fills you up and lifts you to the sky...

...so that it makes you stop and take in the simple complexities all around you...

...so that your words and actions make others stop and think...

...so that each day you can rest knowing that you have done what really mattered....

Filtering fun on a day of clouds

Here is my ceiling fan...

Here is my ceiling fan on crack. Any questions?

Gotta love what fun filters can bring.

(enlarge for full effect!)

Eagle hunting and more NYC

Well, I've hiked, tracked down a covered bridge, been to NYC...what could I do today? How about bald eagle hunting? :) In a recent conversation, I heard of a place where there are 2 nesting eagle pairs, each with 1 baby eagle. I set out in search of the place, excited. As I pulled my car over and began walking down an abandoned road, I suddenly heard a strange noise that I had never encountered before. Slowly, silently, I continued down the pathway. The sound was up in the trees somewhere ( a later google search revealed that I was actually hearing the eagles! How cool!) I didn't end up seeing them, but took this picture revealing their habit.

Back to NYC...I really tried to capture some candid normal people/activity shots and here is what I came up with:

Chess players around 115st

Bin of extreme rubber balls (a kid threw one in just as I was taking the shot!)

Curly haired boy with mom crossing the street

College student takes a break from studying

Orange boots and shadows

Continued post from Thursday

***Please go down and see my Thursday post before reading this***
Yesterday was a wonderful day of sights, sunlight, laughter, and companionship. The post for the day (found below) shows a Greco-Roman statue at the Metropolitan Museum of Art that I just was intrigued by. The main subject of the statue seemed to be in a state of despair. I really related to the statue. I was amazed by the tension in the statue's legs, feet, and back (all evident from my photos). I was fascinated by the sculptured contours of the statue's spine. So perfect, so beautiful, and yet so sad, the human body perpetually trapped in rigidity and sinuous struggle.

That's why yesterday was so great for me. I felt the tension disappear for once and felt free. I felt happy and content and somehow amazed at how much I have actually been given in life and at how much beauty surrounds me. I hope you liked the statue. More photos to follow today's actual post which I will do later on:)

In the nick of time!

Just back from a great day at NYC...will explain this series tomorrow:) Thanks Steve and Trish!

A day early

Since I will be in NYC tomorrow (looking forward to it Steve and Trish!) and will probably have some good pics to post, I decided to do Leslie's assignment a day early. I hate to miss an assignment! At first I was unsure about bridges...it's not that I don't like them, I just don't usually see a lot of them. Determined as ever, I went online and looked at the NYS covered bridge society website. Salisbury Center is only about 26 miles west of where I am and I'd never heard of it or been through there, so I took a short journey and found a pleasantly beautiful park complete with a rushing stream and a covered bridge from the 1870's. I've added a sepia and antiquing filter to a few of these as you can tell. The rest are unaltered. Hope you enjoy!