Unsure of a title . . .

. . . but I know what's on my mind.

While I love a good blog post, I'm not always sure I'll pull one off.

My blog is my my time capsule. My time capsule. And even though I want to put days and weeks into it, I don't always have the hour or so it takes to do that cleanly and satisfyingly. Sometimes, most times, even, I don't even have the inspiration. The only thing I want to do is not forget anything beautiful. I don't want the pictures I took of those beautiful things to be forgotten, reduced to a number on the hard drive.

(I've been finding it hard to find a reason to publish a post without a photo, even harder than finding time to post at all. If that makes sense.)

So photos and memories are, apparently, the two biggest reasons I blog. And I have some good photos and memories from over the last week to capsule.

I've been so busy, doing so many different things I could talk/write about for hours, that I didn't have time to download the photos from my cameras onto the computer. Next week, I'm anticipating that it'll be so busy again that I won't have the time or patience to sit down at the computer and plug in the cameras, purge the photos that need purging, and whip the others into shape.

I'll maybe still be taking photos, and I'm certain that I'll be making memories, but whether or not I'll chronicle them here, or on flickr, or even order prints of my favorites, is another matter.

It's important to live fully. And while documenting your own personal reality via words (blog or personal journal in my case) and photos, I still have to remind myself that even if the memories aren't being properly stored or reflected upon, the experiences still happened. They made me smile when they happened, and their afterglows are delightful while they last. And just like the past experiences, of a day or week or season, happened, there are still countless others to go out and live.

Ok, I've written candidly this whole time, and I think that I've finally found my point: Life goes on. Whether what has happened was good or bad or boring or weird, life goes on. And if you're a Christian, life really keeps going on! =)

This post is now really long, and I'm getting really tired, so I'll sign off. If you had the stamina to read all the way here from the beginning, know that you deserve a mocha or frosted brownie or something equally delightful. =) On a different note, know that I really do appreciate you readers.

♥
~M

PS - I still have the want to capsule this last week, as it was one of the most memorable of my life thus far . . . because I started school. I'd really love to show you pictures and write a few (dozen) paragraphs, but you know why I'm not going to. Not today, anyhow. =) xoxo

Moments.

My friend picks up a cookie and the bottle of sprinkles. The sky is bright blue behind her, and the pink and purple of the candy and her nail polish make a cute color combo. Suddenly, I have an idea.

"Emily, I'm going to ask you to do something weird . . . " I say as I stand up to fetch my camera. "Keep sprinkling that cookie."

"Okay. . ." she laughs as I kneel and start taking some shots.

Soon, we're both laughing.

"Alright, thanks," I say as I stand up. "Wanna see the photo?"

A photographer, whose name I simply cannot recall right now, said that "Photography is the art of moments."

I really couldn't agree more. =)

Love,
M

Arriving at a Photo

The other day, I wanted to take a picture of my desk for my photography project. I had just joined Pinterest and wanted to show off how it inspired me to organize that usually-cluttered piece of furniture. Here's how I got it the photo I decided on.



The first photo I took. It's alright, but I'm certainly mot satisfied with the distracting background. And this whole deal was about the death of clutter, so I'll try something else.



Second angle. I like it, but it wasn't quite what I had in mind . . .



Here we go! I like this one - it's clean, bright, and the order is clear. Maybe it's a bit too clean, though . . .



. . . so I added an extra element to make the whited-out half matter a bit. Have I mentioned that G2 pens are a favorite of mine?

So there it is! A nice thing about digital photography has to be the breathe-easy way of experimenting . . . no film's being wasted, after all!

Of course, the beauty of film is that you're not going to take a photo that might not be what you want . . .

But that's a different topic entirely. =)

PS - Check a guest post I wrote here today!

Beautiful North

My family spent the last few days visiting friends, at their lovely place a few hours north of here. I've never experienced so much in three day's time, and it was all fascinating. To put it simply, a lot happened.

These are of the cabin we stayed in. It's a rustic, vintage-y place, built in the 40's and filled with odd and ends and books and beds. And so very cozy.

The bed that my sister and I shared the first night. It's built into the wall in the loft, the wall is all windows looking into the forest. I love it!

The lake is spectacular . . . clear, mostly cold, and deep. Wednesday night, I managed to swim across it!

And the fishing's alright, too, much to my brother's contentment.

We went to the nearby state park for some adventures . . .

Lack of a swimsuit didn't stop our little pal from playing in the river!

It was the perfect day - warm, sunny. Perfect for us tourists! *snicker* We ran all over the trails, gawked at the tallest trees, climbed the fire tower (100 feet is higher than it sounds!), and snacked on candy bars.

My friend took me to the county fair that evening. It was small, unlike the two fairs I usually go to, and I loved the environment.

The horse talent show was really fun to watch. I'd never seen a drill team prior to that night, believe it or not! And this pony was very cute - very perky and happy to show off.

I want a horse of my own. Badly.

The midway was definitely a highlight for me - the few rides we went on were splendid, and the evening light paired with the neon light was wonderful.

Quick question: Am I the only one who is heavily reminded of Charlotte's Web when at a county fair?

As for food . . . well, I'm just gonna say that mint malts, lemonade, and cheese curds are as good as it gets.

That night, my friend and I spent the night in the library above one of the workshops.

We started in on "Much Ado About Nothing". Much laughter ensued, and not only because we were bushed!



Isn't it lovely? Don't you want to become a hermit and live there?

It was an altogether amazing trip. I wish everyone could experience one like it! I also wish I had my camera present when the seventy bagels we made came out of the oven. ;)

But the most amazing thing that happened while we were there? We met a new friend - and he met the world. My mom puts it way better than I could . . . this baby's birth is proof that prayer works, and that God loves life.

I can't wait to get back there. Good friends, beautiful places, and so much to see and do.
Thanks for reading, much love,
M