Little Scraps of Magic

Dinner at "The Fish Market" in Alexandria, VA, just a few evenings ago - a perfect spring evening to people watch, play with the aperature settings on my camera, and simply enjoy some time with Phil. Crab stuffed avocado...oh, yum!

Blooming outside my classroom windows - a gorgeous gift. As we work our way through Terra Nova week, I'm trying to focus on life's gifts. I have to admit, though, that it took  some serious deep breathing today to remain calm, focused, and to ignore an already crazy middle school schedule as it got even crazier.

Thank you, God, for students who remain cheerful and go with the flow, even when their teacher goes just a bit nuts.

 

Sunday Morning Musings

Outside my window, sunshine and spring are waiting for me to stick my nose out the door, and enjoy the day's gifts.

I am thinking about how silly I must have looked yesterday, standing, stooping, and squatting with my tripod, some pinwheels, and a child's marble toy - right next to one of the busiest roads in VA.

I am thankful for balmy days, new color in what has been a gray and brown world, and so much more!

From the kitchen, not much is happening, but it will be in a few minutes, since I can hear Dominic moving about. It's almost time for his grandpa to make some waffles.

I'm wearing my comfortable blue sort of chenillish type material, oh so stylish, robe from Walmart.

I am creating photos with motion, a new journal page, and some time for myself.

I am going to my next photography class this afternoon with Kara - going to get my photos critiqued in public. Oh, joy! Not such a bad lesson though because it reminds me of just how my students must be feeling!

I am reading blogs, internet sites, and books on photography, especially - you guessed it - stopping and starting motion. That is, until after today's class when I'll have a new assignment and something new to "focus" on. (Sorry, I couldn't resist.)

I am hoping for some understanding of what this guy is talking about. I had to do some serious reading and research after class; I think he forgets that some of us are beginners in every sense of the word, and that others of us have somewhat of a clue, but hey...we're in the beginners class!

I am hearing grandpa stirring now; breakfast is in the works with omelets and waffles to come.

Around the house is lots of cat hair; vacuuming is on the agenda today. It should have been done yesterday, but hey, I was playing with the tripod and camera.

One of my favorite things is steamed clams; my sister is at the beach this weekend and I told her to eat some for me. I hope she does!

Have a wonderful week, everyone! And, I do know that the picture has absolutely nothing to do with this post, but I like this gent's attitude. He's completely at peace with the fact that his hairdo has gone terribly wrong.

 

Gypsy Shoes on Dog Beach

Here...

after clambering down a rickety set of steps

holding my breath and hoping not to fall

planting my two feet on Dog Beach

wondering if I can get out onto that pier

Here...

after winding our way with a few false starts

bathed in sunlight and inhaling the scent of the bay

Here...

playing with lenses

delighted by patterns and lines

wanting to capture the magic

 Here...

thinking I could easily live in one of these

yes, I really could

Here...

with you

gypsy shoes planted firmly on our feet

watching you watching it all

we're water babies, you and I

Here...

at the end of the pier now

and claiming this bench

Here..

nestled against you

delighting in the sounds of the gulls

taking pictures of my shoes to prove I was here

Here...

capturing shadows

capturing magic

capturing us

 

Linger...for Just a Little While

I fell in love with chicken feathers today. Who knew these ladies were strutting such glorious arrays? And, let's be honest, the fellas too, as seen above!

Kara, Alex, and I wandered about Reston Zoo today, drinking in the sunshine and sniffing spring.

If you accompany a 2 year old to the zoo, that child forces you to let go of any agenda and any sense of control your foolish mind might dream up. What you think will entrance them or amaze them, rarely does...and things, such as bewhiskered ugly little runty pigs fill them with delight.

And, if you're at all smart, or wise, you simply let go. You meander in a zig zag fashion, ignoring some exhibits and repeatedly visiting others.

And, if you can let go of your agenda, your carefully planned path, and stop when your heart tells you, you become entranced by something as simple as chicken feathers.

They're gorgeous...colors, patterns, textures, you name it, these ladies and gents flaunt it, while quietly going about the business of foraging for food. Mother Nature throws beauty in front of us, gifting us with magic really, but we need to stop, look, and enjoy.

So, I sat, camera in hand, hoping to capture the magic, trying to work around the chain link fence, and wishing these busy bodies would just stay still.

Life is shifting a bit lately; I'm finding a new rhythm, one that's slower, more thoughtful, less filled with business mindless business.

We celebrated Easter with family and friends, each bringing a few special dishes to share. No one stressed or fussed.  We let go of baking 3 or 4 types of cookies, of a breakfast that while delicious, packed on the pounds.We let go of dragging out every decoration, simply enjoying some fresh tulips lifting their heads to the sun, and we turned the table over to play doh and painting. We slowed it all down; we enjoyed the gifts the day brought to all of us.

Mary Oliver says it so much better in these lines from "Invitation:"

   it is a serious thing

Just to be alive

   on this fresh morning

      in this broken world.

        I beg of you,

do not walk by

  without pausing

    to attend to this

      rather ridiculous performance.

You'll be so glad that you did.

 

Snowstorm Tease

The promise of a snowstorm...I don't know who prayed harder, the teachers or the students!

It didn't look promising yesterday afternoon - blue skies,white clouds. But by 11 the flakes drifted slowly down, and by midnight the school system declared: "Snow Day!"

By 6 AM, the snowflakes fell just a bit more furiously, and the weathermen declared that we might even get more! Maybe, just maybe, up to 10 inches!

Sounded like a second day off in the making.

Mother Nature felt differently, and the mix of snow/rain, which should have shifted toward the all snow line, shifted the other way, to the all rain line.

We may have 2 inches at most, and the weather gods have lifed the winter storm warning. The powers that be promise dry roads for tomorrow morning. Bleah! Another day of putzing around would have been so lovely.

Have to admit, though, that I managed to spend a great deal of time here:

Got a bunch of papers corrected, grades entered and posted for parents to see, and now, I'm off to read and relax!

"Snowquester" it wasn't!

It Works for Me!

Over at Artsyville, inquiring minds would like to know, "What's working for you?" After mulling it over for a few days...and quite frankly, being brain dead, for most of those days, I've compiled my list:

...vanilla spice lattes from Starbucks

...macro lenses

...wide angle lenses

....photo walks

....curling up with a good book (Just picked up J.D. Robb's newest!)

...Suduko and crossword puzzles at the end of the day

...early morning prayer time in our school chapel

...dark chocolate sea salt caramels

...working my way through Trader Joe's coffees

...journaling

...photoshop elements

...weekend time with the "grands"

...making lists

...picking up homemade pierogis and halushki on Fridays during Lent

...destashing and decluttering

...art time in the studio

...sending/receiving cards through Postcrossings

...having my photographs printed as postcards and sending them through the mail

How about you? What's working right now?

 

Here...

Here...

Head bowed, buffeted by a bitterly cold February wind.

Tears streaming down my face

Eyes blinking against the sunlight's glare.

 

Here...

Head turned toward a radiant sun

Lost in the magic of stay puff marshmallow clouds

 

Here...

Numb hands gripping the camera's body

Wondering how to begin to capture this magic

 

Here...

Kneeling on wet damp sand

Listening to the shreiking of laughing gulls

Watching the itty bitties battling ferocious gusts of wind

 

Here...

Tasting gritty bits of sand

Capturing magic

 

Here...

 

Digging the Process

Friday night and we rocked the art supplies!

And, if you'd been a fly on the wall, you'd have seen a perfect example of play and sheer enjoyment of the process.

Mixed media artists talk a lot about that, the "just enjoy the process" bit. Truth be told, if we're honest, there's almost always a control factor there. We have an image in our mind of what it "should" look like, or we simply don't think the end result is "good enough." It's terribly hard to just play and watch what happens.

I did a lot of tongue biting last night.

Dom would create the neates design of lines and texture with the combs and sponges, and then cheerfully grab more paint, glob it over everything, and start anew.

And, I wanted to shriek, "Stop! Do you know how cool that is? Don't ruin it." But, it simply didn't matter; he just wanted to play. He wasn't one bit interested in the final result; he simply kept going to see what would happen next. What a lesson to be leane for Baba (Grandma) here!

I think we used every comb, paintbrush, dabber, and "tool" on the table.

And, when we got tired of the art, the dancing began!

Here's Alex doing the "monkey" with his mama!

Making a List...Late Again!

If it's Tuesday, I must be catching up on "List It Tuesday," yet once again. In my defense this week has been a combination of getting out report cards and Catholic Schools Week! Can you spell "hectic?"

Without further ado, may I present my list?

1. Art supplies...pens, papers, inks, fabrics, all the things of which a mixed media artist dreams. I seriously narrowed whittled down my stash, but there's a whole lot more whittling to do.

2. Camera lenses...it's all about the lenses, baby. I'm loving my new wide angle - so many possiblities.

3. Tiny vintage bottles and old fashioned telephone pole insulators, especially in shades of greens and blues. Add vintage Bell canning jars to that list!

4. Penguins...this one started as a joke and snowballed from there.

5. Books of all sorts...I keep destashing, but new ones keep following me home.

6. Plates in all sorts of colors and textures...I love to set a pretty table; it's another way to make art.

7. Handmade journals, whether I make my own or buy handmade, and of course, all the goodies I use to fill them up.

8. Postcards from around the world (Check out Postcrossings!) and artsy sorts of cards.

9. Old fashioned flower pots, especially McCoys, in which to store my pens. I love the old wooden cheese boxes as well.

10. Candles, scented bubble baths, and lotions

11. Words of all sorts and poetry

Linking over at Artsyville's List It Tuesday; go check out the fun.

Photo Heart Connection -January 2013

I've been wandering through January's photos for the past few hours, editing and attempting to choose my "Photo - Heart Connection." I bounced back, forth, and sideways among several of them, many of my choices focusing on catching glimpes of rare January light.

I kept coming back to this one, though, for many reasons.

I'm drawn to the timelessness of it...

...a father and son connection, much treasured

...two boys, one 28 and one 4, throwing sticks in the water

...a reminder that life is precious, and that while we may not have much in the eyes of the world, we're not lacking for wealth

...that many of our cherished moments having nothing to do with modern technology or the latest gadgets

...that you can find warmth on a cold January day

Thank you, Kat, for helping me to slow down and remember just how much life has given to me.