green

214:365

rain

213:365

I've been writing and editing a lot for work lately, which translates into a desire to neither write nor edit by the time I come to post here. Everything's good...I just don't feel like writin'.

I do, however, enjoy splitting infinitives. Got into a debate with another grammar snob regarding them (I'm pro, he's con) and he simply wouldn't accept my argument (nor that of Google's many sources), so I was forced to call the head of the English department at the school in which I work. He backed me up, and my foe reluctantly admitted defeat. He's a proud alum of the school so he had no choice, really. This was a major win for me, and I'm feeling quite proud. I, and Star Trek fans everywhere, shall continue to boldly go (instead of going boldly).

Sometimes it's the little things.

rise

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lazy

211:365

Productive most of the day. Lazy at the end.

And now...tired.

play

210:365

elevation

209:365

Parish party tonight. Sky Music Lounge. U2 cover band called Elevation which was awesome. Open bar.

'Nuf said.

(Really, honestly and truly, I don't trust myself to type more. Mainly because when I typed "because" my iPhone autocorrected to "Frau" and that's not going to help anyone.)

(But I will say this: I took on a bigger grammar snob than me on split infinitives today and WON. Take that!)

(P.S. I love my journalism degree.)

(P.P.S. In case you're wondering, split your infinitives at will, but do it boldly, please.)

(Also, I love Ireland, and if England could get the f*ck out of that country it'd be great. Thanks.)

eggsactly

208:365

ZoBug had her very first piano lesson today. She loved it. I loved listening to it (I was camped out on the other side of the baby grand on Miss Kiley's couch, with Pocket the dog keeping me company).

Her teacher, highly recommended by a mom I know, is fantastic. She's perfect for Zo. Young, energetic, hip, and fun.

Worked in the stained glass studio again today. I finished grinding and am now foiling. The whole process is wonderful. So meditative. My instructor says I should be finished with this first piece in a week. We'll see. I kind of don't want it to end, but I suppose I could just start another one. I have the perfect spot picked out for a grinder at home. (This is where M groans and asks, "Wait? What about photography?" And then I reassure him that my love for photography will never wane and could I please buy a full-frame D600 and some new glass? And then he starts drinking.)

Made Pad Thai tonight for dinner. First time. It was awesome and will be made again. This adds to the goat cheese pasta with broccoli, the tofu stir fry, and the chicken with honeyed Granny Smith apples dishes I've made this week. It appears my creativity has exploded in the kitchen as well.

Life is good for my right brain right now. Well, it's good for the left brain, too, but it's taking a bit of a much-deserved snooze.

Also, I love brown eggs. I mean, it's crazy. I'm obsessed by them. It's the color, I think. I could never bring myself to buy them before now...would just stare at them through the fridge case at the market. But this week Sam's had them priced the same as the plain old white ones so I bought 'em. And I keep taking pictures of them.

Except we ate three of my subjects on top of our Pad Thai tonight.

(The Pad Thai is sparking an interest in rice noodles, too, but they aren't nearly as pretty as brown eggs. Tasty, though!)

half

207:365

Holy shit. Forgot to post yesterday!

I didn't forget to shoot, though, so the 365 is still intact.

Good gravy. I need to stay focused.

laugh

206:365

Today's challenge was laughter. I was stumped on how to catch this on an average day. Then Zoe asked to watch Little House and squealed when Mrs. Oleson came on. She LOVES Mrs. Oleson. Truth be told, I do, too. She's my favorite character on the show. She's so outrageous and hilarious. And she's infinitely more human than the rest.

Anyway, I knew Mrs. Oleson would invariably do something to make Zoe laugh, so I got the camera ready and just waited. It took less than a minute.

Thank you, Harriet.

sous chef

205:365

I started making dinner tonight (whole wheat spaghetti with fresh broccoli and goat cheese) and realized that a little salad would be great. I got out the lettuce and spied Zo hanging out on the couch.

"Hey! Would you like to make our salad for dinner tonight?"

Her eyes lit up. "Yes!"

So she did.

She was quite pleased with how it turned out, although she was disappointed that I wouldn't let her add broccoli to her salad since we were having it in our pasta dish. At dinner, she declared that this was the best salad we've ever had.

You know what? I think she's right.

home

204:365

Home.

Unpacked, laundry going, guinea pig cage cleaned out and supplies restocked, kitty box cleaned, trash and recycling emptied, a bit of vacuuming, recipes reviewed and grocery list entered into iPhone, camp details for tomorrow checked, and showered.

Bring it, Monday!

grab shot

203:365

Busy day today, full of fun and laughter. It wasn't until tonight, as the sun was setting, that I realized I hadn't taken any iPhone photographs. Why? Because I was too busy shooting with the Nikon!

Man, it's been a long, long time since I shot more with the DSLR than the iPhone. It felt great.

I have tons of editing to do and I can't wait. Yay!

Today's challenge was "in season." Winter calls for Guinness, and no other beer screams summer and warm weather than Corona. I'd call it in season right now, so that's what I shot, on Dave and Meghan's front porch as the party continued inside.

We're heading home tomorrow, which is bittersweet. I'm looking forward to getting back into the routine of things, and long to be back in my sweet house, but I'll miss our Cincy cousins greatly. They are the true definition of family. They stick by each other through thick and thin, can always make each other laugh, and show more love in a single day than many people do in a lifetime. I adore them, and I'd pack them all up and take them home if I could get away with it.

we

202:365

We have so much fun together, my Bug and I.

I hope she remembers the laughter when she grows up.

kick

Tonight, after dinner, the baby in cousin Meghan's belly was kicking up a storm. She let me feel it (which is always incredible) and I saw Zoe watching with interest. I asked, "Would you like to feel the baby kick?" She nodded tentatively, and I encouraged her to come over. Meghan guided her hands and we watched Zoe's face for recognition. Suddenly her eyes went wide - she felt the baby!

It was magical. As babies (both in the belly and nearly eight years out) are.

fly

201:365

A (hot) day at Kings Island. Lots of fun and laughter. A typical awesome day with this particular set of cousins.

sunset x2

200:365

Road trip! We're in Cincy for a weekend of fun and family. Yay!

(Found the Nikon battery charger in my office this morning. Whew!)

close. and lost.

199:365

I can't find my freaking Nikon battery charger.

This, as you can imagine, is causing me a great deal of stress.

I'm hoping that it's at work, in my office, plugged into an outlet. If not, I'll be making a Schiller's run to buy a new one. Which is not entirely bad because a trip to Schiller's is pretty awesome all by itself.

Except that now that I think back, I remember that my last trip there was to pick up my newly repaired 17-55mm f/2.8 that wiped out my gift card stash and then some.

I really need to stop breaking/losing things.

Fingers crossed it's at work tomorrow.

me

198:365

Today's assignment: self portrait.

I loathe them. Unless I'm with my kid or M or someone else I love.

I'm trying to be better about being photographed, because I want Zozo to have pictures of her mom from when she was growing up. Some days are easier, some harder. Today was harder. I just wasn't in the mood to turn the lens on myself.

street

197:365

Today's assignment was street. As in street photography. I'm not big into this particular genre. I don't do people well, and I feel self-conscious shooting strangers in public places.

As luck would have it, we weren't anywhere near an urban area for me to shoot street style today. In fact, we weren't even suburban.

We were rural, baby.

Which meant I got creative and made my own street shoot. Three kids (one my own, two my cousin's), strong backlight, two different photography apps and viola! A gritty black and white that feels, to me anyway, sort of streetish.

I love their shadows.

Back to work tomorrow. My lovely week of vacation is over.

I think my assignments may be a little harder to fill, but I'll take the challenge. A little challenge now and then is a good thing. Makes your brain think differently, which is supposed to be healthy.

water

196:365

Today's assignment was water. We get the daily prompts each morning via email. I woke up, read today's, and thought, "Well, crap. We went to the pool YESTERDAY!"

Then I heard the water running outside and remembered that M was getting up early to wash the car. I bolted out of bed, dressed, and ran outside to capture some water before he finished.

Not what I would have normally planned, but I like how they turned out and I think I got something different than what most people shot.

dance

195:365

She's been spontaneously dancing out of sheer joy lately. It's fun to watch, and it makes me happy that she's so happy.

Today she danced in the pool.

wish

194:365

Awesome day at Six Flags. Beautiful weather and the park was only about 20% full. We walked on to most rides, and some we rode twice in a row with no waiting. We all had a blast.

Since I am now an enormous pansy-ass when it comes to amusement park rides, I amuse myself by looking for photographs. Today did not disappoint.

This is my favorite. It looks like a big dandelion to me. Like with one blow all the people riding way up there would scatter into the wind, taking my wish with them.

The thought of this actually happening is just one of the many reasons I don't ride stuff like this anymore.

I did attempt the Ferris wheel, which at Six Flags is enormous. I did fine right up until I didn't, which is when the damn thing started moving. I tried so hard to keep it together. I really wanted to. I wanted to get great photographs from a different perspective, which was today's assignment in my e-course.

It didn't work out. Within seconds I was crying and gasping for air, gripping the cage of our car, and desperately trying to look only at my feet while ignoring the movement of the ride. M came across and held me close, which helped tremendously. Our daughter sat across from us looking at her dad like, "WTF is wrong with Mom?"

So yeah. My grand experiment was a failure. Or maybe it was a success in that I learned that I simply cannot outgrow a fear instilled in childhood. No need to try that again! It's not like the time I tried asparagus as an adult and learned I love it now even though I hated it as a kid.

So, to recap: asparagus good, Ferris wheels very, very bad.

Photography, always.

full

193:365

Today:
Up in the Arch
Lunch at Crown Candy Kitchen (including a cherry marshmallow shake)
Afternoon at Science Center
Evening at Build-a-Bear

We had a blast.

play

192:365

My campers came home today! It sounds like they had a blast. So, so happy they went, even though I missed them like crazy. I think it's something they will never forget.

Tonight we went to my nephew's baseball game. First time we've seen him play (tonight was his second game). Holy crap. The boy has serious fielding skills. I mean, jeez. He caught a couple pop flies and a line drive, and as soon as he caught the ball he'd fire it to a base...the RIGHT base. Just to put this into perspective: his teammates, IF they caught the ball (and that's a huge if), they then stood paralyzed, not knowing where to throw it. Even with bases loaded and a force out anywhere. Joey just hammered it. He was aggressive, running to catch each ball, and one of his quick turns resulted in a double play. He was so much fun to watch!

His sister, my niece Emma, was also fun to watch. She picked clover and gave me smoochies, and totally killed me when she reappeared after playing, apparently, in a mulch pile (see image above). She reminds me so much of my sister...I love it!

Tomorrow we're fulfilling one of Zoe's staycation requests: we're going up in the arch! Science center and/or the art museum after. We'll probably avoid the mulch piles, though. Should be a good day.

green

191:365

Today's challenge was color. Green is my favorite.

Today I learned what retirement must feel like.

I woke up when my eyes opened. No alarm. I got up and poked around on the Internet and read a photography magazine (that just came in the mail...not one that sat around for six months waiting for me like what usually happens) and then drooled over the new Nikon DSLRs in the B&H Photo catalog. Got hungry, made some breakfast.

Then I got dressed and did minimal hair and makeup. Dragged the trash cans in from the curb and hit the road. Exchanged a gift at the mall, dropped off a letter at the PO, and did some banking. Headed to a great little local shop to pick up a birthday present for a friend, then back home. Wrapped up the gift for shipping, made some lunch, and took a little nap.

Got up in time for my stained glass class (we started grinding today!). Hit the PO again to ship the gift, then another store to shop for another gift. I was able to leisurely browse instead of running in, desperately searching while thinking of the next eight places I have to be, and running out. I bantered with the clerk, I strolled around. In short, I enjoyed myself.

As I drove home, going the speed limit, I realized I was one of those people who normally aggravate me. Cars sped past me and I was perfectly content to just drive and not race to get somewhere.

Once home, I made some dinner and watched some TV. Edited yesterday's images of the house and posted to Facebook. Painted my toe nails. Watched some West Wing while visiting my favorite photo sites on the iPad.

If this is what retirement is like - doing what I want and what I need to do at a leisurely pace - I'm ready.

I pick up my campers tomorrow afternoon. I miss them and can't wait to hear about their experience. I did get a text from M today. They've gone canoeing and had a nature talk and a campfire. They had craft time and were going to cook their dinner at their camp site tonight.

He signed his text with the camp name we joked he'd take. Mav. As in Maverick. As in Top Gun.

Negative, Ghostrider. The pattern is full.

love

190:365

It's not often that I have trouble choosing which image to make my "picture of the day." In fact, many days there isn't even a choice because I was lucky to eke out one photograph.

Today, though, I have two favorites. So it's Reader's Choice day here at Latent Images.

The photo of Zozer in bed was taken first thing this morning to fulfill a class challenge of "morning light." I had intended to get up early and try to capture the sunrise. That didn't happen, and I was delusional to ever think it would. (I am not an early riser by nature.) Thankfully, the morning light in our bedroom is gorgeous, and when I opened my eyes today after feeling a small person climb in next to me, this is what I saw. Score.

This afternoon, I dropped M and Zoe off at Girl Scout camp. That's right. BOTH of them. It's a daddy/daughter thing. I hope they're having a good time. I miss them tremendously, but did enjoy my evening of photographing the house and watching photography DVDs that I try not to make M suffer through. I did not enjoy emptying the trash cans, lugging the trash and recycling to the curb, cleaning the guinea pig's cage and moving the stupid sprinkler all over the yard by myself, but those were small prices to pay for some much-needed solitude.

Also, since I just had a bug-free shower and am getting ready to sleep in my comfy bed while enjoying the wonder of air conditioning, I don't think I can complain.

assignment

189:365

Today's class assignment was to be a tourist in your own town. This did not fit into my schedule, so I had to make do.

After dinner, which included dessert, Zoe requested we stop by the train station to look for trains. She loves doing this. Heck, we all like doing this. Anyway, while there I realized that if I were hosting guests from out of town, people who were tourists, I'd take them to one of our favorite summertime haunts. We have, in fact, done this many times. And since it's right next to the train station, I was able to capture it. Even though we didn't get any custard. We did see a freight train, though.

Assignment done!

mine

188:365

My challenge today was "family." About 20 minutes before Zoe was picked up by a friend to see movies at a drive-in, I realized that if I didn't shoot her and M NOW I would miss my deadline. D'oh!

So I hustled Zoe into M's project room, where he's been working to get everything going for Christmas, and said, "I need to photograph you two!"

I had thought I'd get an action shot, but the tone of his wall screamed "backdrop! Go in tight!" (Or maybe that was the voice in my head. Whatever.)

So I went in tight and shot four pictures, instructing them after the first one when Zoe had her "cheese" perma-grin plastered on her face. I liked the remaining three so much that I couldn't choose just one, so I used an app to make this nifty little montage. I hadn't used this particular app's editing options before so I thought I'd give them a spin. I liked what I found so much that I didn't even edit in Instagram before posting.

I love learning new stuff!

(I'll tell you what I don't love: Adobe's idiotic decision to not let me buy the latest issue of Photoshop. Nope...if I want it I have to RENT it month to month. WTF. Sure, twenty bucks a month seems like not much, and it's a helluva lot less expensive than buying the old, full versions outright, but my fear is that they'll jack up the price ungodly high after a year or so, or they'll inch it up so gradually we won't notice we're being completely hosed month by month. Suck it, Adobe. You just lost a big fan.)

birthday

187:365

Happy birthday, America. Have a cookie.

We all pursued our various artistic interests today. We photographed (with the Nikon!) and edited, we painted, we cooked and baked, we set up two new computers and loaded over 49.5 hours of Christmas music...

It was a wonderful day in the Z house.

Zoe Paints

Oh yeah. That's what a big girl camera can do.

Oh, Nikon. How I've missed you.

drop

186:365

Time with Photoshop tonight, and generally messing around in my little darkroom. Life is good.

rain

185:365

It rained all stinking day today. All day. And was chilly. Like 62 degrees chilly. This is NOT St. Louis summer weather. I'm not complaining, mind you, but it's kind of giving me the willies.

Two big additions to the Z house tonight. M is the proud owner of two new Dell all-in-ones, purchased specifically for running the display and the radio station. So, aptly I think, we named them Santa and Rudolph. He's happily setting them up now, lining up all his preferences and downloading software. New technology is always so much fun.

Today was Day 2 of a cute little phoneography e-course I'm taking. I won a seat for free, and am so glad I did. I most likely wouldn't have signed up if I hadn't. Not quite yet in the mode of shelling out $ for my photography again, mainly because I don't feel worthy of it. Not shooting with the Nikon is part of it, along with editing solely in the iPhone and not at all in Photoshop. I'll get there again, and this course is doing just what I hoped it would: it's lighting the spark. It's helping me look for images again, instead of just stumbling across them. Don't get me wrong...stumbling is good and I've found some of my favorite photographs as happy accidents. But I'm truly happiest when I am actively looking, when I am seeking compositions.

This morning, when I first awoke and saw it was raining, I felt discouraged. I knew I'd be working from home and not getting out, and I thought I would struggle to fill today's assignment much less find anything else. I was wrong. Several nice little pictures came from the day, including today's photo of raindrops on some kind of weed creeping over my new mulch.

I'm a little afraid to go back into my new digital darkroom. I'm afraid I will go in there and get so lost in editing and be so happy that M will need a crowbar to get me out.

This is a good problem to have.

peek-a-hoot

184:365

One of the awesome things about taking your kid to work is that things like this happen in the middle of the day. I'm sitting there, banging away at the keyboard, and Hoot slowly pops up behind the monitor. Not all the way. Just enough so his little black eyes could peer at me.

I cracked up laughing.

Zozo's look of determination also sends me over the edge.

I love that girl. And her little owl, too.