Friday Five - Beauty in Starkness

California may not get the extreme winters the rest of the country faces, but I still like to pay attention and notice the slight seasonal changes. Trees are bare, green is scarce, and there is a chill in the air. Here are five California-style winter shots for you. Today I was featured on the Mortal Muses site, check it out HERE!

Today is Friday (yay!) and Brent's birthday (yay!) so it should be a fun couple of days between the birthday celebrations and Superbowl parties.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Catching Up With Coffee

Time for a little coffee date! I have gotten really good with Brent's espresso machine and I am liking the strong espresso taste more and more. In college my drink of choice was an extra sweet vanilla latte or caramel macchiato, now I prefer the not sweet plain latte or cappuccino, nice and strong. But I can make vanilla lattes, macchiatos, mochas, or even peppermint mochas...what can I make you?

If we were meeting for coffee, I would ask how your weekend was. Do anything exciting or just relax? Eat anything yummy? Get in some laughs? Ours was relaxing. Saturday night we saw the movie "The Fighter" and tried out a delicious new burger place...best homemade buns I have had in a long time. The movie was really good, the cast was what made it for me. I had to stand in the back of the theater for half of it though...my back pain was making me squirm around in my seat like crazy and felt bad for the people behind me.

Sunday we met Kaitlin and Jordan at the beach, the boys surfed and Kait and I watched, took photos, and admired the beautiful sunset. Every time I see a pretty sunset like this, it feels like a brand new experience because no two are alike. The colors, the clouds, the clarity, the way it changes after the sun disappears behind the horizon.

Yesterday, I was picking up my uncle from the train station, and I pulled up 5 seconds before the train pulled in front of my view. But for an instant, I could see the ocean on the other side of the tracks as the sun illuminated a crashing wave making it glow bright green. The train came and hid the sight, but it made me appreciate these moments...the moments you see such beauty only nature can provide. The moments that will never be replicated exactly, the moments that build upon each other and string together a mental library of images of how incredible this natural beauty truly is.

If we were meeting for coffee I would ask you if you saw the Oscar nomination list. I get so excited for the Academy Awards every year...my mom and her best friend used to throw a big party where everyone made themed food relating to the movies. Brent and I have done this on a much smaller scale the past few years, but I enjoy it very much. I like that there are now 10 Best Picture nominations instead of 5, and I hope to see them all before the show.

Then I would share with you some things that made me laugh this week:

I saw this commercial yesterday and I could not stop laughing

I was browsing the app store in itunes and found this Girl Scout Cookie Locater App. Haha yes, I did download it. Before you make fun of me, it was free, and curiosity got the best of me. There are none being sold currently, must be off season...but this could be very dangerous...

Yesterday I was watching TV and somehow got completely sucked into the VH1 Behind the Music of 50 Cent. It was fascinating!! Did you know he used to be a meth dealer, and then when got into music he chose the name because it represented a 'change'. Did you know he got shot in the cheek and still has a bullet fragment lodged in his tongue and that is why he kind of talks and sings the way he does? Ohh guilty pleasures...I'm a sucker. Have you been watching Teen Mom 2? If you thought last season was intense...

I hope you have a great week, and thanks to Amy for hosting coffee this morning.

Cracked

I have been taking and very much enjoying Tracey Clark's photography classes. I am in my third now: Picture Winter. Each morning waiting for me like a little present is an email with a prompt and her photo for that day. I usually open it first thing in the morning, mull over the prompt, shoot some different photos throughout the day and choose my favorite to submit.

Well the prompt a few days ago was "cracked open," and I may have unintentionally taken it a bit too literally. Driving home from Brent's house I passed Doheney Beach and it was so beautiful I had to stop to take photos. Maybe I would even find something that would apply to the prompt. Five minutes out of getting out of my car, I was taking this photo of a puddle covering cracked mud, when BAM!

My brand-new, six day old baby of an iphone 4 fell out of my jacket packet, from ONE foot off the ground, and when I picked it up, it looked like this:

Dad, if you are reading this, don't worry, you can stop cringing, this story has a happy ending, I promise. But needless to say, I was bummed. Iphones are NOT cheap and I had a feeling "stupid enough not to put the phone in a tight, safe spot" is not one of the problems covered under warranty. But it's me, I am a photographer who when I see something photo-worthy, I pull over the car, I make Brent wait for me as I fall behind on our walks oohing and ahhing at every little thing with my camera, and it's me, who, as freaked out I was about having to prepare an iphone funeral, I continued on to the beach to take some shots. I was already there dangit, and my phone was shattered, and it felt like someone was throwing softball-sized rocks at my back. I was GOING to get at least one good shot!!

Back to the phone. I went to the Apple store and just as I suspected, "stupid enough not to put the phone in a tight, safe spot" is not covered under warranty. "That'll be $199 dollars" says the apple genius man. But he waited just long enough for it to sink in and allow my eyes and mouth to grow into three gigantic circles before adding "but since you only had it less than a week, we'll cover it for you." OH MY. I had the case on. I dropped it from a foot off the ground. Why did it shatter? Apparently, it doesn't matter even if you have it in the strongest of cases, if it lands on the "sweet spot" it will break. But I think I was rewarded for being patient, for staying at the beach to snap those pretty photos, for keeping my cool and staying calm. Because on the drive home was this amazing sunset:

If this ordeal (I know, I know it is just a phone, but...) had not happened, I probably would have been inside the house and completely missed out on this incredible sunset!! Glad it is over.

A Little Sunshine

"Keep your face always toward the sunshine -

and shadows will fall behind you."

-Walt Whitman

I was inspired today by the prompt in Tracey Clark's Picture Winter class. Although we had some rain and cooler temperatures, Tuesday I awoke to an absolutely beautiful day. The sun shone bright, crisp clean air, and not a cloud in the sky. Everything was still covered in droplets of water from the previous day's rain, catching the gleam of the sunlight and sparkling like jewels. The backyard had been transformed overnight and the plants and flowers stood tall boasting their beauty.

{Project 365 Day 4}

I began to think about the magnificence of the sun in the most primitive sense. The word could not survive without it, allowing humans and nature to thrive. But it also brings out the best in people, and is used as a synonym for cheery, happy, and bright.

Tracey's prompt involved finding something to photograph that mimicked the colors and or shape of the sun. While sunshine is not in our daily lives, both physically and metaphorically, we can do our best to create our own. Some days are cloudy and gray, some are happy and some are sad, some are productive some are frustrating. But encouraging ourselves to find a little bit of sunshine in some form or another can keep us going. I am working hard to find those little moments, people, and places that light up my life, and surround myself with them daily.

{Day 4 Picture Winter - "A Little Sunshine"}

Breath of Fresh Air

New Years Day 2011. Woke up to a chilly but beautiful day. We wrapped our cold fingers around mugs of homemade lattes, silently perking up with each sip. Still in our pajamas, we threw on jackets and hats, and took a stroll along the path above the beach. Clear blue skies, crisp air, and a quietness that comes with the reflection of the new year. We passed a few pensive others, I like to think their heads were stirring with happy memories of 2010 and intentions for 2011.

January 2nd, I awoke to stormy skies and feeling hopeful for what is to come during this year. Excited for the goals I have set for the year, and for the ways in which I hope to make a great year for myself. Today I was focusing on really taking everything in and appreciating every last little bit of my life. When a negative thought popped into my head, I pushed it out of my mind and took a deep breath. I reminded myself that sometimes it as simple as taking a breather, focusing on the positive, and telling myself everything will be okay. I hope this will become a habit.