Photo a Day

A few years ago, I had a Photo a Day gallery. I kept it up for a few months, but it was difficult to maintain. It started to feel like I was taking and posting pictures just to get one online and more often I was unhappy with the rushed result.

Looking back, I wish I had kept up the project. The pictures may not have been my best, but they were an interesting mix of images. Some staged, some candid. Some good, some not so good.

I'm going to make another attempt at it. I took this picture yesterday and posted it this morning. I suspect that may be the easiest way for me to maintain the project - take a picture one day, post it the next. I have gotten away from photography and it will be interesting to see if this rekindles my interest.

Stop by my Photo a Day Gallery anytime and feel free to comment or leave a word of encouragement.

Reflection

A quick picture that went wrong and then a little right. Not perfect, but that's life.

I recently painted one of my bathrooms a deep, bold blue. Daring Indigo. (don't you love the names of paint colors?) It's a half-bath and I was a little worried about using it in a such a small space, but it looks good against the porcelain, the new faucet, and the mirror.

I snapped a picture to show the mirror and sink against the deep blue, but I was in a hurry and ended up with a lot of glare and weird reflections. I was going to trash it and try again, but I kind of liked the result. Sort of trippy, pinkish hues and blown out glare.

Cropping and playing around with the saturation brought some interesting results... I like the feel of losing color on the reflection, while over saturating the rest. It somehow seemed fitting. The world being busy, bright, and harsh. A little crooked and unsettling. While self-reflection is dim and quiet, stark in comparison. But maybe that's just me.

While it wasn't the original intent, I kind of like it. I'm tempted to try again and plan for this outcome, but a staged shot with this intent may just frustrate me. So, I'll let it stand as is.

Feeling Funny

See what happens when I write to "Humor" categories. Here are two of my more demented online articles. Enjoy!

Humor: Job Interviews
Job interviews may set your stomach quivering and your palm sweating, but they do not have to be the cause of so much anxiety. There are some simple tips you can learn to boost your confidence and put you in the best light to land the job of your dreams. 1. Always lie on your resume.... (read more)

Humor: Adventures with a Shopping Cart
Grocery shopping is a chore. No matter how much you try to stock up, you will always need to go back. It can begin to feel like a monotonous task. Pick up the milk, pick up more bread. Don't forget batteries or toilet paper. Over and over.

There has to be a way to liven up your trip. Fortunately, grocery stores provide some four-wheeled entertainment in the form of rickety-wheeled, metal-caged, shopping carts. You just need a little imagination and a lot of courage to turn your grocery shopping into an adventure!... (read more)

Cranberry Peach Oatmeal

This oatmeal recipe evolved through experimentation and has become my favorite way to start the day. It's extremely simple to make and absolutely delicious! Almost like dessert for breakfast.

The recipe is for one serving, but can be easily adapted for two or more. Follow the directions on the oatmeal container for making additional servings of oatmeal and double (or triple, etc.) the other ingredients.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup Quaker Old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup Craisins (dried cranberries)
1 individual fruit cup of diced peaches (Dole fruit bowls or similar)
1 cup water
Ground cinnamon

Combine oats, Craisins and water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. When the oatmeal is nearly ready (almost completely thickened), add the container of diced peaches. Dash in ground cinnamon to taste (start with less, you can always add more). Stir.

When the oatmeal has thickened and the peaches are warm, it is ready to serve. Let it cool, as the oatmeal will be very hot!

Kids Bedrooms

A freelance article I recently wrote (and sold - yay!) has been published at Kidica.com. It's an article with advice for designing your child's dream bedroom.

This article was really fun to write, especially because I pulled from my own experience with decorating the boys' rooms. It was fun to write, fun to sell, and even more fun to actually see in print (well, e-print).

Here's the link to the article: Kids Bedrooms
(Remember, that is not my site, so please do not post personal comments to me on the article! Only post comments there about the article itself. You can leave a message for me here on my blog. Thanks!)

And for all you parents (and grandparents), Kidica.com has great information on a variety of kid-related topics. Check it out!

The Frog

Saturday was a good day for frog and turtle spotting at the lake.

The boys helped me find several and we were able to get rather close. Although, this particular frog gave me a scare.

I was doing my stalk and snap routine - take a picture, inch closer, take a picture, inch closer - and the frog didn't seem to care a bit. He appeared completely content to be relaxing in the sun.

I was just shifting to a different angle, crouching closer to the edge of the lake, when the frog suddenly sprang into the air!

There was a blur as flexing frog legs went whizzing by the lens. I startled backward, clutching my camera, and heard the splash as he dove into the water.

The boys were hopping around excitedly behind me. "Did you get that? Did you get it?"

Um, no. I didn't get the shot. But I did manage to keep myself from falling in the lake.

(click picture to enlarge.)

Turtle Bread

Turtle Bread is a family tradition. When the boys were little I found this recipe in a kids' cookbook and started making it for special dinners.

I was just looking through old pictures and came across these from Thanksgiving 2005.

It's a simple bread recipe, but before baking the dough is divided and pieced together to form a turtle shape with raisin eyes. The kids love it!

A quick google search came up with the actual recipe from Betty Crocker. There's a picture too, but I think mine is much cuter -- even if the Betty Crocker pic has more realistic turtle dimensions.

And the bread is really tasty... once you can get past the idea of tearing apart the cute little turtle!

(click the pictures to see them full sized)

I Hate Wallpaper

Last week, I decided to buy a new soap dispenser for the downstairs half-bath, but I couldn't decide which one to buy. Nothing felt right.

I decided the problem was more with the cheap chrome towel bars and faucet. Of course, if I was going to change all that, the ugly brass builder light should go too... Then there was that border near the ceiling that I wasn't crazy about... and it could use a coat of paint...

Today, I installed the new faucet - luckily Peter was willing to help me get the old one out first, because that was pretty tough. Next, I had to get the old border down (and disconnect the wall light over the sink, since the border ran half under it). Which brings me to the I hate wallpaper part. Or more specifically, I hate removing wallpaper.

The easiest way to get the border down was with a hand-held steamer and putty-knife. Of course, the ceiling is 9 ft. high and I'm not. And did I mention my slight ladder-phobia? In the tiny half-bath there was very little room to maneuver a ladder and no way to open it to reach the section of wall over the toilet.

So, tonight I found myself balancing on a half-open ladder, juggling a steamer and putty knife, and cursing the previous owners for putting up the border in the first place. And it all started with a new soap dispenser... Sigh.