Says one photographer to many anothers...

Once upon a time, one professional photographer was talking to another professional photographer about really wanting to improve her photography (a desire I know all too well). The other photographer said to her that if she was serious about improving her photography, she would take 3 actions daily… for a whole year, with the result being to improve her photography 300%. The actions include:

• Take at least 1 photo every day.
• Read at least 1 page in my camera manual every day.
• View other professional images every day

I don't think I am a professional photographer, though I am definitely aspiring and working to be on some level eventually. But this challenge struck a unique chord within me and made me truly want to take part in it in a real and committed way, even if my version of it may look quite different and quite amateur comparitively. I am reminded that hesitations and insecurities are all the more reason why I should do this - to put myself out there and potentially allow and encourage others to see my images more often and more naturally as they are captured rather than hide behind my lens and only show a select fraction of what actually gets documented with my camera.

So I'm doing this too...and we'll just see how it goes and what I learn about photography...and myself... in the process.

Thank you Tasra Dawson for the inspiration...and thank you Scott Bourne for issuing the now viral challenge to Tasra in the first place!

...creativity with a purpose...

I am learning that I am one of those people who just simply must be creating...something...at...all...times...in...some...way...shape...or...form. It feeds a part of my being and makes me feel so alive. But what happens when simply creating for creating's sake feels somewhat empty and selfish?

I found one possible answer to that question this Saturday...

In a cozy, charming, inspiring and adorable home in Elmer, NJ belonging to an old friend from high school, I along with my mother and 5 other women ranging in age from 34 - 74 got together for a stamping/card making party. I do not consider myself a stamper nor do I really know the first thing about stamping nor have I ever been particularly interested in stamping...until now.

I didn't really know what to expect when going into this except that it would be fun...but it was so much more than that. I watched and listened as an organic community sprung up around me - a community of women who love to create, who love to craft, who love to be together and who value sharing life with one another. Morsels of encouragement were passed as if on the handles of the scissors, in the ink of the stamp pads and in the fiber of the ribbon. Generosity was abundant in the passing and sharing and caring and laughing. Conversation was real and interesting and funny and simple. Creativity was flowing in and around in scallops and layers and buttons and brads. Friendship was fueled and found over paper scraps and ink stained hands...and I love that.

I stopped for a moment to take it all in and realized how blessed I was to be there, in that moment, with this particular group of women...on this particular day, in this particular house, one simple Saturday in August...each making her own unique mark and creation in the form of 12 cards - that's 84 cards total. That means our experience doesn't end there...84 more people will receive our token of this day - and perhaps it will come at just the right moment to cheer them, encourage them, comfort them, congratulate them, bless them, speak to them, reach them...

...that is the purpose, and it is full and rich and contains a piece of my self but isn't selfish...and that is why I must continue to create in whatever form it may take...

...for a better 2009...

a dear friend sent me an email with "Tips for a Better 2009"...and normally I don't pay much attention to stuff like that...but today I took note, why? I don't know...I guess because I needed a kick in the butt to get out of my most recent funk...so for now, if it takes a list of ideals and things to aspire to over the next year to get me going and keep me positive and believing, then I'll take it ;-) So I share the list(in no particular order) with you too in the hopes that maybe even just one thing on here will encourage you or challenge you too...(there should probably be one on my list about being a more faithful and consistent blogger too)...Anyway, here's to a better 2009!

1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant.
2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day.
3. Buy a DVR and tape your late night shows and get more sleep.
4. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement, 'My purpose is to __________ today.
5. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm, and Empathy.
6. Play more games and read more books than you did in 2008.
7. Make time to practice meditation and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives.
8. Spend time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6.
9. Dream more while you are awake.
10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat less food that is manufactured in factories.
11. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts. '
12. Try to make at least three people smile each day.
13. Clear clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life.
14. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, OR issues of the past, negative thoughts or things you cannot control. Instead invest your energy in the positive present moment.
15. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime.
16. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card.
17. Smile and laugh more. It will keep the NEGATIVE BLUES away.
18. Life isn't fair, but it's still good.
19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone.
20. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does.
21. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree.
22. Make peace with your past so it won't spoil the present.
23. Don't compare your life to others'. You have no idea what their journey is all about.
24. No one is in charge of your happiness except you.
25. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: 'In five years, will this situation matter?'
26. Forgive everyone for everything.
27. What other people think of you is none of your business.
28. REMEMBER GOD heals everything.
29. However good or bad a situation is, it will change.
30. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch.
31. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful or joyful to your spirit.
32. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need.
33. Remember that the best is yet to come.
34. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up and show up.
35. Do the right thing!
36. Call your family often. (Or email them forever!!!)
37. Each night before you go to bed complete the following statements: I am thankful for __________. Today I accomplished _________.
38. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed.
39. Enjoy the ride.. Remember this is not Disney World and you certainly don't want a fast pass. You only have one ride through life so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.
40. Add your own personal additions to the list and share it with people you care about. May your troubles be less, May your blessings be more.

tales and gems from the attic...an unexpected memoir in the making

Mom: "I need you kids to come home for the weekend at the end of June because we are cleaning out the attic. We have way too much stuff up there and none of it is organized. You kids will need to decide what to keep, what to toss and what to give away - we don't mind storing anything for you but you must sort through it. We will work until we get it all done."

Me: "ummm, uh, hhhmmm, well I might be able to, um we'll see...okay, I will be there.

Brother: "when in doubt, toss it out...be prepared for many many trash bags."
Sister-in-Law: "some ground rules from a book I once read - plan on getting rid of 1/3 of what you have - if things are so important to you, then they should be on display or in use, not in a box collecting dust...if you touch it, do something with it..."

Dad: "I might agree to get rid of at least 1/3 of my stuff...then again, I might be lying."

This is how it all began...and I had no idea what I was in for...or perhaps I did, as my initial hesitation would suggest. What started out as a seemingly routine and daunting task quickly became so much more...suddenly dusty boxes full of God knows what, old letters to and from, tattered books and newspaper clippings, sights and smells of many years full of yesterdays and the many other morsels we one by one uncovered, meant something more...to me...memories that needed recalling, loves that longed for re-discovering, life that needed re-claiming, junk and clutter that needed reconciling...dealings...permanently and for real.

So herein reside the kindlings of my dealings...publicly and on display so that I might be reminded and held accountable to this process... just as were the heaps of trash in the sideyard, out of plain sight, waiting for the trips to the dump....just as were the bags upon bags of "giveaway" piled high in every available vehicle...just as were the bare, dusty, dirty yet solid floors of the attic in need of a good sweeping....just as were the clusters of creatively yet organized boxes, tubs, and trunks of "safe to return to the attic" stuff...just as are my memories, my experiences, my childhood, my past...so many lessons, so many insights, so many manys...tucked safely away.

Volume 1, Childhood
So Many Firsts, So Little Time
Threads: The Significance of a Stitch
My Life (so far) as a Bookworm, apples not included
Clement Jack of the Cabbage Patch
Millions of Unusual Small Creatures Lurking Everywhere
Whose Gonna Ride Your [My Little Ponies]
Strawberry Shortcake: a Doll and a Dessert
The Not-so-Yellow Yellow Brick Road (mile 1)
The Little Ballerina Who Could - I think I Can, I think I Can

Volume 2, Adolescence
The Shelf-Life of Barbie
Sequened Scrunchies and other accessories of life
The Redwood Sisters, Live and in Concert
Drama Club for Girls - I'm not only the President, I'm also a member
Rah, Rah, life is Blah: Principles of a Cheer-ocracy
The Not-so-Yellow Yellow Brick Road (mile 2)
Girls Behaving Badly - we wrote the book
I Have the Plaque(s) to Prove It

Volume 3, The College Years
The Art of Belonging: Which of these things is not like the others
Hello Person, are you there, its me Body
The Return to Real and other Adventures of a Used-to-be-Blonde
Life Upon the [ wicked ] stage
Coffee and Cigarettes: A Guide to Truck Stop Therapy
The Not-so-Yellow Yellow Brick Road (mile 3)
Into the Hairbrush: Greatest Hits
A Few Good Men Sacred
Femininity: Teatime, Faeries and Hearts of Space

...to be continued...

The coming days offer much opportunity for reflection and reflect I shall...in preparation for a mini-memoir...in pictures and in stories...for real...I'm doing it.

things to do while on my mini- vacation

some may criticize my desire to create a "list of things to do" on vacation saying it defeats the purpose of a vacation however, there is something comfortably accountable about throwing it out there -- it infact ensures that I really do take a break and that everything on the list is a "want to" not a "have to" ;-) It allows me the freedom to look forward to next week instead of getting bogged down in this week; it provides the proper "butt kicking"(as a dear friend would put it) I definitely need to re-visit some long neglected projects; it releases me from others' priorities for me and allows me to dictate my own; it fuels my inner child to imagine being with sun and sand if even only for a few days; it reminds me that taking a step back and getting recharged is not a sign of weakness but rather a wonderful (and dare I say necessary) thing to experience.

so i have a list...and unlike my other lists, the order of it is irrelevant...how liberating.

• put on flip flops (shown in picture above - yes they are actually mine and they are already perfectly positioned waiting for my feet.)
  
• Grab sunglasses (also shown above, though I may switch these out for my new favorite black and white polka dot pair)
  
• walk up to boardwalk for a morning latte-esque treat
  
• Indulge my A.D.D and stop as randomly, frequently or as seldomly as I want while out and about
  
• Letters from the Porch -of the pen to paper variety-to my boyfriend, friends and family I miss dearly
  
• run my feet through cool, damp sand on the beach at dusk while wearing my favorite Scan the Van hoodie and finishing reading Eleven Minutes by Paulo Coelho
  
• getting crafty with mom - she inspires me.
  
• sunrise/sunset photographing with dad - we love this.
  
• create my own postcards - to prove I did at least one thing on my list ;-)
  
• eat Johnsons famous caramel popcorn, Mack and Mancos pizza, and of course a salt water taffy or two (but only the banana flavored)
  
• morning runs/walks/beach stretching in preparation for Relay for Life - somehow working out at the beach feels like alot less work.
  
• riding the Wonderland Pier Ferris Wheel at least once - the view alone reminds me why I appreciate New Jersey
  
• play scrabble, Trivial Pursuit or Texas Hold 'Em with mom and dad - if mom has any say, we'll be pulling out the chips - I think she might be addicted ;-)
  
• walk, walk and walk some more...
  
• and do whatever I "waaannnnt" (as my mom likes to imitate from a funny commercial that came out last year)

here's to 4 more days...

DC Gem of the Week - Sankofa Cafe

nestled up past Howard University on the leftside of Georgia Ave NW, is a favorite escape for me...thank you Cameron for the day you stumbled across it! Sankofa Cafe (and bookstore) has fed not only my pallette with its delicious paninis and just right lattes, but also my soul with its cultural diversity, celebration of the theatrical and appreciation for documentary film. Tensai, the man behind the counter, is the real gem of this establishment. He looks at you and talks to you in a way that lets you know that he is fully present in that moment - a rarity in this town for sure. I love the name Sankofa which conveys..."we must go back and reclaim our past so we can move forward; so we understand why and how we came to be who we are today".

We're regulars there...and that actually means something to me now.

...to collect...

i like collections of things -- this is no secret -- but my favorite "new" things to collect, are pieces of artwork created by friends and family-- there is something about viewing the work of those closer to me that i find somewhat invigorating and contagious -- perhaps they call that inspiration and perhaps each time i receive a new piece, i gain also a living, breathing muse that holds me accountable to my own creativity and expression...


[ enter friend Jenny - a delightful and soulful human being, a natural comedienne, and a lively artist. I have added some Jenny originals to my "collection" this week...and feel more alive because of it and because of her.]