photography
don't everyone get all surprised at once yo...yes, photography makes me insanely happy. it was an old friend that i dumped after the sadie hawkins dance in high school and shamelessly picked back up in 2007. i bought her a fancy case and she caved after a few rounds of i'm sorry and a plethra of flowers, trips and a few good looking guys. today was one of those days - you know if you have photography as a hobby - the kind of day where you take a shot and your heart beats a little faster in your chest and you want to race home to download the shots just to see how "that" one looks. more later about the drive along seven bridges road...but here's my favorite sneak peek.
please excuse the softness - this was fully telescoped out to 300mm on a tamron lens (which leans towards softness anyway) with winds gusting to 10-15 mph and it was handheld. i love it anyway.
my family
i'm a goof ball about my family. i'm lucky that way. i know there are people that are not and it makes me sad. really sad. my siblings and i know each other well - all of our faults, flaws, bits and bumps...as well as the wonderful things about each other. it's perfect. plus i have insanely beautiful nieces and nephews. seriously.
I don't lie.
stupid television
reality television - it's soooooo stupid and ridiculous that i love it sometimes. yes, it's rotting my brain (as dennis leary says) and no, it has no socially redeeming features (except maybe how not to act) ... but i grew to love taylor over her short sojourn on tough love and though i haven't voted on american idol, i dig the song stylings of adam lambert. mostly, it's background noise most of the time....but i can live with that (but don't call me during 'the big bang theory' or 'how i met your mom').
music
i've loved music i think since i could form words - some of my most early memories are of music and i can remember very early going to see elvis at the garrett coliseum. though at the time i was in love with paul, i could see what my mom saw in that dark and mystery hip shaker. i remember my ex-husband singing to me in the kitchen while i cooked dinner and weeping copiously to 'i can't make you love me' after the divorce. there are songs that i can't listen to without crying ('amazing grace' and 'wonderful world') and there are my anger songs (yes julie, alanis). but mostly, there is music to anchor my life. my current soundtrack includes...
:: you don't miss your water - otis redding
:: sea breeze - tyrone wells
:: sara - fleetwood mac
:: just my imagination - pete yorn cover
:: georgia on my mind - ray charles
:: push - rob thomas acoustic cover
:: shelter from the storm - bob dylan
:: moon river - patty griffin cover
:: turpentine - brandi carlile
:: solitary man - chris isaak cover
:: northern sky - nick drake
:: the galway girl - sharon shannon
:: someone like you - van morrison
:: into the mystic - van morrison
:: world spins madly on - the weepies
:: i don't know - lisa hannigan
fresh flowers
it doesn't matter if it is wild flowers, grocery store flowers or the florist. i'm crazy about having fresh flowers on my desk. there is something so hopeful about flowers and they always make me smile. well, except for that nasty instance recently with finding aphids all over my soda - they hatched from the queen anne's lace and window warmth and plotted a takeover of my studio. lesson learned about bringing wildflowers inside.
sure - they look all innocent here...but, the aliens were plentiful and fast.
candles
i love candles but it can't be perfume-y candles or crud that makes my head hurt. it has to be lightly scented and natural smelling. so, that usually means some variation of either vanilla or citrus....and occasionally coffee. living in an older house with a full basement and three animals makes candles necessary but moreover, they make me smile. they're warm and inviting. monday nights nights is my cooking night and my sister and her two boys come over to eat and watch television. after shopping for dinner and cooking, lighting the candles just seems like home. even if it's a simple meal like pizza this week.
those are my happy...anyone else feel like sharing happy?
I could have written everyone of those same things down myself...using almost the exact same words...amazing !!!
ReplyDeleteeven down to the candles not being all perfume-y...which I hate !
I think we'd get along !!
I will do a Happy tomorrow on my blog...love your post. I will show my youngest the horse photo, she'll go crazy!
ReplyDeleteChar.
Beth - I know we would too. :) (see a smilie face)
ReplyDeleteChar - I thought I remembered she liked horses. :)
I LOVE that horse pic, absolutely gorgeous!!!!
ReplyDeleteLove the horse. Yes I LOVE BTE. I love Kevin Griffin's voice, just does it for me.
ReplyDeleteThat photo of the Queen Anne's lace is so lovely!
ReplyDeleteOh gosh, photography brings me bliss! As does reality TV...sheesh, I got sucked into the Biggest Loser for the past few weeks!
ReplyDeleteBeth loved the picture of the horse. I feel the same about candles. It nice you spend time with family. I have none of mine living in the city, but do try to se them as much as possible.
ReplyDeleteChar I loved the picture of the horse too is what I meant to put above. I guess I am back to bed, it's 107 am. Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteOhh what a lovely list, I love that Georgia on My Mind song.. have you seen Ray?
ReplyDeletedidn't this make you so excited?
ReplyDeletei love reflecting on the things that make me happy :-)
perhaps we should do this more often?
the music playlist you made .. brilliant. i love nick drake and dylan's "shelter from the storm" - just brilliant.
oh, and fresh flowers! candles!
yes, yes, yes!
by the way, that picture you took of the horse is stunning.
Oh,... "What a Wonderful World" song,.. especially if by Satchmo, always brings a chill and damp eyes. For some reason I always think of a high school classmate who died when we were all only 25, and I know that song wasn't even written at that time. Go figure.
ReplyDeleteChar, I have the same lens as you! And you're right, it does make the photo a little soft at full extension. It's perfect for this photo...makes it look shimmery.
ReplyDeleteYour nieces and nephews are crazy beautiful! That young man in the lower right is gonna break a few hearts.
You gotta be careful with the Queen Anne's lace. If you just brush up against it in the field, you can get chiggers, or as they say in the south, redbugs. You can dunk the flowers in really cold water before bringing them in and the chiggers will fall off in the water. Same with peonies to get the ants off. The picture is gorgeous though!
I'm with you on the candles. I can't do candle shops or a lot of potpourri. I get an instant headache.
i'm with you on all of those. different family, different music, different reality tv, but same vein of thought for sure.
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful family you have - and you like some great music.
ReplyDeleteI love your happy things and it has inserted a smile this morning. Of course I love the Appy picture, I think its sensational, the softness makes the spots pop, Appaloosa's are the best (hmm along with quarter horses and donkeys of course) Funny about the Queen Anne's lace, that is because it didn't happen to me. Same thing with Magnolia's, can never trust to bring them in the house.
ReplyDeleteI pretty much could've written this list, right down to the candles, which for me are unscented. Music rates high, too, especially live music, outdoors in the summer. Doesn't get much better than that!
ReplyDeleteJenny - when I took that shot, I thought of classes and how we would be so excited coming to class to see what Carl would think of something. I miss you guys!
ReplyDeleteJill - I like his voice a lot on "Good"
Julie - thanks honey
Zen - sshhhhh, I have been known to watch that too. I want Laura to win.
Cinner - 107???? Ouch. It's pouring rain here so I guess its in the 70s right now.
Annabelle - yes, that was a great movie. Jamie Foxx was awesome in it.
Cassaundra - it did make me smile for sure.
Cedar - My mom loved that song. Really loved it.
Susan - good advice!! I'll do that from now on with outdoor flowers. I just picked this lens back up because I hated that problem before so I went to mostly primes. But, it's a decent multi-tasking lens for rural landscapes.
Margie - :) what do you like?
Anna - thanks!
Maria - it was my thought to go find magnolias today but it is storming up a uhhh, storm this morning.
Joanne - :) great minds, right?
Thanks for your wonderful comments, as always. You are a brilliant photographer and I enjoy reading your blog. Cheers!
ReplyDeleteLove your photos!
ReplyDeleteMy list: creating, nature, family, good books, the beach , hiking, learning new things, music, laughter, my children's little feet and hands, dusk, connectiong with inspiring souls... I could go on and on!
Have a wonderful day! Come visit my blog sometime, love to have you!
I feel the same way about taking pictures, running inside to see if 'that one' is a good one! (I love your horse photo).
ReplyDeleteCandles, yes! Family, yes! In fact, everything you said. Yes!
I love laughing with friends. I need to do that really soon.
your "happys" make me very happy too.
ReplyDeleteI'm the same way with candles - love vanilla.
I also look forward to my reality TV shows at night.
Another happy for me is a hammock, sunshine on my face and a good book in the afternoon; cool breeze, light sweatshirt, hot earl grey tea on the deck in the evenings.
Love the horse photo. the colors are wonderful
I love gratitude lists!
ReplyDeleteI'm a sucker for your writing voice. It has the perfect combination of raw/wit/& ease to it. I suspect that you are fairly comfortable in your skin. As for this post, lists are, quite possibly, the best writing forum around. Hope all's well & thanks so much for stopping by my little blog. ~heather
ReplyDeleteCB - you're rather brill yourself woman.
ReplyDeleteMichelle - I will drop by. thanks for popping in here.
CG - laughing with friends (the family we pick for ourselves) is wonderful. I also need to do that.
L - mmmmmmmm, cool breezes. there is something so perfect about that.
Gabby - me too! :)
April - thanks for dropping by! I love your blog.
It seems we have quite a lot in common!
ReplyDeleteBrenda
happy and good things!!!! love 'em all!!! i am a little different (ok, a LOT different) in the music department, but i certainly share the same sentiment. sometimes life is so good and you can't imagine it without all these fab things!
ReplyDeleteWow, we have similar music tastes! My favorites of yours:
ReplyDeleteSara - Fleetwood Mac
Into the Mystic - Van Morrison (Had to sing as a vocal lesson)
World Spins Madly On - The Weepies
My favorite candle scent:
Green Tea
Horse shot is great! I'm soooo impressed that it was handheld!
Good list! When I have a particularly shitty day at work, the first thing I want to do is come home and pick up my camera!
ReplyDeleteI might not come home with anything good, but I sure do feel loads better!
I agree with ALL of these, especially photography (I know that feeling too), family, and fresh flowers. I've made it a point to have fresh flowers in my house from now on if I can help it, and you're right, it makes a huge different. They're so happy and pretty, it instantly lifts your mood.
ReplyDeleteI always tear up at "Amazing Grace", too. And I just ball at "I Can't Make You Love Me..." Of course these days, with crazy hormones running through me, I seem to cry at almost anything...
ReplyDeleteAnd I do love flowers and photography, too. :)
Catching up a bit late ... enjoyed reading your six choices. I had a hard time choosing only six.
ReplyDelete