San Francisco This Morning

We made it back to San Francisco last night after a long day.  The flight was fine, and Lois was good on the plane, but we were already really tired when yesterday started.  Lois has another cold, and she didn't sleep much the night before, which means we didn't sleep much the night before.  So yesterday felt very  l o n g.

Last night after we got home, we ordered takeout and went straight to bed.  Well, me and Lois went to bed while Andrew went to his company holiday party.  I'm not sure how he had the energy to go, but he did.  As you can imagine with the time change and going to bed so early, me and Lois were up before the sun, 5AM to be exact.

Our place is a mess.  It always looks like we've been robbed when we get home because our cat, Sophie, is a little crazy and tears the place up when we're gone (our pet sitter doesn't clean up Sophie's wreckage, and we don't really expect her to). She's still adjusting to us being home, which means she's meowing incessantly and following me around with every step I take.  And our overflowing suitcases are all over the place along with all the stuff that's bursting out of them. So this morning, surrounded by the mess and our poor psycho cat, I felt like my head was going to explode, so I decided I needed to get out of here.  I took Lois for a walk.

As soon as we got outside I felt much better.  Some of the clouds still had that cotton candy pink color, which I love.  Here are a few pictures from the neighborhood this morning on our walk. 

I love seeing the moon out in the morning, and it even looks good through the telephone lines. 

Sutro Tower in the sun with a blue-ish glow.

And with a pinkish-orange glow.  I'm not sure how this turned out so different from the other Sutro picture above.  I used Shake It for both pictures. Maybe the white balance changed a little because of what I was pointing towards.

When I saw these birds, I thought ooh, maybe I can get a picture of them taking off.  So I waited patiently (so did Lois).

I thought this late-comer might stir them, but they kept resting, that is until just a few seconds later . . .

when they took to the air!

We had a good morning, and I felt much better when we got home.  Now it's time to clean up this mess!

Thrill of the Hunt

Yesterday I went junking with  my mom while Andrew took Lois to lunch with a friend of his.  I had a great time with my mom, and we scored some amazing things for her etsy shop.  It was sooo much fun.  Our hearts were all a-flutter with the thrill of the hunt!  Here are a few of my favorite things in her shop right now.  We took a ton of pictures yesterday of her merchandise, and she'll be listing a lot of things in the next few days, including some great quilt tops and some sterling silver.  Click here to head over and see what's in store. 

My Starry Night

I went through a painting phase about 10 years ago.  It was really just an attempt to paint phase.  Believe me, I'm sure I didn't do anything spectacular.  My uncle, an artist (specifically a painter), said one of the best ways to learn and practice was to copy the masters.  So that's what I did.  I tried to copy a few things and put my own spin on them.  Here's my version of Starry Night.  I was also going through a mosaic phase, hence the beads and glitter.  I think the beads and glitter make my Starry Night look extra sparkly.  I gave this to my friend Josh and pretty much forgot about it until recently when he reminded me of it.  He emailed a picture of it to me.  I love it and want to make another one now.  I keep looking at the picture thinking, I made that?  I made that!  Even though it's just a simple copy of a really famous painting, it still surprises me that I actually created it.

Baby Knox

My sister has three boys--three boys under five.  I feel worn out just writing that.  So it goes without saying that she's got her hands full at all times.  She has plenty of pictures of the first two, but the third, well, not so many.  I told her I'd take lots of pictures of him while I'm in town.  I brought him outside earlier this week, laid him in the leaves, and took a few pictures.  Or maybe I can say I made these pictures because it was one of the first times I used our camera in manual mode.  It was easier than I thought it would be, and I think the pictures look great.  I adjusted them a bit here and there in Lightroom, and these are a few of my favorites.  Baby Knox is a cutie for sure!

For the Love of Old

 

One book that's been on my list for a while is For the Love of Old by Mary Randolph Carter.  I have a few of her Junk books and love them all.  My mom bought the book for me for Christmas but couldn't wait to give it to me, so she gave it to me this week.  I love it!  The book is huge with beautiful photography, and her writing is wonderful.  Of course it's the stuff itself that I like looking at so much.  The real junky-junk is what she likes--the very chipped and worn, previously loved and discarded.  Someone's trash is her treasure.  Here's a peek into For the Love of Old.

You can see a lot more of her personal style here on The Selby. Be sure to check it out if you like what you see here.  It's a great post with beautiful pictures.

Attempted Family Pictures

Yesterday we tried to take some family pictures since we were all together and had the kids all together.  It was pretty exhausting trying to get pictures of everyone!  It's practically impossible to get 4 kids under 5 to look at the camera, with their eyes open, hands down, not making a silly face, and smiling.  Actually, it is impossible!  We must have 50 pictures of the kids and maybe one that's frame worthy that isn't hilarious because of all the eye rolling, hair pulling, and squirming.  I really wanted to get one of Lois to include in our Christmas card too.  She looks really cute in all of the pictures, but I couldn't get her to smile to save my life.  Oh well, we'll go for round two one day next week.  Here are a few of the pictures from yesterday, including a few out-takes. Some of these are a little blurry and grainy, but I still like them all. These pictures are from our new camera and not my iPhone for a change.

 

Above, my mom with me and my sister, Page.  Below, my mom with my nephew's Cash, Knox, and Wyatt.

And then a few out-takes, which is how most of the pictures look.  I'm telling you, it's not easy getting pictures of kids. 

We tried to include my mom's dog, Lucky, which didn't work out too well, but we got a kiss out of it.

Me in the Morning (Trapped in a House)

Last night I was trying to find a new profile picture for my Facebook page.  I was scrolling through my pictures, showing a few to Andrew to see if he'd help me pick one, and he said, "you're always soooo smiley in pictures--it's your biggest fault!"  Ha ha.  He really just meant that I often look like The Joker in pictures even though he does love my smile.  Believe me, I have lots of other faults--he could tell you.  So I took this picture this morning, pre-shower.  I showed it to him and he said "you look like you're trapped in a house."  I laughed again!  I guess it's my dark, arty, stoic, trapped in a house look.  And again it's a picture from Shake It on my iPhone.  And, yes, if you don't have one, get an iPhone--you will LOVE it.  Ask Santa for one if you have to.  Initially I told Andrew I really didn't need or want one and thought it was way too expensive for a phone, but he really wanted me to have one. (See, he is very sweet despite pointing out my biggest fault :D.)  It's totally worth the splurge.  It's my favorite toy.

We Made It

We're here in Atlanta now!  Yay!  The plane ride was pretty uneventful except for when I updated my facebook page with the picture above and a picture of a sleeping Lois using the free Wi-Fi on my phone.  Isn't technology so cool?  These are two more pictures from Shake It on the iPhone.  We recently got at new fancy pants camera, a Canon 7D, and a great lens to go with it.  But I've been liking the iPhone pictures so much that I just realized today that I haven't posted one picture from the 7D.  I'll do that this week.  I'm so happy to be here!  Can you tell from the picture below--me and my sister with her littlest one, baby Knox (I'm the one in red). More from our Atlanta Thanksgiving week coming soon.

All Shook Up

Woah, I'm pooped.  Tomorrow we leave for Atlanta for Thanksgiving, so today's been filled with all those pre-trip errands and to-dos.  We're all packed up and ready to head south (can't wait!), but in the meantime I wanted to tell you about my fun Friday with Shake It.  Shake It is another cool Polaroid iPhone app.  The images to me are a lot like the lolo setting in Camera Bag, but Shake It is a little more fun because the image "develops" like a Polaroid and you can even shake it to help it along.  Of course shaking the phone while the image develops doesn't actually do anything--it's just fun to watch it wiggle.  You can see what I mean here.  If you have an iPhone, for just .99 cents, I think it's worth the fun.  Here are some pictures with Shake It of a few things I saw on Friday in our neighborhood and in the colorful neighborhood next door, the Mission, and one downtown. I got yummy Dynamo donuts and an equally yummy burrito in the Mission at La Palma. I couldn't decide if I wanted breakfast or lunch, so I got both!  I also saw an old cable car and some very pretty fall leaves.  And then last night, I went downtown to buy a few things for me and Lois. It was great to go downtown at night.  All the snazzy people, cabs whizzing by, the lights, the tall buildings. . .  I forget sometimes that people are actually out after dark.  It was a great day. 

Dreaming of Peace and Quiet

Apartment living is for the birds!  I'm so looking forward to having our own house again one day.  Let me tell you why:  STOMP, STOMP, STOMP, STOMP?  Did you hear that?  That's the sound of our upstairs neighbors walking around on their hardwood floors, FOR HOURS!  I have no idea what they could possibly be doing, but they walk around seemingly without a break at all and wearing what sounds like wooden platform flip flops.  When I listen to them walking around, it reminds me of when you're getting ready for a trip--you need some things in the closet, then in the bathroom, over in the dresser, then in the hall closet, then in the living room, etc.  But they can't be packing for a trip every night!  And they do laundry at night too--at like 1AM, ugh. (The washer and dryer for our building are in the garage under our bedroom.) They are very nice people, and no, I haven't said anything to them yet because I know Lois keeps them up often as well (we have talked about that; they said they don't mind and understand), and because I'm so non-confrontational (every time I think I'm going to say something, I wuss out).  I might, though, ask if they could take off their shoes or wear slippers.  Ah, well, I guess it's just the nature of apartment living, and I'm still very grateful for what we have.  But that won't stop me from daydreaming of peace and quiet in a house of our own one day, and of course filling it with treasures.  I turned to Decorology on flickr for inspiration. Decorology is one of my favorite eye candy decorating groups on flickr.  I think I'll keep my nose in the pictures until the walk-a-thon starts.

 

 

All images from Decorology (I don't know the original sources, but I think some are listed in the pool).

Lil' Holiday Dresses

I've been looking around for some holiday dresses for Lois and of course I love so many (girl clothes are just so darn cute).  I want to get one dress for her to wear in pictures to send with our Christmas cards, and one she can wear in her picture with Santa.  I love these two dresses from The Gap.  I picture her in the white cable knit dress in a pile of leaves for her holiday picture and then in the red check party dress in her Santa picture.  I'd actually like grown-up versions of either of these dresses!  There are so many great local designers, though, who make really beautiful handmade clothes.  I think I'll head over to Mabuhay just to see what's in store.

PS. I'm feeling much better.  Finally!

Photography 101

This week I started reading a great book that I bought on Amazon, Understanding Photography by Bryan Peterson.  If you're a beginner, like I am, and want to learn more about the basics of making good pictures, I think this is a great place to start (well, your camera manual should really probably be the first place to start, then this book).  I've checked out a few books from the library and read bits and pieces of some online on Safari, but I think this one is the best for my purposes.  It covers all the basics in a concise, understandable way.  It explains the fundamentals of the camera and how it works, the importance of understanding aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to achieve the correct exposure, and how to use your camera in manual mode properly and effectively.  It also gives you all kinds of tips on how to achieve certain goals like shooting in low-light situations, using different lenses for different purposes, and composing a good image. And it's filled with great examples in each chapter.  This book is not just for people with dSLRs but also for people with digital point and shoot cameras.  The first few chapters might be the most important because they cover how to use your camera's settings (or rather what the settings are and what they do).

If you decide to get this book, do be sure to read your camera manual first and have it with you when you read the book.  You might be a little lost without it.  To some people it might seem like a no-brainer to say that, but if you're like me, manuals are just pretty boring, and I usually toss them in a drawer (or hand them to Andrew to read, who always reads manuals).  I didn't peek into our camera's manual for more than a year after we had it, which was really silly.

Above is one of my favorite pictures even though it's actually not a very good picture.  When zoomed in, it's really noisy (grainy) because I had the ISO quite high, but I still love the colors and the light and the contrast of the metal lockers with the old chair.  It's one of my favorite pictures that I took in a restaurant in Atlanta, whose name I like just as much--Sun in my Belly.

Okay, now go get that book!  Oh, and I almost forgot, Bryan Peterson has a lot of other photography books as well, and what looks like some great online classes through his photography school.

From My Camera Bag

I love the Camera Bag iPhone app.  It's so much fun!  I've had it on my phone for a while but rarely play with it.  Today I strolled Lois to the playground, and on the way snapped these pictures with Camera Bag.  A bit of the grittier side of the hood, though our neighborhood isn't really gritty at all. I think the instant setting is my favorite.  It makes everything look interesting and cool.  And now there's Camera Bag for your desktop.  Imagine the possibilities! So fun.

Images that Soothe

I'm still sick.  Poo.  Ah, well, what's a girl to do when she's sick, besides ingest lots of Robitussin, drink lots of water, eat chicken soup, sluggishly try to entertain her daughter, rest and read?  Look at pretty pictures, of course!  I just took a peek at Etsy's Get the Look: Decor, which features Margarita Lorenzo's really cute London house.  She also has an etsy store filled with eco-friendly handmade pillows, which you can see here.  I should add "look at pretty pictures" to my cold remedy list.  It seems to help. 

 

 

The Home-Maker

 

I love this painting: A Kitchen Interior by Harold Harvey.  It's on the cover of the latest Persephone biannually.  I was excited to receive it earlier this week all the way from Persephone Books in London. It's a good day for a book.  It's overcast and wet outside.  Raining lightly.  It sounds nice and looks pretty.

I'm also sick.  Actually I'm more than sick.  I have a miserable cold.  This is the worst cold I've had in a long, long time.  I feel like my head's going to explode, and I might loose my voice--and quite possibly a lung--with the next coughing attack.  I've reached the stage in my cold where I have those annoying coughing attacks from that irritating, dripping tickle--you know, the kind that make you start sweating and feel like you're going to pee your pants you cough so much?  That kind of cough.  Miserable, I tell you!

I sound like Marge Simpson, and I look like a smurf in Andrew's big ol' blue fleece robe.  Mama smurf. He doesn't wear it because it makes him sneeze for some reason, so I wear it instead.  I have my own robe, but I prefer his.  I even have a new, cute robe from Anthropologie that he gave me, and for no occasion, just because (it's this one).  Very sweet, he is.  Maybe he's just tired of seeing me look like a ridiculous smurf in his (even though he tells me I look cute in it, which I don't believe).  But his big blue robe is just sooo snuggly.  And the pockets are big enough to neatly hold the roll of toilet paper I carry around with me so I can blow my nose every 5 minutes (I've used up all the puffs so I've had to resort to TP). Something about schlepping round like this makes me feel like Charlie Brown.  So, you can probably see why it's a good book day.

One book I bought in London at Persephone Books was The Home-Maker by Dorothy Canfield Fischer.  I'm actually finished with The Home-Maker and onto another book, but being in a book mood reminded me I haven't mentioned how much I liked it.  I really, really liked it.  I can't say it would make a top 10, but it's very good.  I really like domestic novels and this one is a really good one.  It isn't for everyone, though.  Or, I should say, you can't give this book to just anyone.  You'd have to be careful about who you give it too.  Once you know what it's about, you'll understand.  It was written in 1924, but the themes are still so relevant today.  It challenges the traditional idea that mothers make the best home-makers--and should be happy doing so--and it explores what happens when a husband and wife change roles.  I like so many things about this book, but maybe especially how well Dorothy Canfield Fischer shows you the world through a child's eyes.  It's a good read.  You can find out more about the book here.  Time for me to make more tea and smurf up to another book while Lois finishes her nap. (Cough, cough. Blow nose. Repeat.)