refreshment / refreshing

L - iphone / T - iphone

This was the first watermelon I have had all summer. Do you enjoy yours with salt or without, eat it with a spoon or a fork and knife? / waiting out the days in athens. papers are turned in, finals are tomorrow and family will be here for commencement on saturday. hotel life isn't so bad for the moment.

minimal / optimal

T- iphone/ T-iphone

It was a rough last week - as far as sleeping arrangements went.
Taylor went from sleeping in her nicely furnished apartment to having to sleep on the floor on her mattress with nothing but her computer and a small table, then because the landlord wouldn't let her stay through the end of finals, and commencement, she had to sleep in her sleeping bag in her empty apartment for two nights. A girl offered her empty house so that Taylor wouldn't have to pay for a hotel for the last week. But what Taylor didn't know was that it no furniture at all, had no cell service and the water didn't work. She stayed there one night in her sleeping bag on the floor but had to move into a hotel for the last few days until commencement so that she could sleep well and be ready for finals. All this while having to study for finals.

beginning / finishing

Are you kidding me! I've been the whole month of July without a blog post!

A lot has been going on... Taylor is finishing up college and I am planning a wedding. Some very important times and I've failed to record them here. And the thing is Taylor has been the best about sending me photos. Maybe I should do a collage of all of them.

Meanwhile Keith and I have chosen a date and picked a venue and while he's been out of town Taylor and I are putting down on paper some firm decisions on decor, colors and details. She really should be a wedding planner... she's very organized and creative - helping me stay focused and make decisions. It's so much fun working together on this - and if it turns out like we have envisioned it will be wonderful.

Taylor is completing her college days in her apartment with the bare minimum of furniture - a mattress on the floor and her computer. Her dad moved all her furniture out last week and I picked up Daisy so that she could focus on writing papers and studying for finals. She's missing Daisy but at least Bunny is there to keep her company.

Here's a peak at the location where I will begin a new phase in life. And here is Taylor's humble room where she will finish up another phase in her life. /

hot / iced

L - Nikon / T - iphone

No this isn't an advertisement, but we do like our Starbucks.
My mom asked me to look through my photos for some painting reference. (she's been asked to paint some pictures to hang in a doctor's office) but as I was looking for something I realized that just because something makes a interesting photo doesn't mean it will make a good painting. I really didn't find anything suitable. / today no class, no tests - freedom to read what i want - at least for a month. i will be going to school the summer semester for two classes and then i am finished for good. mom asked me how that felt... i told her its terrifying really.

learning / studying

L - iphone / T - iphone

Have you ever heard of a Lucet? I had not either until a few weeks ago. I thought it looked like something fun to learn so I asked my brother to make me a tool and within a week I had one in the mail. I watched a youtube video on how to make the cord and now I have become addicted to this thing. It's so much fun to use. I'm not sure what I will do with all these cords I'm making but I'm sure I'll think of something. /my study buddy. last final of my last spring semester class... ever.

pink noses/ blue eyes

T- iphone

"please! take me home with you. i will love you forever."

Taylor has a job now. Yay! for her - yay for me. She is a "pet placement counselor". It's a job that she will enjoy this last year of college - allowing her flexibility with a little spending money. I think she likes it a lot - how could she not when she gets to play with these sweet little guys.
This is the company's mission statement that she had to recite at training:
"We are dedicated to matching the right pet with the right customer and meeting the needs of both. To our customers who already have pets, we are dedicated to enhancing their knowledge and enjoyment of the human-animal bond."
I think she'll be good at her job.

the unknown / new territory

L - iphone / T - Nikon

August Break 11

Today I explored a new world - an unfamiliar world - one of total darkness – as if a blind person. Dialog in the Dark is an exhibit in Atlanta - an experience set up to awaken the senses, challenge our prejudices, and deepen self-awareness. A blind person guided us through the exhibit giving us the experience and sensation of different environments - walking through the park, into a city, a food market and a boat ride with only our guide stick and her voice to direct us. It was interesting to try to figure out where we were based on what we could hear, feel and smell around us. I found it very difficult to get around in the dark and was relieved to be in the light once again. If you get to opportunity to go to this exhibit I recommend it. It will certainly give you a new appreciation for what the vision impaired live with every day. / i changed my major. a couple days before class started i came to a realization that the photography major just wasn't were i needed to be... at uga anyway. i have changed it to art history. this will be new territory for me - taking a course-load entirely of academic classes. i'm used to a balance of studio classes mixed with other studies, but i'm excited to take the leap.

a view from the window / a window view

L, Nikon / T, Nikon

Bunny hears Taylor drive up. She doesn't know yet that she will have a new home soon. Will she miss Kodi? Will Kodi miss her? I think Kodi will be glad to be able to eat ALL of her food for a change.
See that book on the table? Taylor and I found it at a flea market in Canada. There were a few pages in it that Taylor thought would make nice pieces to frame. The book is titled "Happy Hours in the Little People's World" - New & Old Jingles & Stories / Prettily Pictured. There's an inscription in the front of the book that says, "Presented to Lawrence Hartman for attendance during the school term 1889-1890, by his teacher August Barries." It was a great find but it's very old and delicate and will need special care. Below is one of the prints that Taylor wants to frame. I think it will look nice hanging above her white bird cage piece she got from Elizabeth. / the weekend was busy - spent moving out of the old and into the new. now I'm back home again to pick up a few more things... and my kitty. it will feel legit - like a home - when bunny is there.

stock up / hang up

L- iphone / T - Nikon

It's been so long since I have been here - it feels a little strange. I'm afraid I have lost friendships because of my neglect. I honestly haven't had a chance to post. But more importantly I haven't had time to visit you. I hope you all have been well and are having a great summer.
Taylor and I had a really nice trip to end the summer with. Many of you may have seen my flickr and figured out that we went to Niagara Falls and into Canada. What a magnificent place to visit. We took so many photos I still have not reviewed them all. But now the summer is basically over and it's time for getting focused and ready for school. The day after we returned from NY Taylor had to go to Athens and move out of her house and into the apartment she will be renting for the next year. Her dad helped her move the big stuff yesterday and I went up there today to help her put up curtains, hang mirrors, shelves, etc.... Oh and of course she needed some things at the store....

reality / fantasy

L - Nikon / T - Nikon film camera

Her room awaits her. Taylor will be home this weekend for spring break. I wonder what wonderful things we'll do? One thing on the list: Alice In Wonderland in 3D./ delaying my project seems to have worked out in my favor as athens received one (probably final) bout of snow for the winter. i'm very happy with the outcome of my project as a whole and will be presenting it to my class tomorrow morning, bright and early. i love how the colors in this photo all seem to go together- the pinks and teals. my teacher wants me to venture outside my realm of what seems to be fantasy, but i i love creating other-worldly scenarios. we'll see how she likes this project!

Alice laughed. “There’s no use trying,” she said, “one can’t believe impossible things.”
“I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen. “When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why sometimes I believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast!”

copper links, pine path

L - Nikon / T - Nikon

I started another metalsmithing class for the winter months. I haven't worked with metal since being at the John Campbell school and it's nice to get back into it. Our instructor gave us an interesting assignment – to create whatever we wanted out of a bag of 16 copper washers. I decided to hammer on mine to create texture and even change the shape of some of the circles. This is what I have so far - a linked chain, unpolished and unfinished - a work in progress. / a new semester has begun and i'm starting to see the path i have ahead of me and appreciate the scenery as i pass through.

patience / focus

L - Nikon 200mm / T - Nikon film camera

There's been a lot of rain here – a lot – but if you're patient the rain lets up and you can walk outside. Yesterday I spent some time in Chattanooga and enjoyed the art galleries during the rain and a walk along the river when the rain let up. I didn't take many photos but my patience paid off and I was able to get this shot after waiting for it to stay still long enough for me to find it through my lens and focus. (and btw, I even got a bird on a wire shot like I've always wanted.) / this is a little bit of how i'm feeling right now- i don't know where to look - where to focus. it's weird how you associate your first year of college as finding yourself and figuring out who you are. but i'm still in that stage of self-consciousness. i feel like this photo is very representative of change and alteration to oneself and one's views on things. this way and that way - there are so many things to focus on here it's hard to choose just one. there are so many things going on all at once it's hard to move through and calmly complete them without losing your head.

neat / organized

post - L / photos - T

T designed this computer desk and my dad made it for her. He built it according to her specifications and then she sanded, painted it white, stained and varnished the top the color of her floors and added the little glass pulls. Doesn't it look nice and neat? It will be something she can use for years to come. Just as my mom used this drawing table that my dad built for her when they were first married. She used it many years as an illustrator for the Baptist Sunday School Board, and later as a painter. I used it in my paint studio when I went off to college and now T has it to use. When something is made well, and and taken care of, it can last a lifetime and more. Maybe T's children will one day use this desk that she and her Opa built.
These are the markers here... those were mine back when I did markers comps - you know before computers. I was shocked that they still worked - they have to be at least 15 - 20 yrs old.
I thought it was kinda funny... I took these supplies to T last weekend when we met half way for lunch and before I even got home she had sent this photo of it all set up - the colors in perfect order. I know she couldn't stand it until they were in the proper order - she's kinda OCD like that ; ). It brought back memories to see this all set up in working order - the t-square and triangles, ellipses and french curves, and all the colors of the rainbow. Now let's see the work, T.

left behind

solo post - L
She left a few things behind - shoes on the steps, some laundry in the basket but more importantly these cameras that she'll need. She's finally getting to start her photography classes this fall and I know she is excited about that. So the good thing about it is... she'll be back this weekend. And then there's Labor Day – maybe we'll go to the beach. Summer went by so quickly. It seems just yesterday that she was walking through the door with all that stuff and now stepping in her room there's an echoing sound of emptiness. I'm glad she left these things behind. The gently moving out is so much easier to take.

here / there

L - iphone

T's little owls finally found a home today - flying 66 miles to their final resting place in this bright and cheerful room. This vintage lamp was T's first home purchase and she is so proud of it, especially since she bargained with the owner to get a better price. The yellow coverlet was her second home purchase - making this free, but drab, couch a sunny place to sit and read.
For me the move was much easier than I thought that it would. I honestly was dreading it but with the help of her dad, and another strong man, I didn't really have to break my back at all. A bonus – we didn't have to take every load up 4 flights of steps like we did last year. Even the prediction of rain was a false alarm and the weather turned out perfect.
I called her tonight and she already has her room in order; the kitchen cabinets are filled with the pretty, colorful glassware and dishes that she bought; the bathrooms are neat and tidy - she's settled in and loving it.