Spring (happily!)

I can't believe how long it has been since I posted. Shamefully long. What can I say, work and life got in the way.  I don't want to go into the gory details of the long hours in the office, but thankfully a bit of the time keeping me from this blog was spent having fun.  I went rock climbing for the first time, enjoyed some good baseball with friends, started a book club, etc. 

And I had the honor (with my friend Laura) last weekend of being my friend Lauren's wedding photographer (can't wait to share those pics!).  She got married at City Hall and the reception was at Queens County Farm Museum.  What a neat spot, tucked away in the middle of Queens, a little farm with animals and hay rides.

To warm up, so to speak, for the evening of phototaking, I stopped on my way into the farm to take some photos of these tulips.  Oh, tulips! How happy they make me!  They are such a sure sign of spring and the end of cold, dreary winter.

(Queens County Farm Museum, photographed May 2011)

A walk in the garden continued...

After seeing my last post, my friend Dara commented that the photos were "pretty!" but "also sort of strange," because "orchids are weird-looking."  I can't say I disagree.  Orchids can be quite beautiful but really are odd-looking.  I'd try to espouse on some metaphor or simile with greater life meaning, but I have a headache and am ready for bed.  So you are on your own for that one.  Just enjoy these photos and the orchids' strange beauty.

(U.S. Botanical Gardens, DC, photographed February 2011)

A walk in the garden...

As I mentioned in my last post, I was in d.c. last weekend with my friend Meghan.  It was a sunny but very windy day, so we took shelter at the botanical gardens.  And I took full advantage of the opportunity to take photos of all the amazing flowers, which included several dozen kinds of orchids.  Big ones. Little ones.  Purple with white spots.  White with purple spots.  Ones that looked like dancing fairies, and ones that looked like evil monsters.  It was quite the collection.  Mind you, there are some 20,000 types of orchids, but I think I would run out of space in my memory card if they were all at the botanical gardens in d.c.

(U.S. Botanical Gardens, DC, photographed February 2011)

Flutter By...

"Just when the caterpillar thought her world was ending, she became a butterfly."

I love that expression.  I'm not sure who originally coined it, but I stumbled upon it while reading a sky mall magazine on a long flight.  You know the sky mall magazines, right?  Full of junkity-junk and crazy contraptions that no one needs and you wonder who even thought up such wackadoodle ideas.  (But truthfully, I want some of the crazy but completely unnecessary items. Shh!  Don't tell anyone!)  

Anyway, sky mall magazine was selling some piece of jewelry or bookmark or piece of rice or something with this expression embossed upon it.  As ugly as the item was, I found the saying to be so beautiful.  Maybe it was the wine I was drinking, but this slightly cheesy expression really struck me.  I may have teared up just a little (okay, that definitely was because of the wine).  But wine or no wine, it hit a chord close to home.  I went through a lot of change in the last year and a half, but, like the caterpillar, my world didn't end.  I've -- dare I say it -- flourished.  So, when I was looking at these photographs I had taken at a butterfly exhibit, I was reminded about how far I've come from my little caterpillar days.  See, now I'm the cheesy one.  I might as well buy that embossed piece of rice.

(Butterflies at Milwaukee Public Museum, photographed May 2010)

Winter Wonderland

My Christmas weekend was spent in Eagle River, Wisconsin, which is the furthest north I've spent a Christmas.  I flew in from New York City to Milwaukee, where I grew up, and Dad and I then drove the five hours "up north" to Eagle River.  Eagle River is -- for those of you not in the know -- the snowmobile capital of the world.  I kid you not.  There is signage to prove it.  And gets its fair share of "lake effect" snow.  It was a winter wonderland with white, pristine snow coverage.  But yet, despite being far north in Wisconsin, it was sunny and relatively flake free while I was there.  Kind of funny that the big snowstorm happened in New York City instead.

We wanted to surprise my grandmother and other relatives for Christmas (more on that later), but while we were in Eagle River, we also enjoyed the great outdoors.  We hiked (well, more like walked a nature trail while both Dad and I took an insane amount of photographs.  I am truly my father's daughter in that sense) and went snowmobiling (you have to in the snowmobile capital on the world).  It was great to be outside in the fresh air.  I even enjoyed the light, fluffy snow that fell when we were hiking.  Plus it was fun to try to capture it using a very fast shutter speed on my camera.  

I'm headed into a different winter wonderland this weekend - Vermont - to be a ski bunny for the New Years.  Should be a good way to ring in the new year.  Happy New Years to you! 

 

(Eagle River, photographed December 2010)



On the Vine

As I mentioned during my last post, I traveled to Portland for the Thanksgiving holiday.  It was a fantastic mini-vacation with my sister and her husband.  Although I still had to do some work (yes, even on my vacation), we packed a lot into the short week.  We cooked a delicious Thanksgiving feast, did some Black Friday shopping, hung out at the neighborhood bar and played some pinball, among other things.  Everything was fun, but one of the highlights had to be the wine tastings we went to on Saturday.  

Much to my delight, the weekend after Thanksgiving is when Oregon vineyards open up their doors for tasting specials and deals.  My sister had thoughtfully researched the various vineyards we could visit, and on Friday night we sat down to chart our course for the next day.  My brother-in-law graciously volunteered to be the designated driver so my sister and I could partake in as many of the five dollar tastings as we wanted (Thanks, Nick!).  We tried numerous pinots (I even grabbed a couple bottles of pinot gris to bring Oregon back to the big apple) and stumbled upon a cider tasting to boot.  As much as I loved the pinots, the scenery was pretty amazing, too.

 (Salem, Oregon, photographed November 2010)

The Great Outdoors

I'm in Portland, Oregon, again this year for Thanksgiving with my sister and brother-in-law.  This is my second Thanksgiving out here and I'm stoked for the company and for the Northwest.  Only problem is, I'm still up to my ears in work (once again, as evidenced by my lack of postings).  But if I work really hard, I might still be able to find time to enjoy the great outdoors like I did last year.  The hiking trails around here are simply breathtaking, especially to a girl who spends most of her time in the concrete jungle of New York City.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

(Portland, Oregon, photographed November 2009)

Grapes of Wrath (B&W)

As I mentioned here, I visited the Duoro River Valley while vacationing in Portugal earlier this year.  My friend Laura and I rented a car and drove through the hills overlooking the river, stopping at quintas to quench our thirst (for port that is).  But we didn't just sit and sip our port and enjoy the scenery.  We trekked through the quintas, taking photos.  Laura had encouraged me to experiment more with black & white photography, so I kept alternating between taking photos of the luscious grapes in vivid greens and trying to capture in black & white the contrast played in the leaves by the bright sun and dark shadows, as shown here.

I figured that this little study of mine, in black and white, would be perfect for black and white Wednesdays, hosted by the Long Road to China.  I wish I had more time to tell you more, but work beckons.  But once I finish what will surely be a long work week, I'm going to celebrate with a glass of port.  Seems fitting with these photos.

(Quinta do Panascal, Portugal, photographed in June 2010)

Falling Into A Dream

It's not that I'm ready for summer to be over just yet.  Geez, it flew by so quickly as is.  How did it get to be this late in August?  I feel like I need to have more time to go to the beach, eat more ice cream and sit in the park before summer passes us completely by.  No, I'm definitely not ready to let summer go.

But lately I find myself thinking more and more about the fall.  Perhaps it's the "back to school" ads that are popping up on the television.  Maybe it's the jackets and long sleeved shirts that I'm now seeing in the stores (long gone are the bikinis and tank tops).   Could be that my firm said goodbye to our summer associates and is already in full swing of "fall recruiting."  Yes, despite the persistent humidity and continuing sticky days, fall is quickly approaching. 

I love fall though. Pumpkin spice, brightly colored leaves, crispness in the air, hot apple cider, warm mittens and scarves without jackets, sweater weather, football.  Yes, without a doubt, it's my favorite season.  And looking at these photographs makes me (almost) excited to say farewell to summer. 

These photos are from last fall, when one day in late fall my friends and I escaped from the city and rented bikes out in "the country."  Although we were a little late for the changing of the leaves (or leaf-peeping as people call it in New England), it was a gorgeous fall day.  I'm hoping we'll go again this year, but when the autumn leaves are at their best. 

 (around Pawling, NY, photographed November 2009)