A Day at the Beach (B&W)

This Labor Day weekend was exactly what I needed.  Time out of the city with my friend Susie.  We went to Cape May, New Jersey, and had a perfectly splendid mini-vacation: scrabble, bike rides, brunch, good wine and dinner and, of course, the beach.

Oh, the beach.  How I love thee.

Hurricane Earl had threatened to ruin the weekend, but he proved no match for the Jersey Shore (must be all that fist-pumping that scared him away).  And I could tell you how beautiful the weekend was, but it's much easier to just show you.  They say a picture is worth a thousand words, after all.  And these pictures should amply explain why I came back from the shore with renewed spirit.

Earlier I mentioned that I am in love with my new iPhone.  And my day at the beach underscored that love.  All of these photos were taken with it (vintage b&w free app and the hipstamatic camera app).  I love how it allows me to take some pretty amazing photos without risking getting sand all over my nice canon camera baby.  It also helps me take my photos of strangers on the sly.  My friend Susie didn't even know I was snapping away, even though I was sitting a mere foot away from her.

Because it's Wednesday, I posted my black and white photographs (but trust me, the sky was a beautiful shade of blue).  I love how black&white Wednesdays, hosted by The Long Road to China, keeps me exploring the art of the black and white photograph (if even just on the iPhone).  Go check it out!

 (Cape May, New Jersey, photographed September 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)

My Other Camera

It was just my dear friend Anne's birthday.  To celebrate, she invited a bunch of her friends to this yummy bbq joint in the city that had live country music.  (This is my friend who had her bachelorette party not in Vegas, not in Miami, but in Nashville, mind you.)  But hey, no complaints from me.  I borrowed a pair of Anne's cowboy boots for the soiree and gave a few "yeehaws" and enjoyed the night. 

And me being me, I had a camera and snapped some photos of the birthday girl and the festivities.  This prompted Anne to excitedly ask whether these photos would make it onto my blog (Hi Anne! Thanks for reading!).  I must have given her a bit of a face.  Okay, I definitely gave her a face, and she quickly stated "oh... these weren't taken with your fancy camera, so no, right?" 

Quite honestly, the answer was going to be no.  I wasn't planning on sharing those photos here (and for the most part, I won't - check facebook instead).  They were the cheesy group shots and candids taken with my point and click camera -- my not so fancy camera.  But Anne's comment, though, got me thinking.  Although I love my quote unquote fancy camera, my point and click camera takes some pretty nice photos, too.  So I think it's about time that I show off some of the ones I took in Portugal.  I didn't photoshop these - the special effects came from the camera's own built-in settings. 

Lesson learned: you don't need a fancy-pants camera to take a good shot. 

And happy birthday, Anne!  Thanks for the inspiration.  And the giant ice cream cake.

(Portugal, photographed June 2010; NYC, photographed July 2010)

On A Boat...

I recently went on my first ever cruise and was accompanied by my friend Meghan (hi Meghan!)  Some people are cruise people.  Some people are not.  Meghan and I are decidedly cruise people.  We loved the shows, the chaise lounges, the bars, the endless buffets...

And we loved the "shore excursions."  We went parasailing in Key West and visited some Mayan ruins in Mexico.  What was funny was that, once we disembarked at port in Mexico, we immediately got on another boat to ferry us to the ruins.  But it was a beautiful day to be on a boat, especially one that served ice cold cerveza (Mind you, we stayed away from the margaritas and pina coladas for fear of Montezuma's revenge. Where'd they get the ice from?).  There was even a cute boy playing a guitar for us.  Who could complain?

This bottom photo is with lensbaby for those who are keeping track.

(Mexico, photographed June 2010)

The Great Outdoors

CAMP!

I felt the need to yell that. 

As I mentioned in my last post, I had the good fortune of going to Trail Blazers camp on Saturday.  I never went to a sleepover outdoor camp when I was a kid, and then the camp I went to in high school and served as a counselor at in college was a leadership camp.  Ya, I'm a nerd but proud of it.  But I always wanted to go to "real" camp, like Trail Blazers camp, where you get to sleep outdoors and hang outdoors and try to sneak into the boys' side of camp late at night (at least that's what they did in The Baby-sitters Club books I read while growing up).

I had just a day at camp on Saturday and the weather left a bit to be desired, but we went roasted s'mores, went hiking and biking, had a nice time in a boat and just enjoyed nature.  And let me tell you, I loved it.  Absolutely loved it.  I'm definitely planning a camping trip, complete with tents and sleeping bags and campfired-cooked meals, in the very near future. 

P.S. For those of you in NYC, the Trail Blazers organization is having a cocktail fundraiser on Thursday night at Butterfield 8 from 6:30 to 9 pm.  You should join me there and help send some kids to summer camp this year.

(Trail Blazers Camp, photographed April 2010)