Saturday, April 30, 2011

Steam

Augustine steaming again.

Life is quieting down around at my place, and it feels so nice. I finished my college semester Thursday afternoon. Almost all of the boxes in the house are unpacked and put away. It is amazing how "zen" a place can feel when there is space not taken up by clutter. There are still small piles of chaos throughout the house, but it is definitely livable now. Frames are starting to make their way to the walls.

I am really enjoying the house so far. It's nice and airy, and I love the layout. And, I have found it easy to relax here, as I mentioned above. I spent over and hour sitting on the couch last night reading a book, just because I could.

All in all, I think we made a great choice :)

Friday, April 29, 2011

Light Comparison

I love living here.

The photos below show the dramatic contrasts as the light changes at sunset. The second image was shot twenty minutes after the first, and the third was taken just one minutes after the second. The importance of paying attention!
 Incredible, isn't it?
And again, changing light. The first image was taken 20 minutes before the second. Completely different scene.

Brooding Driftwood

Driftwood is always so interesting. The pieces on the local beaches seem to change every few weeks.

Print available.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Snowy Moose

I miss seeing my regular moose friends in my yard, but I did see one here at the new house a couple of days ago. I hope they become regulars here!
Looks like she is sleeping here....but she is not. Eating grass under the snow.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Some House Photos

I'll upload some more once the house looks more presentable and less chaotic, but here are a few!
The bathroom...and our free shower curtain.
I love my kitchen!
Kitchen and living room

Big Dreams

This one really made me think the "small" rock in the foreground was longingly gazing at the mountains in the distance, wishing to reach that grandeur.

Print available.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Augustine Steam 1

Every once in a while, some of the volcanoes let off steam. I wasn't sure if Augustine was, or it this was just a cloud, but later that week I shot some more steam, so yes, it was. More to come!

Monday, April 25, 2011

Anniversary Walk

Notable occasions automatically equal photo shoots in my book. C has learned to accept, if not embrace this fact. After our breakfast, we went for a quick walk.
And then we discovered that the pathway we were walking on squirted up water if jumped on....Out of focus, yes, but you can still see it.
This began lots of laughter.
I said, "Stand by the tree!" And he hid instead, so I tried to play along.....yea, I'm not good at hiding.
I really like this one!
Wouldn't be a complete post if I didn't provide proof of me making a fool of myself!

Silent Pool

Another tide pool image shot on a different day in the same general area, with a completely different pool! I really enjoy this one, and have it set as my desktop background currently. It is quite calming to me.

Print available.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Frosty Condensation

Well, it really wasn't frosty, just looked icy cold. I loved the sunshine inadvertently lighting up the window!
This is what I do at breakfast :) Take photos!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Anniversary Breakfast

Two days after our 3rd anniversary, we finally got a chance to celebrate it! We went out for breakfast at a local bakery.
It was wonderful. More to come!

More Ripples

A change in composition so you can see how the ripple marks disappear as the tide comes back in.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Puddle Portraits

One thing I do like about excessive snow that then melts is the cool puddles it creates. The sunset I went for was not particularly interesting, but I just had to get some shots of this puddle. Self portrait time!
Love my boots! I was shooting unexpectedly last night and only had my tennis shoes on, and kept getting my feet wet :(
Yuck, on camera flash!

Thursday, April 21, 2011

Strider?

We went to a friend's house and cooked food over their firepit the other day. Doesn't he look like Aragorn here?!

Brilliant Ripples

Now that I am into shooting landscapes in the dead of winter, I prefer high tides on the beach. High tide means a shorter distance to the car if I start to freeze too much. But, when I was younger, I loved low tide, the lower the better. Low tide meant soft, wet sand to sink into, and it meant the sand ripples! They are still intriguing to me, and I love getting to use them in a composition if they fit well.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Droplets on a Cup

We have several colors of cheap plastic cups. I prefer to drink out of something that will not shatter if I drop it on the floor...which happens sometimes... But, they aren't very pretty, and they definitely are not pretty in a way that I would want to photograph them. Until now! Aren't the water drops cool?!
I think this one looks like the American flag!!
I love finding beauty is unexpected places. Have any great examples?

Tuesday, April 19, 2011

We bought a HOUSE!!

My husband and I just signed the papers on a house yesterday!! We are buying a 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom house in a great location. It was a short sale (meaning the sellers had a hardship, and then could no longer pay....a step above a foreclosure), which we knew going into, but not how very super long the process would take. The sellers accepted our offer right away, but we did not know until about 2 weeks ago where we stood in the process, and whether we would get the house.

3 months after we started the process, we have arrived at the finish line. We get the keys this morning and are going to start moving in!

I'll share a timeline of how the process has gone shortly, but here is my pro and con list....this house has a lot of really great things going for it!

The BAD:
  • Solicitors and trick or treaters: At our apartment, our door is tucked to the side and most people were not aware we were there. It worked both ways though, as the UPS and Fedex delivery people had to be informed multiple times.
  • I don't have a view! So sad. That was like one of my main requirements for buying a house, too! There is a tiny patch open where I can see a mountain, though.
  • Funny driveway: The driveway is long and a bit steep. It is doable, otherwise there would have been a big problem. There is a sort of area to turn around at the top, though, which will be amazing.
  • There is a foundation problem. It turned a lot of potential buyers off, but the issue is really not that big. It is a localized issue that we will be working on this summer.

The GOOD:
  • Getting away from our neighbors, their dogs, and their weird stares when I am walking to or from my car. I know we may still have strange neighbors at this house, but they will at least not be so close to us! As in, separate buildings with property lines separate!
  • A dishwasher!
  • Lots of storage space. There is a pantry!
  • Walking distance. This one is about as far away from our work as this apartment is, but this one is actually in town, and not out of it. We will be able to walk to church!
  • Shed: I am excited to have a place to store our winter tires and bikes and such.
  • The freezer in the fridge is bigger than our current one!
  • Guest bedroom: So excited to have a room for visitors.
  • Carport: Happy to have a covering over our vehicles, with 2 spaces! This will reduce the snow on our cars a lot, and it is also supposed to reduce the amount of frost!
  • No more car moving: At our apartment, we were sharing a driveway with our neighbors, and so we had to park our cars nose to nose. When I wanted to go off for the sunset, we would have to move C's car to let me leave. Not a huge deal, but it gets annoying when I run off a couple times a week.
  • Bathtub!
  • Wildlife: There are still moose, and I even heard reports of a bear in the spring.
  • Porch: I am so thrilled to have a front porch. It is not large, but large enough that I can sit on it in the mornings in a lawn chair to read. Ohhh, I have always wanted that. I don't like to sit in my lawn chairs in the grass due to bugs and such (stupid yes), and if I bring the lawn chair inside when I am done, it will not accumulate spider webs so much!
  • Spruce trees: Green ones at that! This area was afflicted with a "spruce bark beetle" some years back, and the spruce trees turned grey and died. I am happy to report that the trees in our yard are alive and well.
  • Lilacs? I do believe there is a lilac bush in the neighbor's yard! We have one at the apartment and I adore it when it is in bloom.
  • Bedroom door: We have not had a bedroom door for the past 3 years. Not too bothersome except when we have company (i.e. little brothers who play games all night).

We are really happy with it. Pictures soon!

Calm Deception

The sun is setting farther west now due to it getting closer to summer, so I have been turning my focus to shots a bit more south. That includes tide pools! Tide pools are fascinating to me. They often look serene compared to the rest of the ocean just outside of the frame, and they change at every tide.

Print available.

Monday, April 18, 2011

Missing

I hate missing a good sunset....

Sunday, April 17, 2011

The Fishing Hole

It's been quite a few years, but I have gone fishing here once or twice....good times! I stopped by after sunset at the end of March, before anyone is interested in spending much time there!
Poor pathway...
Opening to the Fishing Hole
I find benches to be really interesting sometimes. Not sure why...

Saturday, April 16, 2011

Reflective Puddles

Whenever I find potholes and puddles, I always try to make use of them for fun reflections. This scene was not perfect, but I still like it. This is the first boardwalk on the Spit.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Creepy Sun

Well, not really creepy, I guess, but it did look strange after our March snow...