“Why not today?”

Blinker off. Drove straight ahead into the small lot.  Exploration time.

…

I pass the historic landmark road plaque nearly everyday.  The plaque refers to the grounds of Christ Episcopal Church, established in 1711, and the church that was constructed a century later.  “Old Brick” is nestled right alongside several busy roads – tucked back behind some large poplar and oak trees.  You pass by it on the way to the market… the post office… the library.

After a lovely day with my mom (we spent it searching for a few key pieces at local thrift/consignment shops), we also stopped by “Old Brick” to walk the grounds of the old church, and the adjacent cemetery. Luckily, I had my new camera with me to capture the moments.

I felt like I discovered a little gem – so close.  I had every intention of stopping *some day* but having lived in this area for nearly nine years, I still hadn’t done it.  What places are on your “someday” list?  Do you think you could find a moment to explore and document that place within the next few days?

]]> http://lollygirl.com/blog/2010/06/06/one-day-i-will/feed 21 http://lollygirl.com/blog/2010/05/03/macromay http://lollygirl.com/blog/2010/05/03/macromay#comments Mon, 03 May 2010 10:00:08 +0000 lolly http://lollygirl.com/blog/?p=2787 Two years ago, Maryse had the great idea for a month-long photo gallery entitled MacroMay:  you use your macro lens, extension tubes,  (or macro adjustment) for the camera and you just shoot away ~ it might be the third day of May already, but I will definitely be participating this year!  With the beautiful May weather and the vibrant colors outside, it’s a perfect month to “go” macro – capturing the smallest details of the everyday beauties.

In preparation for the new macro photos – I enjoyed going through my Flickr photos from the past and pulling up some of my favorite macros shots from the past.  You can click on each for more details!

~ENJOY~

Photos from MDSW to come!

Even if it was a bit of a crap shoot, I lucked out with several photographs this year.  Using Flickr’s “Interestingness” algorithm and clicks, comments and favorites from so many of you, I have had at least one photo make Flickr’s Explore (500 top featured photographs) each month since June 2007.  I am so grateful! 

Here are a handful of my photos that made EXPLORE in 2009 – you can click on them for more info:

2009 was a productive year, photography-wise.  I definitely take most of my photos when traveling, and with the trips we fit in, I had the opportunity to snap some fun photos.  2009 was also the year of my (yet again) failed attempt at a photo-a-day experiment with the Year in Photographs (YIP) that I started in September.  Perhaps I should have called it Weeks in Photographs, because that is how long it lasted!  I am not being too hard on myself, however… it is supposed to be for fun.

If you are interested, you can see all of my photos that have made Explore over the months (since 06/07) as well as some of my personal favorites in this photoset.

Kris and I are re-arranging and re-decorating some rooms in the house.  Over Christmas break, he and his brother painted about 90% of the house – it was hard work!  I helped when I could, but he had the whole time off work and I didn’t.  The fresh paint is like a clean canvas.  We bought several frames and were planning to frame some of our favorite photos for wall art.  Now to decide what should go in the frames.  We are still working out the arrangement and the overall themes for the photos, but it sure would be fun to have you all help us decorate by telling me your opinions … so, stay tuned! 

Mimi and I talked about doing a small photo shoot to capture some of V’s early days, so Kris and I brought along some of our photo equipment (umbrella, remote flashes) and set it all up.  Fortunately, we had a very sweet and generally cooperative little model:

With over 200 photos, it just might be my favorite photo shoot ever

~ ~ ~

We arrived in Monterey after one of the most lovely scenic drives – up the Pacific Coast Highway from Los Angeles.  Kris and I took frequent stops and did quite a bit of photography along the way…

[one of the many...]

The end of the trip was quieter and more reserved – it was all about Baby V, helping my sister and her husband, and generally enjoying our time together.  They just so happen to live in a spectacularly beautiful location… so Kris and I were quite happy!

One day, we went to nearby Pacific Grove for some sightseeing – a yarn shop, lunch, and then a walk by the water.  It was perfect!

~

The trip was wonderful and came at a special time.  Baby V is such a blessing.  She is quite the topic of conversation!

Thanks for all of your comments on my trip photographs!  It is a joy to take them, as well as to share them.  Plus, writing the vacation blog posts takes a little pressure off from the return to the norm around here… the knitting is happening at an alarming rate, but inches of stockinette don’t quite seem as blog-worthy as sharing photos of beautiful scenery and new family members!  Alas, the trip photos are done (but you can see all the ones I have uploaded here on Flickr) for now… but I have other exciting news to share, so stay tuned!

]]> http://lollygirl.com/blog/2009/11/28/new-bud/feed 33 http://lollygirl.com/blog/2009/11/15/desert-dweller http://lollygirl.com/blog/2009/11/15/desert-dweller#comments Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:21:12 +0000 lolly http://lollygirl.com/blog/?p=2417

…

I figured I would let the photos do the talking

…

Can you feel the magic of this amazing place?  Being in Joshua Tree National Park was a little slice of heaven.  Peaceful with amazing sights are every turn in the road.  Kris and I were just in awe of this foreign landscape.  Neither one of us had spent that much time in a desert environment; and Joshua Tree is even a different class of desert.  Between the trees and the rock formations, we were clicking hundreds of photos.  As you can see, the day was *perfect* with stunning blue skies as a backdrop for the white, red, brown, and occasional greens of the desert.

The Park is the intersection of two deserts – the Mojave in the north, where the Joshua Trees are, and the Colorado/Sonoran desert in the southeast of the Park.  The two deserts are distinctively different, and when you cross over into the next one, the landscape really changes.  We spent the day in the Park enjoying every minute of the hikes.  We saw so much beauty.  We traveled from North to South through the Park and ended the day in the otherworldly landscape of the Colorado Desert, distinguished by the unique chullo cactus and the rugged mountains.

… and perhaps the best treat of all…

Was ending the day with an absolutely stunning moon rise.  Kris and I pulled our car off the road, walked into the nearby field, set up the tripod, and just enjoyed every minute of the moon rising above the mountains.  The bats were coming out, but there was not a single sound.  It was a stunning silence.  One of the most peaceful moments I have ever experienced.

– All Joshua Tree photos here –

… …

Do a birthday girl a favor, and tell me about the last place where you felt absolute peace -

I would love to hear.

We also were able to see the lovely trees in the park and the museum-lined streets of El Prado in the early morning light…

We planned to spend the day at the world-renowned San Diego Zoo.  Once they opened, we headed that way.  It was a very auspicious beginning to the day:  a woman was standing near the entrance gate and gave us a free ticket inside.  She said “Remember how nice the people of San Diego are!”  and so I do

…Once inside…the cameras were clicking all day!

[More animals here... and more to come in the coming days]

Photographing animals is an absolute joy, but also a challenge;  for each photo you get, you miss about a dozen more funny faces.  It was such a beautiful clear day in San Diego, so the factors were right for great photos.  The San Diego Zoo was truly a beautiful spot!

We calculated our walking distances, and it was over 13 miles… no wonder we were so dead tired when we walked out of the zoo.  It was late afternoon, and we were in a bit of a haze, but as we walked back to our hotel through the beauty of Balboa Park, we stopped a few times to rest our feet.  That was when I recognized a familiar group… it started with the sighting of an adorable dachshund… then a very cute baby boy… and then a beautiful familiar face from blogland.  It was one of those funny moments when I was thinking, “Is this real?”

The serendipitous meeting between Disentangled Jenifer and Lolly in the Park!  Millions of people live in San Diego, but what are the chances that 2 knitters who met online years ago  would be in the same area of the Park at the same exact time?  The probability just blew my mind.

…perhaps it blew my mind too much to even take a photo with the camera that hung around my neck…

Either way, I was so happy to meet Jenifer, her husband, her adorable son, and her sweet pup!  I am still shaking my head at the serendipity of that

… We spent two days in San Diego and didn’t even scratch the surface, unfortunately.  It is a lovely city and I truly hope to have the chance to go there again. We totally lucked out when we found one of the pinnacle restaurants of our whole trip on our very first night in the city:

Here I am enjoying the delicious veggie delights of Spread restaurant.  Local produce, prepared in the most delicious and savory way (the chef came out and discussed with us beforehand)  It was sort of a tapas-style, where you order several plates and share.  So memorable.  Now I want to try to figure out what we ate so I can re-create!

Next stop on the SoCal Roadtrip: Mojave and Sonoran desert – Joshua Tree – Palm Springs

Project Spectrum’s last theme is about the west – big blue skies, vast expanses of blue water, the shift towards autumn weather in the northern hemisphere – and one of my favorite ways to exercise my PS creativity continues to be through my camera lens…

The leaves are changing and the oranges, reds, and yellows look particularly striking with such a brilliant blue backdrop, don’t they?

As in the first theme this year, I was trying to capture my WEST:  where I am in space and time at the moment and snapping photos looking westward.  It is an interesting way to orient yourself and to just notice the small subtleties and beauties around us.  Try it!

Stopped at the traffic light – heading west – and in awe of the sky overhead.

Passenger seat photography – heading west in the car and snapping in TV mode.

(For comparison, check out how this looks in AV mode – the magic of the camera!)

Only a few more weeks in this round of Project Spectrum – this year has flown right by!  It isn’t too late to play around with the last theme, so feel free to join us!

~~

So, it seems that all I have to do to get a few hundred comments is put up a contest post   You know, you can comment without a contest too!  Thanks for all the Socktoberfest updates – it seems like we have quite an exciting month ahead, and I look forward to keeping up with you all through your blogs, the Ravelry group, and the Flickr photo page.  Show off those socks!

…and the winner of the lovely blue/green ShiBui sock yarn is…

Hannah of 8Ball Knits!

]]> http://lollygirl.com/blog/2009/10/04/blue-skies-ahead/feed 21 http://lollygirl.com/blog/2009/09/09/year-in-photos-starting-now http://lollygirl.com/blog/2009/09/09/year-in-photos-starting-now#comments Thu, 10 Sep 2009 00:28:44 +0000 lolly http://lollygirl.com/blog/?p=2262 I have tried the whole “take a photo of yourself” every day for a year thing, and I have learned that I am just not cut out for that much face time in front of the camera… but I still love the idea of a photo for every day occurrences…

YIP, or “Year in Photographs”, is a project that feels a little more my speed.  Some self portraits or photos of family and friends, and some random things that I see and do throughout my day.  Truthful, honest photography that captures my life as it is *right now*.  Memory jogs for later, or a simple reminder of something important to me… sometimes funny, sometimes poignant.  There is even a special YIP group for “knitterly and crafty types” which often showcases people’s works in progress and their finished crafts, as well as regular life things…

So, I started this YIP project last week – and while I am only six days in, I am pretty excited about the prospects.  I think it will serve as an sort of personal archive for years to come…

1:365  –  September 4th

2:365

3:365

4:365

5:365

6:365

…and just like the old adage, each photo is worth a thousand words… or as many as I add in the description over on Flickr.  So, click if you are interested to learn more.

I am hoping to well up enough “stay power” to keep this going.  It’s fun now – and I hope I still feel that way come Day 237 

Each year, people have described Project Spectrum as another knitalong, and I always like to remind people that it can be so much more than that ~ for me, Project Spectrum is often a way to experiment with some new techniques or a new creation all together.  I hope it can be this way for you too – whether that includes yarn and needles or some other medium entirely.  This month has started with a steady stream of two other hobbies that I totally enjoy and that fit into the theme of PS South very nicely:  baking and photography.

Behold!  the vegan cupcake experiment!  Armed with my new cookbook (Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule) and the ingredients, I delved head-on into the cupcake recipes.  This book has been out for awhile and has received accolades from everyone (vegans and non-vegans alike!) but I was a tad skeptical… the high sugar content in the cupcakes held me back for awhile, but I just decided that it was okay to have them every once in awhile…

This is the vanilla agave cupcake with “buttercream” frosting and freshly-picked berries on top.  According to some of my Flickr peeps, the frosting recipe is a little off as printed in the book – I should have used less soy milk to make it fluffier… so, I guess I will have to try another batch!  I did use less than half of the sugar called for in the frosting, and it was delicious.  The major difference that I noticed about the vegan cupcakes versus the regular cake batter variety was the absolute moistness.  The texture was slightly different – not in a bad way at all! – but perfectly suited for a yummy dessert.  With 74 other recipes in the book to try, I have plenty of ideas! 

I enjoyed pulling out the aluminum METAL muffin tin, baking in a FIERY oven, and putting a RED berry right on top on a warm SUMMER day!  If that isn’t PS South perfect, I don’t know what is!

On the drive home from my parents’ house after Independence Day celebrations, I was hoping to capture some firework photos in the night sky… unfortunately no such luck.  So, I decided to experiment with some photographic techniques I saw on Flickr:  light photography in the dark night.  On my DSLR, I slowed the shutter speed considerably and focused my lens on the lights around me – traffic lights, vehicle tail lights, and street lamps.  I loved the results – they look like a laser show.  So, in the absence of fireworks, I made my own!

The light trails are so much fun to play with – you can get crazier trails if you move the camera during the long exposure, or more of a flare if you keep the camera fixated on one image (like I did with this red light).  The photos can be a bit “trippy” too – I loved the orange red glow of this one:

Plenty of other Project Spectrum-related materials in mind that I will share soon – in the meantime, I would love to hear about what you are planning for the RED HOT SOUTH theme!

As always, you can check out the wonderful inspirations on the Flickr group or over on the Ravelry PS group!

…and I just might surprise you with a knitting post soon enough

Small backyard with FIVE Lollys to do the work!  Actually, this is a new experiment in “cloning” or “auto align”, done with Adobe Photoshop – we used this tutorial from YouTube.  It was fun to do!

We were finally able to get all of our plants in the ground – we started some from seed, and others we got at the nursery as small plants.  This year we expanded to more root vegetables – turnips, more carrots, and more beets, and the ol’ standbys of peppers, tomatoes (galore!), eggplant, squash, okra, and lots of herbs.  It’s a wonder we get so much to fit into such a small space!

Our worm composter that we got in late 2007 has yielded some great compost for us – and those little worms never cease to amaze me.  We eat a lot of vegetables, and they really benefit from that!  I considered taking a few photos of the worms to share with you all, but I realized that I might lose some readers if I were to do that… I love them, but I have been warned that not everyone loves them as much as I do!   

We have two varieties of worms in our composter:  the red wrigglers and the European nightcrawlers, and they love pretty much everything we give them.  They get loads of vegetable cuttings – tops of carrots, potato peels, celery stalks, apple cores, but they also get tea bags, newspaper, pet hair.  The population dies off a bit over the winter, but within 2 months, they can double, and sometimes triple, the population again.  They truly are amazing – it’s like having a little factory on our back porch.  And since we are always feeding them, we are always getting more fresh compost for the plants and flower.  It is a total win-win

Kris and I definitely enjoy our gardening – however, I think our favorite thing might be the eating part!  Nothing like fresh veggies and herbs straight from the garden chopped up and put on the grill!

…and since our little backyard can’t quite keep up with all of the veggies and fruits we eat around here, we also rely heavily on our nearby farmer’s market and the pick-your-own farm.  Both of them open this week.

Bring on the summertime veggies – it is definitely my favorite thing about this season!