A Pretty Start

Let's start this week off on a pretty note! There's something about the unexpected combination of yellow and lavender that I find really lovely. Perhaps it will inspire a nice, easygoing week.

Photos from here, here and here.

Tradition

This weekend brought a holiday tradition: choosing a photo for our family Christmas card. My parents started sending out an annual card when I was a baby, and the convention has continued ever since. Today, it includes husbands, sometimes our dogs and now my little nephew.

There's always a bit of drama involved. As kids, my sister and I dreaded the day we'd have to go out and take the photo. Our once-hippie parents almost always wanted to shoot outdoors. So there was the year we had to sit up in a tree and the time we crouched amid snowy bushes in our front yard. More recently, the challenge is us six adults agreeing on one photo. It's no easy task! But it's always fun, and I cherish that we have these annual pictures of our family.

This photo is one of my favorites. If this shot is the best one of the bunch that year -- with me clutching a cracker, my sister laughing between bouts of crying and our hair flying in the wind -- I'd love to see the outtakes!

Photo by my parents. 

Currently

This weekend was quite full, even though my husband and I were still feeling under the weather. We went to a wine event, an art museum opening and a friend's birthday party -- and then spent most of yesterday lazing on the couch! Since all I want to do right now is crawl back into bed, I'm going to focus instead on a few little things making me happy lately.

A latte sipped in the sunshine.

My nephew trying to escape a diaper changing.

Arts lovers turning out to see a new museum.

A fire on a chilly autumn night.

My sleepy little pup.

Photos by me. 

A Matter of Perspective

What we see depends mainly on what we look for.
- John Lubbock

For me, these past few weeks have been filled with ups and downs, highs and lows. All of which makes me grateful for relaxation and good times this past weekend, which will hopefully continue into this Thanksgiving week.

But I can't help but wonder, as we experience challenges and triumphs, how much does our own perspective contribute to the fluctuations? And if we can impact our situation with our attitude, how much effect can it have? While I don't have the answers to these questions, I do believe in the importance of a positive attitude, in being grateful for the good things, even when some things aren't so great.

I was thinking about this when I snapped these two photos the other day. Both are of the same scene, taken within seconds of each other. But a shift in perspective created two entirely different images. Kinda neat, huh?

Photos by me.

The Four Seasons

The talent found on Flickr never ceases to amaze me. Then again, the amount and breadth of talent found in world never ceases to amaze me either.

On a recent browsing through the photo-sharing website, I came across Romanian artist Alex Beltechi. I find his series of rooms -- which are variations of one another based on spring, summer, fall and winter -- fascinating. Their surrealistic nature reminds me of paintings by Rene Magritte from the early twentieth century.

It's fun to let your eyes and mind wander through his room-scapes.

Faceoff

Back to the Future

The Shot

Aurora and Borealis