Anti Tech in a Tech World

So, today I decided to do my usual tax prep thing. I go to Panera with all my folders of receipts, my calculator, pen & other essentials. By doing this ritual, I find I get more focused - plus I get a big table to spread out at and good coffee to drink & soup when I'm done! This year I wasn't able to focus that well. In fact, I didn't finish what I set out to accomplish.

Now- I'm a go with the flow, embrace change sort of person. I like technology - to a point. But I also like to practice etiquette, and have an awareness and respect for others when I'm out (thanks Mom). Sadly, I'm finding that those who have heard of etiquette, or even give a whit (is that a phrase?) about others are seriously dwindling in numbers.

It seems Panera has gone from a coffee shop/sweet shop/soup & sandwich place to meet friends/eat & talk, to a place of personal outsourced offices which happen to have some coffee & food nearby. OMG!!! So I'm trying to eat & quietly work, only to feel like I'm in a freaking call center! I thought I had found the quiet spot in the place - a place with kindred souls -those who only had food, or paperwork or a computer infront of them - no cell phones. But slowly the cell folks filled all the spaces. I had a guy - on his phone- pacing back & forth, back & forth, back & forth, back & forth right past my table while talking loudly on his phone. After glaring at him with each pass, he finally took the hint & began pacing by someone else.

Then there was the guy who was on his cell phone for 45 minutes. He got up to go to the restroom...... with his flippin' laptop! OMG - with his laptop! I have seen it all! Really! Going potty with his laptop. Did he think someone would steal it? I think not... they were all too focused on their cell phone conversations to even notice a laptop sitting unattended!

What the heck have we become? Are we really that self important? Can we not take a half hour for lunch & really have lunch? (OMG - Im sounding like Andy Rooney). Moi? My mission tomorrow will be to find a quiet little place where I can finish my paperwork in peace, with good coffee & a good lunch!

Ta-ta!

mornings and days...

Where did January go? Can anyone tell me? Wow... And this is supposed to be my slow time. I'm having this strong desire to run away where no one knows me - I can be anonymous & just chill!

I was in Michigan and am now back. Time to catch up on things here in Ohio - taxes, painting, getting my place all tidy to put on the market. So, positive vibes for a sale at a good price would be welcome! I'm going to bury a St. Joseph statue outside my front door... I'll be conversing with him daily on this home matter!

I have a great friend who always has the most positive vibes... she said if I want a sale of my home, to not let any discouraging thought into my head or out my mouth. She said to act as if it is happening - to be happy & feel it happening. I think that would be a good thing for all aspects of life! Right now I'm picturing a home sale, financial abundance & a fine man! So.... catching up on all the daily 365 & morning shots... enjoy!
xxx

Begin

Begin....

That word, that invitation... begin, seems to invite anticipation, hesitation, urgency or fear. I enjoy beginnings. I find it somewhat like opening a door and walking through... what will I see, where will I end up? The problem is to keep up the journey. This year, I am beginning some new photo projects which really are creative projects. It seems a better thing to do that make resolutions. I am making a beginning. So, I am beginning my Year of Mornings project, coupled with Bench Monday (Mondays on a Bench) and 52Weeks of Maggie. Maggie will undoubtedly view this beginning with hesitation! I find projects like these keep me a bit out of my comfort zone. They make me photograph things I may not have thought to shoot. New projects/beginnings make me think. My creative spirit is stimulated and challenged. I look to this beginning with much anticipation!

The Year Of...

Wow, I was really looking forward to my SLOW time of January & February. So far, not so slow! That is a good thing, but I am craving slow... needing a break. We are 10 days into the new year already! Wow!

Well, no resolutions this year for me. Instead, I heard a REALLY fabulous concept in lieu of the standard hard to keep resolutions. Make this the "YEAR OF.... fill in the blank". You know, 2010, THE YEAR I FOUND LOVE, or 2010 THE YEAR MY BUSINESS TOOK OFF. By "naming" the year, it keeps your goal or dream in the forefront of your mind. It works as a catalyst to keep you focused... to help make it so. I like it. I really, really like it! So, what will 2010 be for you? Moi?

2010... the year I moved.
2010... the year my business doubled.
2010... the year love knocked on my door.
2010... the year of all good things.

I'm still working on my list! And, once again, I'm starting my "year of" mornings shots (kind of appropos). I found that some of my favorite shots from last year came from those morning shots. I've sadly neglected my blog and neglected visiting yours. 2010... the year I will blog diligently & visit those of my blog friends!

Happy 2010!

30 Days of Gratitude!

I have been a bit remiss in my posting of late. I've been very busy with work - which is a good thing! Since I got a bit interrupted during my 30 days posts, I wanted to post the final product! I love being able to look back, day by day, on a little bit of life. Life is good - there is much to be grateful for!

So, here are my 30 gratitudes:

1. Nature/Michigan

2. Friends

3. Getting Away

4. Simple Pleasures

5. Co-Pilot Maggie

6. Transportation

7. Space to Breath

8. Unplanned Days

9. Following My Bliss

10.Farmers & Grandpa

11.Enough

12.Seeing Anew

13.Mom

14.Diversity

15.Faith & Hope

16.Be Happy

17.Sense of Self

18.Preservation Efforts

19.Play

20.Barter

21.Good Neighbors

22.Air Quality

23.Open Door Policy

24.Re-connecting

25.Quiet Times

26.Saying Thank You

27.In the Moment

28.Music

29.A Good Day

30.Possibilities

What are you grateful for today?

For a link to the original... & all the gratitude shots, click HERE.

Gratitude 19.30 ~ Play

I am grateful I take the time to play!

Sugar Doll Award ~ Thanks Cora!

Cora over at Heartfelt & Homemade surprised me today by giving me this little Sugar Doll Award and asking me to tell a few previously unknown things about myself!! I'm always up for a fun little challenge!
So... here goes!
1. My heritage is Lithuanian, Polish & Russian.

2. And keeping in line with that... I LOVE pierogis!

3. Like Cora, I paint my toes but usually not my fingers.

4. I have a fear of bridges, heights & flying!

5. My favorite movie is Chocolat... with Johnny Depp.

6. My favorite book is "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein.

7. The favorite place I've ever visited is Nova Scotia.

8. My pets all have middle names!

9. Besides photography, my other passion is gardening.

10. I'm a thrift store addict & love all things old & vintage! They are often used to decorate my home!

Gratitude 18.30 ~ Preservation

I find myself constantly drawn to areas of wild uspoiled beauty. If I lived in another age, I would have been on the Lewis & Clark expedition! I am so very thankful for large tracts that have been preserved by Federal, State & local preservation efforts. This shot was taken on the Greenridge Trail - part of lands managed by the Conservancy in Benzie County, Michigan. My favorite places are the Sleeping Bear Dunes, Porcupine Mountains Wilderness, Ontario north of Lake Superior, Nova Scotia and Assateague on the Eastern shore of Virginia & Maryland.

Gratitude 17.30 ~ Sense of Self

I am getting close to a new decade – age wise. I am so very grateful to be who I am at this moment. Yes, there are some wrinkles. Like Maggie, I am not the high energy, constantly on the go girl I used to be. But I am content with & confident in my skin – something I wasn’t in my 20’s. I am looking forward to growing, learning & getting better & better!

Gratitude 16.30 Don't Worry ~ Be Happy!

Today I am grateful that I choose to be happy!