Horses? Horses!

Horses! That's what I thought as I parked haphazardly on the side of the road. Horses, horses! I was driving with Mike to my parents house when I saw them. Where the 'rents live is a little bit of farm country so it wasn't a surprise to see the horses but this time I had my camera and the lighting was pretty so I had to stop.

They were behind a fence so I had to get close. Then suddenly, this beautiful brown horse, let's call him Harold, made eye contact with me and trotted to where I stood. Here he is making his way to me:

Needless to say, I felt special. I was surprised by how friendly he was. I wouldn't call myself a horse person, if only because I've never had the experience of riding one, so I was a total coward and didn't pet him eventhough he was all up in my grill. Mike did, and for that he was the champ of the day.
More pictures of Harold* and his buddy, Pip* after the jump:
*I do not know if these are their names but they sound like fun.

Pip looks like a friggin' unicorn!

This one is one of my favorites. Mike took it from the car while he waited patiently for me to get this out of my system. Can you say new profile picture?


Have any of you ever been on a horse? Are they scary? More importantly, do they smell?

Delightful

This was the first weekend in I can't remember how long where I felt like I actually relaxed. Maybe it was the fact that today was a teacher planning day. Even though I had to go to work, I didn't have to mold young minds. Or warp them.

I spent Friday afternoon and Saturday morning baking sugar cookies in the shape of underwear. I did this, not for my own amusement, but for that of my great friend Lissette and her bridal shower. I went to that Saturday night. Sunday I met Mike and our buddy Chris at this bar called Mike's (funny) that is down the street from us. We then went to see my parents where we ran into horses (more on that later). A visit to Target, a Publix sub, an episode of The Vampire Diaries and a good book capped off my weekend. It may not seem like much but it was exactly what the doctor ordered.

I'm going to try to carry this relaxed mood through the week, although today sort of stressed me out. It's going to be a busy one: Metallica (!) Thursday, The Killers Saturday and a photo session Sunday (my first engagement shoot). Because this post seems lame to me, apparently I've lost my gift with words, I'm going to let some of the pictures I took this weekend speak for themselves:

Lady of Language

That's what a student called me and a couple of my teacher friends the other day--Ladies of Language. I was at a KFC eating the first of two fast food meals I've had this week. My thighs thank you fast food gods. It's been a two-fast food meal week, I'll tell you.

So I am a Lady of Language in so many ways (although, I just had to look up the word language to make sure I was spelling it correctly. Doesn't it look wierd?) Anyway, I realized while reading the Pulitzer Prize winning essays I had to slog through this week that if I see the phrases In Conclusion and Last But Not Least ever again, I might just up and lose it for real. Awful. Those words are dead to me. DEAD!

Now, I don't deem myself a brilliant writer. Writing is a royal pain in my ass. It's been both a lover and my sworn enemy my whole life. That's what writing does to you. It's an SOB. I do, however, know that I can string sentences together in a way that makes sense and proves a point. I know now that I take this ability for granted. I think those of us who know how to write do.

It's not easy to stand in front of these kids and tell them that what they are doing is complete crap (I don't use those words, I promise.) The good thing is that they all seem to want to learn especially after one student asked me if they were going to use this stuff in the real world and I got on my soap box. I told him that even if you work as a manager in McDonald's you have to know how to write. Let's say some guy takes a spill in the restaurant and cracks his face open (my exact words), you need to be able to write an incident report that says more than, "Yo, that dude just busted his ass!" I also told him that even a college degree and a decent job won't keep you from owning a car that only has one hubcap and worrying about money all the time. So they better get their act together because a high school diploma doesn't guarantee anything.

Yup, this is going to be interesting.

~

A Holga, you guys.

Not Olga, HOLGA! It's a camera and I bought it. This wonderful blog inspired me to buy one of this plasticy marvels. If you are wondering, as my cousin's friend wondered, "What the hell is that?" I'll tell you. It's a camera that kicks it old school.

The Holga's brilliance comes from it's all plastic lens that according to the website, "makes colors radiate and makes total image sharpness take a brief holiday. You can also expect a bit of vignetting (darkening) around the edges – especially on a sunny day." In other words, it makes pictures look fabulous.

I'm just excited to have a new toy that I can play with and hopefully add to my burgeoning arsenal. It would be nice to take all these great digital pictures that I know came out nice and try a couple with the Holga just to see what I get.

I also love the mystery of film. It brings me back to when I would take pictures when I was younger and I never knew what I was going to get. It's always a bit of a surprise.

There's a role in there now that I'm not done with. I know for sure that a few of the pictures are going to come out dark but that's ok, I'm just testing this puppy out.

Here's what I hope to get from my Holga that I just named Olga:

(Picture: fusshop.co.uk)

I'm going to carry Olga with me everyday and keep a role of film on me. I think this is going to teach me to focus on composition and take note of the pictures I decide to take. Something else that's cool is that after I take a picture, I can choose to advance it one full frame or not at all. I can shoot limitless times on one frame for cool multiple exposure effects.

So, I'll keep you posted on how this goes. I think that when I develop the roll, I can ask them to put the negatives on CD. I don't remember...it's been a while since I developed film. This is going to be a blast.

And Where Have You Been?

I could say that's what you're asking but my two readers know where I've been. Still, here's where I was while I was MIA these few days:

-Hanging out with these guys Sunday and Monday. I even called in sick to work, which is something I NEVER do. I watched The Ref, Little Women, Sense & Sensibility and all the Top Chef episodes that I missed.

-Celebrating my awesome cousin's birthday at Texas de Brazil. I ate more red meat than I ever have in my life. This is him getting his bowl on:

We were also lucky to capture this jem of an outfit. He's not wearing his closet; he's just spectacularly tacky. In case you are wondering, his shirt says, "Urban Couture." Seriously.

- At work for 14 hours yesterday. We had Open House. I swear to you I spent 12 of those hours talking.

-Going to every Barnes & Noble and Borders in Miami and Ft. Lauderdale to find this book. Can you believe no one (NO ONE) has it? I've got to get it from the internets.

-Looking like this lady. I can't tell you the amount of essays I had to read this week. I felt like it would never end. It really hasn't ended; I'm just choosing to ignore it right now.

I also managed to take this picture:

It's not often that you get to take a picture of a cool looking crescent moon. It came out brighter than it really looked but that's what you get when you try to take pictures of the night sky in a city.

~

That's What She Said

About two weeks ago, I was handing out this state test to one of my classes. When I gave one of my students the test packet, she said aloud, "Man, this is thick." Suddenly another student shouts out, "That's what she said." Now, I told him that was inappropriate because that's what I was supposed to do, but really I was giving him a mental high five because it was hilarious. I tell this story because The Office starts today. It's actually a national holiday in Elaineville.

Not only is The Office premiering tonight (9:00, NBC), Bones (8:00, FOX) is brand spankin' new, too. Yani and I are obsessed with Booth and Bones, namely Booth. The thing that I love about this show besides the humor and the crackling sexual tension between the two leads (I might make this my wallpaper), is that I actually care about the secondary characters and what happens to them. That's part of the reason why I love The Office so much. Sure, at times is can be so uncomfortable that you almost have to look away but it's laugh out loud funny and the secondary characters are what make it so great. Also, I can go for days talking about how much I love Jim and Pam. I actually watch those fan videos they make on Youtube with the clips of the show and the sappy love songs. Mike might need to have an oxygen tank for me for the episode when they get married. You know, just in case.

It's not enough for me to just watch these shows, I have to be all up on the news and what's happening. Elaine + the internet=BFFs. A great website for Office scoop is Officetally. The site is constantly updated with spoilers and news about upcoming episodes. It's the no. 1 Office news source. Another great site is givememyremote.com. It covers a ton of shows including Bones, How I Met Your Mother, Glee--pretty much all the shows I love to watch. While searching for a good picture of Booth (here's another one), I stumbled upon this website that I'm quickly adding to my blogroll. And, without a doubt, I've got to mention Entertainment Weekly that's filled with so much goodness it's almost a crime (I'm a subscriber). What's great about this website is that they have show recaps, the latest gossip, news and a little thing called PopWatch that's all kinds of awesome. While I'm at this, I'll give you one last website that is chock full of fun: PopCandy. The catch phrase is "Unwrapping pop culture's hip and hidden treasures." And does she ever. A great place for tv, music, movie and comic news.

Here's my TV watching list and the show times incase you want to check them out. I'll occasionally mention them here, especially if it's a noteworthy episode.

The Office (Thursdays, 9pm/NBC/Premiering tonight)
Bones (Thursdays, 8pm/FOX/Premiering tonight)
How I Met Your Mother (Mondays, 8pm/CBS/Premiering Monday, 9/21)
Big Bang Theory (Mondays, 9:30pm/CBS/Premiering Monday, 9/21)
Glee (Wednesdays, 9pm/FOX)
So You Think You Can Dance (Wednesdays, 8pm/FOX)
Trueblood (HBO/On hiatus)
Burn Notice (USA/On hiatus until winter)

What's your TV list for this season? Any shows you're particularly excited about? Leave your list in the comments.

~

Today's picture of the day was taken from the car on the way home from the beach. I loved the clouds and the sky's funky blue.

Random Thought Tuesday

Today was a day for random thoughts and in honor of this holiday, so to speak, I'm going to list some of them here:

-I looked like Christina Hendricks from Mad Men today minus the big boobs, red hair and general sexiness. So maybe I didn't look like her. It's just that I wore an old fashioned dress like they do on the show.

-There is an inordinate amount of pay-by-the-hour "executive" hotels on my way to work. Should I be concerned?

-I actually said this in my class today,"You cannot out-attitude me honey so how about you calm down."

-I really love weddings. I mean, I LOVE weddings and the fact that there is a slight possibility that I might get to be THE photographer at a wedding in Spain in a CASTLE, has me spinning in circles. I am twirling!

-I didn't watch the VMAs but the kids were all about them today. I did watch the New Moon trailer (it's rockstar) and the video of Kanye West being a douche (they've removed it from the internets). Why you gotta be frontin' man?

-Watched half of Braveheart with Mike today. We do this all the time. Because on weeknights we have to go to bed early, it'll take us something like three days to watch one movie. It's nice, though; you have something to look forward to.

-Very proud of myself for NOT buying a book at Target. I had one in my hand and told the cashier that I didn't want it. That's like a crack addict saying "No, thanks" to his dealer.

-Why do cashiers look at you funny when you say that you have your own bags? Did they not get the memo from Al Gore that we need to recycle and save the planet? Just scan the groceries buddy and I'll do the rest.

-The new Harry Potter park is going to make me hyperventilate, I'm so excited. Check out the details here.

-Wiggs over at The Beholder, is holding a contest to name the book she's writing with her mom. I'm borderline obsessed with both her blog and her mother's books. To top it all off, the winning title and two random entries will each win KitchenAid Stand Mixers--basically the Holy Grail of kitchen appliances. I loathe anyone who owns one but only because I want one. I hate because I covet.

-Links make me happy. That's why I include them whenever I can. You don't want to miss the link to Al Gore. Clink on links, they are the pink words that take you to awesomeness. Oh, and reading comments really makes my day.

-That is all.

Got any random thoughts you want to include here? Leave 'em in the comments.

~

Today's Picture of the Day is rather Goodfellas-ish. The fella on the left is my bro-in-law Andrew then you've got Lisco, our buddy and neighbor Z, and Alberto with the glasses. I took this at Mike's buddy Adam's wedding. I snapped this after these strapping young men finally got the car parked correctly after a couple of tries. Z hates this picture because he's looking down. We all know you're handsome, we don't need to see your face.

Wearing Your Closet

A feature I'm going to add to this here website is "Lainey's Terms." It's been brought to my attention that I say phrases all the time that a regular person would not know. My buddy says that a blog should: Engage, Entertain and Inform. Pay attention because I'm about to smack you with some knowledge.

When I say that someone is "Wearing Their Closet," I mean that they are wearing various generes of clothing at the same time. For example, Mike has yet to buy motorcycle boots or gloves for that matter. So, the love of my life is riding to work on an awesome bike wearing his dress pants and shirt with non-other than his tan construction boots and white batting gloves. Not to mention the big ass black helmet he's obliged to wear. Mike=wearing his closet.

This phrase orginiated in college when a roommate and I coined the term to describe the outfits of our other roommate. Girl wore anything and everything at any given time. She didn't give a flip.

Here are two good examples of someone wearing their closet:

We've got Paris Hilton and some chick wearing God knows what. (Image: The Insider)

Then, there is Britney Spears--the Queen of Closet Wearing. I don't know what's happening here. (Image: The Socialite Life)

Observe the different genres of clothing. You want to be able to identify this when you're out and about or at the very least know what I'm talking about when I point it out. The more you know.

Next up: "Eating Crap." No, you do not ingest poo. It's something along the lines of not paying attention. All will be explained.

~

Why Pandora Made Me Write to My Congressman

Folks, I'm a bad American. The only time that I have ever written or called a congressman was not to ask for money for schools (and I'm a teacher) or to lobby for a cellphone law. No, it was to save free internet radio, namely Pandora. It might be lame, yes, but you need to understand something: Pandora is awesome. It is the reason why I've got close to 5,000 songs on my ipod. It's also the reason why I've spent way more money on itunes than Mike would like, but that is a whole other beast I don't want to tackle. Ever.

There was a moment there, close to three years ago, when free internet radio was in serious jeopardy. Something having to do with royalty fees, I don't know. All I know is that I was working at a job where I sat in the middle of four women who were on the phone 90% of the work day and gossiping the rest of the time. One of the few reasons why I survived working there was because of Pandora. I turned that bad boy on in the morning, put on my trusty headphones and got to work.

For those not in the know, this is how Pandora works. When you first go to the website, you create a station by adding some of your favorite artists and/or songs. Then, the Music Genome Project takes over. To keep it simple,the MGP (I renamed it) analyzes your music, then suggests new songs based on "400 different types of criteria." It's all very scientific. I don't bother with that stuff so long as I keep getting cool, new music.

I find that I never listen to terrestrial radio (as Howard Stern likes to call it). There's no point in listening to the same crap over and over again. I also hate listening to commericals. This monster is commercial free!

Ok, other great features:

- You are entitled to about five or so skips for an alloted amount of time. It might be more but I don't remember. If you skip that many in a row, you'll just have to wait for about a half hour before you can start skipping again.

- The thumbs up/thumbs down feature works like a charm. If you like a song, give it a thumbs up and vice versa for songs you hate. Once you thumbs down a song, it'll never play it again. The thumbs up also brings up similar songs.

- If you're sick of a song, just click "I'm tired of this song" and it won't play it for a month.

- You can make up to 100 different types of stations. 100.

- You want new music, just add some of the artists or songs that you've given the thumbs up, otherwise, you'll get stuck listening to the same songs.

People, I'm not lying when I say Pandora is one of the loves of my life. I should by stock in the company. Heck, I've already bothered Congress. Bottom line: Check it out and see what you think.

Have you guys experienced the awesomeness that is Pandora? Do you love it as much as I do? Do you hate it? Thoughts in the comments!

Today's picture of the day is a request from my awesome friend Quinn who wants to see more from my session with one of the cutest girls ever. This is Sammie in one of my favorites:

Vintage Love

This picture of my parents is on my bulletin board behind my computer, right in my line of sight. It's one of my favorite pictures ever. Yeah, they're blurry and a box of crackers sit in front of them but their smiles are genuine and these are smiles I've seen throughout my whole life. The fact that my sister has it in her house as well, speaks volumes about how it encompasses everything that is wonderful about them as people, as a couple and as parents.

I can't be honest about myself or really become who I want to be without pausing for a moment to think about how much these two people have influenced me. I always say that the only reason that I've been able to do anything in my life, take any of the risks, is because they have so firmly stood in my corner every step of the way.

One of the things that I love so much about my family, and I don't just mean my parents, Yani and Abuela, but my aunts, uncles and cousins (especially my favoritist of all, he knows who he is) is this notion of togetherness; of joining forces. I wrote about it in my poem Where I'm From. It's the subject of my everyday. And it all begins and ends with those two people up there.

I don't give my parents enough credit for the sacrifices they have made for Yani and me. So I guess this is my way of saying thanks for being the wonderfully good-humored, steadfast, loving people, parents, friends you've always been and continue being.

I totally made my mom cry...I know it.

~

Today Was a Good Day

At the risk of sounding like Ice Cube--today was a good day. Here are some of the reasons why:

· My hair smelled like coconut.

· I wore a tropical shirt.

· I played some Bob Marley while my students worked on a project.

· I re-read this email: "You are a gem, Elaine. I have never worked with a young teacher as switched on, talented and considerate as you are. Thank you so much for all your help." (That just plain made my week).

· I got a cute note in my lunch box.

· I got to put other people in charge of things.

· My students are actually trying.

· I got to come home to this:

Most of all, it was a good day because I made it one. I was tired and still had to go to work but I recognize that it's a rare thing to actually like your job and even rarer to be good at it. I was encouraged by the promise that I saw in my students today and even in myself. I can dictate how my days are going to go. I can make things happen. This is obvious, I know. Sometimes, however, you lose the forest for the trees.

Here's to making everyday a good one even if it takes a little effort to get there.

Today's picture of the day was taken way back in 2004 with my first digital camera, a Kodak Picture Share (I'd had it for a couple years by then). That bad-boy made me fall in love with photography again and I'm all the better for it. This was taken from the ship of our very first vacation together. Mike and I were a year into a long distance relationship that ended up amounting to almost two years. We went on a cruise around the Carribean to reconnect and it was a grand ol' time.

Here's a Bunny With a Pancake On Its Head

I once got in an argument with my buddy Scott. He had no idea what he did or why I was fussing at him. So he emails me a picture of a bunny with a pancake on its head with the line "I have no idea what you're talking about so here's a picture of a bunny with a pancake on its head." I forgot what we were fighting about then and there. Any time that I feel slightly bummed, I can look at that picture and automatically feel better. Then one day, I found this and it was like the clouds parted:

I know that this is wrong on a lot of counts. I'm sure PETA is probably up in arms about it but are you kidding me? This is awesome. I hope it makes your day a little brighter.

~

And I'm Spent...

Over to the left is public enemy no. 1--my Chevy Cavalier. It's broken. Again. I swear, it's out to get me. This is only the second car I've ever owned (hence it's name: Number 2). At first I thought it was a better alternative than the '92 Ford Tempo I bought for 300 bucks in college (It's name: Blue). I'd be lying, though, if I said that lately I long for that first car even if it would only go up to 60 and the seatbelts didn't work properly. Argh.

Yesterday I had a bit of a private fit at home because the stupid thing was making a weird noise and I'm sick of sinking money into it and work is really out of control. I have to say that though I cried and though my mother, in so many words, told me to get over it, it's just a car, I was proud of myself. Why you ask? Well, I'll tell you.

I've noticed, thanks to some constructive observations by the husband, that whenever something goes wrong, I start to tally all the other crap that's going wrong. I'm like Joe Pesci in My Cousin Vinny when Marisa Tomei has just given him lip about her biological clock tickin' and he just blows up:

Vinny Gambini: Lisa, I don't need this. I swear to God, I do not need this right now, okay? I've got a judge that's just aching to throw me in jail. An idiot who wants to fight me for two hundred dollars. Slaughtered pigs. Giant loud whistles. I ain't slept in five days. I got no money, a dress code problem, AND a little murder case which, in the balance, holds the lives of two innocent kids. Not to mention your [bangs his foot] BIOLOGICAL CLOCK - my career, your life, our marriage, and let me see, what else can we pile on? Is there any more S**T we can pile on to the top of the outcome of this case? Is it possible?

That is what I feel like. It's as if I want to find all the things that are going wrong so that I'm justified in crying or in eating that piece of chocolate or not cooking dinner because it's just not my day. So yesterday, when I about had it with the P.O.S. I own, I just got pissed about it for a little bit, then wasted time on the internet until Mike got home and we drove the darn thing to my parents house where the mechanic (he makes house calls, y'all!) is going to work his magic.

I'm not the type of person who works for the weekend. I enjoy my job and my evenings at home. But I just want Friday to get here so I can wash my hands of this week. I just look at Mike and we're both so tired, we're crabby and that's never fun for anyone. Maybe it's the weather.

Things are a little better today, that's all that matters right? That at the end of the day, things are better. Ah, perspective. What would we be without it?

How about you guys? Is the constant rain getting to you? Do you have a car you just love to hate? Leave your thoughts in the comments. (Yani, I'm talking to you!)

Today's picture of the day is an oldie but a goodie and it's not even one I took. This picture is circa 2003 when I came home for the summer. Mike came to visit and we took a little road trip to the west coast of Florida. He snapped this one of me during a little driving break:

Random

This is a random text that my sister, Yani, sent me the other day:

"Remember when I was like 7 or 8 and I had a huge crush on Michael Bolton?"

This is why she's of my favorite people in the world. Because she'll admit things like this.

~

Tutu Couture

Eventhough my nose is about to quit my face because of the many times that I've blown it today, I just had to finish editing the pictures from my portrait session last weekend. I'm so delighted with how these came out. It's so easy to take good photos when the subjects are so stunningly cute. I could put them all up, I love them all so much, but here are few pictures of Sammie and her adorable baby brother:

Bad Genetics

I've spent the past two days making time with a box of tissues and doses of Robitussin. Yesterday was the worst. I was in a Borders and I was just getting progressively worse. I kept having to blow my nose and was catching looks from all the other patrons. I swear I felt like I was a character straight out of the movie Outbreak. I was the Motaba virus. People probably thought I had the swine flu. But I don't...I promise.

I'm starting to think that my buddy Scott is right and I might have bad genetics. Two weekends straight of being sick is just not right. My mom's reaction,"It doesn't come from my side."

I think I figured it out, though. I spent the better part of the summer in my apartment reading and writing. I didn't venture out much except on the weekends. Now I'm stuck in a classroom full of gruby kids who barely wash their hands. My immune system is getting it's ass handed to it. Gotta pump that vitamin C!

Oh, and did the weather gods not get the memo that it's Labor Day weekend? It's been torrential most of the week here and it doesn't look like it's letting up any time soon. I just hope it's sunny tomorrow for my BBQ with the fam. When I asked my dad what he was making he offered this menu: "Ribs...corn on the cob...Chivo." That's goat for all you non-spanish speakers. He won't actually serve goat. I promise you. I just think it's funny how whenever I ask what we're eating, he tells me were eating goat. Dads--you gotta love them.

Sky Rockets In Flight...

This was the sky when I resurfaced from my mom's house after the world almost ended in a mini-hurricane yesterday:

Gotta love that ipopple! The picture got me thinking. I take a ridiculous amount of pictures of the sky. It's a bit of an obsession, really. So, I'm deciding to share some of my favorite sky pictures because that's how I roll.

This one I took during our honeymoon in the Bahamas. It reminds me of The Simpsons.

This next one I took on the front deck of The Quack Shack--the house where we got married. This year I want to return to the Outer Banks during our two-year anniversary where I hope to see skies like this on the reg.:

I took this one in Red Rock Canyon just outside Las Vegas. I was supposed to be working but I ended up just walking around, taking pictures of the Nevada desert with my little Kodak camera.

These next two pics were taken from the balcony of our old apartment (literally a block away from this one.) I would run home when the sun was setting to take pictures like these:

Haterade

One of the things I hope to accomplish writing this blog is a bit of self improvement. That's all well and good in theory; in practice, however, it's a whole other matter. Sometimes finding out the truth about yourself, well, it kind of sucks. Let me explain.

The other day I was talking to my best good friend Scott and I was venting about how I was feeling jealous all the time for some reason or another. I was jealous of this girl in a blog I read. I was jealous of the way someone took a picture. I was jealous of someone's hair. I mean for a week there I was jealous of everything. It was freaking me out because I'm not normally like this.

So I'm telling Scott this and just letting loose when he tells me, "You're not jealous; you're just a hater." And I SO am! It was like the clouds parted and God came down just to smack me upside the head. Ick. I hate this about myself. (There I go again!)

I think there is a little bit of hater in all of us it's just unpleasant when we realize it. It's not like I'm trying to be this way. And the thing that pisses me off most is that I love my life. It's not very glamorous or exciting but it's happy and full of all the things that keep me walking on air half the time. The week of my realization, I was seeing more green than normal. I honestly wouldn't change anything about my life...well, maybe I'd have that Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer I've coveted for a while and the ability to take beautiful pictures like some of the wedding photographers I've found online, but other than that I wouldn't change a thing.

That's a lie. If I could change a thing it'd be this tick I have to hate on myself. I'll tell you, I don't give myself a break. It's always something. I know that we are our toughest critics but when do we take some of the love that we send out and aim it inward? One of the reasons why I started to write my Morning Pages religiously was because I wanted to focus on the things that make me happy and keep me stress-free (a struggle in and of itself.) Constantly giving yourself a hard time can be exhausting. I know that I've mentioned before how I want to change my whole approach to my physical fitness. Consider this quest no. 2. I want to be a little nicer and not hate so much, whether is be other people or myself. It seems easy enough but I know it's a habit I have to develop. We don't normally give ourselves the benefit of the doubt, but I'm about to start.

What about you? Hate much? What kinds of things about yourself do you want to change for the better? Leave your thoughts in the comments...all two of you who read this.

Hell, I Still Love You New York

Over the summer, Mike and I went back to the place that started it all. I wanted nothing more than to walk around the streets of Manhattan and take pictures. That's exactly what I was able to do. Here are some of them.