Friday, November 27, 2009

What's Awesome? The Skymall

Whenever I fly, I always flip through the SkyMall catalog that's squeezed in the fabric pocket of the seat back, underneath the tray table. One time, Mike and I sat next to this lady who was all about the SkyMall. She eagerly awaited the release of the latest catalog and carefully read through every single page throughout the flight. I'm not nearly as serious as that; I just like to poke fun at the items for sale. Random does not even begin to describe the plethora of products available for purchase.


Fortunately for you, I'm stuck on this plane and so can break down my favorite products.


I'm going to start with the thing that, the moment I get a backyard, I will indeed purchase. Something needs to protect our turf, why not a yeti?


 As if a Yeti weren't enough, lets toss in a friggin' zombie. I'm going to let the folks at SkyMall take this one, "This life-size, gray toned zombie will claw his way out of your graden plot, office* or family room* corner, pleading for assistance with the eeriest eyes you've ever seen...finished so realistically that you'll swear you'll hear him breathing."
*What?


 Two items that project marshmallows. Seriously.


 
 The guy in the picture looks like a tool. It uses your focuses brain waves to move a ball through an obstacle course. You wear a head band with some clips in your ears. It's supposed to measure some type of theta wave activity. Whatever. I just want to meet the person who owns this.

 
As Mike said when I read him the product description, "Well, they need to explain what the Crusades were if they want people to buy it." If you need a refresher, SkyMall is there for you: "The Crusades Set depicts the nearly 200-year religious battle between the Christians and Muslims." In case you're not into Holy wars, you can get the World War II set complete with mini-FDR and Hitler. Because, you know, you want a chess set that "brightens a room and is fun to play."


No explanation needed.





In case truck balls are a little too garish, you can give your truck a makeover with these Truck Antlers, because "sometimes one car horn just isn't enough."


This might get the award for most random thing at the SkyMall. Again, I'll let them explain it, "There's something terribly wrong here. Two open-jawed aliens are tromping off with your helpless, hapless garden nome." Can I just say, $150.00 if you want the large version. Totally worth it.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

Sister

I can no longer fit into my jeans from the amount of food that I've consumed today. It's acutally hard to breathe. Sit around watching TV with Mike's family, finally getting to edit pictures from a couple of events.

Loving this one of Yani and her yellow lab, Linda:

If you don't understand how a woman could both love her sister dearly and want to wring her neck at the same time, then you were probably an only child.  
~ Linda Sunshine ~

Words


“One belongs to New York instantly, one belongs to it as much in five minutes as in five years”
~ Thomas Wolfe ~

Giving Thanks

I was all set to do this elaborate picture collage to show all the things I'm grateful for, but I thought I'd keep it simple. Today and everyday I'm grateful for the things that make me happy and for those things that don't. The first is the reason I wake up every morning, the later helps me appreciate how fleeting happiness can be. It's been a tough year in many ways, but one filled with so many blessings that it's hard not to be overwhelmed by it all.

My gratitude list could be a website all it's own. I try to show gratitude on a daily basis--sometimes by saying a simple "thank you" or by stopping for a moment to thank God for the way the sun breaks through the clouds during sunset.

I hope that this Thanksgiving finds you surrounded by family, friends and good food. Happy Thanksgiving!

“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.” 
~ Albert Schweitzer ~

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Fall Through My Holga

I broke out my Holga to take pictures of the fall.
I'm still trying to figure this thing out, but I'm happy with what it gave me.
What do you think?


Tuesday, November 24, 2009

New York State of Mind

We're heading here:


and we can't wait.

It's been so long since we've been anywhere but Miami. It's been so long since I felt the crisp air of a fall day.
I also cannot get away from school fast enough. Let me tell you, I need the break. Today I have a workshop so I won't be there all day. Yesterday I was Oscar the Grouch. I felt so frutstrated and helpless. There is nothing as humbling as teaching writing. As I love to say, geez Louise.

I'll be posting from my little corner in Mike's parents house. We'll only be there until late Friday afternoon since we need to be back for our friends Lissette and Sam's wedding. But I hope I get to take a ton of fall pictures and get to catch up on the pictures I want to edit, words I want to write and family I want to see.

What are your plans for the Turkey Day?

Friday, November 20, 2009

"How you, uh, how you comin' on that novel?"

Maybe I'm spreading myself too thin or maybe the month of November has been a total crapfest (most def.), but I'm totally failing at this National Novel Writing Month. EPIC. FAIL.

I'm so behind it's not even funny and to top it all off: I cheated. You're not supposed to bring in a half-finished manuscript into the contest. You're supposed to start from scratch. Well, screw you Nanowrimo! I'm not going to start something else when I've been trying to write this darn thing all of my adult life.

I had a mini pity party yesterday. I was staring at my computer unsure about where to start, what to do, who to be. I want to finish editing pictures. I want to go outside and look at the world through my camera. I want to hop on that treadmill that has been noticebly absent from my life. I want. I want. I want. Then, Scott called and started saying these lines from Family Guy that he always tells me:

"Stewie Griffin: [voice pitch increases with every sentence] How you, uh, how you coming on that novel... you working on, huh? Got a big, uh, big stack of papers there? Got a, got a, got a nice little, nice little story you're working on there...your big novel you’ve been working on for three years. Huh? Got a, got a compelling protagonist, huh? Got an obstacle for him to overcome, huh? Little story brewing there... working on... working on that for quite some time, huh? Yeah, talking about that three years ago, huh? Been working on that the whole time? Nice little, uh, narrative--beginning, middle, and end? Some friends become enemies, some enemies become friends? Yeah? At the end your, uh, main character is, uh, richer for the experience? Yeah? Yeah? Yeah? You got a-- [voice returns to mormal] no, no, you deserve some time off."



I laugh whenever I think about it. I told my friend Lissette about that one day and she found this card in Hallmark that has that first line. I have it up on my bulletin board to keep me motivated. It was that call from Scott, a subsequent call from Lissette where she let me vent my frustrations and the date night Mike and I have every Thrusday (Bones, The Office and some take out), that made me clear my mind. I need to stop worrying about everything and just do it. In the words of Yoda: Do or do not, there is no try.

Yes, I just quoted Yoda.

I went to bed with a renewed purpose. I set my alarm for 4:00 a.m....you read that correctly, 4 AM. When I woke up, I got to work. I stopped worrying about story and just wrote. After an hour and a half of writing, I got down 2,001 words upping my total to 21,676. Damn, skippy! I feel encouraged and elated. I'm freakin' pumped!

This weekend and our trip to New York will hopefully bring on more words. I may not reach the goal of 50,000 or finsh the novel my month's end but half the battle is getting up and just doing it. That's what I'm going to do. Like Dory said in Finding Nemo, "Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. What do we do? We swim. We swim." Smart fish, that one.

Lots of exciting happenings in my world coming up. I won't be a lame-o blogger anymore, promise. I'm going to be posting pictures from my maternity shoot, Lissette's bridal shower, pictures taken with Olga my Holga, my gratitude list and telling many a random tale.

Here is a neat polaroid I took on our way to the movies last Sunday.


Monday, November 16, 2009

Lorenzo the Wonder Dog

My parents got a new dog.
Meet Lorenzo.
He's tiny, awesome and completely fearless. The dog attacked the vaccuum.



I got a couple good shots of him this weekend. Here is one of his tiny doggie ears.



Debating if we should just go ahead and steal him.



My favorite one. Mike is such a bad influence.



*Folks, the last two pictures were taken by my sister, Mrs. Yanelle Garcia*

What's Awesome? Drinking Out of Cups

This video rocked my world this weekend. I came home from baking cupcakes for my dad's party, ready to go out with Mike, our buddy Chris (also known as Z-Man) and our friends Kim and Dave, when Chris tells me to watch this video.

I'll tell you, this is the best thing I've ever seen. I might be speaking in hyperbole but there is no question that its hilarious. It's all Chris' fault. We spent the whole weekend quoting it.

I should warn you: it's got some strong language and I'm not a big fan of one of the F-words used. Aside from that, though, it's genius. Oh, and it's pretty random.

Brace yourselves:



Will I get tired of this? No way, no way. Not once, not never.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Happy Birthday, Papi!

Today is my dad's birthday.


I've already spoken about how absolutely vital my mom and dad are to me and my sister. Last night we were able to celebrate one part of that equation with a birthday party for my dad at my parents house. There was great food, music, and, best of all, family and friends.

Funny story: our neighbor had a huge projector screen in his backyard for the fight. Suffice it to say that this neighbor, who loves my father, macheted his trees so that the men who were hanging out by the fence to watch this fight, including my father and my husband, could get a good view of the fight. He then handed over some pork in tupperware that he just roasted. Ah, neighbors.

Yani and I have an awesome dad. He's not always easy, but he is wondeful, loving, funny and supportive. Things wouldn't be the same without him.
Felicidades, Papi. Te quiero, Tita.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

New Music: Empires

So the other day I was tooling around the internet (what else is new), when I came across this great blog: The Odd Notes. Not only did they feature one of my favorite bloggers: Naomi from Rockstar Diaries whose style I just want to kidnap, they share bands and artists that they discover. It's pretty cool what they do.

While looking through their website, I found this band called Empires. Man, they are awesome! I listened to their album all day yesterday. I don't know what to compare them to so I'll just let their music do that talking. You can download their whole album for free. FREE! Just go to their website: http://weareempires.com/ to download or listen to the album before you decide here.

The song that got me hooked was the one that THE ODDNOTES linked to. Because we all know I'm a biter, I'll embed it here for your listening pleasure. Spread the love, people!



What do you think? Like?

It All Started With...

It all started with a Kodak: a 5.0 pixel EasyShare that I took everywhere. It was that Kodak that I got for some birthday or anniversary or Christmas, that first foray into digital, that started it all for me. I have pictures that I adore that I shot with that tiny silver piece of magic. It followed me to Mexico, the yellow chairs and swinging hammocks; to the red rocks and bluest sky of the Nevada desert; to Mike, always Mike, my favorite subject; to the peace of Central Park—quiet scenes of a lazy Saturday afternoon in the middle of the bustle.

Somehow this tiny silver camera has evolved into one with zoom, into the Canon Rebel XSi, into the Canon 50D. Somehow I have gone from taking snapshots of the sky and my friends to portrait sessions and life events. Like my cameras, I have evolved from a person who likes to take pictures into one who lives to take pictures.

I am a writer, a lover of stories. Through my camera, I have found ways to tell the stories when words fail. I have learned that a kiss on the forehead, when captured at the right moment, can speak more of love than a poem can.

Through my camera, I have learned about light. I find myself watching the play of light through a window during a road trip, the way it reflects off the bay, the way a child’s hair looks when backlit by a sunset.

My goals are simple: to become better. I know what I want to say but am limited by how I can say it. I have the passion and the eye for the stories that only a camera can capture. I am only limited by the technique and knowledge that has eluded me and that I now seek.

I have always said that if I went for a Master’s degree, it would only be for something that I wanted to become better at; for something that I felt a love for. I seek to learn more about this craft, to learn from artists who live photography, to become better for my future clients and for those who let me tell their stories. I seek to become a better story teller.

*This is the Statement of Intent that I submitted with for my MFA of Photography *

What do you think? Acceptance worthy?

~

Last Sunday, the best cousin in the world Josbel, his wife Anne, their beautiful son Joshua and my sister Yani and her huband, Jorge, came over for dinner. I made Chicken Marsala. It was awesome. While we were sitting around talking, I couldn't help but take pictures of Joshua who is getting bigger by the second. Here are my favorite shots of that night:



Wednesday, November 11, 2009

"Go Confidently in the Direction of Your Dreams."

Henry David Thoreau was full of crap. Yeah, I said it. It's so easy to "Live the life you've imagined" when you're not scared shitless and when you have nothing to lose.

I just submitted the rest of my application for my MFA in photography. Talk about feeling woefully inadequate. The Skills and Experience section was like a high school student's who just started taking photography classes. Maybe I shouldn't mention this since there's a link to the blog from my portfolio site. But F-it. I'm all for honesty here.

I have never ventured into something that is so exciting and so scary at the same time. Even when I started teaching, I didn't feel like this. I walked into the classroom knowing that I was going to kick ass and, sure enough, I have. For some reason, I'm super confident when it comes to teaching. I know I'm a good teacher. But when you get to other parts of my life, the parts that involve photography, writing (that's a whole other beast) and whether my thighs are slowly but surely swallowing my jeans, I'm about as insecure as the chess club president trying to ask the head cheerleader to prom (I'm stuck on 80s movies right now, people).

Confidence is a tricky thing. I'm confident enough to tell you off if you've scheduled a meeting and didn't bother to show up or to tell two almost-grown 18-year-olds that if they want to fight each other they better plan on fighting me first (I did this while taking off my earrings). I'm not confident enough, however, to say "Hey, I've got this budding business, want me to take your picture?" or "Yeah, I'm in the middle of a novel that's totally going to get published." Um, no.

I'm not whining here. Not at all because, despite whatever I'm saying right now, I'm still plugging along, trying to become a better photographer, trying write 50,000 words in a month, trying some self improvement on the reg. All I'm saying is that it's easier said than done, Thoreau. It's hard enough as it is to take a leap of faith in yourself, let alone to do so confidently. How about I just go in the direction of my dreams? I'll figure out the confidence part when I get there.

~

Here's a picture of my first maternity session. My charming friend from highschool Javy and his wonderful wife Julieta were so good to let me take pictures of them right before she pops. She's due at the end of the month. They are a cute couple who, I'm sure, are going to make one cute little girl.



What's Awesome? Arnold Palmer Half & Half

The people who know and love me are probably sick of me raving about this drink: Arnold Palmer Half Iced Tea and Half Lemonade. Forget Snapple, this is made from the best stuff on earth including pixy dust, unicorns and rainbows. I mean it's THAT magical!


When we go grocery shopping, Mike buys two gallons of milk (seriously). I buy two gallons of this. It's like my crack. Well, second to books. I have to remind myself every now and then to drink water. And what's fantastic about it, is that it's lite...only 50 calories per serving.

I have to give credit where credit is do, so the origin of my obsession is nonother than our buddy Chris. When he moved down here during the summer, Chris, Mike, our friend Aaron and I went to the beach after two long days of moving, buying furtniture and a special four hour trip to Walmart. Before we got to the beach, though, we had to stop at the grocery store to buy the half & half and the liquor store to get some vodka. Chris then mixed some half&half with the vodka, sliced a couple of fresh lemons and voila: the best alcholoic beverage in the world. I'm not a drinker by any means, but I do have the ocassional cocktail, say at a Halloween party, I'm sure to bring along some of this.

So there you go. If you want a refreshing drink or a fun spiked mix for a party, you can't go wrong with a little AP Half and  Half.

Does this look like someone who would steer you in the wrong direction? I didn't think so.


(Photo by Anton Want/Getty Images via)

Kept

This is what I woke up to this morning:



In our wedding rings we engraved a simple KEPT. It ties to how he proposed to me and to how I feel everyday. Kept happy, kept safe, kept in love.

Friday, November 6, 2009

Gratitude

Some of you were confused by my previous post, which I just deleted (I didn't want the bad juju to sully my turf.) Scott went so far as to text me last night, "What's up with your HS facebook blog post?" It was all just a little poopiness on my part and the need to vent.

I won't lie, it's been a tough week. And, as always, I have let outside forces affect how I feel and my level of stress. This obviously needs to stop. In the middle of all that, though, I was able to find a silver lining. Right before I went to bed I wrote my morning pages (they were moved to night pages because I could just not get up early enough this week). I tried to find the things I was grateful for despite the tears and the aggravation. Here is my entry:

Thursday, November 5, 2009  Day 150*

Another day that started with so much promise and, despite a dicey middle, ended up with so much more. It was not quite what I pictured my day to be but it's fine, it's bearable because at the end of the day, when I can barely keep my head up from the stress headache, I can crawl into bed with him and will it all away. And while I'm cozy and safe and loved, I can think of all the good things that did happen and all those things I'm grateful for:

- The smile and wave from the janitor at 6:30 in the morning. The fact that he kept smiling even as he rolled his cart away. Thanking the universe for genuine people. 
- The way my students crowd around my desk before the bell rings trying to tell me this, that or the other.
- How one of my old students has found a love a reading to rival my own. He's on his fourth book in two weeks and has the ladies lined around the block.
- Flowers on my desk.
- Agreeing that Corona flip flops are a tad white trash.
- The ability to vent to a friend.
- The healing powers of my mom's hugs.
- Yani helping me grade, hearing me out, siding with me--always.
- Fixing my dad a sandwich.
- My grandmother's voice.
- Knowing tomorrow's Friday, thank the heavens.
- The sound of the door when he walks in.
- Home.

*How many days straight I've written my morning pages. TOP THAT!

~

And with that, a picture:


The road looks like the ocean!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Moo Cards

So the other day while I was taking pictures at Sammie's 5th Birthday party, I had a lot of parents come up to me telling me that they loved her pictures and did I have a card? Um, no. What I did have was a little NY Giants notepad where I scribbled my number, email address and website in hurried chicken scratch. Totally not what I would call professional. I felt like I was playing photographer. Like I was given a camera, told to point at something and shoot. I still feel like that half the time, but that is neither her nor there. The point is that I needed to get cards and quick. Did I ever!

I have to give complete credit to my girl Lissette who suggested Moo Cards for their super cute cards. I went ahead and decided to rock the MiniCards because I'm not a fan of the standard sized cards and, really, let's face it, I'm not a standard kind of person. I was looking for something that would capture my attention as well as the attention of potential clients. I also needed something that said, "Hey, I'm not a creepy person with a camera. I might actually know what I'm doing."

Enough with the lollygagging! Here they are for your viewing pleasure:

Here's a closeup:

They come with this nifty little box that's just too cute!

So what do you think? Awesome, right? Leave your thoughts in the comments and whether you think I'll be, in the words of MC Hammer, TOO LEGIT TO QUIT.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

What's Awesome? Scott's Halloween Costume

I know that Halloween was Saturday but I still can't get over how absolutely hilarious my buddy Scott looked in his costume. He was supposed to be Kurt Rambis and I think he looked the part:



Here he is getting his Hamlet on:


Monday, November 2, 2009

Two Years Ago Today...

Two years ago today I married the love of my life...



That morning I woke up to the sound of wind and rain. My mom and dad were already in the kitchen working on the food. I remember walking out of my room and saying, "Well, I guess the wedding's going to be inside."

I still get choked up when I start to think about the people who made the trek to the Outer Banks for our wedding or those who helped us move an entire wedding indoors thanks to that pesky tropical storm that erased the beach for the day. All of it: the crazy storm, seeing my friends from high school sitting with Mike's grandparents, looking over and seeing only faces of people that we cared about--no obligations, no judgements--made walking down that aisle towards Mike all the sweeter. We knew that the people there with us were there to support the promises we made to each other, not just on that day, but for as long as we stay married, which by my estimation will be um, forever.

Our marriage works because of the love and support we have from our families and friends. And not just starting the day we got married but from the very beginning--10 years ago this April.

I couldn't ask for a better person to share my life with. He has so many wonderful qualities that make me love him but if I had to pick just one is that he makes me laugh. It's the type of laughter that comes from the inside and makes everything better.

Happy anniversary,my honey.


Sunday, November 1, 2009

Halloween Roundup

So Halloween was a blast. My buddies Adiene, Joe, Andrea and Alain really outdid themselves this year. The place looked amazing and everyone wore the coolest costumes. I, of course, spent the night taking pictures. I tried to keep from using flash because it would take away from the look and feel of the place. I can't begin to describe how cool the house looked with the severed body parts, lights in the cieling, skulls, you name it. They even had a tv on to look like it does when the cable cuts out. Extra creepy.

Joe, Alain, Tony and two other guys dressed up as the dudes from Super Troopers. They looked great.


There was a penis and my buddy Scott was Kurt Rambis some basketball player. He looked so creepy. He rocked a crazy mustache. Everyone outdid themselves.

Here are a few of my favorite pictures. I took close to 300. Some came out blurry but I'm still learning how to use this lens. Because its not a full fame camera, the automatic focus doesn't work and it was dark as all get out. Either way, I think some of these came out cool.

Here is one of me and Mike in our costumes:




There are so many great pictures of that night. Here are two more that I just love. The first one is of Bobby and Mike--the two wolverines--jumping on the trampoline. I tried it and it so did not work out for me. The moment I get the picture of me attempting to jump the trampoline, I will post it. It's hilarious. The second picture is of me and my awesome costume. I loved that thing.





How was your halloween? Did you have fun? See any cool costumes?

All Pictures © Elaine Palladino 2009

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