Quote Day

“Let the beauty we love be what we do.” ~ Rumi

Awww, this is lovely! This is beautiful. This is so inspirational. Let the beauty we love be what we do. Ahh, yes I completely agree. Is what you find beautiful what you do? Are you doing what you love? I found this quote on a calendar and fell in love. In case you don’t know Rumi was a Persian poet and Islamic scholar in the 13th century. He is buried in Turkey. He believed that music, poetry and dance were ways to reach God. I love his quote that I found and find it very encouraging to pursue photography and my other endeavors.

Working on owning my employment.

Be fierce,

Alexandria

Learn to Surf

Don’t you just love it when you feel empowered? You feel carefree, focused, energized and productive? You feel like your creativity is flowing, is making waves and all you can do is try to get what is in your mind out fast enough so that you don’t forget it! Welcome to the adrenaline that is inspiration. Years ago I wrote down in an old journal/planner something that has stuck with me and come back to me everytime I am in creating mode. I wrote down in the process of writing a song or something that inspiration comes in waves, so you better learn how to surf.

Inspiration comes in waves, so you better learn how to surf

Have you ever had a brilliant thought as you lay in bed about to go to sleep? You think to yourself, oh I should write this down but you’re half asleep and you don’t want to turn on the light and jot down whatever you’re thinking about because then you’ll be awake and you’re trying to sleep! You wake up in the morning thinking what was that great idea that I had last night? I can’t remember, oh well, I should’ve written it down. Well, that my friends, is inspiration. Sometimes it comes sporadically, sometimes it comes frequently. You have periods when it is constantly present or it makes a rare appearance. It comes in waves. Sometimes the waters are calm, sometimes there’s a hurricane and you better take cover ( and by take cover, I mean write down everything you think of!). Inspiration comes in waves, maybe small or maybe large but if you want to capitalize on your moment of inspiration, learn to surf.

Surfing is FIERCE,

alexandria 

Shakespeare Time

What’s a blog without a little Shakespeare every now and then? As the title indicates it is definitely time for Shakespeare. Perhaps it’s the fact that we are getting toward the end of the school year and there’s always a school doing their rendition of one of the famous playwright’s plays or the fact that we have a theatre group called Shakespeare in the Park in my city modeled after the famous event by the same name in New York City. Regardless of the reason I definitely think we can all use a little Shakespeare boost so naturally I go to A Midsummer Night’s Dream when Helena says of Hermia…

Though she be but little,she is FIERCE.

Ahh! I just adore this quote! I mean it’s Shakespeare which is fierce. It has the word fierce in it!(Family guy moment) Shakespeare was living fierce long before I came along. I love kindred spirits(bonus points if you got that reference.). I don’t identify myself as a feminist because of what feminism means today but I’m pretty sure that I would say that I am a classical (more on that in another post) feminist and this quote in my mind is definitely saying (Excuse my French) that girls are badasses. We rock. We are FIERCE. in context, “little” may refer to size but I think generally speaking all women are little. But even though that may be true, despite our size compared to men we are FIERCE. We can definitely raise some hell.

Ironically, I am writing this blog post while listening to the radio and an ad just came on that mentioned you guess it! Shakespeare! Ahh, I’m having an inspiration moment. More on that in the next blog post! I love it when you can feel the creative juices running through your body.

Though I may be but little, I am fierce <— might be my new mantra!

alexandria, Queen Fierce

Last Film Shoot (For Now)

Drum roll please…hmm mm, my Canon 60D has arrived in all of it’s glory and it is fabulous! I have taken only about 500 shots on it thus far. Hehe. But before I share photos from my camera (I am currently considering naming her Alice. I have identified the camera as a she for sure. We shall see what transpires in that regard.) I thought that it would be appropriate to share the last roll of film that I shot and developed! So without further ado…

I don’t necessarily identify myself as a cowgirl or country girl. I love country music and more importantly country boys (Good thing my hubby doesn’t read my blog!) but I have always been far more drawn to the city or the beach. I own two really nice country boots that were definitely investment pieces when it comes to my wardrobe but that’s what they are in my wardrobe, fashion statements. So lovely little ole me who owns cowgirl boots for fashion reasons isn’t all that country except for the lovely week in March when my family was out of town and I took over their “little” job of feeding retired race horses. Since I am planning on being a photographer I had thought that I should capitalize on the fact that I have access to a farm and oh my goodness six horses! I am quite happy with the results. I should have gotten out to the farm earlier because I was losing light but either way I am pretty happy with the finished shots.

Horses are fascinating. They are rather challenging to capture in a good spot so I definitely have a lot more respect for all the shots I’ve been in the past of horses. This guy gave me a little tilt of his head and neck though which is darling.

Naturally, Miss Isabelle was along for the excursion and was a bundle of peachiness as usual.

I’ve enjoyed using film and will probably use the 3 rolls I have left but from here on out it is wonderful Canon 60D =D

Fiercely,

alexandria

Obsession: Canon 60D

Have you ever been in love? Head over heels, can’t stop thinking about them, can’t find any reason to not spend all of your free time and then some more time with that one special person type of feeling? Because if you would like to experience that I suggest getting a Canon 60D. I love this camera and I don’t even know or understand how to fully work it yet! I mean like totally in my most hipster voice. It’s beautiful. I am so happy that this is the camera I am using to get started. It’s…dare I say, perfect?

Tyler and I were in Dallas a few weekends ago and that was the weekend following when I got my camera. Of course I had shot a few things here and there (tree branches from my balcony) but I hadn’t gotten a chance to really shoot with my new love (camera). We were at a conference type thing at a hotel and behind the hotel was an office park and winding between the office park was a pond with a bridge and fountain and ducks were swimming in it! And because it is an office park they obviously pay for sprinklers because everything was so green! I was loving it! I think my love loved it too…

Unsurprisingly, Miss Isabelle was in tow to shoot.

She would lift her blankey up next to her face and play peek a boo with herself. Which I adore except for the slight shadow!

Peek a boo! It’s Izze!

Simply precious!

She’s beautiful!

The pond where I was shooting was very picturesque! I have noticed that I look at places in term of whether or not it would be a good place to shoot.

Fiercely shooting everything,

alexandria

Life & Death

You know that joke that people die in threes? Well, I guess it is true, and then some. In the last month I’ve known 3 people directly that have passed away. And then I know about 5 people by one degree of separation that have passed. I feel like it’s a season of death. But it’s Spring and since I was gardening the other day I feel like this isn’t right. I planted a few tulips and lilies and geraniums so in my mind it is officially Spring – it even felt hot a few days ago! Spring is supposed to be a time of life and blooming. Not death. A few posts ago I stated I wanted change but I didn’t mean I wanted someone to die. 

Two weeks and a day ago I got one of those dreaded phone calls. The one where someone asks you what you’re doing? This person has died. I need you to meet me at their house. My husband called to tell me that his mom was dead and he needed me to meet him at her house. One of those phone calls. So I get to her house and find police cars and a medical examiner truck outside. The least I can say is I’ve had a bad 2 weeks life wise (business wise I am doing well!) and I’m trying to recover, reflect and make sense of what’s occurred. I’m trying to make peace with this change. I am trying to find a way to be in the land of the living with some levity while dealing with death which can be weighty. I wasn’t close with my mother in law and my husband wasn’t close with her either so it’s not as if I just lost my best friend but you don’t realize the importance of someone’s role in your life, regardless of their level of significance they play, until they are gone. My daughter has lost her grandmother. I have both of my grandmothers living as of now and I adore them and the relationship I have with them. So I’m making peace with the fact that the possibility of that relationship with my daughter is gone. No more. I like change, I desire change. But I didn’t mean it like this.

Have you ever put your hands in a spinning fan? Like this windmill I feel like I have gotten spun in one of life’s wheel that it spins you through and hopefully it’s done spinning me because I am dizzy but things are getting clearer.

Fiercely reflecting and rejoining the land of the living,

Alexandria