Lately, I have been slacking on my photography and feeling like I'm not so good and not so motivated. Today, however, I had a blast and got really inspired. I went to a meetup in Woodbury with Dan and we got to experiment with all sorts of new things like studio lighting, a light box, a ring flash, etc. It was really a good time and I got a lot of great shots and some confidence back! I'm glad I went.

We saw flowers in Dan's yard! We also discovered petrified dog poop that was previously covered in snow that the neighbor's dog must have covered neatly with snow. Anyways..the point is, it's almost spring! I'm so excited to be so close to taking pictures of beautiful flowers! And swimming! yay!

I'm sick of this snow, but I know that as much as I say I want to move to California where its always sunny and nice, I get bored easily. In the summer time I miss the snow, and in the winter time I miss the sun. The only seasons I never seem to get bored of are spring and fall. You know whats silly? Groundhogs day. It must be the silliest holiday we have. Thinking that a timid little creature decides the weather is pretty ridiculous. The fact that the groundhog always sees his shadow just proves how silly of a holiday it really is. We are always gonna have 6 more weeks of winter! Maybe I'm just being a debbie downer but I just think its stupid. Anyway, a lot of cruddy things have been happening around me and I feel like the only thing that will help is the spring. Pretty flowers and sunshine can cure anything and fix anything, or at least I can hope. In novels and movies, spring always seems to be symbolic of a new beginning and I would love nothing more. A new way of eating, actually working out for a change, trying to think in a more positive way and maybe even going to church. I want to immerse myself in music and learning more than ever. I also feel like I've done a lot of maturing in this year already. I have been better at pushing myself and not making excuses. To top off all the newness, I am hoping for a new job. I applied to be a music theory tutor for the music department at my school and I am extremely enthusiastic about it, so I'm hoping that puts me a step ahead of the rest of the applicants. I also might apply at Dunkin Donuts, but I'm afraid that will only feed my ridiculous addiction to coffee. Who knows? I just know that I am ready and welcome the change!

I'm excited that winter is finally officially (yet unofficially) here due to the presence of snowiness. It snowed for the first time over night this past Saturday night into Sunday morning and it was very exciting. Dan and I played in the snow and had a photo shoot which was fun, and the pictures came out really nicely. I'll be posting a few of Dan soon but in the meantime you can check out his photos on his page. Oh yeah, we also had hot cocoa and soup!! Excitement! On an icky note, it's raining right now, not snowing, but it's quite warm out so that makes sense. Christmas is fast approaching and I'm not done shopping yet. I still have a few people to get things for! I leave my dorm on Tuesday of next week to go home and I won't be coming back to the dorms even though I'll still be paying for my spot. I'm excited but also I'm really going to miss my roomies and the random fun we have, and stupid things we all say and write down in the quote book! It's weird that I'm a senior. In a way I'm so ready to graduate and get away from this stupid school, but that also means getting away from a lot of really nice people I've met over the years. I don't know whether to be happy or sad. I've learned a lot in college and mostly not from textbooks but from experiences. I've mostly learned that staying mad at people only makes life miserable, and even though it might feel good to hold on to your anger, its not worth losing friendships over. I've always wanted to be wise, but that takes time and college has made me feel like I'm at least part way there. Maybe its because I knit, or drink gingerale, or drive 65 on the highway instead of the usual 75 or 80 that my peers probably drive, basically I act like an old lady sometimes. I dont wear knee socks yet at least. I think it makes me realize that we shouldn't always be in a rush. Yes, I do get made fun of for driving slow but I'm not offended...I just think that life is too short to rush around all the time and possibly risk a shorter life doing it. Dan says I sound like a parent...which I guess is a compliment because parents are pretty much always right. I guess what I'm trying to say without being too cliche is stop and smell the lilies. Life really is too short. If life speeds up anymore, we are just going to be robots whizzing around the world, and that would be a shame because lilies smell really good.

It's fall. The perfect season for change. The leaves change. The temperature changes. Clothes change. This fall...everything changes. Well, not everything. No need to avoid the biggest change of all, the new president. Now, most people avoid change. Some will do whatever they can to keep things the way they are, or get things back to the way they were if the change sprung up on them. Things are different today, in a good way. With unpredictable gas prices, job losses, and house foreclosures in this time of struggle, it's no wonder people want and need change. Obama embodies that change in a big way. Not just because of the color of his skin, not just because he is a democrat, but because we saw in him a glimpse of hope that the future would be less bleak. Maybe it will be a future with less economical pain, or maybe it will be a future with less prejudice (although we still have light-years to go), or maybe both. Either way, it's a step in the right direction. For me, this election has given me hope that one day, our country and maybe even the world will be able to coexist. Hey, it could happen!


*I know not everyone is going to agree with this, but as my mother once told me and I'm sure yours did too : If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all.