baby steps

do you ever stumble and catch yourself?

have you ever fallen up the steps?

have you been walking along in your cute heels when suddenly for no ovious reason your ankle tricks out on you and you end up catching yourself and almost sprawling face down on the sidewalk?

are you ever just walking along and catch the front of your shoe on the sidewalk and do a face plant?

i've done all of these and can attest--OUCH!

more often it's my pride that pains me at being caught in an unflattering moment.
at times i have had bruises and skinned knees to prove how inept i am at walking a straight line.
i don't even ingest alcohol. it's just me at my best and most klutzy.

honestly, it's enough to keep a girl humble.

lately, i feel like i've been taking lots of baby steps. learning how to walk again.
getting closer to figuring out what direction i should be heading.
i think, that maybe, just maybe, i'm getting close to figuring out the next step.

here's hoping.

photo from: originalquill.com

change

A few days ago, I saw this on a tree near my block.

Fall is in the air. Leaves are slowly beginning to change color. Trees will soon shed their leaves. The sky is a beautiful crystal clear blue only found in DC in September. A change from the hazy, gray humid skies of summer. Yes, change is in the air and I can see it.

remember

I remember where I was last year on 9-11.

In the midst of the chaos of war, it's not often that you stop and take a moment to be quiet and reflect. Last year in Afghanistan, we came together for a small remembrance ceremony. One Sailor read a his brother's firsthand account of his experience in New York City on 9-11-2001. Another read 'A Fireman's Prayer' and another 'A Policeman's Prayer'. We remembered the ones who died on that day, as well as our own brothers and sisters in arms who have given their lives in Afghanistan, so that we never have another 9-11. I sang 'Let There Be Peace On Earth'.

"Let there be peace on earth
And let it begin with me.
Let there be peace on earth
The peace that was meant to be.
With God as our fatherBrothers all are we.
Let me walk with my brother
In perfect harmony."

When it comes right down to it, the reason we are in Afghanistan is that we are hoping, praying and fighting for peace. Ironic that sometimes it takes war in order to have peace. I can't wait for the day when Peace comes.

I've always felt the best way to honor the people who were victims on 9-11 is to live an honorable life, serve others, work hard, be honest, choose the right, pray for peace and always remember.

this just makes me smile... and dance

500 days of summer from fox searchlight studios

great flick.
this is not a love story. this is a story about love.

good morning

i love the quiet monday morning of a holiday weekend.

on a normal monday i wake up quite early to street music. the bum-bum-bum-m-m-p of the bass serenade from the back of a car. the clank and grind of a garbage truck. the voices of dogs and their people walking, stopping, pooping and scooping. the tap, tap, tap, tap, tap of a runner putting in miles. a high pitch beep of a car alarm disengaging, then the slam of a door and a motor coming to life. the open and shut creak of the entrance gate as occupants come and go from row houses. water rushing through the pipes in the walls. childrens' voices as they arrive at school on the next block over. and finally, the buzz of my alarm clock.

yes, i have a symphony surrounding me each day--all the noise and music of people's lives enter mine whether i like it or not.

but this morning... quiet.
i reveled in it and then fell asleep for another hour with no alarm.

happy labor day.
i hope you can take time away from your labors to enjoy the day.

photo from: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/capitalweathergang/2008/02/virga_dawn.html

Afternoon at the Museum

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder they say. I think art is too. I had a great afternoon at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum. It’s definitely worth a visit and I wanted to share some favorites with you. All the art is from the online Smithsonian Collections.

The National Portrait Gallery has a fascinating exhibit on Feature Photography.

I got lost in that space which Kathleen is staring into. I wanted to ask, "Where are you? What are you seeing?" Her kitchen is so ordinary, but her facial expression is certainly not. Photographer Katy Grannan shot her as part of a series for an article exploring the effects of post traumatic stress syndrome in Iraq War veterans. "Photography is a kind of permission; it’s a way in. It’s a catalyst for extraordinary experiences that would otherwise not be possible."

I had to stop and wonder what Adelyn, Ash Wednesday, New Orleans, Louisiana was thinking. She was photographed by Alec Soth. I really liked his thoughts about this collection. “In putting together a collection of my best portraits of women, I’m trying to come to terms with how I honestly see and depict women. Are my pictures romanticized? Sexualized? Why do I see women in this way? For me, photography is as much about the way I respond to the subject as it is about the subject itself.”

Untitled (Kara on Easter Sunday) made me laugh. Kara doesn’t look too happy and in my mind's eye I envisioned her as her adult self, and I'm not sure she's any happier. I just couldn’t help but laugh at her apparent misery. Jocelyn Lee’s collection was simple and beautiful. She writes of her work, “I photograph because I am interested in people, what it means to be alive, and how we make sense of the world.” I also like the next photo from her collection.

I loved Untitled (Jocelyn with moth). What is she dreaming of? The colors are gorgeous here. And that moth on her hand is huge!

Martin Schoeller specializes in really close close-ups. I like it. “A photographic close-up is perhaps the purest form of portraiture, creating a confrontation between the viewer and the subject that daily interaction makes impossible, or at least impolite. In a close-up, the impact stems solely from the static subject’s expression or apparent lack thereof, so the viewer is challenged to read a face without the benefit of the environmental cues we naturally use to form our interpersonal reactions.”

Of course, Angelina Jolie is beautiful and when you’re staring at a 4’x5’ reproduction of her face her beauty is even more apparent as are her imperfections. Martin captures her beautifully.

Barack Obama. And seriously his head is a really odd shape and his ears aren’t in focus. He almost looks like a cartoon character. I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but really Martin, this is the shot you chose.

A short walk down the hallway re-tracing your footsteps and you enter the American Art Museum. Here's a peek at the Twentieth Century-Art collection.

Manhattan by Georgia O’Keeffe--“One can’t paint New York as it is, but rather as it is felt.” I just smiled and smiled when I saw this one, and I’m not sure why.

In the Gilded Age collection I loved September Afternoon by George Inness. I just wanted to soak up all this color and roll around in it.

I think I'm coveting a job in downtown DC. I would come here to eat lunch and wander around. I'll be back lovely museum. See you soon.

Can I get summer back

School started yesterday.

Hurricane Bill passed right by letting Mother Nature show off her stuff. It even affected the travel and vacation plans of the First Family (News worthy, no?). I was awakened this past weekend at 4 am by the loudest thunder storm I've experienced in a few years and the sky was purple from all the lightening. Yeah, it was awesome and scary. And the rain came pouring down. Thankfully most of hurrican season was dormant this year.

School started...

I went home to see family twice this summer. I saw all of my nieces and nephews--played dinosaurs (each one had a different voice, name and character), legos and built roads for trucks and cars, made repairs and even made all the requisite sound effects. Not sure who the biggest little kid is in some cases, me or them. I love my family.

School started.

Walked and walked and walked all over DC this summer. My only regret is not having my camera with me, but when you're exercising and the heat index is unspeakable, it's just too hard to carry stuff with you. Although, water is a necessity.

School sta...

Oh, the seersucker suits that grown men wear in DC. Seriously, if you want a good laugh just picture US lawmakers wandering 'round the Capitol in pastel, seersucker suits. It made me laugh. Do real men wear seersucker?

School... marks the end of summer. At least it did when I was a kid. Now as an adult it's Labor Day that marks the end of summer. I'm not sure I like it. I think I want the summer holidays back, but does that mean I have to be student again or a politician in DC? Our lawmakers are still on holiday for two more weeks. That means I can find a parking space in front of my house. I'm not sure I want to be a full time student again or a politician. So, how can I get summer back again? Hmmm....

I can't believe summer is over. Although, you can feel it in the air. The temperature hasn't changed. It's still hot outside and humid too, unbearably so. I mean to say, there's a quickness, a sense of urgency in the air. It's as though, all of sudden, everyone is buzzing with busy-ness. The pace of life just picked up again. I'm a little sad, 'cause I was enjoying the slower moments of summer.

Slow is good. I don't want to go too fast, but time isn't cooperating. And next week September is here. I love September. It's not quite fall, not quite summer. The humidity quietly exits and the DC air thins out, mornings start arriving a little later, sweaters come out of the closet again and this season's boots go on the shelves. I love boots. Hot chocolate in the morning on the way to the Metro is good too.

Anyway, summer is almost gone. Here's hoping I can hold onto it for just a bit longer.

Glimpses of Kenya - The Great Rift Valley - Lake Baringo

Enjoy this first of more glimpses to come of Kenya.

The Great Rift Valley

Classic examples of Kenyan couches.

Baboons crossing--Can't you just see the crossing sign with this sillouhette?

I love this giraffe and his little bird friends on his long neck. He was the first one I saw in the wild.

Sunrise at Lake Nakuru National Park

Water buffalo - the meanest guy in the park.

Flamingoes!

Zebra walking here!

Along with animals you can see the town of Nakuru from the park.