etc.

This is St. Lucia. 25 days there would be brilliant. We were there for 1.

I wish I could say I’ve been on vacation since that last post. Alas, vacation lasted for 10 days, and the last 15 have been spent playing catch-up. But, oh, it was worth it. The mister and I were on a 9-day cruise in the south Caribbean, and let me just tell you, I did not want to come home. Usually, I’m ready for home at the end of vacation, any vacation, no matter how lovely, but this time the escape from reality was so convincing, so complete, that it was hard to come back. There was a whole lot of reading, some knitting, plentiful eating, and a goodly amount of relaxing. Also? Snorkeling, zip lining, and sailing. It was brilliant, folks.

And the last 15 days? A whole lot of reality kicking my butt and harshing my mellow. I’m trying not to think of that though, and to that end, I’m heading back to my aggregator to work through the 600+ feeds in my “art/craft/design” folder. That’s right, 600+ new posts in just one folder, so tonight, I’m indulging myself! Reality, be damned.

The first and second are days 3 & 2 of Project 365, respectively. The mohair scarf is a couple years old (both the picture and the scarf) that I recently added to my Flickr archives for Ravelry. Oh, Ravelry!

I don’t know what it is about orange lately. I want to wear it, eat it, taste it, smell it, surround myself with it. Does orange even have a smell? I know green does.

Day 3 and the project is going well. Thank you all so much for the encouragement! As I mentioned to a few of you over email, when I told the mister about my plans to participate, I was met with a chuckle and a few guffaws. Followed by a, “sorry sweetie, sounds like a neat idea!”, with a barely-disguised smile in his voice. I wonder how those words will taste a few hundred days from now? Heh.

Once upon a time, on this here blog, I used to maintain a page of links to my favourite crafty blog reads. I took down that list recently because my new aggregator (Google Reader) can’t generate a handy list of blogs I subscribe to like Bloglines used to (which I haven’t used in ages). I didn’t feel a whole lot of remorse for getting rid of the links page at the time because I sort of assumed that no one looked at it. But, here’s the thing: every once in a while, I go on a discovery tour of craftblogland by clicking on link lists on blogs I visit. I find it’s a great way to discover new blog treasures, and without those lists of favourite reads, I most certainly wouldn’t find those treasures! And then it’s just me and the usual suspects dancing around in an echo chamber!

I’ve added a whole slew of fantastic blogs to my aggregator recently, as a result of just such a discovery tour (next post: what’s new in my aggregator!). But, I’m curious about what others do. Do you plumb your favourite bloggers’ lists of favourite blogs? Do you ignore the links and walk on by? Do you see those links at all? I’d love to know!

A blanket of snow to-day. This is day one of Project 365, where I take a picture a day for a year. Of course, this year has 366 days, so I get a day off.

Day one. So full of possibilities, isn’t it? Have you made plans for the new year? Resolutions? Mine include eating better, cooking more, living healthier, swimming more, getting outside more, taking pictures more, smiling more, making others smile more. Nothing concrete, just some vague notions of doing better.

Happy 2008 to you, dear readers! I wish you a year of limitless possibilities.

I think this is my favourite colour.

I said I’d be better about posting in November, didn’t I? Right. While I work on that, might you be interested in a pictorial guide to cutting pomegranates? I thought so.

  I’m in love with this palette! Can’t tell you what I’m knitting, but I can show you the yarn. (click for notes)

I tell you, I’m a bit tired of taking pictures around the house. Problem is, I haven’t worked up the courage to take the camera out with me yet. The mister & I had a lovely day downtown yesterday, there was strolling, and interesting shops with kitschy little things, and stalls filled with colourful jewellery, and a most photographable lunch at a Korean barbeque. And, oh, how I wished every minute that I had my camera with me, but even if I did, I probably wouldn’t have pulled it out of my bag. Why? Because it’s a big, black thing (you can’t miss it), and I feel like a big dork going on urban adventures with my camera in hand. And pulling it out in shops? Never! What if the shop person asks me why I’m taking pictures of their stuff? I just don’t think “it’s for Flickr” is a sound answer. See what I mean? No courage. I suffer no such encumbrances when I’m a bona fide tourist, but in my own city I just can’t do it.

How about you — do you brazenly wield your camera with reckless abandon wherever you go? Got any advice for a bashful photographer?

  Wednesday, working

  To-day, presenting (not the same pants, I promise!)

It’s feet week over at Mecozy and bloggers everywhere are photographing their feet. Such fun!

Wednesday’s shot is in our pathetically crumbly carport (where, as you can see, the weeds are flourishing nicely); the shoes are a few summers old and looking plenty worn by now, but the soles are still beautifully springy, and, well, there’s just something about blue shoes, isn’t there? (is it just me?). I suppose I could slap on a coat of polish/protector to spif them up a bit. To-day’s shot was hurriedly snapped on the deck, on my way out to give a presentation to a bunch of health/medical librarians (who were awesome). As soon as I took the picture, I looked down at my dusty black flats, which I love, and realized that they’re probably not presentation-appropriate. So I switched to Wednesday’s blues (I’m unsure as to how presentation-appropriate they are as well). I really need some shoes that are confidently presentation-appropriate. Oh, and, did you see that fallen leaf? Yeah, Fall. I’m thrilled.

I think I’m taking this weekend off from work, all work. No work email, no presentation-prep (I’ve got a few presentations over the next 8 weeks that need writing), no tinkering with my to-do lists. I’m tired, yo.

  birch bark

I’m obsessed with trees at the moment, particularly the textures of tree barks. I’m getting all up close and personal with them, lens first. The mister put his old 28-90 mm lens on the camera, and I’m having all sorts of good times figuring it out. I can mostly find my way around a viewfinder, but I don’t know much else about photography. But, boy howdy, there’s fun to be had in figuring it out!

In networking news, we traded in our old (so old!) D-Link router for an Airport Express and the increase in speed has given me the interweb equivalent of whiplash. I’m now surfing through your blogs at breakneck speed, friends! I feel so much more efficient! Faster is better, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.

The surge in speed and productivity has come at a good time too. As soon as August’s page fell from the calendar, my head switched gears and all I can think of is the students are back, the teaching resumes, the Fall conference schedule looms, and I’ve got to get things done done DONE. My first library/tech-related talk is this Friday, and I’d be lying to you if I told you that I wasn’t at all regretful to have spent part of the last long weekend of summer with my nose in my laptop, writing, researching, and polishing up a presentation from last year, readying it for a new audience. At least I did most of it out on the deck, under an umbrella, with the trees swish swishing above, and ice in my glass.

Everyone I know loves Fall, but me? It just makes me sad.

From the top: bud vases on the dining table; the obligatory Raindrop on Petal shot (ably captured by the mister); and the blue tea shelf in the kitchen that I’m pretty sure I blogged about a couple of months ago. Don’t worry, this is not becoming a photoblog (although the temptation is great). Just know that on those days when I can’t muster up any words, you can probably count on a picture or two to keep you company!

For those who asked, it’s a Canon Digital Rebel XTi (good specs & review here). A beautiful piece of hardware, 100% guaranteed to make you a better photographer.

More Florida pictures here, if you can stand it.