Looking Back - 2011 People

One of my unnofficial resolutions at the beginning of 2011 was to make more portraits. Here, with no further ado, are some of the people of 2011. I think I got everyone, if I missed you please blame Blogger because I have been fighting with it for the past two days to make this post.

Hope you enjoy! I'm looking forward to even more portraits in 2012.

Mouse over to see this in black and white.

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Resolving Right

So.

It's January again. In some ways it seems like forever ago when it was January last year, and I was putting together my resolutions. And in some ways it seems like only yesterday. I've spoken before about the Happiness Project, but I'll talk about it again, because that book like no other I've read really speaks about the power of resolutions. There's one quote that Gretchen Rubin often calls upon, and it mentions the need to 'resolve aright.'

Doesn't sound that hard, right? You want something, you tell yourself you'll do it, and  then you do it. Simple.

But actually, I'd argue that what makes it so hard to keep resolutions is that we so often resolve wrong. We resolve to big, or too vague, or we make resolutions that sound good, but that don't actually mean much to us. I made this mistake last year - too many resolutions. And some that meant nothing too me. And some that were too difficult.

So here's a look back at how I did in 2011:

*Post one self-portrait on the blog a month - nope! Fail. I'm trying this one again this year. Will I ever learn?
*Write one personal story about myself on the blog each week Yes, maybe. Close enough.
*Make my photography business profitable (in the black! this is a big one) - Not really, but much closer than before.
*Create 2 more photo books, mostly just as an exercise for myself - Actually this was not a very useful resolution, so I didn't pursue it. I decided my time would be better spent elsewhere, and I think this was a good choice.
*Write an ebook - Same as above. I'm not a writer, aside from this here blog, and I don't think I really want to be. I'd rather be a photographer. Maybe when I have something to say I'll write a book, but until then you can find me here, attempting to write a couple paragraphs a day.
*Get my photos and Lightroom catalogs organized - Yes, and although the system isn't perfect it works really well for me. That might be a blog post in the future.
*Have another swap on the blog (soon! look for it in the next couple of weeks) - Nope! Also kind of a silly resolution. I don't feel bad I didn't keep up with it. I'm just not great at mailing things.
*Give away one downloadable desktop wallpaper a month - No, but I'm trying again this year.
*Get my website up and running (this one will happen this week, come hell or high water) - Yes! And I still want to edit it a bit, but it's looking not too shabby.
*Learn how to light, well - I'm not entirely sure about the well part, but I'm totally comfortable with using natural light, and I'm fairly comfortable with flash, even a multi-light setup. I've used flash a lot more this past year than ever before, and though I prefer sunlight, I can make do in pretty much every situation.
*Create my own Photoshop actions, so I don't spend all my time doing the same few things, over and over - Nope! This is still a goal, but it's not a resolution. More like something that it would just be nice to do.
*Continue Anatomy of an Image, make it better and more informative, and then actually do it every week! - No, I got bored with it. But I am hoping to post more on photography topics in general, and I might resurrect good ol' Anatomy from time to time.

*Have fun with it all. Because in the end, that's the most important thing. - Yes. I am doing this one better and better. Thank goodness! Because it is fun. I'm doing it all because I love it. And it is by far the most important thing.


Resolving to have a swap on the blog? Not worthy of my resolving time. And writing ebooks, or putting together photo books? Worthy goals, but not my primary ones. I like books, a lot, but there are enough people out there creating them. I don't need to add to the publishing madness quite yet. I'd love to do a book on San Francisco, but I don't have the images yet. Maybe this year, maybe not. We'll see. Other things should come first.

So without further ado, here's what I hope 2012 will bring. If it all happens, great. If only some of it happens, also great. If none of it happens, I'm probably going to have to revisit exactly how I make these resolutions and why.

For 2012
1. Travel to a new continent. Africa, baby! I'm really hoping. If not Africa, it's going to have to be South America. It's happening. I can feel it.
2. Create and keep to a marketing schedule for Quotidian Photography. That's a big one, but it's important.
3. Walk to work (my teaching job) every day it's not raining. I've already been doing this so I know it's doable, but I'd like to make it a solid habit. It's about a 45 minute walk, and I feel so much better every day I do it.
4. Give y'all a new photographic computer wallpaper every month. I've tried to make myself do this before and failed, but it's a new year, and a new me. It's happening!
5. Really do a self-portrait and post it on the blog every month. I'm so inspired by Gail Werner's. She does an amazing job, but most importantly, she does it. I aspire to be like her.
6. I'd like to spend more time with friends. That's one of those things I've been trying to prioritize more, but I can always use an extra reminder.

For January, I'd like to try to:
-train Chee every day. He's got so much energy, I figure he can try to learn some new tricks. I bought the book Cat Training in 10 Minutes, and I'm pumped. So far we've tried it twice and I don't think he's learned anything except that I have food in my pocket and sometimes I give it to him. But we're working on it.
-buy a bookshelf. We need one. Desperately. My books are lying around the house with no home to go to. Now we have the space, this will change. Any ideas for good, not too expensive, capacious but small footprint bookshelves?
-be more patient in general. Especially with Evan, and sometimes with Chee.
-get to bed by 11 every night. I'm a night owl, so this is hard.

Whew! I think that's enough. Or rather, I think that's too much. But we'll see how I get on with all of this. Fingers crossed!

*PS - If you're interested, there's a good post about making resolutions on the Happiness Project blog. Worth a read, I'd say.*

Looking Back at 2011

A new arrival in 2011, Chee makes it hard for anyone to ignore him. 

It was the year that kind of snuck up on me, I think. I had many hopes, mostly for my new photography business. Honestly, in terms of business the year was good, but maybe not quite as good as I had hoped. But in so many other areas of my life it was just much, much better than anticipated. A few highlights:

-I got engaged. On February 4th. And I never even saw it coming. That alone is a wonderful life change. Evan, I'm still so honored and excited to share it all with you!

-Chee. Chee was a big change - he's got such a strong personality, he knows what he wants and he's going to get it, be it your food, your wine glasses, or a toy. (I literally just put two sping toys in front of the cats - one for each - and he repeatedly stole both from Mouse and wouldn't rest until he was carrying both around in his mouth.) That being said, he's also a real sweetheart. He loves a good nap on my lap when I'm in front of the computer or watching a show with Evan. And his purr is so loud it often wakes me up in the morning.

-We finally got our own place. The construction is drawing to a close after two years! This is big news, people!  It wasn't that bad before, but knowing it's all mine to put back together again is a great feeling. I can't wait to share it all with you - the plates, the glasses, the color schemes! (Honestly, I don't know if anyone will really be interested. But I know I am.) The last step happened just days ago, so we are still putting it all together, but it feels really good.

-I started volunteering as a photographer at San Francisco Animal Care and Control (you know, all those posts with cats on white). I honestly can't say how much I enjoy meeting all the kitties, and I really hope my photos can make a difference. I'd love to continue to find volunteer opportunities with my camera, as long as the causes are good.

-I learned a lot more about photography. I practiced a lot of new techniques. I solidified my vision. I figured out more of who I am as a photographer. This is a process that doesn't really have a definite endpoint. But I definitely am happy with the progress I made this past year.

-I solidified some friendships and made some great new friends. You guys know who you are, and you are all awesome. Thank you so much for putting up with me and being in my life!

It's been a great year. Thanks a million for sharing it with me. 2012 is looking good so far, let's see what happens!

*Come back tomorrow to see my resolutions - and which resolutions I'm not making - for 2012.*

Back with some Cats!

Oh, guys, I've missed you! I never meant to be away for so long, it was just one thing and another, and I stayed away from the computer, then the internet was down, and then I worked on some blog posts and was interrupted and never finished them.

All this to say, life has interfered with blogging. A sad state of affairs, I agree.

But I'm back, with some more adoptable cats. I know that's what you've been wanting, I do. Only the best for you!

I hope you're all looking forward to whatever your New Year's Eve plans are. Evan and I are trying to decide between maybe going to a couple of parties, or maybe staying home and being lame alone together. Popping some bubbly, sitting back on the couch with Mouse and Chee (no bubbly for them, sorry guys!) and just hanging out the two of us.

But we might decide that's just too lame, even for us. We'll see. 

So anyway, have a look at some cats, and then tell me what you're doing tonight. I'd love to hear your plans!

This is Peony. She is super sweet; I almost took her home. She crawled on my lap after about two minutes of introductions. And she's so pretty. I have a weakness for gray kitties.

 And this doll is Shae. She's a little shy, but also really sweet. She likes being held and she appreciates a good head scratch.

This one's appropriately named - Sheba. She's energetic and definitely meant to rule her roost. And she's so beautiful.

 Last but not least is little Karl. He's a spunky kid; he's got so much energy and such a small spot to hang out in at the shelter - I hope he gets picked up soon. He'd make a great pet for someone willing to work through the kitten phase with him.

 How can you resist those eyes?

As always, you can find the ACC cats on Petfinder here. They're having a special - 50% off all adoptions through today. Happy browsing!

Chee's Newest Pastime

I came home today to discover that Chee had pushed two wine glasses into the sink. One glass survived, the other? Not so much. These were glasses that I absolutely fell in LOVE with while I was a poor college student in Montreal. I bought 4 of them, the most that I could afford at the time, and then a friend broke one.

I was a little heartbroken. To console me, another friend bought me a replacement glass, and so did my mother. That left me with five, which until recently had been sitting in storage in my mother's garage, waiting patiently for me to have a kitchen of my own, which recently has been in progress. Yay!

Evan, however, wondered what anyone would do with an odd number of wine glasses and so he vehemently suggested that we either get rid of them and replace them completely or that we put one away so it might not offend our delicate sensibilities. I, on the other hand, saw no problem with five and argued that we should just enjoy however many glasses we had and not worry about the symmetry of it all.

Yes. This is what we argue about. Thrilling, isn't it?

Anyway, Chee has made his artistic pronouncement on the side of even numbers of glasses. Only four survive. 

A Helpful Tip

Coffee the way I used to make it: coffee first, milk second. 

Something new I learned: if you want the beautiful, I-just-ordered-this-in-Italy-and-it-tastes-like-heaven gradient from dark to light in your coffee with milk, it's actually fairly simple: just add the milk to the cup first, and then pour the coffee in slowly and carefully. Done!

The way  my coffee looks now. 

Also, this makes sure you won't have the dreaded brown foam problem; your foam will stay white exactly the way you wanted it to.

Oh no! Brown foam! Better drink this one quickly. 

As I'm fairly certain this was a problem that was keeping you up at night, I'll accept your thanks pre-emptively. You're welcome. No more boring monochromatic coffee with brown foam for you! Also, I must take a moment to put in a good word for my new favorite 'coffee mugs' the Bodum Pavina double wall 12 ounce glasses - they're just unreal. Super thin glass, beautifully clear, gorgeous and great insulation to boot. Also fairly fragile, as the reviews state, but I'm just going to enjoy the heck out of them until they break.

In addition, on weekends when I'm feeling all decadent and crazy (ok, just last weekend, but both days, ok?) I've been tipping a few drops of vanilla extract (the real thing) into my latte. And I finally understood why people would drink a vanilla latte! Not that Starbucks powdered mess, but lovely real vanilla. Mmmm. You're welcome again. Now go try it.