Why Sue Bryce Rocked My World

It was kind of an impulse buy. An expensive one. But I've been reading Sue's blog for months now, pretty much since she started it, and she was finally coming to San Francisco. How could I resist?

Turns out, I'm really glad I didn't.

From the first moment of her two-day master class, I sat spellbound. Sue has this talent of just sucking you in and making you pay attention. I found myself taking notes even on the inane, "Connecticut? And where is that?" (Sue's from New Zealand, and currently lives in Australia.) "I'm a black belt in shopping." (Yes, me too.) And some wisdom from her mother: "Nobody would hate you unless they wanted to be you." Good way of looking at it.

We laughed a lot. We went to the Cheesecake Factory two days in a row, which by the way has pretty good huevos rancheros if you're in the mood, which I was. We practiced posing, and we soaked in her wisdom on everything from service and sales to posing and how to run a business, plus her attitude to beauty. "I spend an hour making the outside look pretty so that I can photograph the inside."

I'd say that you should grab any opportunity you get to go to her masterclass, but I think she's phasing it out. Still, she'll be around. If you have the chance to see her work, or even just meet her for a moment, I highly recommend it. There are those people that you just never forget, and Sue's one of them. If in ten years I could be half the person she is, both in business and in my personal life, I'd be thrilled.

Stuff of hers to check out: this great video interview with Catherine Hall, who was also at the workshop. Also, Sue's blog for photographers, chock full of wisdom on marketing and life. And her work on her website. Don't miss the before and afters, as well as the videos.

Sue, I'm sorry. I stole this image from your website. You see, I enjoyed the masterclass so much that I didn't take ANY pictures. Crazy, I know.

Wordless Weekend

Happy Caturday

Why yes, I AM king of all I survey. 

Whoops!  Momentarily lost my balance there. It's not easy being king, you know. 

This king thing is a lot of hard work. I think it's time for a nap!

Iron Cupcake

A few weeks ago I got a strange message from Evan.

"Want to go to Iron Cupcake tonight?" it read.

"What???" I believe was my witty and intelligent response.

Well, it turns out that Iron Cupcake is a lot of fun. And kind of wholesome fun, if you discount the part where enormous amounts of sugar, cream, and other delicious ingredients are consumed. Basically, it works like this. Bakers make a boatload of tiny cupcakes based around a theme. They bring them to the Leland Tea Company on a Monday night where a hungry crowd has gathered, and then everyone tastes the cupcakes and votes for the best ones. And the prettiest ones. And the most creative. And drinks a lot of free, delicious tea.

But the best part is the huge quantities of cupcakes. Did I mention that?

If you're interested, the next one is October 24th, and the theme is (appropriately) Candy. Sounds intriguing!

Before Your Next Meal . . .

Often I find I like the in between better. In no-man's-land there are fewer rules and less expectations. More room for experimentation. So, breakfast, lunch, dinner? Yes, please. Of course. BUT ALSO: snacks!

A recent favorite: Greek yogurt with my homemade (yay!) fruit butters. Peach, of course, I told you all about, but I also made strawberry, which I love, and which is just totally unlike any other strawberry jam I've ever tried. Most strawberry jams are so sweet they make your teeth hurt and the strawberry flavor is completely overshadowed. Not to brag, because the strawberries did the heavy lifting themselves, but this is totally different. Tart, simple, clean, delicious. With just a hint of vanilla to add some elegance.

I shot through a chair back to get that lovely brown glow on the right side and top of the image. 

The Milk/Milch/Mjolk/Latte/Leche glasses come from Anthropologie. 

A view from the top. 

Postcards!

I just sent out some postcards from Moo showcasing my real estate work, and I have to say, if you need good looking postcards here they are! I kind of gasped when I opened the package, they're so beautiful. Thick paper stock, gorgeous sharp printing, high gloss on one side, great writing surface on the other side (and you can customize both sides!)

On the other hand, I think it might be time to clean off my desk . . .