dirt between toes grows nothing summer heat takes it cooks me in caramel sauce loss forget peach pits sticky skin peeling beer bottles stuck in sand give me wind thinned veiny see-through leaves silk scarf blowing coffee bear hugs bury the acorn reborn stones stacked higher letters scratch pinecone hearts sing sit with me dear here where the air blows again and again and again forever
“Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it’s a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope.”—Dr. Seuss
This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to create an image by shooting through an object. My photos were taken this morning at Folsom Lake.
The bird above, and its near twin #5, were shot through a hole in a leaf. Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to capture the edges of the leaf so it’s more of an abstract image. #1 is through a piece of bark and #4 is through a discarded styrofoam cup. Let me know which image you think works best or if you have a favorite.
As a bonus, I’ve included a link to the story I wrote this time last year. It’s a fantasy story/tribute to Queen Elizabeth II. If you haven’t already, I hope you’ll give it a read.
I played my first Dungeons & Dragons game this week. I’ve been wanting to do this forever and it was everything I thought it could be. So grateful for new friends!
Photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
If you want to join the 52 Photo Challenge, you can find all the information at nicolesy.com
“You’ll never run again,” he says without looking at me. Cutting words. Biting words. Meant probably to inspire words. Didn’t mean it like that words. Nevertheless, hurting words. Shutting the door behind me, I eat my words. Chocolate-covered words that push back oceans. Candy-coated red words I keep in my purse. Fast food words meant to stop accident words and cops at my front door words and friends who don’t call any more words and razors cutting my baby’s arms words and a dad who won’t talk to me words and it’s probably time to move on words and some people I love have died words.
“I used to run,” I tell the faint sliver moon. Used to, but now my knee hurts, my hip feels tight, and there’s so much more of me. I’m too big. Too big for clothes in the regular part of the store. Too big I might break lawn chairs if I sit down too fast. Too big I must turn sideways to fit through turnstiles. Too big but still the pain swells to fit in all the cracks. Too big but still men like the one who slipped something into my drink and took me in the bathroom still look at me and smile. Too big for feeling this lost. Too big for all this love I have. Too big for all the love I don’t have.
I walk in my new bright shoes. I walk in the dark, so nobody will see me. But I see. I see how the shadow of a bush can look like a dolphin. I see how the street lights turn the gutter into a golden river. I see a tiny solar light create a white starburst across the dark pavement. I see how my breath comes easier when I move. I see how I’ve fallen in love with words and Peter Pan and vulnerability and truth. I see how pain can be stuck but then unstuck. I see how running isn’t the goal, but that nobody should ever say nevers to people they love. I see how I’m still walking. I’m still walking.
A sentence with “dappled shadow” in it. Something not sayable spurting from the morning silence, secret as a thrush. —Winged and Acid Dark, Robert Hass
This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to create an image that contains an S curve. This is exactly what it sounds like—you look for anything that curves similarly to an “S” in either direction. While simple in principle, I must have been looking in all the wrong places because I found this quite a challenge. As such, the last few photos don’t contain a curve but are included just because I like them.
Let me know if you have a favorite and have a wonderful week.
“The night is falling down around us. Meteors rain like fireworks, quick rips in the seam of the dark… Every second, another streak of silver glows: parentheses, exclamation points, commas – a whole grammar made of light, for words too hard to speak.”—Jodi Picoult
This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to experiment with handheld long exposure. While this is similar to motion blur, instead of trying to capture movement you are trying to create it. I really had fun playing with purposeful movement and light.
These photos were taken either overlooking the city from my neighborhood park or in the local casino parking lot. The shots of my daughter are used with her permission and my gratitude. She’s such a wonderful supporter of me and always up for a drive.
I hope you like these very different kind of shots. I’ve also included two bonus photos of the supermoon. Let me know if you have a favorite photo and have a fantastic week.
Yesterday I went to Old Sacramento with my mom to do a little photography. She’s headed back to Washington in a few days and this was our last outing until I visit her in the Spring. Instead of taking photos for the next challenge, I took photos of whatever I liked.
There were more cracked windows and boarded-up businesses than I remembered seeing the last time I visited. More homeless people and garbage too. For most of my life, this part of Sacramento has felt sacred to me. It’s a bit of history you can walk around and touch. It’s sad to see it declining.
It feels like a microcosm for so much in the world. Things aren’t the way they used to be (oh, that makes me sound old). “Back in my day…” But it’s true. It’s hard to remain optimistic with mass shootings and climate change disasters. It’s hard to think about where this is all heading. It’s hard to live in the uncertainty.
Meanwhile, my personal life is easier right now. My daughter’s mental health is stable and she’s enjoying homeschool. My son has graduated high school and is taking some time to rest and recover from the last few years. I’ve got some great friends who love me and a fantastic and supportive writing group.
Despite all this good, I feel trepidatious. After living in a state of constant anxiety for years my body doesn’t trust “easy”. I’ve had some panic attacks and some nightmares. The writing goals I set for the year aren’t looking possible and I walk the line between optimism and grief quite regularly.
As a result, I suppose, my blog has become filled with photography and poetry. I’ve been using these creative forms as a way of exploring joy and finding balance. I still pull out my works-in-progress and play with them from time to time. I still want to self-publish my short story collection. I still have plenty of goals, but maybe it’s not a bad thing to slow down.
I don’t know what the future brings for my family, my blog, and the world, but I do know it’s better when we all reach out and support each other. I’m so grateful to everyone who stops by to leave me a like or a comment. My friendships here fill me with so much hope. So, in case I haven’t said it lately, I’m glad you are here.
Thank you.
#1#2#3#4#5#6#7#8#9#10
Photos were taken with an Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW
“When the light turns green, you go. When the light turns red, you stop. But what do you do when the light turns blue with orange and lavender spots?” —Shel Silverstein, A Light in the Attic
This week my assignment for the 52 photo challenge was to use spot metering. I’ve heard the words before and had a vague understanding of what they mean, but it was time for me to really figure it out.
For those unfamiliar, it’s a setting on your camera that takes a measurement of light from a single spot and then adjusts the exposure. It took me watching a few how-to videos to find the setting on my camera and then I headed to Old Folsom at night.
The results show how inexperienced I am. In retrospect, night photography wasn’t the best idea. However, I did get a picture of the moon that’s not a white blurry blob. Skill unlocked. Be warned—there will be a lot more pictures of the moon now!
Let me know what you think. My son said the clock photo reminded him of Alice in Wonderland as the clock tower has virtually disappeared. Do you like the effect? Do you have another favorite? Thanks as always for your support and have a wonderful week.
Also, if you’ve not read it before, here’s the short story I wrote this time last year:
Bridgette Tales 