August 22, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Neighborhood Sunrise

“The morning steals upon the night, Melting the darkness.” -William Shakespeare

A gorgeous friend of mine writes and talks a lot about joy—seeking it out, the importance of recognizing it, and fighting for it even when it feels ridiculous. She inspires me all the time and this morning I did something purely for the joy of it. I hiked to a park by my house with my camera to capture the sunrise. It felt luxurious and I basked in the beauty of the world for an entire hour alone.

My mother-in-law has entered hospice care within the home of my kind, caring, and incredibly giving sister-in-law. This time in our lives is hard. Watching a woman of immeasurable strength and love fade before all our eyes is beyond difficult. While I don’t know what this next part looks like, I do know that even within these hard moments we can find gratitude and even joy.

Check out the important work of my friend Jill at Ridiculous Joy

All the photos above were taken with my Olympus OM-D and edited with ON1 Photo RAW.

Here’s a bonus iPhone self-portrait:

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August 15, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Oregon Mountains

“What is that feeling when you’re driving away from people and they recede on the plain till you see their specks dispersing? – it’s the too-huge world vaulting us, and it’s good-bye. But we lean forward to the next crazy venture beneath the skies.”
-Jack Kerouac, On the Road

I’ve shared many photos the last few weeks of my trip to Oregon but this final collection is the most special to me.

My grandmother died of Covid at the start of the pandemic. Although it took us several years, we were finally able to reunite her with her husband in a lush field of tall grasses on top of a beautiful Oregon mountain. The sun shone brightly and butterflies chased the truck as we left. It feels wonderful to know she’s where she wants to be and at peace.

Here are a few of the images from that day. I hope you enjoy them.

This leather marker was placed when my grandpa passed and the tree has grown around it.

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August 8, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: West Coast Game Park Safari

My daughter and I visited the West Coast Game Park Safari located in Bandon, Oregon. While many people rave about this place, what I saw concerned me. Some of the animals seemed distressed or uncared for. While I appreciated being able to see them so close, I couldn’t help but wonder about the history of the animals and the park.

Before leaving I asked about the lovely chimpanzee named Daphne (the first picture below), but they couldn’t tell me anything about her. All questions were answered with “read the signs,” which were faded and had no information about where the animals originated from.

Today I did a little research before posting these photos and it seems the park has been listed on Peta’s list of Highway Hellholes and has received many citations for animal neglect. I wish I was wrong, but I don’t think this is a good place for animals and I can’t recommend it. However, I still wanted to share my favorite photos of these beautiful animal ambassadors. They deserve better.

Some bonus photos from our travels through Oregon:

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August 1, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Little Whale Cove

She closed her eyes. She drew her shoulders back. She took a slow and steady breath.
There was tension in the air. A weight. A wait. There was no wind. She did not speak. The world grew and stretched tight.
-Patrick Rothfuss, The Slow Regard of Silent Things

There’s nothing quite like standing on the beach at sunset and watching the sky and water play together with a dance of reflection and light. On our recent trip to Oregon my daughter and I sat apart from each other in complete silence watching the sun slowly descend into a bank of clouds. It was slow and sudden—a beautiful, fleeting moment of peace.

Today’s photo selections are of the place my father lives in Oregon called Little Whale Cove. It’s a hidden and magical gem we feel incredibly grateful to visit each summer. I hope you enjoy them!

Stay tuned: Next week I’ll be sharing photos of our visit to the West Coast Game Park Safari.

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July 25, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Depoe Bay, Oregon

I’ve spent the last week traveling through Oregon with my teenage daughter. We started at my dad’s house in Depoe Bay, moved to Bandon, and then finished in Rainbow. I took hundreds of photos. Oregon is photogenic as heck! I’ve decided to split them up and share some each Monday for a few weeks.

My photos today are of tiny Depoe Bay and our whale watching excursion through Dockside Charters. We saw four tails and lots of spouts of water, but I wasn’t quick enough to capture a great photo within our hour trip. It didn’t stop us from having a blast standing at the bow of the ship as we bounced through the ocean laughing and scanning the water. It’s an experience neither of us is likely to forget.

I hope these photos of the peaceful coolness of the Pacific coast bring you a little bit of joy.

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July 18, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: California WorldFest

For the last few days, I danced and listened to music at California WorldFest. This global music festival is held each summer in the heart of the Sierra Nevada. It’s become a family favorite and for us it means free roaming children, pesto pineapple pizza, dirty feet, giant bubbles, dancing until your dizzy, hanging with friends, and discovering new musicians to obsess over.

This year I took my camera for the first time and snapped photos while I danced near the stage, walked through the festival, and sat on my blanket beneath the beautiful trees. The experience felt magical and refilled my creative bucket until it overflowed. I wrote snippets of lyrics as they caught my ear—”joy rings like a mission bell,” “words are your currency,” “love=revolution,” and “will we lemon or honey?”

Here are just a few of the hundreds of photos I took this weekend. I hope you enjoy them.

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July 11, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Home Sweet Home

It’s fascinating to discover the mood of a person’s home—the things they choose to collect, the way the furniture is arranged, and the items which make up the unique personalities of the people who live within its walls. I’d describe our home as weathered, warm, eclectic, and messy. I am sentimental. I have lots of artwork made by my kids, plants, a teacup collection from one grandmother, a glass perfume bottle collection from another, ceramics, and lots of books and photographs.

I’ve been mostly homebound this week so I decided to photograph things around my house—a tiny glimpse into the place I call home. I hope something here brings a smile to your face.

Next week I’ll be attending a music festival and should have some interesting photos to share with you. Have a wonderful week and, if you live where it’s heating up, stay safe!

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July 4, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: 4th of July

I’ve not felt patriotic in years. After seeing a terrible car accident this morning and reading of yet another mass shooting, my mood is far from celebratory. I decided to photograph my day in an attempt to combat the anger, disappointment, and sadness at fully realizing freedom in America has always been selective. It’s getting harder and harder to cling to the hope things will get better.

Here’s a look at what brings me joy and gives me the energy to keep fighting—my sister’s new puppy, playing with my sweet nephew, dominoes, fresh tomatoes, swimming with my mom and aunt, and sparklers.

Thank you so much for your support.

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June 27, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Dillon Beach

I’ve spent the last few days with my writing partner Anna, her daughter Bella, and my daughter Lola at Dillon Beach. While it’s over 100 degrees back home it’s been cool and overcast here. We’ve had several days filled with talking, relaxing, and writing. Considering the state of affairs in the world right now it felt extra special to be together as women near the healing energy of the ocean.

I struggled to photograph the beach in ways I haven’t before and I’m not sure I was very successful. I included a photograph of a fire truck as yesterday we came across a woman who broke her ankle on the hiking trail down to the beach. Anna held her leg and comforted her while the rest of us flagged down the first responders when they arrived. Watching how everyone came together to help this woman was a wonderful example of kindness in a world that feels a bit scary at the moment.

Thank you, as always, for your support of my blog. I hope you have a wonderful day.

Here’s a bonus photo my lovely and talented friend Anna took of me. You can find her incredible artwork and writings at loscotoff.com.

June 20, 2022 by Bridgette

Photography: Around the Pond

My photos this week were all taken around the pond at William Land Park in the early evening. It was warm outside and I learned the lotus flowers I wanted to capture only open early in the morning and are closed by mid-afternoon.

I had the intention of returning later in the week to try again, but my son started summer school and life got busy. Perhaps in a few weeks, when school finishes, I’ll have time to return to this beautiful spot.

Although I didn’t get the blooms, I am happy with the photos I was able to capture of the animals living around the pond, especially the dragonflies. Let me know what you think in the comments below and I hope you have a wonderful week.