Thirty-One Days of Photos: Day 18

It was a self-portrait/editing photos kind of afternoon (plus some Pirates of the Caribbean for swashbuckling entertainment).


When I haven't had anyone to take portraits of for a while, I get a little bored and practice on myself. I actually hadn't taken any self-portraits in my apartment, until today. I usually shoot a couple, then spend a lot more time playing with edits, mixing colors and otherwise messing around.

(As a side note, I've been inspired by a photographer named Lissy Elle for a long time. She's in the middle of a 365, which is like what I'm doing, only it's a photo a day for an entire year. She, however, is 17 and homeschooled, so she has lots more free time. And her dedication to crazy Photoshop art is at a whole new level. You can check out her 365 Tumblr, or her Flickr; some of her photos are definitely unconventional, so use discretion.)

Anyway, if anyone wants to pose for me (and in return get some cool photos that always work for Facebook profile pics), let me know. Since college I wanted to start a black-and-white "faces" gallery, but that has yet to even begin. Maybe that can be a good project for next year.

Thirty-One Days of Photos: Day 17

Sorry for posting really late this time. Saturday nights are killer for this thing. Plus my internet is patchy at best, so even publishing this post was a challenge. Anyway, enough of that and on to (technically) yesterday's photo...


I'm one of those people that likes to save little mementos from trips and events, places I've gone or things I've attended. This is one such memento from the last vacation I took. It hangs out on my mirror at present, reminding me of one of the best trips I've taken.

I got that card when I went to Colorado in September to visit my dear friend Jessica for her birthday. On my first night there, we went to a contemporary little Mexican restaurant, Lime, in LoDo, with a former co-worker of mine.

It just so happened that night there was a magician there, and he came to our table and showed us a few basic tricks. Then he pulled out the eight of clubs and told me to write my name on it. He did a few things, like making it disappear in the deck and reappear on top. Then, he put it back in the deck and pulled out his wallet. Why he would need his wallet was a mystery to us until he unzipped an inside compartment and there was my eight of clubs, folded up in a little square, with my name on it.

He let me keep the card (he no doubt had plenty to replenish his deck), and I brought it back as a souvenir. When I look at it now, I mostly remember the amazing time Jessica and I had bashing around downtown Denver, meeting new people, shopping, going to a Rockies game and staying in a snazzy hotel. It was definitely one of the best trips I've taken on my own, and something that will probably end up becoming a tradition.

Thirty-One Days of Photos: Day 16

Today is my mom's birthday, so we went to the Quad Cities for a girls' day to celebrate.


We ate Chick-fil-A, did some shopping, had delicious Starbucks and got manis/pedis. Then, tonight we went as a family to Rastrelli's for dinner before coming home to open presents, eat cake and play Wii bowling.

Today all I could think was that I am so glad I live close enough to be able to spend the whole day with my mom on her birthday. Last year I was about 1,000 miles away, calling my mom on the phone and wishing I could be there, even for part of it. This year, I got to spend the entire day with her.

It was a good day. :)

Thirty-One Days of Photos: Day 15

Tonight we had our 20s group Christmas party. It was also our last night to have all the interns there...


So here they are, Katelyn, Chris and Mason, with Sterling's "Beautiful" sign. It's so weird to think that this is the last time we'll have them all together. Katelyn will be back this summer, Chris is here for one more week, and Mason is leaving on Saturday. They've become such a part of the group; it's going to feel like there's a huge hole once they're gone.

But on a happier note, we had a really fun Christmas party (more pics on Facebook in this album)! A few of us dressed up, we had tons of great food, and we played lots of fun Christmassy games... As well as the not-so-Christmassy game Katelyn taught us, "Connection." Don't ask how it's played, it's nearly impossible to explain but really addicting once you understand it.

Anyway, I'd better make this short. I couldn't get an internet connection at my apartment, so I had to turn my phone into a wi-fi hot spot. Sort of random, but supposedly it drains the battery or something. Go figure. :P