sunshine scenes

we attended sabin's best friend's confirmation on friday. sabin took this shot of her in the sunshine at the party. tho' i do have my doubts as to the significance of this whole confirmation thing in this day and age, it does somehow seem nice to celebrate these young people as they stand on the cusp of the difficult teenage years and then all of the responsibilities that lie ahead of them. a day where they are the center of loving attention and where they get to be beautiful seems ok.

after the party, we went to see old friends and this is where we woke up. one of our favorite places in denmark. buresø. and it was a glorious morning indeed. sunshine will do that.

later the same day, we had a walk along amager strand park in copenhagen. this is just an iPhone photo and while cameras have improved, they don't necessary do that well at a distance. but i like how the tanker looks like it's up on that sandbar. it's not. and those kite surfers aren't really dancing on top of it.

sunday found us back home. apparently rain had come to copenhagen, but here on the mainland, it was a beautiful, sunny day. perfect for a bit of reading on a quilt in the garden.

the air was saturated with the scent of lilacs and so i had to bring some inside, as i could't bear to leave it. lilacs are my favorite flower. they're so fleeting, but i think nothing smells better, so i try to relish that delicious scent all i can while they last. even frieda seemed to enjoy the smell. 

* * *

you know me and my sense of immediacy.

it's driving me a bit mad that the great bulk of the photos i took today

need to stay a secret for a little while longer.

*sigh*

* * *

amy komar's new work is just exquisite.

full moon rising

here's what it looks like when i attempt to photograph the moon.

and here's what it looks like when sabin takes the photo.

she's a natural, i tell you.

they say there will be a lunar eclipse tonight, but it will be tomorrow morning for us and it won't be so visible here. but at least we got to see the gorgeous moon tonight. 

it takes two

we attended the wedding of a good friend of mine this weekend. we used to work together and i used to say that she was the keeper of my brain, or at least my memory and on more than one occasion, my sanity (i should note that the times when it didn't work are entirely my own and not at all her fault).  it was so great to be there to share in the happiness of her day.

it was a gorgeous weekend and she and her new husband looked so relaxed and happy amidst their friends and family. the church was lovely and filled with lilacs and people who were happy for them and children who plugged their ears when the organ played (what is up with organs? they're a terrible instrument). everyone gathered after the ceremony in her parents' beautiful, wide front yard for champagne from her father's own vineyard (in denmark, yes, it's true - and it was good!). then on to a dinner and party that lasted 'til the wee hours of the night. it was truly a stunning beginning to what i am sure will be a long and happy life together.

we stayed with her parents' neighbors, as we were a bit slow (what, me, procrastinate? really?) to book the pension they had reserved and all the rooms were gone by the time we decided we needed one. that turned out to be quite ok, because her parents' neighbors were a couple that knew husband when he was a child growing up in the heart of copenhagen. we had a leisurely breakfast with them in the sunshine before we left, reminiscing over the old times and the people husband knew when he was growing up. it is a small world after all.

but it got even smaller, as it turned out that the groom's parents had worked closely with my father-in-law on his technolution drawings - helping him with the latin names of all of them. husband and i had some nearly-tearful moments talking to the groom's mother about him. it's been more than five years since he died, but we do still miss him. it was very nice to meet someone who had known him and worked closely with him too. it made us both happy and sad at the same time and sometimes those are the best kind of emotions because they're so keenly felt. you feel alive at moments like that, when you are truly feeling something, even if it does make you feel a bit sorrowful.

a little bit weird to run into such connections from BOTH sides of husband's family (his parents split when he was 5) at a wedding where our connection to being there was actually through me, the girl from the other side of the world.

and it makes me think, once again, that we were undoubtedly meant to be. and tho' i shudder at times to think of the chain of events that had to be as it was for us to meet and how easily they could have gone another way, perhaps it's times like this that should make me realize we really were meant to be together. these things can't be coincidence, can they? there must be strong connections binding us - and we would probably have found our way to one another no matter what.

and now, our long weekend is winding to a close. a new week awaits. with new projects and new challenges ahead. but these experiences (and a lot of sunshine) leave us fortified and ready to face it head-on. but first, a bit of rest.

* most of the photos above were taken by sabin.

why is it?

i have taken somewhere in the neighborhood of 120,000 photos (not kidding) since acquiring my nikon D60 in may 2008. my child, who is 11, has probably taken 1000 or so. i hand her the camera. she takes two photos before wandering off and both of them are more brilliantly composed, focused, lit and captured than the 63 i took this evening.

she's a natural.

i am both proud and a little bit envious.

radical change

i've been coloring my hair blonde since i was a junior in high school.
that was a long time ago.
today, that all changed.

and i have to tell you that i feel incredibly liberated.
who knew a color and cut could free up so much baggage?
baggage i didn't even know i was carrying around.
and definitely didn't attach to my hair color.

i seriously feel like a new person.

mostly it feels pretty good that i finally really dared something.
and it feels like just the beginning.

~ photos by sabin.

scenes from an atelier: by sabin, age 9

i turned sabin loose with the cameras at my weaving teacher's atelier this afternoon and these were the results...

pencils await inspiration to strike.

a peek through a plant at the beautiful, unique, fish-laden woven window panels.

jewel-toned materials await their chance to be used.

wool in waiting.

i'm just blown away by the child's natural eye for composition. these photos were all taken with the nikon D60, but she took quite a few with the nikon D300 as well, tho' at first she complained that it was too heavy. afterwards, she said, "mom, now i like the "big camera" best and it doesn't even seem heavy anymore."

more about paul's beautiful works in the coming days...i have to process both my photos and my thoughts about his unique and wonderful work.

in the waning hours of our trip

we are headed for home today (late this evening, really), but i will leave you with a few more of sabin's latest photos.  she's onto something with Little Pink, as we've dubbed the old sony cyber-shot,  i tell you....

in the background upper right, the outdoor airconditioning units are visible.
they are that weird round eyeball-like thing.

sabin's favorite lunch place...she gets a "toast" with cheese and ham

(i think where i grew up, we would call this a grilled cheese sandwich.)

the kid has got an eye.

it makes a mother proud.

if you'd like to see my new obsession: jelly iced vanilla latte, go here.
i'm gonna miss those.
but undoubtedly they wouldn't taste the same at home.

if you give a child a camera...

we handed the little pink sony cybershot over to sabin today and i hereby give you what she came up with...all shots from onboard the singapore flyer (the world's largest ferris wheel)...

i'm pretty proud of this one.

it seems she IS watching.

far's new shoes are cool too!

singapore flyer - from the inside

construction all around.

it's almost as if they don't know there's a financial crisis.

more views of below.

hmm, wonder how these photos w/the 60 mm macro lens are going to turn out?

far's got the "little" nikon w/the BIG lens

she's got a good eye.

i wonder when she's going to demand a "big" camera?

yup, she's got an eye.

going to bed now. big day ahead tomorrow. back to work for me.