Happy Birthday Jaxsters

One of my loves is having a birthday today!  Gerard's pup, Ajax, turns the big 3 today.  He is probably the coolest dog on the planet and I'm so glad he won't notice that we're not celebrating until tomorrow.  This post is dedicated to the most photogenic, adorable, slobbery, smelly, tennis-ball-loving, howling, loyal fuzz ball I know.  Happy Birthday Sir.  We sure do love you.

 this was in iphone photo hahaha

hampton park

Some pictures from Memorial Day.  We took Ajax to Hampton Park downtown.  He enjoyed watching the ducks and chasing his tennis ball.  I know I'm biased but I totally have the most handsome boyfriend and dog pair that a girl could ask for.  Just sayin'.

Blue Angels

Just a few shots from the Blue Angels air show over Charleston Harbor last summer.  I think we missed them this year, bummer.

Sunday 5.22.11

Soooo, ever since I moved to Charleston, people have been telling me that I need to see the Angel Oak tree on Johns Island.  It's something like the oldest tree on the east coast at over 1500 years old and HUGE.  After 3 years of living here we finally got in the car and drove 20 minutes to see what all the fuss was about.  Let's just say the experience was anticlimactic.  It was neat and everything but the natural beauty was more than ruined by the stilts used to hold up the ridiculously long branches and 8,000 signs scattered about telling visitors not to climb the tree.  It was difficult to get a picture without one of those ugly signs in it.  There wasn't even a place to walk the dog...At least I can say I saw it!

We went to the dog park on the way home, which was way more fun for everyone, especially the four-legged member of the family.  He swam in some filthy water and chased the tennis ball and made some friends.

farmers market 5.21.11

I wanted to dive into this guys fruit stand with my mouth open...but I thought better of it.

 I didn't have enough hands this time but I will own a purple basil plant soon...

 I was regretting the 3 bowls of corn pops while smelling the yumminess being served up by this vender.

 Lucky shot, this dog was too cute---I mean, cool.

 Oh how I miss pretzels...damn you gluten

 we love our pecans in every flavor imaginable in Charleston

 I'll take one of each please!  Actually the whistle was my absolute fav...I'm still thinking about how cool it would look on me..and it's from the 1940's.

 Old window frames with peeling paint with dried flowers between the panes of glass...did my mother make these?  

I love the farmers market.  I just wish everything wasn't so stinking expensive!  I will just have to support local and small business owners one small purchase at a time at a time!  I did end up buying two things, peanut butter and banana dog biscotti for Ajax and a supposedly super healthy (super expensive) 75% cacao chocolate bar.  (It was also super yummy...I couldn't resist).  I wanted every single necklace this one vender was selling but all the pendants were antiques and really expensive...maybe someday, or not. How about the windows with the dried flowers in them???  Genius!  I want to try to make one because they were also ridiculously expensive.  My mother would die if I gave her one...maybe I will.

Charleston Battery 5.15.11

Sun setting on the Battery

Ajax, very curious and cautious of the choppy waves

 Boy and his dog

 making friends

Last Sunday night we took Ajax for a walk downtown.  We parked at the Battery and walked about a mile along the waterfront and East Bay Street.  The wind was insane and the water was so choppy it was exploding over the sidewalk in some places.  Ajax was so startled by a huge splash that he jumped 3 feet in the air!  Aside from the wind the weather was perfect.  I wish it would stay like this all summer but it's already starting to get hotter and sticker.  Oh well.  We'll just have to wear less clothes!

Busy...

Over the past few weeks things other than photography have pushed their way to the top of my already lengthy priority list.

I recently had to get a job.  While it isn't terrible to have to go to work, it leaves me less time than ever to concentrate on my 3, very demanding, studio classes and equally demanding (and annoying) Spanish class, and even less time to dedicate to my hobbies and a photography business I'm attempting to launch.

Up until the beginning of April I had been concentrating all of my efforts and free time on finishing 3 pieces to enter into the Young Contemporaries/Salon de Refuses competition.  This is a nationally recognized, professionally curated student gallery, not to mention cash prizes.  One of the pieces I was working on required me to design and carve 2 linoleum blocks, 8x10 inches in size.  I'm currently enrolled in a printmaking class concentrating on intaglio, or zinc plate etching, so this was an extra project I chose to take on.  Long story short, my lino cuts of a brain and heart, with a peach rice paper ching koh lay (I have no idea if that's an accurate spelling since google doesn't know either) ended up being chosen 3rd best in show for the Salon de Refuses.  And I won $400.  Score.  So that worked out better than I could have hoped for.  I really worked my butt off.  I estimate 50+ hours went into the creation of that piece.  The TA in my class was always around to offer critique and suggestions and I have her to thank for the ching koh lay.  She took time out of her day to show me something we wouldn't be learning in class and I'm pretty sure that's why my piece was chosen.

Anyway, I've also gotten behind on my photography class.  Simple fact, I have no time during the day and really no one to photograph.  This assignment is a portrait assignment which requires natural light.  I'm either in class or at work, or alone for the majority of the day and it's been difficult to locate willing subjects.  I'll get it done though.  I always do.

In the little spare time I do have I spend it recovering from being on my feet for 16+ hours a day and cramming in a workout so I can at least keep up with my health and fitness goals.  I dream about Saturdays, which seem to be the only day Gerard and I have entirely to ourselves, with each other.  We get a few hours here and there throughout the week but it's been difficult adjusting to not seeing each other as often.  The weekends are really hard, except for Saturday.  It won't be this way forever...this is just temporary.

Goals for this summer, or beginning at the end of this month when school finally breaks for a few months.
- take digital pictures
- hand out business cards (yes, I ordered and received them!  horray!)
- update shop with prints and photos
- promote the hell out of a.m. photography
- hang out with my incredibly handsome boyfriend and enjoy life as much as possible

Here are some crappy iPhone photos of my print that earned me enough for a summer Redux membership, a nice evening out with my man and perhaps a new pair of flip flops (with some left over for saving)

From when I was carving the image under a heat lamp with a lino carving tool...this takes a while

 Stoked that my print is hanging outside the Halsey Gallery right now!

Hard work pays off.  WoooHooo!