Marketa & Ellie

I had to share these images from a recent mini-portrait session with Marketa & Ellie.

I wish the sunshine were here to stay!! It was the perfect backdrop for a lazy afternoon reading books, getting caught up on life, and practicing curtsies.

The Joy of Being Loved

Although they may occasionally poop in your study because they think it is not lived in (and let's be honest, it's not), carry in a flea from the out of doors, or bark at strangers in their mad little efforts to protect you, these joyful little, or not so little animals, pack a lot of extra joy into life. This guy, Gio (short for Giovanni), had a job to do today, as he accompanied his owner's 94 year-old mother on her town-car ride from Mercer Island to Kenmore Air for a tour of the Puget Sound. And as you can see, he took his job very seriously. He was not so thrilled about the top hat, but he graciously posed for his portrait when I asked him to. And then he promptly removed it and walked away when the portrait session was over, which just confirms for me that animals are much more intelligent than some of us might give them credit for.

My dogs get down in the gloomy weather just like I do, they rejoice at sunshine, act insane

around new people (with Pepper going crazy wagging her tail, and Tanner letting everybody know who is boss before climbing on their laps for his lap-dog love), they are equally obsessed and totally disinterested in food (Tanner the former, Pepper the latter), and yet at the end of a day, like me there is nothing more they want than cuddles, love, and a warm cozy bed. Pepper is a vicious hunter, which has resulted in the death of one cat and one squirrel (that I know of) ... this is sad, but a reality of the animal world and a trait that I cannot train away ... Tanner acts vicious, and for all of his 5 lbs he is quite courageous, but he doesn't do a lot of damage unless he has had some time with a small stuffed animal or a sock, which he will intermittently bite and love. He just likes to believe that he is boss of his little domain.

They are extremely interested by new smells, and so am I, particularly when they come from the kitchen. Pepper knows when she is in trouble, which she responds to by lifting her nose and looking away from me through partially closed eyes, like she is concentrating on something very far in the distance. (It is downright hilarious, she is so stinking stubborn). Tanner, on the other hand, runs very quickly away and then later showers you with kisses in the hopes that you will simply forget how naughty he has been.

What can we not relate to here? Now that I have developed a life with these sweet little souls, I cannot imagine not having them around. I remember one time, several years ago, in the midst of an emotional breakdown following my divorce, and little Tanner was just beside himself trying to comfort me: he nearly licked a raw patch on my calf until I picked him up and then he tried to lick my face and my tears. I could just feel him reaching out of his little body to hug me with his compassion. Seriously. It was unbelievable how powerfully I felt his emotions.

And get a load of Starla (below)! That's right folks, Starla, not Stella. I made the mistake of calling her Stella for half the portrait session, and I am sure I hurt her feelings. She loves her mom like the Israelites loved manna from the sky. It literally feels like a miracle to her each time she's reunited (aka on Jennifer's lap again) - at least that is how excited she acts. I watched this approximately 20 times in the course of our portrait session, because luckily Jennifer's sister Susie was there to keep Starla from, ummm, interrupting the portrait session, though we specially planned a big portion of the session to include Starla.

Do you see this face? She's very discerning. Not interested in anything (i.e. my camera, or our portrait session) other than giving and getting love.

Why can't we all be like our dogs?

Favorite

I had to post a comment from one of my favorite people ever: Michael Kovaka, an attorney for whom I have the utmost respect. He is ethical, kind, patient ... everything you want in a human being. And he stated the following:

Shakespeare had something to say on this (how to Live More Now) in Romeo and Juliet: "My bounty is as boundless as the sea, My love as deep; the more I give to thee, The more I have, for both are infinite." When you give freely, more is more.

Michael, I couldn't agree more!!!

Let me restate what he said: "When you give freely, more is more."

Now to the doing, rather than thinking ....

Life Getting in the Way

There are times where for various reasons, despite wanting to write, I don't. I have tried to figure out whether there is any rhyme or reason to it.

After all, I was that kid that began journaling almost DAILY at about 8 years old when my Grandma gave me my very first journal. I was that kid that wanted to so badly to document everything (perhaps this is why I am also a photographer), and I wanted to document it correctly, so for my entire first year of journaling, at the risk of getting something wrong, instead I added a "maybe" after every sentence - just to cover my bases.

I think I have something like 23 or 24 full journals (only the first one is filled with "maybes"). And that does not include the stuff I've written on a computer since law school. And yet, there have been periods of my life where I stop writing entirely. And partly, I think it's when I feel like life is so fragile, I only have time to live it, not write about it. This happened following my mom's death. I didn't write for literally YEARS. And when I did begin to write again - it was poetry. In fragments. Which is how I felt.

And then, mid-April, there was another big shake-up in our family when Ashley got bucked off a horse and exploded one of her vertebrates, and for a few weeks we were all on pins and needles and living in the hospital all over again. Just like that - in a split second - life can change so quickly.

So I find it interesting to observe those times when I don't want to document anything. While Ashley was in the hospital, I had that repulsion - I didn't want to take photographs, be in photographs or do much at all to record the events of our days, while all the while, another sister was documenting everything. These strange personal preferences are interesting, are they not?

And then, there's this blog. The place I love to visit to record my joys, sometimes my sorrows, or just little bits of my day. And in seeking and looking for happiness (to record), sometimes I think I am looking too hard, because on some days, if I'm being truthful, I feel like it has successfully evaded me.

But it hasn't really. And that is the irony of life - when we are looking for something, it evades us, and when we sit back and just accept things as they are, we are showered upon with blessings, which are actually just observations of the joys that we already have.

Right? That's right. At least I'm sticking to it for now.

But, as my latest observations go, good or bad, and as a way to provide a random update for you, can you guess what the following things have in common?

1. Cupcakes.



2. The color red.



3. Setting rat traps.

4. Salsa dancing.

5. Gardening.






6. Flea bites.

7. Reading an intense story.



8. Killing my phone.

9. Visiting the Home Depot for supplies for my next project.

10. Listening to "the Swing Years and Beyond" (saturday night NPR).

Aside from all having a role, however small, in my days over the past week or so, these things all make me feel alive!

There may be more to come on some of these. For example, though I did kill my phone by dropping it into a glass of water (don't tell), I did enjoy the reprieve of not "chimping" (looking at it every second, a term borrowed from the photography world when photographers look at the back of their DSLRs after every digital image created). I really should take a lesson from that.

And cupcakes. I am probably only just now writing about them because I am off sugar for the time being.

And flea bites, well - let's just say that I suspect this has something to do with the rats. I won't go further than that other than to say I am totally grossed out, but that I am taking care of business, and hopefully I won't have anything further to report on flea bites. I could tell some really good tales of fleas from Mexico, though. Perhaps I'll save that for another time.

Oh! Oh! Oh! And SALSA DANCING. Oh. my. Maybe it's just dancing. I might be my great-grandmother's child after all, at least the part of her that loved dancing. I can't relate to the part of her that hated farm work. But dancing. I could have danced all night!!! Except that I was really dizzy after all the spinning, and literally couldn't stay on my feet. So I am gearing up for the next round. For me, it's like being on a different planet. And wow, there is nothing better than a man who can dance!

With that, I'll sign off. (But do go get your dancing shoes out and join me on Saturday. :) Even if it's just for a few crazy moves in front of your own radio, join me in spirit.)