Instagram vs. Film

I recently followed the masses and created an account with Instagram. I confess that at first I would roll my eyes whenever I saw people pretending to be photographers, applying filters and a faux focus to their tap-of-a-finger photos.  I do not recall what ultimately tempted me give Instagram a try, perhaps it was actually buying a new cell phone (and the excitement of filling up your new phone with free apps). 

Below is a brief compilation of a few photos taken over the last 2 weeks. While nothing compares to the satisfaction of producing your very own work of art on actual film, Instagram is quite addicting.. and the instant gratification is nice too.  I may update my Instagram photos here every so often, as I already have many more from last weekend.  Just like those chip commercials, once to start you just can't stop! Stay tuned..

Touring the Real Estate

Steven and I have lived in Nashville for almost two years now and since we have decided to stay indefinitely, let the house hunt begin!  We've only been researching houses for a week or two and it's exhausting.  Comparable to a roller coaster of interest and emotions..  high interest, low interest, happy speed, periods of calm, and terrifying peaks.   

Observation time in the mind of yours truly:  Upon walking through a house, I cannot help but imagine the people/person who calls it home,  You are getting a first hand view of how they live.  You smell their smell, you see their belongings, their style, and their cleanliness (or lack thereof in some cases).  More often than not it's fascinating to experience, though I confess that I will be happy when we find the perfect house that makes us (and our pups) feel at home.

Weekend Visitors

Big thanks to the Harpers for making a weekend trip to Nashville!  It was Josephine's first time in the Music City so we made sure to keep ourselves busy.  Here they are at the beautiful Arrington Vineyards for a Saturday evening music and picnic outing!

A Nice Day for a Walk

I just spent this Sunday afternoon with some dear friends, taking photos in their wedding garb!  

Patrick and Rachel are such a fun duo, in fact, we have game night and supper club every couple of weeks.  I mean how lucky are we to live in such a beautiful city with such beautiful friends?!  There are more to come (including film), but for now here are three of my preliminary favorites from this afternoon..

 

2nd Avenue North

My friend Tony is starting his own business and needed help with some photos for media, press, and general use. Below are a few that we shot in downtown Birmingham. I took both film and digital, posted below are a few of the digitals.

(P.S. I just had to throw in the one with "charm".. he's got it, so we may as well capture it. Literally.)

Moving on Up

Didn't I write an entry about boxes and packing at some point? Well here I am again, going through my life (as sorted in boxes) and wondering how on earth I will survive the next two weeks. The dust alone is making my head hurt from all the sneezes and sniffles, not to mention the rolling of my eyes in exasperation from the result of last time's attempt to sort through the madness..

'Why would I have thought that keeping this was a good idea?'
(Aaaachooo!)
'Did I really put this in the 'keep' pile?'
(Aaaachooo!)

I am not a hoarder by any means, the show Buried Alive makes my skin crawl.. but now that I have literally just dropped off a load of things at a nearby shelter, I came back to the house only to feel even more claustrophobic than before!

Wish me luck on this endeavor and let's keep our eyes on the proverbial prize of a new start in a new state..

Let them eat (wedding) cake!

I must confess that I have had a blast planning my wedding! Since finishing graduate school I have had more time on my hands than usual, and for the last few months, plotting and planning of the ins and outs of a wedding have been right up my alley (while I take breaks from the job hunt, naturally).

Of course when next week is over and all the checklists are done, I will no doubt be longing for something to keep my mind busy. Hopefully I will be closer to finding a job in my new state and can spend the remaining weeks of summer writing lesson plans and planning my classroom. Wishful thinking? Let's hope not.

Below are some blogs that I have enjoyed frequenting during my six months of engagement (some more than others). Attention to detail and taking in the overall aesthetic can be super fun, at least to me! Now sure, some of the wedding photos you'll see in these links are not at all realistic.. borderline cliche'.. and almost even annoying at times- but like I said before, it's been fun to look at pretty things and to plan a big party!

Snippet and Ink

Grey Likes Weddings

Style Me Pretty

Southern Weddings Magazine

Southeastern Debris

As you probably know, my home sweet home in the southeastern region has been bruised and battered by recent tornadoes and floods. I am lucky enough to say that none of this has effected me and my family personally (physically speaking) aside from loss of power and water.. unfortunately so many others cannot say the same.

Watching LIVE television of a class five tornado (one mile wide) ripping through neighborhoods and regions, places that I am familiar with and that are now no longer standing, is terrifying. Watching in fear of the thousands of lives in peril at that exact moment and knowing that your city and neighborhood is next in it's path.. and there's nothing to do except brace and pray.

Below are some photos of my old neighborhood, once rich with trees, where I lived in my sweet house with a red door. The roads are finally reopened, though only enough to allow small vehicles through..

Next are some photos taken in Memphis at the infamous and beautiful Tom Lee Park. The Mississippi River is at an almost all time record high and stretching an estimated 3 miles wide, as opposed to its usual 1 mile. For those of you who are not familiar with Tom Lee Park, these are some images from Riverside Drive showing just how much is underwater (as of Sunday). Typically all of this is grass and walkways with a stairwell and rocks going down to the river..

A wedding on the plains..

Congratulations to Julie and Scott! Over the weekend, the couple married down on the plains of Auburn. All day the clouds were dreary and rain was coming whether we were ready or not.. or so we thought. The weather held off for the couple as they married downtown and had their reception at a red barn!

A change is gonna come..

If you know the song, sing it in your head. Sam Cooke was a lyrical genius as far as I'm concerned. Now I don't compare my life to the tone of this song by any means.. I am at a much better place than the character portrayed and the symbolism represented in this song. I simply mean that in my life, oh yes, a change is coming.

I once purchased a sticker that said 'the only constant is change.' What truth this sticker holds- which is why I've kept it around for as long as I have. At one point you would have heard me say that I hated change, that it made me nervous and overwhelmed. The fact of the matter is now that I've experienced so much change in my 30 years, both seemingly good and bad, I have come to depend on it.

A marriage, a career, and a new life await me in the upcoming months. Three big changes all wrapped up into one bittersweet package! Bitter in that it takes much work to plan a wedding.. to network myself in a sea of strange faces.. to find a new job in a new state.. to find a new residence and to start a new life. But along with the bitter, this package of change contains something sweet that is big and new.. something that I can grab by the proverbial horns and check off my list of accomplishments.

So as you see, a change is coming no matter what. How prepared I am for said changes can drastically improve or congest the overall experience. With the thought now blogged, off I go to network again to the soothing sounds of Mr. Cooke.

Nice Day for a Fox Hunt

Last weekend in Courtland we got to welcome the group back from a hunt. They were on the trail of a wild coyote or two that have been seen around the area. After a five hour ride, the coyotes got lucky and the group called it a day. Everyone was exhausted and the hounds were covered in muck.

Georgia for the weekend..

Steven and I recently spent a weekend in Atlanta for his Christmas gift! We took the dogs along for the ride and stayed in the city for two nights.

Our first order of business was to explore the Salvador Dali exhibit at the High Museum of Art. We caught the show during its last weekend in Atlanta, so there was quite a crowd. It was a lovely (and huge) exhibit, I learned a great deal that I did not already know from my many art history courses.
For dinner we met with Steven's aunt and uncle at one of their favorite local restaurants that specializes in South African cuisine, 10 Degrees South. We had a nice time and stuck around for a few cocktails to hear the live music on the (heated and stylish) porch.

The next day we spend many hours at the Georgia Aquarium. The photos below were taken during our time there- we were exhausted by the end of the afternoon!

For dinner, we were again adventurous and decided to try out the one and only Holeman & Finch Public House. My sister and her husband joined us for dinner and drinks since they were in town to pick up my nephew from the airport.

Taking the time to enjoy what a city has to offer is priceless. Cheers to small and locally owned businesses! I cannot rave enough of our food explorations during our trip to Atlanta.. try them for yourselves, you will thank me later!

Happy Belated 2011!

A tad overdue, but I wish to the world wide web a Happy 2011!

I have so much on my mind these days. Between planning a wedding, looking for a teaching job (out of state), and looking for a house (also out of state).. I confess that I have hardly had time to write. Let me remedy this and break the silence.

A big WAR EAGLE is in order, since the Auburn Tigers won the BCS National Championship!

The bowl game itself was held in Glendale, Arizona. The forecast over there was very different than what the fans back home were experiencing. Almost the entire state of Alabama, as well as the rest of the southeast, was attacked with snow and ice during the first weeks of January.

Many roads were shut down due to the weather and I was unable to go to Auburn to watch the game "on the plains" as planned. My power managed to not get cut off though, so I watched the game as I was snowed/iced in. What a game! You may or may not know me well enough to know that I cried like a baby during the last 2 minutes of play and into the celebration afterward. I am a Tiger fan born and raised, this was the first National Championship for Auburn in my lifetime... and actually the first since 1957! Words cannot begin to express my pride in Auburn and in the SEC as well.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

It could be Christmas bells, but in this case it's also wedding bells..

I am overjoyed to announce my engagement to Steven, my amazing boyfriend of almost three years!

This is a photo that we took right before he asked me the big question (I had no idea). We were ice skating at the Memphis Zoo after Auburn's huge SEC championship win!


We are in the works of working on a wedding blog-
http://stevenandvirginia.blogspot.com/

Student Teaching, Part Two

Update: I am at the end of my Fall 2010 semester of student teaching. Graduation is only a few weeks away and I will (finally) hold a Masters in Art Education!

For the last 7.5 weeks I have been student teaching at an elementary school in Homewood alongside instructor, Mary Jane Coker. I love the emotional support and the management structure that the school provides. Character education is a huge part of the learning experience and I cannot agree more. We recently hung the art show and everything looks fantastic! Below are a images of a few projects created over the last several weeks at Shades Cahaba..

Kindergarten- In The Jungle, Paint Study

First Grade- Leaf StudyThird Grade- Romero Britto StudyFourth Grade- Aluminum Tooling
Fifth Grade- Stuffed Self Portrait

Student Teaching, Part One

For the last 7.5 weeks, I have had the pleasure of student teaching alongside a very talented and experienced high school art instructor, Olsen Ross. What a great program in the visual arts! The students are fantastic and inspired, and I wish them nothing but the absolute best! Below are some images of student work from the lessons that I created and implemented during my time at Shades Valley Technical Academy..

Esme, Freshman (SVTA). Graphite, watercolor. 18"x24".
Handscape Assignment

Melissa, Junior (SVTA). Colored pencil, watercolor. 18"x24".
Handscape Assignment

Anna, Senior (SVTA). Colored pencil, graphite. 18"x24".
Handscape Assignment

Samuel, Senior (SVTA). Ball point pen, India ink. Two pieces, each 18"x24".
Mixed Media Diptych Assignment

Maggie, Senior (SVTA). Photograpy. Three pieces, each photograph 18"x24".
Mixed Media Triptych Assignment

Lovebirds in North Alabama

Congratulations are in order for Luke and Miranda! After ten years of courtship, these two are just as crazy about one another as they were the day they met. The lovebirds got hitched on a farm in Trinity, AL. I'm so happy for you both and wish you the best as you start your life (officially) as husband and wife!

30 to Grow On

It has happened! The once dreaded year is here... at long last, I have turned 30. How surreal it is to announce that I am no longer in my 20's!

I am so thankful to have grown up in a loving environment with a supportive family and awesome friends. Though life has certainly presented its trials and tribulations, I am proud of what I have achieved thus far. Last month I turned 30 and oh what a unique time in my life it is, I am a grown up!

My twin sister and I were delightfully welcomed into our 30's with a big day and night full of surprises! Friends and loved ones from all over the southeast came to surprise us during such a monumental birthday. It was too much and my heart was, and still is, overflowing with love. Thank you, thank you, thank you to all who were involved in our special day!

I would like to take a moment to also thank my mom and my dad. Thank you for life and for instilling in me a sense of integrity and teaching me how to become a useful and productive part of society. And thanks also to my Aunts and Uncles who have loved my sisters and me like we were their own. Losing two parents when you are essentially still children is something that most people will not have to experience. I have been so blessed with a support system that is unconditional. My heart loves and my life is fruitful because of all of you.

*Medium Format Photo by Montgomery's Rus Baxley, circa 1985(ish)

Elvis Week

I spent the last week in Memphis for Elvis week 2010. Every August, thousands gather to celebrate the life of the King of Rock 'N' Roll. This year marked the 33rd anniversary of his death on August 16, 1977. It was over 103 degrees with an index of a sweltering 110. Event coordinators thought ahead and provided shade, misting tents, and water stations all around Elvis Presley Boulevard.

While I was not able to make it to the Sunday night Candlelight vigil or to the Memorial service itself.. we had a blast meeting Elvis tribute artists, visiting Graceland and the Meditation garden, and people watching! Check out event details (and more!) at Elvis.com

Introducing Mae

Introducing Mae! At five months old, she is the newest addition to our growing (rescue) pack. Just like Mae West, she's sassy and blonde and is perfect for the part! It is a little too early to tell, but we are thinking that she is probably part Carolina Dog.

The very morning I was pulling out of the driveway to take Tiger to his first Heartworm injection appointment, I saw a little blonde puppy in the front yard flower bed. She was skinny, covered in fleas and ticks, but smiling from (big) ear to (big) ear. I got out of the car slowly, not wanting to scare her away. I sat down in the grass and she came running over to me, happy as a lark. She put her front paws on my shoulders and I knew I couldn't just walk away.

We searched for any signs of identification and posted an ad online, though frankly she was so starving and neglected at 5 months that I would have struggled giving her back even if an owner had been located. Just as in the case with Tiger, originally I took her in wanting to find her a new, stable family to take the best care of her possible- and she found one after all.. with me!

**Update on Mae**
Mae is adjusting/has adjusted faster than I ever imagined! When we took her to the vet, there were (miraculously) no real concerns. She was treated for her fleas and some pesky Hookworms- and I just recently got her spayed. Mae loves to play with other dogs, especially Tiger and my sister's dog, Margot. She's a crazy little lady and I feel so blessed that I found her in the flower beds!