until next year

"If you want to know the end, look at the beginning" ~African Proverb

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end." ~Seneca

an epic tale

Blue skies battle with rain clouds for turf above Seattle ~ 12.26.05

enough

"May you have enough happiness to make you sweet,enough trials to make you strong, enough sorrow to keep you human and enough hope to make you happy." ~ Unknown

ferry christmas

Lights reflecting on the window as a ferry makes it's way across the Sound ~ 12.23.05

So, this evening I was sitting here ... thinking about how it's been raining for days on end. Yep, it's true ... I live in Seattle. HA! Anyway, I saw a ferry going by and though I've shot the ferries often enough ... I got the camera out and proceeded to try to make the shot new somehow. It was getting dark and the lights in the apartment were bugging me throwing weird reflections on the window. So I turned them all off, save the Christmas tree. As I continued shooting and moving closer and closer to the tree I found I rather liked the way its lights reflected and added a 'holiday' feel to the photo. (Though, it also has a many moons feel to it as well. Hmmm.) Thus I present it to you here, for your own interpretation and reflection. ; ) I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday weekend!

pattern in motion

Frame grab from the video ~ 12.21.05

Pulled in the parking lot at work today and this is what I saw. Maybe not all that spectacular, but something kept me zoned out and only seeing the pattern the rain was making. Thought I'd share a few seconds.

Listening to Flow by Sade

oh yeah, it's a rant

Okay, so Initiative 901 went into effect a two weeks ago today. I for one have been pleased that smokers are now required to stand twenty-five feet from entrances to public places. Mostly because that means they can't huddle in the doorway of my apartment building and smoke ... it's within twenty-five feet of a restaurant on one side and a bar on the other side. They even put up signs stating it's the law ... no smoking. It's been nice knowing that while entering or leaving my residence I'm not going to encounter a wall of smoke.

Until this evening, I was just home from work and had to run back to the car for something and heard the voices huddled in the doorway as I walked toward it. Slowly opened the door and low and behold -- two smokers huddled there. They giggled and smugly apologized ... then walked around the corner of the building. I retrieved what I needed from the car, when I got back to the door I noticed the sign was gone. I know it was there when I came in not a half-hour earlier. So, I was totally pissed that ... obviously (to me), those "two smokers" had removed it. (Not that it changes anything, it's still within twenty-five feet of two public places.) I suppose it could have been someone else. But I'm 95% sure it was them. I've actually had a run in with these two specific people before, and from the looks on their faces ... they'd remembered me too.

A few days before the smoking ban went into effect, I had been leaving the building with my mother (who has emphysema and carries oxygen with her). Upon opening the door the "two smokers" were there, in their plume. I turned to my mom and said, (in a normal voice with no sarcasm), "don't breathe". It's sort of our code for, "there are smokers out here". She has enough trouble breathing as it is, add smoke and hello it's a bad thing. Anyway, one of the "two smokers" (the girl -- and I call her that because of her maturity not her age) said mockingly, "yeah, don't breathe". I politely turned to her and said, "I only say that because she's has emphysema and is carrying oxygen ...". She rolled her eyes and said something ... I didn't quite hear her but I knew it was snide and directed at me. I wanted to turn around and confront her, but didn't. Needless to say, I consider her the spawn of the devil. She's probably a perfectly nice human being ... but she has absolutely no consideration for others and is a smart-ass when it's completely inappropriate.

My dilemma is what to do about it. My first thought is to find some way to get back at them. Report them to whoever, I believe she's employed at one of the establishments ... so I could tattle on her to her boss. But that's really not my style, none of it. I'd just as soon not be put in a position to have to deal with it. It's not that I resist conflict. Most times I'll head right into it without fear. But, lately ... I just don't want to put my energy into fighting against people like her. I will if I have to, but I'm really hoping this girl will get a clue. God, please let her get a clue.

postal delay ; )

A sailboat cruises along as a bit of blue sky teases and fog rolls in on the Puget Sound. Seattle, WA ~ 12.11.05

imperfect beauty

View of Mt. Rainier through the industrial side of downtown Seattle ~ 12.08.05

A slighty out of focus view of Mt. Rainier from the West Seattle Bridge ~ 12.09.05

Sunset ~ West Seattle ~ 12.09.05

The weather, though chilly, was really beautiful the past week. We were blessed to see Mt. Rainer in some form three days in a row, which is saying something. So, even though I'm encouraged not to shoot and drive, I took the opportunity to grab these images along my commute. I am gravitating toward the imperfect, for whatever reason ... and finding beauty there.

woman after my own heart

Mount Rainier hiding her head in the soft cloud cover ~ 12.07.05

Driving to work this morning, the sight was so beautiful with the Cascades and the Olympics both making an appearance. Grabbed the point and shoot to take advantage of this view while driving East across the I-90 floating bridge. Shooting photos while driving, a tad bit dangerous. Yeah, don't try this at home folks. ; )

random selection

Just an observation but, here I sit at the library ... as I often do. Killing time between assignments. I was reading a book and had stopped to ponder a thought when I noticed a woman nearby pulling books from the shelf at random, glancing at them, then pushing them back in. Occasionally pausing to read the information on the back cover. The odd thing here, and the reason for my intrigue is that each of the books she touched ... over 10 that I personally witnessed, had a pink cover. It really got me wondering what it was she was looking for ... that she might find behind a pink cover.

peek a blue

Another amazing sunset ~ Seattle, WA ~ 12.05.05

"Each one's pleasure draws him on" ~ Virgil

"It is only possible to live happily ever after on a day-to-day basis."
~ Margaret Bonanno

"Then let yourself love all that you take delight in." ~ John Ashbery

"Surely joy is the condition of life." ~ Henry David Thoreau

"I gave myself up so completely to present desires and pleasures that I had no energy to waste on mere wishful thinking." ~ Simone de Beauvoir

"When you die God and the angels will hold you accountable for all the pleasures you were allowed in life that you denied yourself."
~ unknown source

control?

"You can't control the length of your life, but you can control its depth, height, and width." ~ unknown source

it's snowing

12:01pm: Snow falling ~ 12.01.05

12:09pm: Only a small accumulation so far. ~ 12.01.05

You can view a short movie I made of the snow while driving by clicking here.
12.01.05

It's not that it's all that unusual to see snow this time of year. But in the Seattle metro area it's a little less usual than some other places.