birds of paradise

rwanda also has birds of paradise, which are really pretty and cool. i like this because normally i only see them in flower arrangements, where you don't really get the full effect. but when you see them growing in a bunch like this, these plants really do emulate a bunch of birds hanging out together.

eucalyptus trees

there are eucalyptus trees everywhere in rwanda. and they are gorgeous. i just love love love these trees, and the way the sun was coming through this one was just stunning. perfection.

shopping

i've never been a big shopper when i travel. i don't normally buy a lot of stuff, so i don't like the idea of just browsing through a shopkeeper's merchandise when i have no plans to purchase anything. however, this time, i was on a mission to bring something back for a friend of mine, and another friend of mine recommended this one shopkeeper, so off i went. there was an array of batiks, rwandan baskets, wood carvings, masks, and of course jewelry. this kind of jewelry isn't particularly expensive, but i love how colorful most of it is.

lounge

after flying a bajillion miles to/from africa, i finally started getting access to the lounges a few months ago. it's outstanding. clean bathrooms, comfortable chairs, free food and drinks... brussels airlines has two lounges - one for european and trans-atantic flights, and the other for "long-haul" flights. the long-haul lounge is basically for all the africa flights. it is much newer, and much more architecturally interesting than the other lounge, but it's kind of cold with all the metal struts and the super high ceilings. but it's still a lounge.

packing

despite the number of times that i've now traveled to africa, packing is always a pain. it used to be that i would start planning for the items i needed to pack a week before my departure. now, i've got this nonsense idea that i don't need time to think about it anymore. so i wait until the day before i leave to start getting my stuff together. frankly, not the smartest way to go about things. at any rate, this trip i actually did all right. and this is actually towards the final stages of packing. although i think that after this i did end up taking everything out of the suitcase and re-doing it. sigh.

branches

after yesterday's light show, the sky seemed to be pretty fatigued today. it took a bit of a break, and just allowed the clouds to take over. and it was a kind of nice, mellow day.


p.s. i leave for rwanda tomorrow, so i don't know what my posting abilities are going to be. i'll keep taking pictures every day, and hopefully i'll be able to put them up. if not, i'll take care of it when i get back...

sky

i remember this one day sophomore year of college when my best friend and i were walking on campus, and it was one of those days where the sky looks like it's about to collapse in on itself - when heaven and hell can't decide where they'd like to be, and light and dark combine in the most hauntingly beautiful way. today's sky was like that. it happens every now and then, and it always makes me think of that day sophomore year when i seem to recall that we actually picked up the pace so we could watch the sky collapse from the safety of our dorm rooms...

catch up

this weekend was a good weekend - got to go snowboarding yesterday, and today was just the right blend of doing nothing, doing laundry, and doing work (although, to be honest, i certainly could have done some more work). i had a great cap to the weekend by having coffee with a friend i haven't seen in a while. it was great to catch up. this doesn't really have anything to do with this picture, except for the fact that i like her bag.

proud

16 years ago, my mother innocently followed me from a green slope onto a blue slope at a west virginia ski resort. this was a bad idea since my next step was to leave her stranded at the top of the slope after she realized she wouldn't be able to make it down. when i finished the run, and i told my dad where she was, he got to her as quickly as possible and had to coax her down the mountain. she vowed never to ski again. this was completely my fault.

today, after 16 years, my mother overcame her fear and allowed my dad to help her back on the slopes. she started on the bunny slopes, and completed the day by successfully going down a green. while my sense is that my mom was questioning her sanity the entire time she was skiing, i could tell she was really pleased with herself for getting back on the slopes.

i know that i couldn't be more proud! just look at that power stance!

oh right... winter

i'm out in west virginia tonight, and heading off for some snowboarding tomorrow. and while it's still january, in dc, there's no snow anymore. it's just cold. so i guess i kind of forgot that it's winter. until i got out to west virginia. where there is fresh snow on the ground. who knew? i suppose west virginians knew, actually. but any way... i know this picture is blurry, but i still like the light, and the faint color of the slate at the bottom of the steps.

looooong day

my class this semester is on thursdays from 7:10 to 9:40. it's not the longest class ever, but it sure feels like it after spending all day at work. this is what my world looks like at 9:40 on thursdays. and this is about all i can muster for today.

progress

having grown up building houses, i am always utterly amazed at how quickly work can get done when you have really deep pockets, and lots of people. when we were working on our various projects at home, it was a weekend (and often weeknight) family affair with friends coming over to pitch in when there was a particularly risky or large task to do. my mom would offer free food, and my dad would offer free beer, to those who hadn't quite yet figured out that they were most likely risking life and limb by agreeing to help. of course, we ended up with great memories, great stories, new skills, and houses that were years in the making. but this building is going up across the street from my office, and holy moly i can't believe how fast it's getting done. but again, having grown up building houses, i wonder where the heart is...

lazy tuesday?

i was disoriented all day today. first, i kept thinking it was monday because we had yesterday off. second, my travel plans for next week were being suddenly messed around with. third, i ended up having to take reg to the vet unexpectedly (he's fine; we think he just sprained his knee). so, i realized come 5:30 or so that i hadn't taken a single picture all day. luckily for me (?), i came to this realization while i was doing some work for my cost benefit analysis class, and that's what this is. my cba notes, problem sets, and readings, which will be taking up a significantly larger amount of my time as the semester continues. so it's been a lazy tuesday for the blog, but not so lazy a tuesday for the rest of my life. it is what it is.

p.s. i get my camera back tomorrow!! yippee!!!!!

anticipation

today marks two events worth noting: first - this is my first person pic for the blog; and second - today was the first time daryn and i got to ride the cruiser! the motorcycle was officially purchased last weekend, but the weather has been really crummy since then. luckily, today was beautiful!! after taking reg for a walk, daryn and i went on over to my parents' where the bike is for now, and we took turns riding it around the neighborhood. while it handles quite differently from the dual purposes i'm used to, it is much more comfortable. daryn rode the bike first, and i like this pic because he jumped right into his helmet, and was waiting anxiously for my dad to stop fiddling with it so that he could ride it; just like a little kid waiting to open a present.

cruiser!!!

yay! a new motorcycle! my dad taught me how to ride on a little 100cc dual purpose the summer after my freshman year in college. i kept riding, but it did take me almost a full decade to get my driver's license. it wasn't until i took a 3-day safety course when i rode a cruiser for the first time, and i was amazed at how different the feel was. daryn and i recently discussed getting a cruiser, and this is what we ended up with, thanks to my dad! haven't had a chance to ride it yet because the weather has been so crappy, but hope to get on it soon!

kasha's

daryn and i go to this little deli/cafe by our house called kasha's. it's been there for a while, but we didn't start going there until about a year or so ago. it has a lot of vegan/vegetarian options, which is good for daryn and me, and it really feels like a small community. the mother/daughter team that runs it is always there, and very sweet. everyone in there is in a really good mood - so it just brightens my day to go in there. today, there was a father there with his 3 year-old son, who was so cute. apparently, the son likes to go to the deli just to run from the front to the back of the store over and over. he was having a blast, and it was great to see.

curve

this is the pan-american health organization (paho) building in dc. i've always thought it was a cool building, although i know nothing about architecture. it's pretty dated, but i still like it. i worked across the street from paho for two years, and got to see it every day. now i don't see it very often, and it's a bit of a treat now.

hat-shaped hat

while i was in philly, i got a fedora, which i am now kind of obsessed with. rewind a few months, and i was totally making fun of the fedora trend, but now that i have one, i completely understand it. the fedora brings a certain level of class, and a tad bit of mystery to an otherwise regular ensemble. and it's fun, mixed with a bit of whimsy. who ever would have guessed that i'd be able to/would want to wax on about an accessory? good grief.

pause

two things for today's post. first off is, i think i'm prejudiced against point-and-shoots. i only took about 5 pictures today because i didn't like the point-and-shoot. i really do miss my canon. however, i think that i really need to use this week as a challenge to myself - how can i take pictures that i like with a more simple camera, and a not quite as a good lens? having said that, i like today's picture. so i guess i'm making progress?

the second thing (i know i've written about this before) is that taking on this blog is keeping me from rushing around everywhere because i'm looking for things to take pictures of. additionally, i have now stopped being impatient when i'm forced to wait around for things. now when i'm in line i try to use that time to find a good shot or two. today's picture came while i was waiting in line to get out of the parking garage at work. waiting in line is now photography time!


p.s. would these have kept me safe from a 7.0 magnitude earthquake? please donate if you can - partners in health, red cross, care are already in-country. cash is best.

what??!!

i had a chance to take my camera in to get it cleaned today, and learned that it takes "about a week" to clean a camera!!!! holy moly! i had no idea! so... tomorrow i will be switching from the iphone to daryn's point-and-shoot, but i will sorely miss my canon until i get it back. a week!!!!!!!!!!!!!

delicious thing: cheese

this is day 3 of taking pictures with my iphone. i was hoping to drop my camera off at a camera store today to get it cleaned, but didn't have time. i was talking with a friend who does photography at my work, and he said it just gives me a chance to work on my composition. so there's the silver lining to not having my good camera at my disposal. (frankly, i think this is justification for getting another camera so that i have a back-up, but i'm not sure daryn agrees with me.)

but i took this picture because i was snacking before dinner (sorry, mom), on this here bit of cheese, which was delicious. all i need is this basic camembert to help me take a break in my day and savor the act of enjoying cheese. mmm mmm good...

philly

i just got back from a fabulous 24 hours in philadelphia with daryn and maureen. even though it was super cold, we didn't let that get us down. we hung out, did some shopping, did some dancing, and ate some great food. the one downside to the weekend is that i decided to bring my camera to philadelphia, but didn't want to bring the bulky case. so it just kind of hung out in my bag, which turned out to be a bad idea as i got dust all over the lens, on the mirror, etc. just bad news really. so i stuck to the iphone today, as well as daryn's digital point and shoot. but this pic was taken with the iphone. this is of the building behind maureen's apartment in fishtown. i like the lighting in this, even though it's probly more a function of using the crappy iphone camera. it was a beautiful day.

family

i tried to do a mobile post yesterday, and clearly i failed. to make up for it, i'm posting exactly what i tried to send in yesterday for now, and i'll do a second post later today... so much for modern technology. at 8:31 pm yesterday, this is what i wanted to say:

so this is my first mobile post since i'm in philly and forgot to bring the cord that allows me to download pics from my camera to my laptop. daryn and i are visiting his cousin and are having a blast. his cousin, maureen, is in the middle of pulling together all these old pics for her parents. i absolutely love seeing all this history laid out. while this pic was taken with my iphone again, i think you get the point.

snow!

i think everything looks better with snow on it. today was the culmination of my bad week, but it was juxtaposed with the freshness of a new snow. it was really very pretty. i got into work early - there was no traffic, and hardly any people. everything looked cleaner, and emptier than it usually is. so i felt a little refreshed heading into today. and frankly, as expected, everything turned out alright. i was glad i took pictures on my way into work this morning because by the time i left, the snow had melted, and sand and people were all over the place. but i think i'll remember today for this morning view.

oooo..... pretty

today is my father's 60th birthday. happy birthday! so tonight we (my father, step-mother, sister, brother-in-law, uncle, aunt, daryn and myself) went to this place called, "oya", an asian-fusion restaurant. before we even sat down, i was struck by the decor, which i found to be unique and very cool. the dining room was primarily whites and black. the center of the dining room was a large fireplace of black marble, which i took a picture of on my way out. it warmed both the temperature and the decor of the dining room. i wonder what they do with it when it's not freezing outside...

the food at oya was delicious. my sister and i shared five small plates, which included seaweed salad, tuna bruschetta, sea bass spring roll, calamari, and shrimp scampi with ramen noodles. the ramen noodles were the reason i ordered the shrimp dish, and i hate to say that they were the most disappointing part of the meal. i topped it off with coffee and a chocolate molten cake since i am pretty much a sucker for chocolate molten cake at any time of day. it was a fun, low-key way to celebrate such a great mile-stone for my father. way to go, pop!

pick-me-up

i am not having the best week, but am starting to come to terms with it with the help of things such as this:



yum.

bad day

i did not have a good day today. i will leave it at that. in order to seek some guidance, i had lunch with my dad at a restaurant we frequent, on a street on which i've spent a lot of time. while i had taken the metro there because it was so freaking cold out, i walked back to my office so that i could take some pictures. on my way home, walking along a street that i had walked countless times, i noticed this building that just looked out of place. i'm sure i've seen it before, i just never had any reason to pay attention to it before. surrounding it were much taller buildings (by dc standards), and much more modern buildings. this one was boarded up, but not in bad shape. it just seemed empty and a bit lonely. that's a bit how i felt at the time. while this pic may not be the best one i took today, i like it because it shows what i was drawn to initially.

inspiration

considering that this was my first full day back at work after a while, i was kind of looking forward to getting back to my desk, but also dreading the impending doom of dull hallways, florescent lights, and time sheets. i actually fell asleep last night thinking that my picture of the day needed to be something inspirational. unfortunately, i knew that i'd have to find inspiration where normally it wouldn't be, if only because there wasn't anything exciting on today's agenda. on my way back from lunch with some friends who were in town, i saw this view riding up the escalator, so i whipped out my camera and snapped.

not only did today mark my first work day in 2010, it also marked my first day of writing and taking pictures for this blog on a normal work day. so it was a bit of a test of my commitment to the mission of this blog, as well as of my ability to truly find something creative in a regular, old day. so i slowed down so i could see everything better. for the first time, i was not the first to start crossing the street when the light changed because i was busy looking around me to see what caught my eye; work did not consume every thought, even when i was off getting coffee or having lunch with friends. it was a nice change of pace, and i'm looking forward to keeping this up.

snuggling

almost four years ago, daryn and i got a dog, who we named reginald. he came from a rescue shelter in pennsylvania at eight weeks old. when he was five months old, he started limping for some unexplained reason. his pain was so bad in his hind legs that in order to move around, he would balance all of his weight on his front two legs, and lift his rear-end in the air. it was really an amazing feat, but just heartbreaking to see this great little puppy struggle so much. after several months of vet visits and diagnostic tests, he underwent surgery on both of his hind legs when he was 11 months old. even after the surgery, vets told us that he likely wouldn't recover, and would need to have a cart to get around. fast forward to today, and reg has made an almost complete recovery. while he does have arthritis, he can still run and jump and play and all the stuff that dogs are supposed to be able to do. because of everything he went through, daryn and i love watching him do his hyper dog thing. but for me, i think the most rewarding part of life with reg is when he snuggles up in the morning...

comfort

i love a well-worn pair of shoes. it's only been recently when i decided that my shoes shouldn't be in a state of complete disrepair. when i was younger, i tried to get away with wearing the most comfortable shoes to any and all events. i would say the most memorable of these was when my friend evan had his bar mitzvah out in colorado. so at 13, i flew out to colorado by myself without any kind of adult supervision (which also included no supervision in packing). now, while this was colorado which is slightly less formal than dc, there's still a certain level of attire expected for the ceremony that acknowledges manhood in the jewish faith. however, i decided that the only pair of shoes that i was going to wear would be my old, broken-in, red jack purcell's. and these were the only pair of shoes that i even packed. when evan's mom asked me what i was wearing to the bar mitzvah, i showed her my black dress and pointed my toe at her to show her the purcell's. while i'm not sure she was happy about it, it's still something that to this day evan's entire family remembers me for (for better, i think). in the end, the point is these shoes have clearly been loved and worn through all sorts of fabulous adventures.

perspective

one of my big life challenges is to try and maintain some perspective. i have a tendency of placing too much importance on small things, and then driving myself (and others) nuts for no reason. so i've engaged in a number of things to prevent this kind of nonsense - yoga, reading, this blog, etc.... while it's a cliche, i like this pic because it exemplifies how i'm trying to focus on the immediate, but not so much that i forget what comes after. i think this is a good reminder as we start this new year. so happy new year, and best wishes for a good 2010.