6.30.2009

BOOKS



After a recent rendezvous with the local bookstore...and being seduced by the buy one get one free section...I left with these. AAAH the infamous Don Quixote de la Mancha. I cannot wait to dive into this newly translated novel of hilarity.
And the other...I am IN IT. Finding Darwin's God is written by a professor of biology. With an array of scientific evidence backing evolution and a solid faith in Christian beliefs, is writing with a central goal of convincing us that evolution is the key to understanding our relationship with God. I'm intrigued. More to come...

Français

Photo of the Day
This old couple was standing in the courtyard behind Notre Dame feeding the birds. She, in her fur coat and he, in his beret are classically French. I love them, and the pigeons.
Notre Dame

Most of the time I spent in France was walking around Paris, with the company of my thoughts. It is a very enchanting city; romantic, magnificent, larger than life. The history seems to be sculpted into every corner from cobblestone to cathedral.
FRANCE!!!

In honor of a recent visit from mon ami (my friend), Mr. Thibeaut Janneau du Vanneau, France...His first visit to the USA!


This bird was perched just so, that it almost looks as if the woman and child are reacting to their feathered friend. I love it when birds land in all the right places.


AAAH the Eiffel Tower. I wasn't anticipating the chills that would raise the hair on my head when I approached this iron tower of global proportions. It is a sight that we recognize from the time we are 2 years old. To see it in person, in all it's magnificence, is breathtaking.
The first was taken after I walked for about 2 hours and finally got my first glimpse...seeing it from a distance, peeking over the city, it always looks closer than it appears. So it was nightfall. But the photo is so eerie! I love it!
The second pic is at midnight. I was under the Eiffel Tower when the clock struck midnight on January 1, 2007. A fantastic way to ring in the new year...the entire tower sparkles with magic!

Merci, Au Revoir !

6.26.2009

Sorrento


This courtyard is framed perfectly by the archway! My Mom and I were touring around Sorrento, Italy and I glanced to my left in passing to see this through the arched window. Creating a natural frame in a photo is great when the opportunity is there!


Can you imagine if this was your porch?
Sorrento! AAh the Italians and their food!


Photo of the Day
A favorite photo of mine...notice on the barred doorway it says Ristorante.
All of these photos in Sorrento were taken within a few blocks of one another. That is how photogenic Sorrento and the rest of the Bay of Naples can be! The Amalfi Coast is a gem; grab a gelato and a bench overlooking the coastline and it will be frozen in your memory for life. That is what was waiting at the top of these stairs.

6.22.2009

MUSIC


MOTHERBOARD...behind the scenes at a concert in AL...I was amused and confused by the rows and rows of knobs and buttons, lights and sounds...a musical brain!


So much of my college experience involved sitting around a living room with friends listening to acoustic guitar, banjos and bongos. This is friend, Anthony, who plays some seriously fast banjo beats.
2004ish


Adam Acoustic. A favorite artist of mine. He usually leaves me mesmerized.

AAAAAH MUSIC!!!! What would we do without it? Music can shape our experiences...music can CREATE experiences. Entering our ears, our souls...inspiring. Music earns a living.


I have always loved this picture so much. I can smell the freshly baking bread with sounds of the accordion and the hustle and bustle of Rome along the busy streets in the background. My Mom and I were sitting at a little bakery, taking a rest from walking all day. We were marking our next destination on a map, when this gentleman, along with his entire extended family, came up and began playing charming Italian music. He and his kids then approached every single table and demanded a donation. Making his living.
Rome, Italy. 2007
Photos of the Day (I can't choose between these two)


Another favorite...My first day in Athens, Greece; I came across this girl, about my age, playing soft acoustic guitar. I stopped and listened for a while, and gave her a few euro.
Her sign reads: Need Money for Beer. Maybe she was displaced from Haight-Ashbury.
Athens, Greece. 2005.

http://www.myspace.com/davidnevue

A recent discovery through Pandora. I keep it on Sigur Ros radio...it's a great way to discover new music. Thought provoking and brilliantly beautiful.

6.20.2009

Biblical, Spiritual, Heavenly


In the words of my good friend, John Kuranda, This photo is Biblical. I don't think anyone else can put it better than that. There is something biblical about it. It seems in accord with the time period and the height is reaching for heavens.
Smith Rock, OR 2008


This was taken in the grand Salamanca Cathedral in Spain. Not only were there tombs built into the ground where you walk but the Cathedral dome had carvings of such intricacy, it left my neck craned and aching when we left. I set my camera down on a pew and snapped this, capturing something quite spiritual. You can almost hear the choir in unison echoing off the Cathedral dome.


The sun is behind the cloud that looms over Stonehenge taken in 2008. People are scattered just to the right, the sky seems to be pushing down on this prehistoric monument. Heavenly.

6.16.2009

Vid spilum endalaust-Sigur Ros


Photo of the Day
My little sister Natalie Moffett. Taken in 2008 in Pike County.
She jumped the fence for me to take this pic. Thanks Nat :)

I love this polaroid of Melissa. It was sitting above her fireplace framed in an old window.


Don't know much about this table. This pic was taken in passing; but it's in Seattle and I like it..
I think it has something to do with the fact that I loved Annie Oakley as a kid.



Shoes by the door...ready to go when you are..

6.15.2009

Recent Reads

Here are a few recent books that I've read. I will continue to post books that are on my waiting list or on my favorites list. AAAHH BOOOKS!

A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. & Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marissa Pessl. Both are complex stories with twists; definitely page turners! Loved the writing style of Pessl, a great read and a new favorite.

Island Scenery

Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica 2006
A gorgeous island...Capri. It's off the Amalfi coast of Italy. It has so much character!
Below is a photo taken from inside a cave under Capri. It's called the Blue Grotto. It's a floating cave and sunlight comes in, under the floating rock, illuminating the water and the cave. The hole is the only entrance.






St. Thomas, BVI. It was a birthday party, I think...

This is in Ireland...just outside of the Stone Age passage TOMBS of Newgrange in the Boyne Valley.

Cherry Blossoms in Tokyo. (another good reflection photo)
Photo of the Day

6.13.2009

Everyday People




Does anyone else find this to be hilarious?
This guy heard there was going to be a protest, so he thought...
Hey, people get hungry at protests right?
Especially these people, petitioning insufficient jobs and no money in Athens, Greece. We actually saw a riot and rocks were thrown...excitement.
I call it The guy selling pretzels at a Greek protest. 2005
Sisters find a turtle. Cape Cove, Oregon


Photo of the Day
En Fuego! During the Ferias y Fiestas...a festival in Segovia, Spain. Don't forget about the guy hangin like a monkey behind him.



This one was accepted into the Slow Exposures photo competition last year!
It was taken around 6 am at Atlanta Hartsfield Int. Airport. Ya gotta sleep..


Eugene, OR.

It is a joy in my life to take photos of people, unknown to them, that turn out to be magnificent.

6.12.2009

Stone Mountain

When Adam saw this picture, he said it looked like a barren planet with only one tree.













We hiked up Stone Mountain yesterday and watched the laser show afterwards; which was not what we expected !


Photo of the Day
It's easy for Adam to take a superfly picture. He only has to jump...

6.11.2009

L A G O S Portugal




This map of Portugal is a good way to see how small the southern coastline actually is. Click on map for a larger view. Lagos is closer to the west coast in between Sagres and Faro. Faro is the best way to get there, with flights coming in from Spain and around Europe. We took about an hour train ride from Faro to Lagos. Lagos is a small town, with white stucco houses, walkways made of colorful tile in the shape of fish an octopi throughout. There is a loud fish market and harbor when you first arrive. The hidden cave beaches are a little outside of town...but impossible to leave once you find them.

A view of one of the beaches from on top of the cliff where there are awesome mountain biking trails and lookouts.

These curves keep me coming back for more. I've posted this picture twice already, and this may not be the last time. LOVE IT...the frame, the rock, even the little boat zooming by in the distance.

This is the rock formation that allowed me to create an amazing frame for the rest of the pics.


I'm so small, wading in the shallow water. This was a deserted beach in between cliffs that jutted out into the ocean. We crawled through a little hole in the cliff wall when the tide went down to get here...a thrilling discovery.


Photo of the Day
Another cool reflection photo. I like seeing the sunlight illuminate the tops of the formations in the water.

The creator of this world is an awe inspiring artist.

6.10.2009

Cello

http://www.myspace.com/zoecello

Adam found this and I think it's just amazing. Check her out!

Bike ride


Photo of the Day

I went on an adventurous bike ride this evening!
I passed a scarecrow in a vegetable garden. eerie but cool


A father and son were fly fishing at a very wide and rocky area on the Chattahoochee River. I stopped the bike, shot a few pictures and kept on truckin. Later, I was passing back by and saw them walking...On a whim, I turned the bike around and asked the man if he had an email address so I could email him these pics! Hope he likes them.