breezy lucia

india 1.0

2012-02-14T03:09:00.002-06:00

INDIA

A question that never ceases to be overwhelming: “How was[insert country that you recently visited]?” I usually just reply with, “Good!” to test the waters to seeif they really want to know and thenI wait for follow up questions or for them to walk away.

Last month I went to India from Jan 1^st-11^th. I’m still trying to wrap my brainaround that, even a month later.

Somethingthat is hard for me about “short term mission trips” or “vision trips” is toaccept the cost of the trip. Isbeing there for 11 days really worth the money we spent? I’ve been wrestling with this ideasince the time I went to Honduras thesecond time [in 2008]. Theconflict I have with the idea of these trips has been affirmed but alsochallenged by one of the most insightful and helpful books I’ve ever read, When Helping Hurts by Steve Corbett & Brian Fikkert [seriously, read thisbook]

So going on an international mission trip was a required partof the Academy [my internship]. Iknew that my decision to do the Academy meant, I was deciding and agreeing togo on an international mission trip that would cost of a lot of money.

Being a photo/videographer, I’m always wondering how God canuse those specific skills He’s given me for His glory. In particular on trips like these.

On the trip, I took a ton of photographs, of course. I’ve decided to make some of myfavorite shots available for purchase. In line with realizing how God can use my art for His glory, I’m goingto give 50% of the profits from these photographs back to India [I’m going toask the people that we partnered with where the money can best be given]. The rest of the profits will be putback into my art and internship doing freelance photo/video work here inMemphis.

Check out my photographs by clicking here and buy a print ortwo, or three, or etc. Please pass alongthis post to other people who might be interested also!

More documentation/fun/funny photographs can be found on theFacebook album by clicking here, along with informative [usually] captions.

Thanks for reading and thanks for asking about the trip! More thoughts about the wholeexperience to come.

FIRST

2012-01-01T07:45:00.000-06:00

HAPPY JANUARY 1ST 2012!

Right now I'm struggling really hard to stay awake. I'm attempting to get on India time [11.5 hours ahead] to avoid jet lag of sorts. Which I thought would be all fun and games because I would just get to stay up and play and indulge the night owl in me. [just realized the sun is up...sometimes my curtains work too well]

But I drove 4.5ish hours today and 4.5ish hours the day before and am really tired.

BUT we're going to India. Today. To. Day. Day. To.

I've never been to the Eastern Hemisphere before and I've only been to lands that I know the language, whether that be English or Spanish. This is going to be a crazy, new, exciting, overwhelming, more adjectives experience.

Pray for us! We're going to be traveling a lot via plane, train, taxi, and on foot. We're going to be consuming foods and drinks we're not used to. And pray that God would not only use this trip to change us but to do work through us there.

And somehow/somewhere I will post photos from this adventure...like a year after or something. jk. or am I?

OH and I won't be able to text/call/access the internet really. So Jan 12th and onward, I'll get back to you!

Thank you to everyone who has $upported this trip! I literally could not be doing what I'm doing here in Memph and will do there without all of y'all and appreciate every penny. And thanks to everyone who has asked me about this trip already, afterwards, I'll have more to say about it!

-Breezy

OCTOBER

2011-10-04T14:59:00.004-05:00

Happy 10th month, everyone!

It being October means that I've been here for over a month now, whoa.

I'm starting my first big-ish video project this week for SOS. It's going to be a "Day in the Life of a Summer Staffer" video for them to use for recruiting purposes. We're going to have to do some faking though since it isn't actually summer...hmm, they should've asked me to make it this summer maybe? Although, I wouldn't have had the time because I was busy making these and running chapel. It should be a pretty fun project to do though, I'm looking forward to making it!

As well as planning for big video projects, I've been going to the Urban Farms Market twice a week to take photos to upload to their Facebook page, check them out in the FALL 2011 album. I've also been attempting to convince them to learn how to use and accept Twitter, haha.

Another weekly thing that I've been doing is helping out with an after-school-program of sorts at Caritas Village, called "Peacemakers." This has been a really great way to interact with the community and meet some kids from the neighborhood. The ages of the kids range from 4 years old- 5th grade. I'm excited to get to interact with these kids twice a week. And this is definitely going to stretch me in some ways.

With The Academy, we get assigned a mentor that we're supposed to meet with once every couple of weeks. Mine happens to be a really awesome freelance graphic artist, which is perfect since I'M freelance photo/videoing! She also does work for some of the same organizations that I'm partnering with. Check out her website!

My boss, Philip, introduced the world to me and Maggie (another Academy intern/roomie/bathroom sharer) in the SOS Blog a couple weeks ago, read about us/look at our faces/read the part in orange at the bottom as well!

I'll leave you with our memory verse for Downline for September:

Matthew 22:37-40
And he said to him, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets."

A common memory verse, but it's good to revisit and it's also really encouraging to me right now.

peace y'all

MEMPHIS

2011-09-19T21:32:00.001-05:00

LIFE UPDATE:

- I'm doing a year long internship called The Academy with the urban home repair organization, Service Over Self (SOS) in Memphis, Tennessee.

Ok, now we're all on the same page, right?

It's been almost a month since I, along with the other 3 girls doing The Academy, have moved into our house in Binghampton (the inner city neighborhood where SOS focuses). The usual intern of The Academy gets a job with a ministry or non-profit here in Memphis. However, because of my unique skill set, for my internship I'm working as an "Artist-in-residence" of sorts.

What does that look like?

Well, it means I'm going to divide most of my time between 5 different organizations:
SOS
The Binghampton Development Corporation
Caritas Village
Cornerstone Prep School
Eikon Ministries (don't worry, their website is being redone...)

With these 5 main groups, I'll be making videos, taking photographs, helping update their websites/blogs, and really any other creative assistance that I can offer.

Another element of The Academy is taking classes with Downline Ministries. We attend class on Monday nights, Wednesday mornings (5:45-7:45am!) and the occasional Friday morning. The classes focus on discipleship training, Biblical overview, and missions.

I'm still getting settled and organized with my job and my weekly schedule is going to change based on the freelancing nature of the work I'm doing...

BUT you can check out the new staff/intern headshots that I took for SOS here.

AND you can read what our boss, Philip Walkley, wrote about us on SOS's blog here.

Feel free to ask me any questions about my life here. And please pray for me and my roomies as we continue to adjust to living life in Memphis!

...

2011-09-01T23:41:00.002-05:00

...post to come...

soon

new post!

2010-11-13T00:58:00.003-06:00

look! I'm blogging like I promised!!

I have a new computer so I can use the internet and blog whenever I want!

Maybe this will help me fulfill the promise I made about blogging...but I still hate you, blogger! And I'm still wondering about WordPress...

Right now, I am liking my life and am hating certain school things.

But if I think about life post May for more than 60 seconds, I feel light headed and like I'm going to barf. Please pray for God to reveal plans about my life... I'll probably mention this many more times/commit posts to this subject. It's all I can think about and it seems like every conversation I've had the past few weeks SOMEHOW comes back to what I'm doing after I graduate/with my life.

So, prayers for peace and clarity and direction and anything else helpful in this time would be swell.

Happy weekend before Thanksgiving break!

promise

2010-11-04T03:32:00.003-05:00

i promise i'll start blogging again.
i just really hate blogger.
ya hear, that, blogger?!
considering jumping ship to wordpress... i just really want a format that is conducive to photography.
tell me your thoughts.
i promise i'll start reading your blogs again too. i feel so disconnected!

2010-07-30T04:08:00.000-05:00

can't sleep!

July 16th, 2010

2010-07-16T23:51:00.003-05:00

Couldn't think of a more interesting title...

I've been absent from the blogging world for awhile whilst I've been a nomad. My apologies.

After some organizing and researching, I'm ready to present the website that Keith and I will use when we take photos for "clients," if you will. http://breezyandkeith.smugmug.com/

Check it out. Order some.

update

2010-07-06T22:54:00.002-05:00

It has been brought to my attention that I failed to update the world of my status. So here it is:

I'm back in MO!

At my brother and new sister-in-law's house in Lees Summit watching Up In the Air. Going to Columbia tomorrow for a week and half or so. Then coming back for a while. The rest of my summer I'll be back and forth between KC and CoMO. Even though I HAD to come back to MO, I am really happy to be here. As I've been driving around, I'm so comforted to be around familiar places.

More things to come, I'm still getting settled.

Also, done with the wedding photos and working on getting them on Keith's and I's new website where people can order prints! Though, I'm sure most of your reading this won't want photos of my brother's wedding...

Is Colorado trying to tell me something?

2010-07-01T10:34:00.005-05:00

Today I flew back to Denver...I never thought I would actually be sad to leave Missouri. Subconsciously I left my wallet at home and thus made me miss my flight. But I got on the next one a few hours later. I flew into MO a week ago for Will's wedding last Saturday! sneak peek:

To address the title of this post, it seems like nothing is going according to plan in Colorado... they aren't even going according to plan B or C! I do like the city and I want to give it a shot. But if I don't have a job or a house, then the only option is for me to pack my car and come on back to Missouri. Which wouldn't be the worst thing in the world I'm realizing. Especially after this week spent here. Family and friends are here. Life is here. I came to Denver for a reason though and I don't want to give up. But I feel like I'm really not. I've been trying to make this work for...since I've been here?

Friday will be the day that determines whether I stay. Oh, that's tomorrow. If I don't have a job after tomorrow, then I'm driving that 10 hour drive back to KC.

I've decided I'm going to really really try to make this job work out. I'm going to give it my best. If it doesn't happen, then I will have peace knowing I tried. Really hard.

Sundays are fun.

2010-06-21T00:42:00.004-05:00

Walked around the cutest farmers market today before church. Then skyped with Kaitlin!

evidence:

The internet was being dumb so we decided to talk on the phone whilst still having skype up. Kinda weird, but it worked.

Found a dress for Will's wedding! First one I looked at and it was $20. Boom.

Went to a different church later that evening. Hung out with peeps after.

Now it's time to rest up for my first day of work with Greenpeace tomorrow!

MO countdown: 3 days!

nothing new

2010-06-19T23:56:00.006-05:00

Not many new developments to report from here.

Yesterday I did some interning and got to skype with Aimeeeeeeeee!

Today, worked a bit in the garden. In the afternoon, it was cloudy and a little cool so being outside planting beans and carrots was really enjoyable. I can't wait to see the fruits and vegetables of my labors though! ;) Being a patient gardener I'm realizing would be difficult for me.

Went to Goodwill to look for a satchel. Ya know, like a messenger bag. I prefer the word satchel because it sounds funny. I've had getting one on my "to do" list for quite some time. I love lists! The point of getting the satchel is so when I fly home in 5 days!!@!#@, I can use my backpack camera bag and then satchel bag for my computer. So I don't look like a dork and have two backpacks, one on front and one on back- which I'm pretty sure I've done that a lot. So I go to Goodwill and head for the purse/bag section. BOOM! A whole rack of black satchels! It was one of those deals where they get a bunch of the same thing for whatever reason. It was simple, lightweight, and cheap- everything I look for when I'm shopping for stuff. Thanks Goodwill in Golden!

Lately I've been more obsessed with new musics, thanks to seeing Candace's top 5 artists of the week on her tumblr blog. If there is an artist you know I don't know and is worth me knowing, comment it!

P.S. MO countdown: 5 days! Bro's wedding is in ONE week! At this time next week I'm sure I'll be exhausted from wedding festivities.

ONE week

2010-06-17T21:28:00.015-05:00

At this time next week, I'll be in Washington, MO for my bro's wedding rehearsal, I think. Not sure of the "Wedding Weekend Schedule" yet. I've been to many a wedding within the last 4ish years, naturally. It will be weird/fun that I'm related to the groom and that a lot of family will be there! AND photographing the wedding! I really am excited to be going back to MO for a while.

How about más fotos? These are from the first Kids' Class, "Snap Shooters," of the summer. It was last Saturday at the WWA gallery and Studio in Lakewood. Which half of you reading this probably don't know what any of that means...but whatever. I "assisted" in teaching the class and will "teach" the class next month. This time it was really just the kids running around taking photos, it was really loose and maybe at times unorganized. I have some ideas to improve the class for next month...so we'll see what happens.

WARNING: Cuteness overload

The youngest: age 4

The eldest: 14/15ish

Well, I guess the teacher was the eldest. We looked at some photos with the projector...not sure if the kids really cared though.

They were excited to get to have prints of their photos though! (Even though this Quintin-look-alike [my littlest bro] doesn't look all that excited, he really really was.) Which is really cool for them. To get a print of a photograph they've taken in today's digital age is a rare occurrence, sadly.

ok, now some photos of things other than children.

scared/shivering doggie

kinda gross/cool

Most of the kids copied this photo...jerks! jk ;)

My favorite.

To see more from the kids' class, among other photos from the summer, click aquí(here).

Overall, getting to hang out with the kids was a lot of fun. It was a nice peek into what being a teacher/person who deals with kids for a job was like. Being an art or photography teacher has crossed my mind, so this is a nice test drive for it. Next month when I'm more in charge will be more a test for sure! Moving to Denver has also been a test drive for moving to a new city and essentially starting over socially. AND I'm testing out organic gardening, huh, just realized. Test Drive Summer is what I'm calling Summer 2010 now.

Still waiting on the new place of residence. Patiently. Prayingly.

Goal of the weekend: get a dress for my brother's wedding!

P.S. People that use Blogger and put photos in your posts (Aimee?), do you have issues with the photos and spacing and such? I'm getting very annoyed with it...I wonder if Wordpress is better?

homelessness could be worse

2010-06-17T00:46:00.009-05:00

Still at my friend's place. Tonight will be night 3 without a permanent place of residence. However, I'm not complaining. I'm thankful to be "homeless" but have a place to sleep tonight.

When I started this blog, I wanted to post photos frequently. I realized that hasn't been happening lately, so I'm loading this post up with pics!

My long lost friend, Nathalie (from Virginia!), whom I met in Argentina whilst we were both studying abroad there 2 years ago, happened to be coming to Denver with some friends. We went to the Botanic (NOT Botanical) Gardens and went downtown for a bit. It was really fun to get to hang out with an old friend and be with people who are also not from Denver and/or Colorado!

Taking a touristy photo

Amazed at the water lily's resistance to water.

Climbing public art downtown, naturally.

One of the funniest/coincidencical things about this whole living sitch, is I had already agreed to volunteer at the organic garden at my friend's living community that I am now staying at temporarily. Remember that insane hail storm I blogged about? It destroyed a lot of the garden here, so that is why I've been able to help. They needed help replanting some stuff, but hopefully the others will grow back. Yesterday and today, I just walk down the sidewalk and BOOM, garden. Organic gardening is something I've been interested in a long time but I wasn't sure if I would actually like doing it. After experiencing it, I'm more than positive I do indeed enjoy it very much. I'm looking forward to the day that I can do this regularly in my own backyard! But first I need a backyard I suppose... that decision will be for NEXT May...

Anyway, here are some shots:

The little bridged entrance.

The one plant I have some experience with, basil! I transplanting some of these. See the row going back?

I planted carrot seeds here! See them?

Which will hopefully grow into this and then hopefully grow carrot, the food.

I planted beans on either side of the row of...lettuce I think it is?

This is mainly for Aimee and my mom, who are flower lovers. This is camomile!

I have a good housing lead, so please pray it all pans out and I'll be settled again soon!

Also, follow my dear friend, Rachel, who is new to the blogging world!

Well...

2010-06-14T22:54:00.004-05:00

I originally had a post started that was going to recap the great weekend I had.

But I'm not feeling in a too "Look at all this fun I had!" mood.

I have SO MUCH I could say about today and the people it involved. I will bite my tongue (or bite the keyboard?) and be a good person though.

All I know is that with two months left in Colorado, all my belongings are in my car and I'm crashing at my friend's house.

Injustice is infuriating but I have peace in the fact that I know this is undeserved. This was done out of wrong motives and ingrained prejudices.

To close, I think it is fitting to share a verse:

Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

1 John 4:7

Two Weeks... yesterday

2010-06-11T15:21:00.015-05:00

I missed a few days! I know, right? But I've had a few late nights and once it's after midnight I lose any motivation to blog because it would then be on the next date.

In two weeks (as of yesterday) I'll be going back to good ole humid Missouri for my favorite older brother's wedding in STL. After that I'll be spending 3ish days in Columbia editing the wedding photos and hanging out! I'm making a list already of fun things I want to do there. It seems silly because I've lived there for 4 years now...but absence makes the heart grow fonder, right?

In other news, remember the Green Peacers I spoke so kindly of? While still in MO I remember seeing GreenPeace ads ALL the time on Craigslist when I was looking for jobs here. I decided to check into it to see if they were still hiring. Found the ad and called them. They called me back and had an interview yesterday. To keep this long story short, I got the job! He offered it to me on the spot after stating, "I don't normally do this, but, I'd like to offer you the position right now." Hearing that has got to be one of the best things to hear at a job interview followed by, "We need more strong women." I couldn't be happier about this. Third job offer's a charm!

Photo time:
At the people's fair on Sunday, I stopped by the Geico tent, naturally. They took this photo that I got to download for free!

I also got this free tote!

While writing this earlier, I started to hear what sounded like a stampede outside. I thought maybe it was just really intense rain, but it was hail! A lot of it. Check it.

Doesn't it kind of look like Dippin' Dots?

18 minutes later, the sky looks like this! Crazy Colorado weather I guess.

A short vid I took of this insane hail storm.

MO countdown: 13 days.

F-O-X

2010-06-08T23:33:00.008-05:00

I'm watching You've Got Mail right now. It was on TV the other day and instead of jumping in for the last hour, I decided to refrain and watch it in its entirety later. I used to make fun of one of my dear best friends, Kaitlin, when she said it was her favorite movie. Now look at me. #1. I own it on DVD! and #2 I'm watching it without her prompting. After watching it 4+ times with her, I can see its good qualities. And it is a good movie! I defend it when in comes up in conversations even.

Also found out there is surround sound in here! WHAT?! That is one of my favorite things. It isn't that great for You've Got Mail, sure. But I will be definitely be watching movies that it will benefit from such as Jurassic Park, The Village, and Mean Girls in here.

I've had a few rough days here lately trying to figure things out. Everything seems to be up in the air. While that is a great film, experiencing this phrase isn't comfortable. Watching this movie I'm hoping will lift my spirits a little, since it does remind me of my friend, and thus home, and thus familiarity.

"Tall Decaf Cappuccino."

Leave your favorite You've Got Mail quote if you'd like.

2010-06-07T23:40:00.001-05:00

head ache.

sun day

2010-06-07T00:31:00.006-05:00

Today was filled with people. So many peoples. Went to church this morning and evening [tried a few different ones], went to the People's Fair downtown, checked out a Vonnegut novel at the Library, and strolled a bit of 16th ave. However, even with being around so many people all day, I hardly spoke to anyone. Or no one hardly spoke to me. Which is sad and disappointing when you remember I went to two churches today. Turns out people at churches aren't as chatty, welcoming, and inviting as they should be. The best interaction today was with two strangers on the popular 16th ave.

"Hey, how are you?"
[look around, look back at him, yes he's looking right at me]"Are you talking to me?"
"Yeah, can I talk to about something?"

Then this dude told me about Green Peace and saving the whales and next thing I knew I was signing up to donate $15 a month. Ok, he was pretty cute. That might have helped my decision to help save the whales.

After I signed my life away and I had gotten my "Save the whales" sticker, he informed me he had to teach me the secret handshake. I thought he was just being funny but he insisted it was a real thing. I don't think I can share it completely, unless you sign up, but it ended up just being a hug. Which, I normally wouldn't like from a stranger, but today I needed it. Also remember he was cute. It was uplifting to have a pleasant interaction with a pleasant person.

So I kept walking with a renewed faith in humanity and saw another set of Green Peacers. One of the them started to initiate conversation but I quickly told him I already talked to a guy. Then I timidly did the start of the secret handshake [which I still wasn't convinced was an actual thing] and the guy says, "Oh, you signed up! Thanks for your support!" and gives me a hug.

Really I spent $15 on two hugs and a sticker today. Worth it!

Side note: Help out my friends, Justin and Sydney, and "Like" this video on Youtube! They are trying to win a camera and $5,000. Help out the Missouri artists!

FREE

2010-06-06T00:44:00.006-05:00

is one of my favorite words.

I went to the Denver Art Museum for a good 2ish hours this morning for the price of free. I've been spoiled by the amazing Nelson Art Museum that doesn't charge for admission, which is really great. Turns out the DAM(that's the abbreviation for the museum, calm down!) has a lot of Native American art. Figures, Denver, the west, etc. Not a lot of contemporary pieces either, which is what I know more. There was one tiny little room dedicate to Photography. Again, I've been spoiled by the Nelson's dedication to Photography. The museum was pretty big and I definitely didn't want to cram, so I skipped a lot of sections that I will go back and see the first Saturdays of July and August.

Right next door to the Art Museum is the Denver Public Library! So I brought the envelope my mother mailed me so I could get a card. Checked out a few and I hope to go back and wander the stacks.

After that I went to a Photo Lecture/discussion at the Foothills Art Center here in Golden, which admission was also free for! First Saturdays of the month are the best.

I have photos, but I'm tired from all the art and culture of the day. Night.

board

2010-06-04T23:47:00.002-05:00

Today was probably the boringest day yet. Nothing really to do and to top it off I haven't really been feeling all that great. Watched some French Open and then I was sad that I had no one to play tennis with today. Also I think I got some blisters from wearing these shoes without socks... I'll be sure to take photos of them if they look gross tomorrow.

Sorry to have a pity party on here, it is just taking a while to have a life here and I don't think I was anticipating that coming into this.

On a more positive note, I'm going to the Denver Art Museum tomorrow because it will be freeeeeee, but I hope there aren't a lot of snot nosed kids and loud people because of this. I'm going right when it opens to avoid them!

shmintern

2010-06-03T23:19:00.005-05:00

I'm officially an intern. Went to WWA today and started my official duties. I'll be co-teaching a kids photo class that meets once a month. Even though I won't be here for the actual "Kids Photography Week" later this year, I will also be helping organize that. In general, I will be helping organize as well! I'm realizing my need for organization. Always in places other than my own room... I'm sure I will be helping out with other random things as well, it really is dependent on what I want to be involved with, which is helpful.

That's about all there is for this post. I was going to post photos of the state of my crazy hair...maybe later.

Guy Co. AD

2010-06-02T23:05:00.007-05:00

Meeting with intern lady tomorrow to figure out what I'll be doing with them.

Went on a run/got a little lost/hike in the afternoon. Then later went downtown for a thing with church.

well...that's about it.

side note/photo:

I kept seeing this billboard on the way to downtown Golden and would laugh. I decided to just pull over and take a photo of it. I LOVE Geico ads and this one especially. I thought it was funny that it was droopy too. While I was taking the photo I was singing MJ's "Somebody's Watching Me," and laughing about it. Then I listened to it in the car afterward. In fact I'm listening to it now! Great song.

Then the next day I drove past it and it was restored... I wonder if someone saw me taking a photo of its droopiness.

one job > two jobs

2010-06-02T00:03:00.011-05:00

Today I was supposed to start working at Wolf camera. However, what I didn't mention is that I had an interview with a photography studio in downtown Golden two hours before I was supposed to start my first day, heh. I went to the interview and it went swimmingly. I called Wolf and told them I had another job and went home and took a nap :) instead of going to work. This could potentially backfire if the Studio doesn't give me enough hours...but I guess I'm willing to take that risk. I just didn't want to commit to both if I couldn't completely do both, and/or end up quitting one right away. The studio job is more what I want to do. Shoot(pun), it IS what I do now, just freelance.

Went to Wash Park tonight for the weekly play time with people from Pathways church. Played a little volleyball and some tennis finally! However, there were defunct sprinklers that started to flow across 75% of our court for 75% of the time. Now that I know this guy plays tennis, next Tuesday we will have to play before the sprinklers come on for the night and ruin our fun!

Also, thanks to Aimee Bee's blog, I had to hunt this new pop down! She had a photo of it in this post.
Cherry Vanilla Pepsi. It's pretty good, combining two of my faves: Pepsi Vanilla and Wild Cherry Pepsi. brilliant! delicious!

and yes the text is backwards because I took it with my mac's web cam.

LAST post of May

2010-05-31T23:25:00.004-05:00

whoa. June is tomorrow. In 24 days I will be flying to KC for my bro's wedding that weekend. It sounds far away but in reality I'm sure these next 24 days will go by really quick. I'm photographing the wedding so I'm excited about that, but I'm also excited to get to see my family and friends and spend some time in Missouri. Who would've ever thought that would be exciting?!

Tomorrow I start work as well... mixed emotions.

Also, I'm meeting with the people from my internship on Thursday to discuss what I'll be doing this summer. Since that is the reason I came out here in the first place, I'm ready to start helping out wherever I can.

kbye

The Sunday Post

2010-05-31T00:11:00.007-05:00

The sky was crazy yesterday, but these photos don't really do it justice. For some reason mountain storms are much more appealing to me, maybe it's because you can get up higher and see more of the amazing clouds and such.

Don't worry, Caroline was driving.

What's crazy is that the clouds didn't really result in any rain, a few tiny sprinkles but that's it. Colorado weather is weird like that.

Today was pretty low key except for adding photos to Facebook, chatting with Kaitlin who is freshly back from Italy!!, and going to church downtown. We went to the evening service this week and there was an "ice cream social" afterward. Met more potential tennisers! I was watching the French open a bit the other day and that just fed my desire to play tennis right now. Hope to get out and enjoy the day tomorrow since Tuesday will potentially end all this free time I've been having.

post

2010-05-30T00:49:00.002-05:00

I don't have much to report except for the fact that I rented UP last night from Red Box. I finally saw it! And it exceeded my expectations.

That's about all there is to say for now. Hopefully more exciting things will happen once I start having a life here.

today is one week here

2010-05-28T22:31:00.003-05:00

The man from the camera store called and the job is mine! I go in Tuesday. I feel pretty accomplished about having a job after only being here one week. In the fall, I'm going to make more of an effort to get a job in Columbia. BUT that's if I don't get work study to work the photo lab again... which I REALLY HOPE I GET! Pray please. Financial Aid/FAFSFA always seems to hate me.

Caroline's eldest sister and her husband are in town and they brought their little Westie, Brutus:

We kept each other company but mostly he lounged about like this

p.s. Kaitlin gave me those sweet socks, was it for Christmas? I think she got them here in Colorado actually. They are called Solmate socks and the mismatchedness is their trademark. They are amazing.

tomorrow is one week here

2010-05-28T00:44:00.010-05:00

I need to change my alarm or something so I can wake up earlier. It's hard to wake up when there isn't a specific thing at a specific time I have to do.

Today I went on a run and found a trail that led up the mountain behind the neighborhood where I live. I couldn't resist and went on a little impromptu hike. I love Colorado! I went and walked around downtown Golden a bit too, read some informational signs and such.

The dude from the camera store didn't call today! Ugh...so I'm calling him tomorrow and applying to more places.

A few photos of downtown, there will be more to come for sure. But honestly, I'm feeling overwhelmed by all the new things to photograph. There is a saying that "everything is interesting and nothing is interesting." Describing the photos one takes when they go somewhere for the first time or first few times. I'm still getting to know Golden/Denver, so the photos I take at first probably won't be the most successful.

ANYWAY, a few:
A sign giving the history of the engineering school here. I really took this for my dad since he inquired that there was an engineering school here. I guess engineers know where other engineering schools are at all times. Engineer.

How creepy is this?!

They belong to this set of statue musicians. Not creepy within the context of their counterparts. Colorado loves statues and I will be photographing them.

oh hey, there's a mountain! That "M" is for the School of the Mines and not Mizzou like I originally thought/hoped. I think this is Clear Creek that runs through downtown. Apparently people kayak and tube down it...hmm

Also, about the LOST finale, this blog I follow, Calico, wrote a nice response to it's ending.HERE. CNN had an article about reactions to it as well.HERE. I haven't met anyone HERE who has seen the last episode and I think for my sanity and peace of mind I need to talk it through with another LOSTie. I'll be calling one of you soon.

emphatically seeking employment

2010-05-27T00:24:00.007-05:00

I don't have a new photo for today... BUT I turned in 3 applications and applied to another job via the web. One is looking really promising because I had a super positive impromptu interview with the boss when I turned in the app. It's really the only job I'm somewhat qualified for: a camera/imaging store. Keep your prayers prayed and your fingers crossed!

Later some people from the church I'm going to, Pathways, and I went to this awesome Cafe Berlin(totally indie/hippie/organic cafe in Columbia)esque restaurant called Vine Street Pub. They are actually having an open interview Friday, so if this other job doesn't work out, this place would be SO chill to work at. After dinner we went to a bar called The Front Porch where it was "flip night." Which means they flip a coin and if you called it correctly your drink is free! Pretty fun. I didn't win though :(

I need to get out and explore with my camera- I'm thinking very soon. Then I will have photos of Mountains or something Coloradoian to post on here.

"We're accepting applications."

2010-05-26T00:01:00.004-05:00

I went around to stores that are down the street inquiring about positions. I got a lot of "we're accepting applications." Ugh, c'mon! One kid at Coldstone was nice enough to tell me to not waste my time with the application because there was a huge stack already. Thank you, kid, I appreciate your honesty! Here are my applications I got today, some said they are doing hiring and some gave me the aforementioned answer. I'll probably just fill them all out because I'm getting anxious about the job situation. I hate filling these out, but here we go...

Later tonight we went to Washington park downtown. It's a beautiful park and a beautiful day to be there. People from our church were playing volleyball and other random things so we played there for a few hours. After that a group of us went to a bar down the street and got some beers. It was fun and I even met 3 new tennis partners! I got a sweet racket from my aunt that I've been dying to play with.

ok, this is already too many words for this post.

Windy and Dry = Drindy

2010-05-24T23:55:00.010-05:00

Went on a run today and quickly realized that Golden is at a much higher altitude than Columbia. My lungs were dying and apparently aren't acclimated yet! Finally found a tennis court with a wall, but it was the tiniest wall ever and I hit 5 balls over. AND there has been the craziest wind the past few days! Everyone claims it isn't always like this but I'm not buying it. The weather is supposed to be nicer this week, so we'll see.

I saw this weird blister and skin on my foot and it scared me! But it's just dry I think. It's so much drier here!

Random self-portrait in the floor to ceiling mirrors that are in my room...I'll show you later, it's weird.

Job hunting tomorrow, wish me luck!

I didn't get LOST today

2010-05-24T00:12:00.012-05:00

Went to church downtownish with Caroline and her friends. Then later, I explored a bit and I was surprisingly able to get around without using my GPS. But really I just wanted to say that so I could talk about LOST!

Series finale tonight. It's really over. I don't feel all that satisfied with the ending, but I am glad my emotions won't be tortured anymore by the unanswered questions! Great show though, I'm glad I got to watch the last season with friends every week... and the the series finale by myself, haha.

PHOTOS from the drive out here:

CRAZY wind farm in the middle of Kansas. These things looked so apocalyptic and other worldly. I would loathe living near them. BUT I do appreciate the efforts for cleaner energy.

I really wanted to be a tourist and take this photo. So I did. Remote in my hand.

My flickr page. for other photos.

Watching Jimmy Kimmel Live now because the cast of LOST is on!

Oh honey

2010-05-23T00:50:00.003-05:00

Today I went to Whole Foods Market and bought some locally made honey. My mother told me she heard somewhere from someone that when you go to a new place you should eat honey that is made locally and your immune system will adjust better/quicker to the pollens of that area. I wasn't sure if I believed her or not but the worst thing that would happen is that I would be eating honey! So I bought some. AND the checkout lady actually confirmed my mother's advice. Honey it is.

Also went to WWA (Working with Artists), the photography school I'm interning with, and got to meet some important people and see the studio and gallery. I think it's going to be a really good experience, I'm excited to see what opportunities this brings.

First night in Golden CO

2010-05-22T02:02:00.004-05:00

My body feels like it is 2:00am, but my computer just realized it is in Mountain Time Zone and is telling me it is 1:00am.

The 10 hour drive I was dreading and fearing ended up not being nearly as bad as I was making it out to be in my head. However, it was boring, hot with my windows up, loud with my windows down, lonely, and my GPS aka phone died twice so I had to pull over and charge it. It would be much more enjoyable with another person and if I had a car phone charger and maybe better AC.

Even with my many stops I got here in good time, just around 10 hours from when I left I think? I got confused with the time zones... Tonight I chatted with Caroline, unpacked a bit, and then we went to one of her friend's house and played Catch Phrase.

I'm stoked to be here and I just wanted to post this on the first night! There would have been a photo but it's just not worth it... I still feel like I'm moving at 75+ miles an hour.

Last post of April, 2010

2010-04-29T16:59:00.004-05:00

Unless I post tomorrow, which I won't.

I recently did some headshots for some people from the recommendation of my dear friend, Kaitlin Foley. They are all in the opera our Music school is putting on tonight! And I'm going for sure. For these shots, I played with an Alien Bee ring light our photo lab has, but my favorites were the ones I shot outside with the natural light.

I'm listening to the band, Flobots, right now also, which I got recently from this guy after I shot his photo:

his ties Benjamin's for my favorite one:

see the rest here!

Oh and to update, I didn't win anything for the book cover contest :/. There were a lot of frustrations I and other artists that entered had with the way the contest was judged. It was put on by the Bookstore on campus, where I worked last summer. After working there for 3 months and seeing all the incompetence, I really shouldn't have expected anything less from them though. But this is the first year they have done this, so I decided to write an email of advice to better it for next year. As an artist I need to learn to deal with rejection though, no matter what the circumstances.

Summer!

2010-04-22T16:25:00.003-05:00

Finally! I know where I will be for the summer: Denver, Colorado! I will be interning with a great program called, Working With Artists, which is actually in Lakewood. The jury is still out on what my other job will be, I've been perusing Denver Craigslist but I might just have to search once I get out there. Working With Artists (WWA) "provides quality photographic education and encourage individual expression for all levels of photographers & arts enthusiasts." YES! I will probably be helping out with the youth programs which sounds so fun! I'll be living with my good friend, Caroline, who lives in Golden which is close to Denver.

Ok now I really need to persevere through these 3 weeks of class and 1 week of finals left... so close!

Also, I entered into a contest to get your art on the cover of these copies of books our school is printing. There is a "People's Choice" award that I would obviously like to win so first go here to "become a fan" and then go here, here, and here and "like" them! The voting in-store and online ends Monday and the winners are announced Wednesday, I'll keep you posted! Thanks for doing this if you do!

-BLT

p.s. follow a new addition to the blogging world, my dear friend, Erin.

off

2010-04-15T00:17:00.002-05:00

It's past midnight and I'm still awake. I've surprisingly been having trouble sleeping lately. Then not surprisingly being very able to sleep during my Roman Art and Archaeology class.

I can't wait for the next 4.5 weeks to be completed. It seems nothing is falling in my favor lately and I could use a change to shake me from this fail-fest. Most of my classes/professors suck, financially I have no finances, and friendships with people seem strained and estranged. Everything is unsure and unknown. Will I graduate in December or May? Found out my capstone isn't offered this fall- for the first time ever. I am left to decide if this "class that is the most important class in a BFA's college career" is worth waiting to graduate in May. I'm indecisive about which cheese to buy and I have to make this pretty important life decision fairly soon. Summer plans are still up in the air until the peeps at the photo organization in Denver get back to me about the (unpaid) internship. And if that falls through...

I've made a To Do list for school and for life. That To Do list plays on loop in my brain as I try to fall asleep. Did I mention I haven't been sleeping well?

On a positive note, Spring is beautiful and I've taken every opportunity I can to enjoy it. Hopefully Spring will help me focus on school (doubt it!) and push through these April showers.

Also: New Wedding Photos

SB 2010!!

2010-03-30T02:35:00.003-05:00

Spring break of my (first) senior year!! ...and I'm in the Photo Lab of the Fine Arts Building at 2:36am on a Tuesday morning. I shot a wedding about a week ago in KC and I'm using the nice, big, fast iMacs we are blessed with(stay tuned for my faves of the bunch). There is also a projector and screen in here :) Allowing me to catch up on my "stories" i.e. 30 Rock, Modern Family, The Office, etc and some movies too.

Pretty chill spring break so far. It isn't a crazy roadtrip or vacay, but I think I needed something low key and restful. I've just been working on these photos and a few other projects I needed to tend to, with plenty of movie and people breaks. Even got to enjoy this gorg weather and play some tennis today. rusty tennis, but tennis nonetheless.

I'm going back to Indep/Lee's Summit tonight for some quality time with the fam and some friends from home, should be a good time.

ok, I can hear birds, I should probably walk across the street to my apt :)

another one

2010-03-09T16:56:00.002-06:00

Yea, there are so many ways to communicate via the internet. Twitter, Facebook, Blogspot, Flickr...and I've discovered a new one: tumblr.com. Of course I'm trying it:

http://breezylucia.tumblr.com/

The interwebs and I have a love/hate relationship, he and I know that and are coming to terms with it.

By Will's request

2010-01-07T10:47:00.002-06:00

I went over to my brother Will's house a week or so ago for brunch with his soon to be in-laws. They had brought their dogs and one of them is this huge poodle puppy. Will has a cat, previously photographed, who hated the dogs. This is what happened. Will has been bugging me since I caught this act on tape to put it on youtube. And there you have it.

Post-christmas

2009-12-26T23:48:00.004-06:00

I'm watching Overboard (a great movie I've seen a million times with one of my favorite actresses- Goldie Hawn) on tbs with my Mom while my little bro breaks in his new xbox 360 downstairs. I've done a lot of tv watching, movies on tv watching, game playing, eating, and sleeping. Ok this is nice and fun, but what am I going to do until school starts...when is that again? I just had to look it up, January 19th...

I need to make a plan so I can be productive, a list of things to accomplish over this exaggeratedly long break. Maybe that will give me something to wake up before 11 for.

In the mean time, my mother: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FWl1nBely0

Donezo

2009-12-21T00:01:00.013-06:00

The semester is officially over. I've been done since Wednesday at 12 and I'm enjoying the freedom. However, I'm not sure what I'm going to do for a whole month off of school... I suppose it would be a good chance to catch up on photo making/editting. Also, it would be nice to make some art without the pressure of it being grading--art classes are stifling my creativity!

At the top of my "To do during break" list was editting the wedding photos that I took last month for Erin's sister. This weekend, I've been living in the photo lab slaving over them. I put my faves on Flickr, here are my faves of my faves:

Check out the rest here!

and hire me to shoot you!

with a camera

Nearing

2009-12-05T13:48:00.004-06:00

Nearing the end of the semester and I'm ecstatic about that. However, there is much to do before the semester comes to a close completely. Projects, papers, and photos to turn in.

I'm in a bit of a lull with my photography. Trying to figure out what to focus on next. (pun intended.)

In the meantime, a fave from the fall:

more photos

Thanks Given

2009-11-26T22:35:00.010-06:00

Some photos from the day of Thanks:

My "bashed" potatoes

The table with the napkins Tayler folded, surprisingly

My little brother's cat, Eleanor, drinks Dr. Pepper?

My older brother's cat, Felix, sun bathing ominously.

Again...

This photo is mainly in reference to my friend Keith's photo a few days ago on his blog. I saw this hanging in my brother's laundry room and thought of his photo.

I should really get to bed because me and my bro Will are braving the crowds in the morning.

more photos

Plane Lines

2009-11-25T23:07:00.003-06:00

A photo I took earlier this month as a plane drew on the clear blue sky. I'm having issues getting my real website up and running, so successfully posting a photo on here is very satisfying.

Happy Thanksgiving in 49 minutes!

fall 09

2009-09-04T01:54:00.004-05:00

It is late and I should be asleep.

However, I only have one class tomorrow at 2 pm so I feel like it's acceptable to indulge in my night owl tendencies.

Autumn is coming and my heart is excited. I haven't had a fall for two years (I studied abroad last July-Dec in the Southern hemisphere where the seasons are switched. Think about it.) It is my favorite season. I hope this one is meaningful and inspirational.

The Fall Semester has started and I'm trying to catch up already. On sleep, reading, art, research. I wish I could devote all my time to one class so I could fully engage it, but I can't and am taking the most hours so far of my college career.

Time to rely on something greater than myself.

2009-06-24T17:33:00.001-05:00

Today, at work (Tiger Tech, selling computers to freshmen mostly), a British lady jokingly told me to "shut up," and it was hilarious.

oh, hi, blog, I had forgotten about you...

2009-02-15T01:38:00.003-06:00

Oops, seems I have neglected this silly blog again.

Well, I'm back in the USA.

It's weird to think that it's all past tense now. I STUDIED abroad. I LIVED in Argentina.

Sometimes I forget or think about it and wonder if it really happened.

Oh, it did.

And I turn 21 in 6 days.

NOVEMBER!

2008-11-20T15:16:00.004-06:00

hahaha. One post a month is my trend I guess.

I pull up iCal on my MacBook to count the days. "One week and...4 days, ok a week is 7 days, 7 plus 4 is 11. 11 days until I leave Mendoza." I let that sink in a little bit. My flight home is December 22nd, so I've been under the impression that I have SO much time left and that I don't need to freak out or anything just yet. Wrong. What made this experience what it was, was the people and the place (even though Mendoza isn't my "ideal" city). Living and "studying" here in Mendoza with these other Americans. My friend Susan is even leaving here this Saturday! My friend Nathalie from Virginia is leaving the 28th. The reality of the situation started to sink in yesterday after our last Spanish class. I actually didn't realize it was our last class until... right now. We have our tests next week during class time. I leave December 1st to travel south. Jo and I are going to travel together for the first part until she heads off to Chile to visit a friend. We'll say bye to our friend Allison that day. Thankfully I get to prolong the Jo farewell until after travelling with her for a while. Then I'm on my own to do and go wherever the Patagonian road takes me.

I feel anxious to be done with this frustrating, unorganized, confusing Argentine school system. But then I know when I'm done with that I'm done with this experience. It's a catch 22. I feel the urge to experience things in Mendoza I haven't gotten around to doing yet. Photographing things and places. More "touristy" things. I even started packing last night in a fit of anxiousness. These next 11 days are going to be weird and surreal. I'm leaving the people, not just people anymore, but friends now, and the places, also not just places anymore but more like "home." I'm about to leave the friends and home I've spent all my time with for the past four months.

OCTOBER!

2008-10-31T13:36:00.005-05:00

I really wanted to post today so that I posted AT LEAST once in October. This will give the allusion that I've been committed to writing on here.

Tomorrow is November, and that will mark the end. Final trips with friends, finals in school, goodbyes are all coming up. BUT, I still have until December 22nd (I changed my flight from the 7th to the 22nd to allow more traveling time). I'm gonna soak up all that I can from now until then.

It feels like I have to leave when I have finally become comfortable with being here. I feel like I can get around the city and handle the language. I'm just starting to know what is going on. Staying longer sounds so inviting and promising. School beckons me back home though. After December, I'll sit in the lecture halls and do photography projects until He opens the door to an opportunity to commit more time.

Foto proyecto

2008-09-29T22:30:00.004-05:00

Light Dancing 04, originally uploaded by BreezyLucia.

My first photography assignment in my "Fotografía para grafica" class in Argentina. The assignment was vague and allowed room for me to be as creative and ambitious as I pleased. There was different types of effects we were to choose from, but he kind of just told me to do a "lucigrama." Which is more or less a low light photo with using a light source to illuminate, draw, etc. I've tried this practice of "painting with light" but decided to experiment with "dancing with light." My good friend, Jo, is a dancer and I asked for her assistance with the project. She excitedly agreed. We used the studio at the "Instituto Chopin" were she takes dance and I take choir. She brought her MacBookAir for tunes, some headlamps to strap to her wrists, and we got to work. It was a lot of fun and the results were better than I thought they would be. After seeing what came out and having a better understanding of what is produced, we might try for round two to see what we can come up with...

Go to my Flickr to see them all!

Mi horario

2008-09-07T15:11:00.003-05:00

My classes are finally final! 18 hours. 5 classes. Spanish m/w 1:10-3, Photography for Graphics tu 8am-11, Communication through Film tu 4pm-8, Choir(why not?) w 7pm-8, and Popular Music of Argentina th 7pm-9. If you were to think about this for a while, you would see I'm not in class hardly as much as I would be if I was taking 18 hours in the states. I'm pretty excited about these classes, it is a good mix of my interests. Also, my schedule leaves Fridays completely free :).

I have a lot of potential blog topics floating around in my head right now but I'm not feeling any motivation to tie any one of them down onto this page just yet. So this is all. Now you can know when I'm supposed to be in class.

Casi un mes

2008-08-22T10:05:00.019-05:00

Sunday will be one month since I arrived in Argentina. Then three days later will mark one month in Mendoza. Wow, it's only been a month? Wow, it's been a month already? I recently reflected on this thought and evaluated my situation. I realized my Spanish has improved, there can be no denying that, but could be improving a lot more considering I'm in a Spanish-speaking country. My decision to come here was primarily fueled by my desire to learn Spanish, so it should be more of a priority. I'm not just going to wake up one morning and be fluent and I think somewhere in my head I was hoping that was a possibility. To learn better, I need to put more time and effort into it. I'm going to have to spend time studying, reviewing, and practicing.

Right now, I have about two weeks to "shop" classes and pick which ones I'm going to take. I've been to a bunch and am stressing out about which ones to take. But I'm realizing whichever classes I chose is going to be fine. Either way, I'm going to be in a class that is taught in Spanish with Argentine students. I will be ecstatic when I finally have a schedule.

Other news, I've finally posted on Flickr! Here is a taste.

Some shots from Buenos Aires

And some shots from my trip to Malargue (about six hours south by bus).

Go to my flickr to see them all! CLICK HERE

After that, just click on the box "Argentina" and then you can chose which set to look by clicking on the boxes entitled "Buenos Aires" and/or "Malargue." Read the descriptions to learn more about the photo and life in Argentina. Yeah, I'm living in Mendoza, but I haven't taken an excursion out to photograph. Soon, soon.

Living abroad,

"Brisa"

¡Che, estoy acá!

2008-08-09T14:23:00.008-05:00

Understatement of my life: a lot has happened since my last post.

I've flown a combined, approximated 13 hours by plane to South America. I arrived in Buenos Aires to meet the group of 40ish other students from the states who would also be studying in Argentina for a semester (some for a year). We were in B.A. for 3 days and then flew to Mendoza, where we would really start "living" in Argentina, instead of being carted around in a charter bus and taken to restaurants in a huge group. Our host families were to pick us up from the airport and then we would go to live with them. While waiting for my luggage I couldn't help but think about what a strange moment and car ride that would be. I exit the doors and see an older couple holding a sign that says "TORRES" and I struggle to walk and wheel and carry all my stuff towards them. We greet the Argentine way: a hug and kiss on the cheek (but really, you just touch cheeks and kiss the air).

Now if I were to go into great detail of everything since then, you would stop reading about now.

To sum up things so far, things aren't how I imagined they would be. But of course they wouldn't be. I had no idea what to expect and my brain tried to come up with something, which of course was just a figment of my imagination and wasn't reality. Sometimes it hits me that I'm here, in Argentina, and it weirds me out. That doesn't bother me too much, but what makes me nervous is the next thought that comes, that I'm going to be here until December. I feel like I'm just here for a vacation or mission trip. The lifestyle and culture is different and as the days go by, it will sink in and I will be used to life here. I don't think it is a thing that happens right away or even happens with me knowing it. Every time I do something, it becomes more familiar.

This post is a little jumbled, but hopefully clarity will come.

Estoy aprendiendo,

Breezy

p.s. I know since I'm a photographer you will be expecting photos, don't worry, they will come

see you later

2008-07-14T21:22:00.007-05:00

Part one: Columbia friends, 1317 Anthony

I said bye to Columbia and all that goes with it. My last summer day in Columbia was, to say the least, amazing. Waking up at 5:20ish am wasn't as hard as it usually is knowing that it was the last chance to go watch the sunrise with my best friend, well, until December. "Let's have a happy goodbye," was the desire, yet, we knew that couldn't happen. Surprised to see a bunch of friends early at my summer home to eat breakfast and say farewell meant so much. It was perfect with everyone leaving at a good pace for me to get a chance to soak up the last embraces and faces of each. Saying bye to the house and my best friends was teary and rough and drawn out. Naturally, we procrastinated leaving each other's presence. In the midst of this heartache, at least I can find joy in the beauty of our emotions. The fact that we can even feel this deeply is powerful.

Now, I'm home until I depart. Imagining five months without seeing the people and places of Columbia is hard and it hurts my heart right now, especially since I'm just an hour and a half west. I miss it so much already. It's the missing that is from knowing I can't be there for a long time, not from not being there in a long time. Well, I had to leave eventually, but I'll continue to mourn this separation.

Hope is in the fact that I'm coming back. Yet this hurts right now, I know this experience will be life changing. I have to be obedient to my passion for spanish. I have to be obedient to Him who gave me this passion for a reason.

Part two: homeland friends and family...

neglected

2008-07-02T01:37:00.005-05:00

I have, yet again, abandoned the blog world.

I hadn't really been the most frequent updater, but I was at least a devoted reader... until recently. It's about time for me to get sucked back into the interwebs and read up on the thoughts and lives of my "peeps" (see column of links on the right).

Ok, fresh start, it's July! The month of my departure. It's crunch time to have some quality fun with friends and family. Oh, I guess I could work a little too. I'm going attempt to savor the final moments I have here in the summer weather in Missouri in the U.S. before I take off for something unfamiliar.

savoring sweet summer,

-Breezy

side note: I have seven spider bites on my left hand that have been weirding me out and causing me discomfort, what does one put on said bites?

summer has begun/is almost over

2008-06-11T00:50:00.006-05:00

A journal entry from 1:05 am:

It is June 11th, I leave July 23rd from Kansas City. Even sooner, I leave Columbia to go back home on July 14th. This summer is going by faster than I ever imagined. 34 days left in Columbia. 43 days left in the United States. When did that happen? I was thinking about it today and miscalculated (of course...math) and thought it was 53 days until I depart. That number I was ok with, it was comforting, and I felt like I still had a lot of time. But then when I actually figured it out, especially how many more days in Columbia I have remaining... my heart dropped and I thought I was going to throw up. Whoa, this is actually going to happen soon, huh? When am I going to realize that? Probably when I get back in December... So after I calculated the real numbers, I had this sinking feeling as I'm laying in bed attempting to sleep. I feel like I haven't been using my short short short time this summer as best as I could and I want to start now...but it's 1:14 am... I was just laying in bed with those numbers heavy on my brain and I couldn't stop thinking about the situation. I don't want to wake up tomorrow and it be July 14th or July 23 and I still haven't done anything. I want to use this time to accomplish goals, prepare spiritually, fall back in love with the spanish language (a.k.a. review spanish), and shower my friends with love. I had to get up and journal this so I will remember the urgency of this feeling.

Risky

2008-05-26T16:29:00.002-05:00

I found this scrawled on a little piece of paper from awhile ago:

I think the reason I've put off studying abroad until now, and the reason why people don't get around to it even if the desire is so strong is because of all the risks involved.

Risks financially, mentally, academically, spiritually, relationally

But, I'm in. I'm going to Mendoza, Argentina to LIVE and STUDY from July to December. I can't wrap my brain around it.

success

2008-05-09T03:43:00.004-05:00

successfully pulled off my first all-nighter in college, then today i took a huge nap hence me being up at this time of the night

but oh well, because i got everything done, for now

thank you, artisan and Kaitlin for accompanying me, and keeping me company

new shoes from Aimee, love them and her

one more week

p.s. "Your blog post published successfully!" haha

reality

2008-04-08T14:20:00.004-05:00

today I can officially start thinking about this summer and mentally prepare for next semester

I will spend July-December here:

Argentina

I will be attending Universidad Nacional de Cuyo in Mendoza, Argentina.

tengo miedo,
Breezy

breathe

2008-03-22T01:06:00.007-05:00

i never thought i'd see the end to my stressed out, crazy, frustrated, cranky lifestyle that i've been sucked into lately. God has really taken the worries from my brain, and I'm so thankful.

i want to take photos and do art for FUN please. i'm planning on doing that over break. i'm in new orleans, two blocks from the french quarter, weird. i want to go shoot things (with my camera) while i'm here.

here is one of my favorite photos i've taken for my photo class. the project was to make the lighting an important part of the photos. this was taken on black and white film and i scanned the negative. i shot this using a ring light. technical things aside, its a pretty shot of Kaitlin

2008-03-16T12:20:00.005-05:00

Seeing things more clearly

another blog website?

2008-03-13T18:58:00.013-05:00

I'm usually wary of "these kind" of websites, blogs, etc. However, my friends insured me it's legit. Plus with the possibility of being out of the country for next semester, this would be a easy way to keep in touch, cry about how I don't want to speak Spanish anymore (be on the lookout for that post), and to put up some fotografías.

I wish I could put up some deep thought or enlightenment I've had recently...but I don't really have those.

So, here is one of my favorite photos from the summer, when I lived in Estes Park, CO. We went camping (my first time ever) and had some solitude time in the forest, where I decided to capture the beautiful nature scene I was in the midst of.

nube

2008-03-11T00:14:00.001-05:00

this feels like xanga, but they tell me it's not like it....

we'll see