This has been a record year for snow and there is no end in sight. Couple that with very cold temperatures and it feels like exceptional circumstances and not like ordinary workdays. Even though I should work on my two major to do items - which would be working on my stories and organizing the house - I seem to be more inclined to work on staying warm and comfortable. So this is how I spent my day on arctic Monday: make a fire - put on thick, woolen socks - read under a blanket - make a pot of rooibush - bake a bread - eat said bread with a freshly made spelt & onion soup - drink delicious, piping hot and überheatlhy elderberry juice - take a bath.
Determining one favorite of anything is a very difficult thing for me, in no way can I narrow it ever down to one. When it comes to colors, it really depends on the circumstances and situations, though two colors stand out: Aqua and orange. If I would poll all my friends, I am sure most of them would answer orange and being a democrat at heart, that's what I went with. The sun obviously agreed with my choice and delivered a stunning sunset over Newburyport Mass, when I took a stroll on the winter beach of Plum Island yesterday.
Whereas most people in the old world were struggling with finding snow for this topic (and due to that a lot got very creative and inventive), the new world has more snow than we can ever use. The streets have turned into snow canyons and the backyard is slowly going up in altitude. I like winter and its wonderland landscapes, very magical.
A photo challenge and a snapshot usually don't live in the same category, so the more interesting to start this challenge with exactly that. Most of my pictures are made with a purpose or idea, but snapshots somehow seem to come from a different angle. They are a spur of the moment raw slice of life. I think that is actually their strength, they capture a fleeting moment without a composition and perfect light, they convey emotions and memories. While visiting a friend's house, the youngest was 'flying' from one sofa to the other with such speed and energy, the blur does it justice.
Projekt 52 is another German photo challenge, was born out of the 365 challenge of taking a picture a day and is asking for a photograph a week. The impetus is to constantly work creatively. Every week a new topic or theme is chosen and there are two groups of people participating. One group uses the same figure, doll or manikin in every picture - much like the alphabet soup challenge - and the other group works freely. I decided on the latter, since I already work with lovely Peter Pan on the other challenge. This came late to me, I am already behind and the revelation of the next topic is looming, but it sounds like fun and I am amazed by the strong networking of German bloggers, they are really active and social.
N for Noodles - Silly Peter, doesn't he know to be careful what to wish for? He said he was so hungry, that he could eat a whole pool of noodles, but was not aware of the consequences when his wish was spontaneously granted by higher powers.
'Buchstabensuppe' is German for alphabet soup and in this case refers to a photography challenge somebody in Germany came up with. The rules are as follows: she draws a letter every 2 weeks - because coincidentally there are exactly enough letters in the alphabet for every fortnight, but I don't want to go into the significance of the number 26 here. Participants pick a figure that will be in every picture taken and that is the hard thing, I have tough time deciding between a Playmobil witch, a Schleich fairy or Disney's Robin Hood. Anyway, I am lagging behind already, since the challenge already went onto the second letter, but since we are having yet another snow day here in beautiful Massachusetts, it should be done by the end of the day.
Posts
All Comments
