Hey guys!
I appreciate the fact that so many of you check in here even when I'm crazy and missing in action! So sorry for the break!
I spent last week up in PA with all these crazy people! We all came from far (South Carolina, Georgia, Maryland and across PA) and near to be with eachother during this special weekend in my hometown. For ALF... or Autumn Leaf Festival.
Yes - this is IMMEDIATE family... on one side. We are large and always always in charge.
We did lots of hugging and loving, and chatting and eating and drinking together.
My mom and her two sisters (she has 3 brothers also).
We have 5 JOHNS (some who go by Jack) in our family. A good little random fact.
This shot of my cousin is priceless. Grandma is moving in for a cheek pinch and a smooch!
This little lady was all over the place. Mover and a shaker. Walker and a cupboard looter!
Had a little photo shoot with the cutie pie six month old I shared with you the other day... and another with this sweet as can be high school senior...
The BIG parade on Saturday is not to be missed...
That big bag that Macho is holding... well - it was FULL of candy when we departed later that afternoon. I'm tellin ya. NOT. TO. BE. MISSED.
You're a toughie kid. Or just a crackup. So thinks Mimi.
There's a concession stand that has been there as long as I've been alive that pulls freshly made taffy on a huge steel hook right in front of you. It's AAHHHHMAZING.
Macho will demonstrate how to properly consume.
So now I'm back - and trying to return to a bit of a normal routine.
However - folks - October isn't really going to be a "normal" month for me. To date - it will be my busiest yet for photography. I'm excited. I've got my sleeves rolled up and I'm ready for action. Four shoots in a week? Alright. I can handle it. At least - that's what I'm repeating to myself while I freak out on the inside!
I'm gearing up for an insane month and also gearing up to take a nice little (and very much needed) winter break afterward. I'm anxious to work hard and play hard.
The little missus will be turning one in November so I want to be presently "present" for it - and I wanna have my act together for the holidays and really be able to enjoy them and not spend them editing into the wee hours of morning like I am now. And I have a laundry list of things that I'm really wanting to tackle in my life personally that I've not been able to get to because work has been so wonderfully overwhelming lately.
Like - uh - I need to do some scrapbooking - to save my sanity!!!!! It's my happy place - and I miss it something fierce.
And I think that taking a break sometimes can be a really good thing to keep your passion burning strong for your art. Else you will find yourself burnt out and utterly out of love with it. And I defintiely don't want that happening. I love my Nikon too too much.
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Since it bears on this conversation...
We lost one of the true few visionaries last week in Steve Jobs.
I'll leave you with his great words...
“Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.”
Steve Jobs
Stanford commencement speech, June 2005
