horoscope hilarity...

periodically, i burst into honest to goodness ROTFLMAO guffawing. this is one of those days.... oh mr. horoscope, today you're getting lots of brownie points! just call me the pitbull of love and hand me the white pages!

"Oh, my. You're definitely in the mood for romance -- but not just romance. It's time for passion of the most intense kind! And this is definitely a long-term proposition. You want depth, intensity and a real soul-sharing experience, and you won't stop until you have it. The good news is that if anyone is capable of having it, it's you. Get in touch with the person who can provide you with it."

the wedding under a double rainbow...

IMG_0054.jpg-0451, originally uploaded by MisfitHue.

meet Jen and Erich who were married september 26, 2009, always laughing, and game for any shooting fun that Liz wanted to try. (click the photo for more)

i was lucky enough to shoot as second for Liz Reiff Sloan of L Photographie. Liz is insanely creative and bold... we put these two on a metro train! what an inspiring photographer and patient teacher!!!

the weather was a constant threat and rained a little on our parade, but as the couple emerged from City Hall... there was a double rainbow. W.O.W!

(the green bay packers were staying at the westin that weekend and i got to ride the elevator with a lovely selection of the defensive line. what a day!)

Hardkour: Take one (Light Graffiti)

Hardkour: Take one (Light Graffiti), originally uploaded by Eibx.

not mine. wish it was. LOVE it.

Shane and Veronica....

IMG_0054.jpg-7962, originally uploaded by MisfitHue.

Shane and Veronica were married on September 12, 2009.

a friend from a photog class knew i was trying to get experience shooting weddings and asked if i'd like to tag along. OF COURSE!

i was the third shooter, and this turned out to be the second wedding for all three of us--a major learning for me.

i got a pretty good sense of the craziness of a big wedding party... 20 peeps! YIKES!

what i learned that day? the photographer really is one of the most important people in the wedding... listen to them! and as a photographer, i really need to know what the hell i want you to do, and how to get what i want.

only practice will perfect that.

thanks Kristi for inviting me along!!

little dude

little dude, originally uploaded by MisfitHue.

it has been one of those days.

oh, yes it has.

i call these bad bio-rhythm days. the sort of day when everything is hard, from sending an email to writing a blog to taking a picture to getting dressed to getting food to your mouth to whacking yourself with the toothbrush thus smearing your face with minty fresh paste.

i woke up early to go see eagles and see what sort of pics i could get with big daddy... it'd have been his first run with the baldies. toooooooo much fog. if there was this much fog in the city, i didn't really have much hope for the outer areas. back to sleep.

wake up and clean the apartment. trip over the vacuum which has stopped working for all intents and purposes. obviously in need of coffee, i then consumed too much. so to counter caffeine jitters, i ate an omelet and then at 3 o'clock half a pbj, and just now, a handful of pizza rolls. ew.

save the day... take out big daddy and shoot some things in forest park. start with steinberg rink. screw up someones phone when they ask you to take a pic with their phone. back away.... back away... shootshootshoot.... nearly run to the car. this is a crappy day to be shooting forest park, give up and head back home.

i've been on edge this whole day, so of course, mom calls. GAH!

my bangs are too long and getting that funky flip, so i randomly attacked them. and now, just as the sun sets the clouds break and clear light bounce off the computer at me... too late.

weird edginess, i've been leery of people and nervous about going places. i'm watching my email like a hawk, but what for???? this day is jacked. i feel like the vinyl is skipping. good gawd, move the needle...

i need something stellar. something rockin and awesome. something to clear away the paranoid cobwebs.

please.

thank heaven for this little dude... the golden moment in my day. :)

the gateway arch

IMG_7684, originally uploaded by MisfitHue.

so a friend asked me for a pic of the arch.

good grief, i didn't really have one. how is that possible?

i went downtown around sunset and shot the arch. any st louisan or photog in the lou worth their salt must have shots of the arch. (you know the drill. click the pic.)

i'm sure that i didn't find any new angles that haven't been shot a million times, but now they've been shot by me. :)

i really like getting up close and personal with things. i like the way some of these shots don't really show the size of the monument.

oh it's bloody huge.

i'm hopeful about Google...

below is a link to the Official Blog of Google. i highly recommend reading it.

i have very strong feelings towards China, and it is sometimes a struggle for me maintain compassion and cultivate wisdom. it is sometimes difficult not become outraged and preach to anyone who will listen.

i wish that screaming, stomping and tears made a difference, but there are more effective routes. :)

i've been watching the spidery cracks of change spread ever so slowly.

when Google first went into China, i understood the argument and took this as just one more step in the direction of future change. with the developments of this week, i've been cautiously thrilled.

though i do not wish ill to anyone, especially not the Chinese employees of Google, i am rather excited to see a company of this caliber stand up to the Chinese government. this could set a precedent.

...and a precedent opens the door even wider to change.

i'll be watching what happens very closely, and i'll remain ever hopeful that one day His Holiness can return to his home in Lhasa.

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/new-approach-to-china.html

don't pick your nose in public...

i will take your picture.

what i'm not going to say...

"boys are simple, girls are complex."

a guy told me that and i didn't think that was a very nice thing to say about guys. so, in my infinite wisdom, i disagreed.

but, the joke is on me. oddly enough, while watching a group of twenty something guys play on stage last night, it occurred to me that the guy who told me that was right. i really don't think the majority of men really want or need explanation. "your lips move, but i don't hear what you say."

i can't believe it took all these years to realize that all of my probing questions to understand and struggles to be clear and communicate, which ended up in paragraphs of emotional explanations, have been a huge waste.

i will not tell you, dear reader, how often i have second guessed my communication skills. you've read it here a dozen times.

"dating is hard" because we make it that way. the more i try to live in the moment, minimize expectations, and be honest about what i want, the deeper into the quicksand i am yanked.

i think the best that i can do is attempt to maintain a sense of humour in the face of the relentless and emotional lightening bolts. cry, laugh, cry, laugh. there is comfort in routine.

i am left with only one thought. i really need to get a cat.

beledi best...

i'm exhausted, so this is going to be brief...

tonight we started a new choreo... a beledi piece. i prefer this of all the styles i've danced. it's internal. it's squishy and it is insanely sexy. most of the time, i wouldn't use the word sexy to describe belly dance because it just drags us old americans down a road that i don't want to go.

however, beledi is sexy and this is what i do best. i've never been a lofty, ballet-esque dancer who does raqs sharqi well. this is much more suited to my body and my demeanor.

i'm very excited and pleased with the way the first evening went. more to come...