Warrior Dash

"The craziest fricken' day of your life".

That's how Warrior Dash touts their 5k 12 obstacle course race. Sure, I've had crazier days but this still right up there as one of them. This is the second year I have competed in Warrior Dash and I plan on doing it again next year.

I told myself in the middle of the race this year that I wasn't going to do it again next year because it was really hard on my knee; the hills KILL me. But, you know what, it's awesome motivation to get my strength up. Plus, I honestly think the reason I keep going back to it, is to challenge myself and because I have never done anything like this in my life (well, save for last year of course). And, really, when do you get an opportunity like this to do something crazy? I mean, sure it's a 5k, there are 5ks all the time. But then you have obstacles? Shit, it's crazy different.

Plus you get MUDDY! I love getting muddy. I may look tired as all hell (probably because I was still trying to get my breath back haha) but it was fun. And there's this unique camaraderie with the other participants on the course. You can bitch about the course with each other and have that immediate understanding. You get help from others if you are struggling with any of the obstacles. You are motivated by others. It's really neat.

Mud. Sweat. Beer. Well, Miller Light.. which isn't really beer to me but hey, it was free. I ended up completing it in 46 I believe (shaved 11 minutes off my time last year!).

Next year will be even better. Cheers.

Kick Clutter to the Curb

Pack-rat.

That's something I've heard, and used, all my life to describe the inherited clutter traits from my mother. See that picture on the right? That was the garage at my parent's house and I'm glad I took a picture of it. Now, whenever I feel overwhelmed with my stuff, I look at this picture, mentally go back into that garage, and feel better about our situation.

A specialty of mine is the 'what if I need that one day?' thought process I go through when trying to get rid of my crap (don't even get me started on 'I'll fit into that one day'). I always seem to amass a smorgasbord of just stuff from the parents, or grandmas, or from people who are giving something away for free. Who can resist free, anyway? Not this girl.

I am always going through my stuff and trying to get rid of something, ANYTHING! I hate the feeling of knowing I have all this stuff in boxes that isn't useful in any way but insists on sticking around, year after year. Mostly, the things I lug around with me are purely sentimental items from my past. But it's ironic because I never see these things and am not reminded of the precious memory until I go through all my boxes again for the 6th time this year, solely for the purpose of donating unused clutter. Until I came across a quote that really stuck it to me and my clutter.

“Hanging onto resentment is letting someone you despise live rent-free in your head" -Esther Lederer

It's not exactly aimed at clutter, more at people, but it still spoke to me. I'm letting the burden of all this stuff live rent-free in my head. Let's not mention the 5 years it wasn't living rent-free in a storage shed. I realized I didn't want to drag all this around with us anymore. It exerted too much energy and money we didn't have for a whole lotta nothing in return. My problem also stems from my poor memory, so I become afraid I would forget something I wanted to remember if I got rid of the item(s) which evoked the memory. Not good.

I have read (and reread) lots of articles with great tips and tricks for dealing with the psychological part of clutter, or 'emotional clutter'. Mostly on Pinterest. Oh, I love Pinterest. But, I digress.. that's a post for another day. Basically, by saying 'what if I need this later?' you're putting value on that item in your head. The emotional clutter that ties directly into the fear of losing a connection to a loved one or a special memory is a dangerous one too. Would Great Aunt Millie really want you keeping her huge China hutch in your home just because it was something she used all her life and then passed on to you? Especially if it causes more pain than happiness? Chances are, if she could be here now she would say something like 'Oh heavens no child, you don't even own any China, give it to someone who can use it.' It's pointless to force yourself to keep or use something just because that something holds significance. Notice I said 'force yourself to use it'. Keep it only if you're really, really going to put it to good use or if it truly benefits/enhances your life. Take a realistic approach and don't kid yourself.

There's another trick I really like that deals with weeding out your closet. Take all of hangers and turn them the other way and as you use them turn the hangers back the way they were. Anything left after 3 months, 6 months, 2 weeks, whatever period of time you feel is acceptable for your life, get rid of it! Donate, pass to a friend, or have a garage sale. I haven't had a chance to try this one out in full-scale mode, but once I tackle my garage the closet is surely next.

Now I am all too familiar with the fact that all these nifty tips and tricks are easier said than done... it took me 4 years to finally get on the track to correcting my clutter mentality. Just release yourself from the burden of carrying around unnecessary items you let live rent-free in your head; your children and future grandchildren will thank you for it. I have a big goal for myself in the coming weeks, to once and for all go through those sentimental things that do not enhance my life and give them to someone who can really use them. Of course, I will be documenting everything I get rid of with, you guessed it, my trusty camera. Because I can zip photos, I can't zip 10 boxes of papers.

John Hancock

I have a basic photo editing program that lets me play around a little bit with my photos. Photos that I happen to take on a smartphone camera. It's nowhere near the level Photoshop is, but I don't have $900 to spend on it so I use the most of what I have. Besides, I don't really need a bunch of fancy editing tools right now, I'm just interested in basics. Why mess with a good thing, right? While playing around with all the capabilities of the software I have, I stumbled across a watermark-type feature which I played with the rest of the afternoon.

I'm glad I can finally add my 'signature' line to the photos I create, because I tend to share them out in the internet world. Which can be dangerous. Like compromising your own intellectual property. Not a good thing if I'm aspiring to eventually have my photos on display.. somewhere, someday. For right now, I have been scouring for photography contests I can enter to bulk up my portfolio. Eventually, I'd like to save up enough money to get myself a beautiful digital SLR camera. I have lost so much of what I learned about photography when I was taking classes in college. Aperture, f/stops, ISO, darkroom development, camera angles, composition, diffused lighting techniques, the list goes on and on as to the intricacies of photography. And I love every second of it. Thankfully I kept the very well-loved, very well dog-eared photography text book from college.

My real interest right now is macro lens photography, getting down to the nitty gritty of things around me. I am also experimenting with different angles of ordinary things, as well as taking more pictures of people (something I was never really interested in doing, aside from capturing candid photos of my friends and loved ones). And of course, there's flowers. I love taking pictures of flowers, which I am fortunate I get a lot of this time of year. The dahlias are especially wonderful for the photos I love taking.

As much as I enjoy taking pictures of the bright greens and deep blues of summer; the rainbows of flower patterns, colors, shapes and sizes; the intricacies of the most simple of gardens; wonderful reds of ripening tomatoes; alas I have so much anticipation for the fall. I would argue with myself that fall is my favorite time of the year. My first love is and will always be trees. And when those leaves begin turning, falling and crunching beneath my feet, I am in pure photography bliss. I can't wait to throw on my rain boots, wrap my scarf around my neck and hop out the door, camera in hand.

Now, where did I put that photography book..

Mushroom and Spinach Cups

Each month in my Everyday Food magazine, there is a 5 day menu and shopping list. I have been doing weekly meal planing on and off for almost 4 years so this was a no-brainer. Recently, they began making the shopping list a detachable card, which was way cool.

Last week, I made something that is definitely one of my favorite dishes we've come across from this magazine. They are simple (like a 'why didn't I think of that' simple) and delicious but I think what excites me most about this is the versatility of the dish. You can make just about anything in these tortilla cups. I quickly listed off at least a dozen dinners in my head I could make in this fashion. Here is the recipe below, from Everyday Food.

5 oz spinach
1 lb mushrooms- I used crimini
1/2 med onion- I had the luxury of using one from the garden :)

Tortillas-  used 6
1 1/2 cups pepperjack cheese

Oil for pan
Heat oven to 450 degrees

Heat pan over medium and add oil. Add onion, sautee 3 minutes then add mushroom until it's all nice and caramelized. Then you put it in a medium sized bowl and mix with the spinach and one cup of the pepperjack. I missed that part of the directions and added the whole cup and a half. But hey, I don't have anything against extra cheese :) Fold your tortillas and place them in a big muffin tin, mine was 6. Evenly distribute the yummy mixture into the cups and top with shredded pepperjack. Place in the oven until tortilla is brown and the pepperjack is melted, about 5 minutes.

I had skirt steak happily sizzling away on the barbecue and decided to combine the two. I ended up taking all my steak out and cutting it up. Much easier to eat.

Another I'm definitely making this again. Soon.

What's life without food?

Of course, I have to take pictures of anything yummy I come across. Even if everyone at the table rolls their eyes when they sees my phone come out and power into camera mode, I'll always do it. It's just my thing, don't judge!

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The Point restaurant overlooked the lake which fed the river where our camp was. We all decided in an instant this place is well worth the 90 minute drive from home and will definitely be taking my dad here when he visits next month. The wait staff was excellent, I mean excellent like we've never had in I can't tell you how long. The owner was one of our waiters and had an awesome personality. Then of course, there was the food and drink. Once the owner, Michael, listed off Oakshire Overcast as one
of the beers on tap, we knew we really liked this place.
On a side note, within the last 6 months to a year I have been struggling with drinking. First world problem, I know. Poor me. My body just can't seem to handle it anymore. (Perhaps it was all that drinking I did when I was younger...oopsie!) Anyways, I finally figured out that I must be the most extreme beer/alcohol snob because I can really only drink when it's off the tap-or it's a homemade gin and tonic. Which makes for an expensive date, but thankfully I'm not all that into drinking anymore, anyway. I digress.
For lunch, my girlfriend had an amazing chicken melt and I got that beautiful plate of food above. Fresh Crab Louie. And do you see that *perfect* avocado? My lord, I was in heaven. It's a "I can't believe I ate the whole thing" moment. But it was so worth it.

Finally

I finally went camping last weekend. First time in, oh about, 3 years! Far too long, I say. I had a wonderful time on the Santiam River. I was able to take some beautiful pictures. Unfortunately, the sun was so damn bright I had to touch up some shots. Here are just a few of my favorites from a trek up the river. 

Going Through My Photo Albums

I find many photos I simply forget about for one reason or another. Here are some that caught my eye.

 

Bad looking boobs, good looking bread

Recently at my work, via a holiday silent auction, I had the opportunity to learn (or re-learn, as was my case) how to make sourdough starter and thus, sourdough bread. It's been many a year since I have made bread, let alone take care of a starter, so I was pretty damn excited to get kneading. 

We began creating our sourdough starters-to take home, yes!- set them aside, then used a ready starter to begin the bread making process. It was pretty fun doing this at work, allowing the bread to rise in my cube, going into the kitchen and watching Sue's amazing kneading techniques and learning her tricks. I took home my bread creation, which I had to make into four balls rather than one loaf (due to me neglecting to bring my Pyrex dish from home).

The bread smelled great baking in the oven, and I couldn't wait to try it. I placed a large baking dish full of hot water in the rack below to get steam and help the baking process. After the timer went off, I popped the bread out of the dish and placed it naked on the oven to get the crusty, golden crust. It became all too obvious, mostly due to the cross-cuts on top I did before baking, what an uncanny resemblance to a certain female attribute my bread had taken. But oh-my-god the bread was good. I think I ate a whole quarter loaf that night. 

Bad looking boobs, good looking (and tasting!) bread.

My New Years Resolution

As we start another year, we all start yet another to-do (or more like to-don't) list called, of course, Resolutions. You know and I know that probably 95% of us don't accomplish everything, or even one thing, on our list, but every year we expect more out of ourselves and say "This is the year I'll finally _____". Why do we do this to ourselves? I don't know either, I was hoping you would. 

I recently read a great article about 10 New Years Resolutions Worth Trying and I found this gem of a quote that I'm going to refer to every January 1st:

"It seems to me the standard (failed) New Year’s resolution has two strikes against it right from the outset. First, it usually involves some kind of annoying self-deprivation I’m not emotionally ready for. And second, I don’t usually have the resources readily at hand to shore up my chances for success." 

With that in mind, I reexamined my personal resolutions and resolved to do one thing I know I can accomplish..... *drum roll*  ....... Rather than deprive myself of all the wonderful food out there in hopes of gaining that 'swimsuit figure' (and face it, that's never fun anyway), I instead want to capture the simple beauty of all the food I'm not denying myself! It's a real goal with added benefits and I'm up for the challenge.

Morning Coffee

In Oregon, you get used to weather predictions about snow failing short 9 times out of 10. So Saturday night was no different for me. We were told snow was on its way, I kept hoping and wishing as I typically due, prepared to be let down in the morning. 

Then 7am rolled around. I was groggy but couldn't sleep, so I took myself to the coffee maker and noticed this white gleam coming through all the windows. It happened. Snow, beautiful snow. Granted, we only had less than an inch, but for these parts that's pretty damn good. 

I filled my coffee mug, grabbed my phone (which substitutes as my camera for the time being), bundled up and went outside. 

 With the sun breaking out from the clouds, the snow looked pristine and perfect. I just stood there, taking it all in, absorbing the icy air into my lungs, savoring the moment, morning coffee in hand.

 

Back on the Road Again

I'll admit, I've been very lethargic in the past 6 months. I mean, pretty damn lazy. Haven't even touched this in who knows how long. Well, I really know how long I just don't want to navigate away from this page to look at the date of my last post. <-- See, right there, la-zy.

Now that the only day out of the year where I get to live out my fat-kid fantasies is gone, I need to get myself back on the road again and tackling my list of shit to do! Although I'll admit, again, that it's been more like 45 days of living the fat kid fantasy, but who's keeping count anyway? Damn my honesty.

Mother Nature Laughs in Flowers

For myself I hold no preferences among flowers, so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous. Nothing is more refreshing than viewing these delicate creatures in the day's full glory.

With life comes lemons so I'm making a mixed drink

It's 11:30 am on a beautiful Saturday in July. One of the few Saturdays this summer that the sun decided to show itself. I'm sitting in sun, contemplating the day ahead. I've finally gotten up enough energy (and I admit, courage) to post this blog for the world to see.

Over the past months, this blog has taken on many different forms behind the scenes: photography focused, the trailer livin' experience, foodie focused, etc. I figured I can't limit this to one avenue, or I'll just drive myself crazy. I'm making this a place to filter my creativity and thoughts, provide a platform for my amateur photography interests (including showing off my budding cooking skills), and have a place where my family can keep up with us.

So come aboard and share this experience and journey with us. Check back periodically for random thoughts, funny posts, some pretty pictures, tips for confined living and lots of other eclectic happenings.

Do You Know What You Want In Life? Like, really know?

There are few things in life anyone really knows for sure. But one of those things should be yourself. You should know who you are, what you believe in, who you can turn to, and most importantly... who and what you want to be.

The other day while I was driving to work, I had a serious moment where I just knew deep down that this was not what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I knew it wasn't who I really was, it was just something I went to school for and (unfortunately) had no true passion in. Going to college to be an administrative assistant was a no-brainer for me; I had already basically been doing that through middle and high school and my mom thought it was a good move because of how outgoing I am. I was stuck in that mindset and now I realize how upset with myself I am. Instead of looking at all the programs LCC offered, I chose the easy path.


While considering this on my drive that morning, I decided I can still make a change, it's not too late, it's never too late. My dad went back to LCC while working when he was in his 50s, being 23 I definitely have a jump on that. (and let me say I am very proud of my father for going back to school. Even if I didn't realize it at the time he has inspired me in so many ways. This simple blog being one of them, but more about Dad later!) This gave me an amazing sense of reality; I don't want life passing me by while I sit in an office cubicle doing paperwork and answering phones, I have more I can offer to the world, my family, and myself. I want to be able to have my passion as my job and also be able to stay at home with my kids, whenever I do have them. This was an important part of my childhood, as my mom was stay at home until I was 19, and I want it to be a part of my children's upbringing. I know I have the drive and there's no reason in the world why I shouldn't follow my dreams, people do it everyday. It will be scary at first but I know I can overcome, especially with  my family's support.

As yourself, what are my passions? My true passions in life are simple: being outdoors in nature enjoying the beauty and bounty Mother Earth brings, in the woods or on the beach, and when I take pictures of the beautiful trees, delicate flowers, roaring ocean and wild creatures, a spark lights inside me. I cannot ignore or stifle this flame, I have such joy when I see these beautiful images I can capture. What a life that would be, having the ability to be outside in nature, enjoying all these things, while taking pictures I can share with other people so they may enjoy the world the way I see it and have these images forever. I want to preserve the things I love the most in case they won't be around forever. I want my children and my children's children to enjoy the simple beauty in a raindrop or the spray of the ocean forever, since the world is ever changing and we don't know if this meadow or that forest will be here tomorrow. 

Having a photography business out of my home would allow me to do so much more with my talents and my life. Not only would I have an excuse to go out quite often and be able to spend time in a beautiful place while taking these amazing, changing pictures of life around me in all seasons. I do not want to be constrained to a building 40 hours a week, instead take that 40 hours and explore this beautiful state. And that's just scratching the surface! Oregon provides thousands upon thousands of beautiful places and opportunities to take pictures of scenery that most people will never be able to enjoy.


There are limitless opportunities in this world and I want to take my chance today.

Rain=Love

Nature is just awesome. I love the sound of rain outside, especially while I'm sleeping. I love the smell after a fresh rain storm and I love rainy thunderstorms.