Weekly Photo Challenge: Inside

      I like to play a game with my dog that I call "Let's See What Ritz Will Get Into". My boyfriend jokingly calls it cruelty. Usually it's boxes, suitcases, once a gigantic laundry bag. It makes for some pretty memorable photo opportunities. It was hard to choose a favorite but this was probably one of the funniest things he's done. Being a Shar Pei, Ritz has skin issues and so I feed him high quality food with supplements. I had a roommate who fed her dog a different, likely better tasting food and this empty bag was sitting in the living room waiting to go out with the trash. At least we thought it was empty but there were a few delicious morsels left and no matter how far back in the bag I pushed them, Ritz would scoot in to get them.

A Good Find

    One of my favorite summer hobbies is yardsaling. I've taken to getting up early on Saturday mornings, spending an hour or so cruising the neighborhood with a mug of coffee looking for treasures. This past weekend, I came across this gem for fifty cents.

      I snatched it from the pile immediately, glancing around to be sure no one else was scoping it out (they weren't). I had this book as a kid and I absolutely loved it. The most beautiful thing about this find is that I had recently been telling my boyfriend about the book and when I looked it up online, I found copies in good condition ranging from $25-$40! I rushed home to share my joy and he patiently sat through a complete reading. It's the story of Louis Pasteur inventing the rabies vaccine. This drawing of an infected dog was always my favorite page in the book.

       Perhaps this is where my passion for veterinary medicine started?

I've actually bought several books from my childhood at yardsales. It's hard to pass on them when they're so cheap and evoke such strong emotions and memories. It's interesting to look back and wonder if these books helped shape who I am or if I was drawn to them because my interests were already there. Either way, I'm thrilled to have this one for my collection and I'm looking forward to Saturday morning!

Sorry For Slacking

I haven’t been good about posting entries lately.

As much as I enjoy writing, it’s still something I feel I need to practice. It’s just like physical exercise, only for my brain. I’ve found that the more I write, the more ideas I have, the better I am and the more motivated I become to write. It’s a nice cycle. If I don’t have enough time or I’m too tired and I try to force it, I’m completely worthless. Similarly, when I have a phase such as I’ve been in lately, where I don’t have much spare time, I get out of the habit of writing regularly and I have to start the cycle all over from scratch.  So here’s hoping I can stay in shape this time!

I missed posting last week’s photo challenge, which was dreams, simply because I had a busy week and forgot to post. So here’s the photo I had chosen.

Clouds like these often inspire me to day dream and take some time to calm my mind. 

Weekly Photo Challenge: Movement

         My dog, Ritz, is a Chinese Shar Pei  so he has an excessive amount of skin and wrinkles. Because of this, he often does what I call a "full body shake" when he gets up from resting, as if he needs to get his skin back into the proper place. It's a flurry of noise and motion. This photo captured Ritz "mid shake" in our back yard.

Weekly Photo Challenge: Fleeting Moment

                                        

             Two summers ago, I traveled with my boyfriend and two good friends to see Dave Matthews Band in Idaho. It was the first time any of them had seen the band with me. The whole trip was a pretty trying experience for us but once we got into the venue all the hassles went away. This was the first time I'd ever seen the band in a general admission setting and the closest I'd ever been to the stage. My friend Jake took this photo as he stood behind me and that's my arm in the air. I love this photo because every time I look at it, it brings back the sheer joy I was feeling at that moment.

Something To Think About

            Last weekend I went to see “Seeking A Friend For the End of the World” and I’m still thinking about it. It was by far my favorite movie I’ve seen in a long time and that says a lot. I thought it was an absolutely beautiful film, so much so that I’m tempted to go see it again which is pretty rare for me.

            The funny thing is, when I told my boyfriend I was still thinking about the movie almost a week later, he said “So am I…” and looked a bit nauseous. He liked the film but it affected him in a very different way.

            The premise is: there’s an asteroid approaching Earth and everything will be destroyed in three week’s time. The movie counts down over those 21 days showing mankind’s true colors, in my opinion. The characters are fantastic and the story is lovely, considering the circumstances. There are some great moments of humor as everyone tries to make the best of their last days. Of course you can’t help but wonder what would really happen in that situation, and I think that’s what makes my boyfriend queasy. It’s not a fun thing to think about or to watch other people deal with, even in a fictional setting. It is not a feel good movie, but that’s what I like about it. I think it was a pretty bold move to make a movie like this and I’m glad they did. Instead of making me feel scared or ill, it kinda woke me up a little bit and it really has me thinking about things I had never considered before.