Giving

This is probably overdue, and almost certainly apparent at this point, but it has to be said:

I am giving up on my 365.

I haven't posted any photos since October, though I continued taking them through last week. At some point, they'll probably still make it onto flickr...but I think they're still on my camera.

It mostly boils down to being too busy to handle it the way I wanted to. I wasn't happy with just taking whatever, but that's what it had come to during ongoing weeks of insane overload at work. Add to that any time needed to upload, sort, and fine-tune - well, you get the idea.

I wouldn't call this entirely a FAIL, though. I had high hopes when I began:

- That I would stop hating seeing myself in photos.

This happened, to the point of being willing to mug for other people's shots. It also encouraged me to do more to look nice every day - to the tune of making more effort with my hair, clothes, and makeup. It's all habit now, and it makes me feel much better day to day.

- That I would regain my enthusiasm for shooting.

Absolutely. I got my first Canon as a high-school graduation present, but at some point my camera-wielding ways fell by the wayside. I now have a really good point-and-shoot, and my eye on a super-fine DSLR (this one, if you're wondering) that should work with some of my old lenses. It's been too long since I got excited by such a thing.

Both of these have threaded into other things. I'm more inspired to create, more inspired to take good care of myself. I got some really wonderful photos that I might have missed not so long ago, and I carry my camera with me everywhere so I don't miss more. That's not going to change.

I've been missing the girls on the Knitterly and Crafty Types flickr pool, who are certainly the other great thing about my half-year of participation. Sharing 365s in a larger pool can feel a little lonely, but this very active and very friendly group has made the whole thing a perspective-expanding adventure.

So what's next for my photo creativity? I'm considering starting a 52 Weeks project for the new year. I'd considered this originally, but decided to jump in feet-first with the dailies.

Now, I think that a weekly will be just right. There's nothing saying that I can't take dailies if I feel like it, but it will make a big difference when the weeks are long, but the days are short (if you know what I mean). There will just be more for the "rejects" set. I'll politely ask the Knitterly mods if I can post there, but if it won't work for them, I'll just stay on as an observer.

As it happens, I am mildly disappointed but not feeling terrible about this. I gave it a good solid effort and got a lot back in the bargain. And I can foresee doing a 365 of different kinds in the future...like, for example, when Bryan and I finally get around to kids.

For now, thanks to those of you who've been looking. It would be wrong to end a post about photos without one, so I leave you with my favorite of the shots that are really All About Me:

Seems appropriate, somehow.

Sparkly

It's been an absolutely rapid-fire year. A better one than last year, to be sure; thank the heavens, January's standard did not hold true.

But in true rapid-fire fashion, December is almost over before I even fully realized it was here. With a couple of exceptions, my holiday spirit held out and I did manage to execute some of my plans:

- At this writing, I'm only short one gift, and only purchased two today. Some of the rest were even wrapped a few days ago.
- I turned my work cubicle adorably festive, and even got photos and video; that's to come this weekend, when I can really breathe.
- There was good partying, and plenty of housecleaning (which, yep, isn't quite done yet).
- Bryan put up a cute little display in the front of the house, sparkly and just colorful enough.

Tonight, we finish clean-up and start prep; tomorrow, our folks (and a couple of my mom's friends) join us for a Real American Holiday Dinner, which we didn't so much have at Thanksgiving. Bryan is smoking a turkey and a pork loin in his brand-new Meat Master 3000 (his gift to himself); my mom is doing her fabulous cornbread dressing and broccoli rice casserole; I'm in charge of green bean casserole (LOVE), deviled eggs (LOVE MORE), dessert, and Other Stuff.

It's a far cry from last year, for sure. And OK, I didn't quite achieve relaxed and organized - more like stressed but not crazy, and there's certainly a good bit of happy here, too. We'll put that in the Win column.

The best part, after good family time and food: after Friday (which promises to be VERY quiet), I'm off work for the last week of the year. No, wait, even better: I'll be really close to prepared for New Year's festivities, happening at our place again. Yay, my favorite holiday!

For now, the kitchen is calling. If you're celebrating Christmas, I hope it's a very merry one filled with everything you love. If you're not...I hope tomorrow is a very happy day filled with everything you love. Heck, I hope that all the time. :)

Wishing everyone everywhere love and light from me, Bryan, Pandora, and Snoopy. See you soon!