Back in the game

I can't believe that I forgot to buy books. I mean, really, what was I thinking by not checking to see if my classes had required reading? The situation isn't affected very drastically by my procrastination: one of my classes is using a book compiled by the prof, so that couldn't have been purchased anywhere else, and one hasn't listed the books yet so I couldn't have gotten them in advance anyway. For the one class that did have a "normal" textbook, I'm going to check Amazon and Half and see if I can get it any cheaper. I'm going to make double sure, though, that I can get it before my window to return it closes. No more debacles like last semester.

It was fun to be on campus this morning, though, with all of the new year buzz, even if I was toting a toddler. I can't wait to go to class tonight! I'm taking a University Studies course called The Work of Art. I'm quite excited to take something outside of the social science disciplines. But I'm also very excited about my two other classes: Child Psychology and Principles of Behavioral Analysis. It's going to be a lot of work and a lot of juggling (we have another shoot this weekend and then a dinner meeting on Saturday as well, to talk about collaboration with another artist), but I feel really energized about it all. There are so many cool things that I have to get my hands and head into. Here goes nothing, right?

Dwindling Sunshine

The day is gorgeous and I know that we don't have many of those left. So we just went on a little outing: to American Apparel, to check out sizing to order stuff for fall, and then to get some gelato at Mio. I fed Chie little tastes until we got to one that didn't make her make a face, and so we ended up with a giant scoop of mango. I love it when they give you way more than they have to. We sat outside and ate it together, and she looked so grown up, sitting straight with her hands in her lap. It was great fun. And then, just as we were leaving, I saw a woman walking towards us who looked very familiar. After a moment, I realized that it was my Writing 121 prof from my freshman year at PSU. Adria was one of my champions, a woman who has a lot of influence on my current conception of literature and life, and it was a joy to run into her. We chatted for a while until Chie got impatient and then made tentative plans to get together for Japanese food sometime next week (her husband lived in Japan for 12 years and teaches Japanese literature, and mine, well, you know).

Now I'm trying to make myself work...

Place in sand and bring to life

Some images from the trip that we took to the beach this weekend. We'd been slated to go to the Bay to see family, but that trip kept having road blocks and so we decided to listen to the cosmos and stay closer to home. We were both still very much in need of a break, though, so we took off for an overnighter...



Our destination: Cape Lookout State Park



The first stop-- Tillamook Cheese's factory.



The first thing to do on a beach? Remove your shoes, of course.



But Chie kept her Robeez on, this time around, because it was pretty chilly. She seemed really enamored of the sand.



When we got back, Gus tossed her in the air a bit while I tried to have the camera at the right angle.



She LOVES her daddy, and his acrobatic skills.



It's not really that big-- but it is bulky. And we need a rain fly.



Gus took this shot across from our campsite.





Chie's first sandy steps on our walk the next morning.



I tried to keep her as dry as possible, but in the end, she still got soaked.





Fun with shadows (I think I want to do a whole series).



One of the things I love about the coast is that the forest is immediately adjacent.





The Cape Mears lighthouse. (That's not Gus, btw).



The far point is where we'd stayed the night before.





She's still not sure what she thinks of goats.



This little boy was way too cute to not photograph.

Crap Party

In all the business of starting our business, I've been really remiss in posting pictures of my baby. Here are some recent pictures:



I think that she's gotten used to having pictures taken of her. Often, now, she'll just sit and do her thing. That is, unless she wants to PLAY with the camera.





Gus took these while we were out to dinner at Pastini. They asked if we thought she could manage a booster and we were like, "Sure. We'll give anything a try once." She liked it so much that we've now moved her up to our table and now the table top is her tray. And, as you can see, she's mastering utensils.











We've now gone scouting twice at Gus' elementary alma mater for a shoot we're doing in a week. I needed a test subject...