Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Eating leftover Easter candy until I figure out how to squeeze more time out of my day.

I am currently knee-deep in the middle of eight million projects. It's almost overwhelming and I have to keep reminding myself that I'm doing this FOR FUN. (It'd be a lot easier if I wasn't forced to spend a third of my entire day at work.) (Did I mention how grateful I am to still be employed?)

It occurred to me yesterday that if I went to bed a little later each night, I could really maximize productivity. Normally, I'm in bed by ten-thirty, which is just in time to catch the second Seinfeld rerun. So, why not push it back to midnight? Sure, I snooze my alarm eight times each morning, but does that really have anything to do with being tired? Or is it just that I don't easily make the transition from being asleep to being awake?

Then I spent four hours after work taking pictures, stopping for groceries, and making cake pops and by the time I got in bed at TEN-FIFTEEN, I was exhausted. And you people with kids? How do you do it?

Going to bed later isn't an option. (I need sleep.) Working less isn't an option. (I need money.) I've stopped watching TV during the week. I've completely quit cleaning my apartment. I rarely go grocery shopping (which you'd think would result in less eating, but, surprisingly, it hasn't). (In fact, my pants are quite snug. I know this because every time they get a little too tight, The Husband compliments my butt. Which I suppose is flattering in a fuck-I-need-to-go-on-a-diet kind of way.)

So, what's keeping me busy?

Photography, as always. Taking and editing photos is a daunting, never-ending task. And, as much as I love it... I wish it came easier. (When something you absolutely love to do doesn't come naturally... does that mean it's not meant to be?)

I'm building my own table-top lighting tent. This project requires many trips to many stores, hours spent standing in an aisle being indecisive, many chewed fingernails, frustration, and, finally, one trip Samy's to purchase the table-top lighting studio I should have just bought in the first place.

Baking. Finally. I've made Florentines twice and they were delicious. And, eventually, I'll share the photos, but see gripe about photography above. I also made cake pops for a birthday. If I could eat take pictures of cake pops for the rest of my life, I'd be a happy girl.

I'm redesigning this here blog. Because I'm bored with the current look and I need something bright and fresh and fun. Summertime is coming, y'all, and it's time to reflect that. I see bright blues and greens in our future. Please don't be afraid. There's plenty of chocolate and wine to get us through, I promise.

And speaking of summertime, there's all this glorious sunshine we've been getting and who can stay inside when it's so sunny and warm? When the sky is so big and so perfectly blue it's almost painful to look at? It's irresistible. Staying in doors is like saying thanks, but no thanks to a piece of chocolate.

You don't say no to chocolate and you don't stay inside when the day is that lovely.

12 comments:

  1. I know what you mean about not having enough time for editing photos. They seem to pile up on me.The chocolate is piled up here, somhow I feel it is my duty to make sure non of the girls candy goes to waste!

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  2. Sounds like you're back! There's never enough time for all the things we can think of to do. Sometimes creativity can be a curse but it's way better than staring at the TV and mouth breathing.

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  3. I am so with you on that summertime thing. And the chocolate cake but my ass has grown so large I just can't anymore.Note on the how parents do it thing. The house, no it never gets cleaned and we no longer stress over it because the kid does get cleaned and she can read too. Homework and not having the stinky kid in the class is way more important than a clean home. Also, we only watch tv on the dvr, no commercials, less time wasted. The kid gets in bed by 8:30 or there's hell to pay, we need our alone time and our sleep too.Oh and we're lucky we have bracycephalic dogs that don't last more than 2 block when walked. Makes for very short walks.A suggestion on the light box should you need another:http://www.strobist.blogspot.com/2006/07/how-to-diy-10-macro-photo-studio.htmlAnd now you know the real reason I've never owned Photoshop before. Who the hell has time to sit and figure that crap out unless they own a ranch out in the middle of nowhere and their husband takes the kids out all day?Real world baby, real world.

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  4. Just have to LMAO at michelle - "ranch out in the middle of nowhere"Hoohoohooheeheeheeeeeeeee

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  5. Spruce Hill, I wish I had kids as an excuse for why I was eating my weight in Easter candy. Someone stop me, please!rory, you're right about the curse thing. On the one hand, it's great! On the other, it's like... fuck, I just want to sit on the couch and lose myself in a game of Diner Dash. Oh, didn't I mention I was completely absorbed in this mindless game? My mistake.Michelle, thank you for the link! I had seen the post before, but couldn't remember where. Oh, and note to self: next husband must be a wealthy rancher.

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  6. Stephanie, I love this post, and the comments are really good, too! However, I must put in a complaint about your telling us about the summer weather and glorious sunshiney blue skies. We are still having chilly, cloudy, disgusting weather here. I really wasn't meant to live in the north east. Now I need to go visit a Canadian blog and see their photos of snow to feel better! Or...maybe an Easter candy...

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  7. Gayle, I'm sorry! If it makes you feel any better, it was really dreary and overcast here today. These huge, dark clouds came rolling in from who-knows-where. And then the wind kicked up. It was crazy. If that doesn't help, I have plenty of Easter candy I can send. ;)

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  8. gonna let you in a little secret: my digital workflow. Mind you, this comes from years of in-the-field testing and careful application of time-honored photographic principles, so don't think I just happened on it. But because I like you, I'm going to let you know how I do it, and it's not brand-specific, so anyone can do it, even those of you who use lesser brands, like Nikon. It may take a while to become acclimated, but after consciously applying each step repeatedly, it eventually becomes natural.Okay, here we go:Step One: Take photoStep Two: Examine photo on LCDStep Three: Delete photoAnd there you have it. Once you have these steps down, you can sometimes add in a sort of half-step, call it Two-A, in which you ask, out loud, "The fuck was I thinking?" This is especially fun when photographing, say, a group of nuns.This workflow saves many hours on the back-end, leaving more time to catch up on House reruns.You're welcome.

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  9. Here's how we people with kids (okay, kid) do it: we have no hobbies. None. At least none that we make any headway in.Example: In February I decided to knit the Buddha a sweater. I specifically choose the bulkiest yarn I could find, so it would knit fast and I chose an easy pattern so I could knit while watching TV and spending time with my husband (multitasking!). Two months later, I have a back, most of a front, and no sleeves. And now it's spring and, even here on the tundra, there is no more need for a heavy wool sweater mid-April. Luckily, I at least had the sense to knit it big enough to fit next year.I've debated getting up at 5 in order to actually attempt to write but...man... I need my sleep, yo. Apparently I am just not that dedicated to my craft.

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  10. Hi there, I haven't been here in a while and after reading your last few posts, I have to say that my heart just breaks for you...hang in there.

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  11. Amen sista! I hear ya! Spring is finally here and I have been MIA from my blog and am finding so much to do other than sitting on my arse blogging about my duh life. You sound great! So upbeat and a-hem, happy? Good girl! I'm glad you're taking pictures and I hear ya about how it can be so difficult and why we put ourselves through taking pictures of stuff. I guess I just love that challenge. Happy day to ya!

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  12. I *COULD NOT* agree with you more on the photography front. I love processing pictures, but it can take me eons sometimes. I'll try a million different things, save none, and then my husband will be all "um, what exactly did the last four hours accomplish?" And I'm all "leave me alone, I'm growing your baby." And that, you know, that's the ultimate trump card.But anyway, back to your post, I couldn't agree more. I wish photography and editing pictures came more naturally to me too.

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