• On Life and Love

    A Beautiful Birthday Weekend

    What could be better than a trip to Crowders Mountain on a perfect Saturday afternoon? Both the weather and our camera this time was good enough–and we’d just finished our second photography class that morning–to get some vague shots of Charlotte. Out zoom lens (55-200 mm) isn’t quite zoomy enough to really compress the distance, but it was fun trying, especially when we needed to manually focus or do a focus lock. Instead of just doing the 0.75 mile trek to the top and back (which includes 300+ damn stairs), we decided to hike some of the back trails. All in all, I think we covered 5-ish miles, but my…

  • On Life and Love

    Congratulate me, suckas!

    You know how when some people announce their engagement, it’s like everyone around them is thrown into this weird twilight zone? The entrance is lined by the glitter of diamond/moissanite, and the maze is of the Myst: Uru-level of complexity — it could take weeks to get out. There’s lots of jumping and squealing and the equivalent of: OH MY GAWD! FINALLY! Oh, my gawd! Four-and-a-half years and my snuggle-bunny honey bun finally popped the question!!! I was beginning to think he didn’t love me, but this $5000 Tiffany’s ring shows me — and everyone else in any building I’m in — that he truly loves me! Note that there…