Thursday, June 12, 2008

Comforts, Addictions and Me

Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens
Brown paper packages tied up with strings
These are a few of my favorite things.....
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Maybe addictions is too strong a word, but comforts is a good one. The following is a whole slew of things that I have found that - will make me smile, make me think, have influenced me in someway, must have daily, must have once a year, enjoy and have some positive meaning. To me. So here are a few of my favorite things -
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I started thinking about the things around me and what I reach for - either in my head - mentally or with a hand, for comfort or for reassurance or just things I go back for when given a chance. Some of these are just an image of something that has influenced me in some manner.
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I am sure we all have these and it was an interesting journey to try and think about some of them, find pics to represent them and wonder if I got the right one. I know I have only scratched the surface, but it is more a game then a pysch experiment.
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I will put in some info on each picture, about why it is a Betsy thing, but it may not make sense to anyone but me. The Frap in the corner is my morning drink. I got addicted to these after having one at a mall. I have never liked hot coffee and therefore never had needed the caffeine fix. I do now.
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The original Disney movie 101 Dalmatians got me on the addiction of all things spotted. I love Dalmatians and think they are the most beautiful dogs out there. I would love to have a Dalmatian Plantation. Before being able to have the real ones, I collect plush Dalmatians. I have a zillion of them and it made things easy for people to get me gifts. I haved owned 3, but now just have 2, and have been able to rescue over 40, foster 6 and thus let others know the joy of spots. Gryphon our first dal was a pup when we got him and he was our 'baby'. We lost him early in his years, and Mercury and Tigger came to us after that.
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The photos of Greece homes have alway been interesting to me because of the architecture and the color and photograph image. It is a style of photography I have mimicked and I love taking pics of buildings around me and seeing something in their patterns and colors. My grandfather came to America from Greece and my Dad is an architect and taught me to see outside the box so with this combination, the attraction of the Greek homes, colors, stairwells and the beautiful mediterran views has always been special.
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Speaking of photography. I first saw this photo on the right of the depression woman in maybe sixth grade or so when we studied American history. I was struck by the story that just one photo could tell. Without any words. It was all there, and the way the photographer shows it is just right. I decided to make photography my artistic expression. I love using black and white film and for several years I had my own darkroom set up in the basement.
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The pic on the left is from Ansel Adams, a famous black and white photographer. Taking things that are in color and seeing them in black and white is a wonderful way to expand perception. Maybe someday I will post my own pics. Besides black and white there is also a beauty found in color slides. They have wonderful saturation of color for landscapes and close ups. More than just a "what we did on vacation" medium, slide film can offer a great range. I used slide film for several years in high school and college.
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In this post am not including food or people or about a zillion other things that I could or should. This is a pretty random selection of things I can think of just at this time and there are probably connections as they jump from one to the other. Oh well. The brain is like that. I was interested in the fact that when I first started I had the greece buildings and Fraps and dogs on the left side and the b&w photography, the animated Dal shot, the beach and sunset on the right side. I wonder if that is my brain doing the logic vs art bit.
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So now we move to the beach. I love the beach but don't get there enough. A favorite of mine since I was a kid was to build sandcastles. Maybe again, becuase my Dad is an architect. I would make some really elaborate sandcastles with all kinds of turrets, moats, walkways, outer buildings and even little villages inside the castle. I love to use the dripping sand method of decorating and would work hard to keep the tide from washing it all away.
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The beach of course means sunsets and sunrises. To see the reds and yellows and pinks and clouds makes the glory come to life. To see this is to see beauty. I will stop and watch the colors and sky shift as the evening draws to a close and night falls.
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A good memory pops into my head of Jim and I in St. Thomas sitting on chairs watching the sunset. We couldn't actually see the sun, but we could see the colors in the sky and also the colors in the water. It was a special evening.
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And the final image. A yellow Polo shirt. I really like polo shirts because they are easy to wear, somewhat okay in most situations and have a collar. That is me at work. I have found that I look best with some sort of collar on the shirt I am wearing. I love to wander thrift stores and find stuff like these at the store. That comes from my Mom. She told me if I buy it at a thrift store, make sure there is a good brand name lable on it. I thank her often for teaching me this.
Okay I think that is it.




3 comments:

Rach said...

What a wonderful window into the heart of all that makes you "Betsy". Thank you for sharing yourself with us. :o)

I LOVE Ansel Adams' work and am *always* amazed at what he was able to create. I'd LOVE to see your photos some time. :o)

HUGS!

Jeanette said...

I love this post. Sometimes the simplest things can be very comforting. Mine is rainbows, waves crashing on rocks and gorgeous sunsets, like your picture. I also used to love the Starbucks frappicinos too, but since becoming diabetic last year, I rarely have one! Thanks for sharing.

Unknown said...

Betsy - I just stumbled upon your blog today, and I think i've read almost all of it. Thank you for sharing your grief and memories of your wonderful husband. You are an incredibly strong woman, your Jim would be proud.