Trying To Find The Road Not Taken

This is awesome! I so want to go do that. We’ve done some spins and I’ve gone out on my own and gotten the snow flying. I really should move to some much more northern country, I love to go play in the snow in the car and just myself.

Simplicity does not mean
getting rid of your possessions,
but rather integrating them
into your life’s purpose.

From a talk given Mary Gregory as
remembered by Emily Sander, 2000

from the book Plain Living by Catherine Whitmire

I picked up the book Plain Living this weekend while at Friends Meeting. I had accidentally picked it up several years ago not realizing it was someone’s personal copy. In between Craig and I had read, Choosing Simplicity by Linda Breen-Pierce. Picking up this book for a second time I’m really enjoying it and the many quotes within it.

On Friday night I left my computer training session across town and headed home. I got off the exit and turned onto one of the roads before getting to our road, on the way I saw the moon. It was amazing and very large. I drove up to our place, rushed upstairs, grabbed the camera bag and tripod.

I drove back down to an empty parking lot, but I wasn’t getting the same vantage point. So I drove back to the end of the road by the exit, did a u-turn and decided to stop at the best place for safety and getting the right vantage point.

I found my spot. A medical building with a well lit empty parking lot. I pulled in and pulled back down the driveway to the end by the road. I put my lights in park mode, got out, grabbed my camera and sized up the shot. Across the street is a residential house, I noticed the living room had some lights on. No big deal.

I took some preliminary shots by hand. Then grabbed my tripod and set up the camera. While setting up and getting the shot, I noticed on my hand with a red light. I thought, “huh, is there a sensor on the camera that emits red”. I step backed away from the view finder to notice that there was a red laser light all over my hand, my chest, my arms, the camera. It was jumping all over the place. I looked to the house and out of the window was the laser.

At this point two thoughts went through my head.

1) Stupid kids with a pen laser, or paranoid old person
or
2) Gun with a scope, it is wacky city who knows!

This was a bit disturbing. Was I potentially going to get shot for taking a picture of the beautiful moon? or should I walk across the street and confront this person. A part of me really wanted to haul it across the street and pound on their door.

I opted to hope for option 1, and continue to shoot my photos. I took 2 more shots all the while with the laser bouncing all over me. The minute I stopped shooting photos, the laser stopped. I packed up my equipment. I stared straight at their house while collapsing the tripod. Got in the car, put the headlights on and then the high beams which shown right into they’re living room. I couldn’t see anyone the house was dark at that point.

Has anyone else had experiences like this?

Filled up for $2.34 a gallon, originally uploaded by criana.

This is because over the summer Stop & Shop ran a special where you
earned points each time you grocery shopped. The you could go to one
of their gas stations and the points took off the price per gallon.

I had earned a whole bunch, so instead of 3.79/gal for 87. I paid 2.34/
gal. Wish it was going to last longer.

What I Learned From Knitting by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

My review
rating: 5 of 5 stars
Another wonderful book from Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. Wonderful tid-bits about knitting, some that make you laugh, others make you contemplate and others you just relate to.

If your a knitter, it’s worth picking up a copy and reading. I love the small format of the book as well.

View all my reviews.

Organizing the old coins I found this weekend, originally uploaded by criana.

My Dad had collected all these old coins but they were loose in a bag.
Thanks to my awesome coworker I’m organizing them.

Good Morning Cadillac, originally uploaded by criana.

This is a panoramic I took back in June. While cleaning up files in my Inbox folder on my computer I realized I hadn’t posted this yet.

One of my photography goals is to get better at taking panoramics and stitching them together.