Day 31

We are under a winter storm warning tonight, with an ice storm expected. I think the birds at the park sensed something and were gathering together for the night. We saw more than we ever have, and although I've taken pictures almost daily, none have turned out well before tonight.

The geese are not usually around, but they preened for me tonight.


Bottoms up, dear!


A stately fellow, calmly ignoring the lesser creatures.

Day 30 Crisis Management

Would you trust your mouth to this creature?


I broke a filling last night. For those who know me, you realize this is a crisis of unimaginable proportions. I have a phobia about teeth. One of my worst recurring nightmares (though I haven't had it in a long time) is that my teeth are breaking and falling out. It's horrifying. And last night it became reality. Sort of.

But along came my hero. Calm and confident, he assured me all my teeth would not break and fall out (and he is a dentist, so I have to believe him, right?). He "stabilized" my tooth this morning, so that it will be fine until I can get to my "real" dentist the middle of February. Right now my tongue is feeling a smooth edge instead of a broken one, and I'm not feeling panicky. That's a good thing.

[And for those who don't know, we work in an infectious disease clinic, hence the protective gear that may be a little more than what you see at your dentist's office!]

So I had to show my appreciation...

Day 29 Lamp Post

I was trying to see if I could catch the sunset in this puddle when I noticed the lamp post. Appropriate. It is looking as if Trapdoor (the forum I've been a part of for years) will be renamed LampPost, and although I am usually an advocate for change, I clung to the old name. I'm feeling reflective, upside down, and pretty wavy myself right now. It's not that I don't like LampPost; I'm the one who brought it up, I think. But it's a strange feeling, watching the trapdoor close.

Day 28 Surprised by Beauty

When I entered my kitchen first thing this morning, expecting nothing but the not-too-exciting-but-functional-kitchen, there it was. On the plain, boring counter sat an empty bottle, waiting to be dumped in the recycling box. But what a bottle, with glorious sun streaming through it, turning my kitchen into a thing of beauty. Of course my photo doesn't capture the feeling. But I'll remember.

That's one thing this project has done for me. In the "ordinariness" of life, I now notice beauty. And more importantly, I stop long enough to really look. To experience it. To let it seep into my soul. To give thanks.

I left the photo uncropped, because that's sort of the point of this one. Surrounded by the mundane, beauty. And I saw it.

Day 27 The Haircut

So here is my self portrait for January. It was supposed to show my new haircut, but alas. :-)

Day 26 Friday (even though after midnight)

I travel over this bridge each day into the park. On the other side is the "dog park," a fenced area where dogs are allowed to socialize with no leash; it's a noisy, happy place!


As I was leaving the bridge, I noticed this tree. Can you see what is high in its branches? (A couple of days ago I photographed a "money tree." What next?) If you look closely, you can see my landmark building in the distance.)

Day 25

I had time today to experiment with some photos at work (this was before the chemistry analyzer went berserk). What is this?!



After work I had a nice, chilly walk in the park as dusk fell. The red flag means "no playing--due to weather." No beach volleyball or soccer in this part of the park. I haven't yet figured out how it's determined that the weather is not good for playing. I've posted a few more work and park photos on my leftovers.

Day 24 An Evening with Agnes & Muriel

Just down the road I have a funky little restaurant, bursting with personality. The walls and shelves are full of Barbie dolls and accesories. I'd love to go when the restaurant is closed and take a gazillion photos.


Step back in time...


Can you tell what the lights are? They sit in cups and saucers, with spoons hanging down.


We split two meals. Crabcakes and spinach salad with strawberries. Salmon croquettes with mashed potatoes and grilled broccoli salad. And one dessert to share.

Day 23 Signs of my life

Every morning I traverse an obstacle course to get to work. For weeks one lane or another is closed, and there's never any way to tell which it will be! The workers are out there rain or shine, cold or heat--in their fluorescent vests and operating big machines. The road is a mess, but hey! We have fancy smancy signs to cheer us up.



I pass this billboard each day, and have noticed the ads seem to be a little off color. For a while I thought maybe it was not intentional. When this one went up, I decided they know what they are doing. It makes me smile every single day.

Day 22

I have a 94 year old mentally handicapped step-great-aunt who has lived in a nursing home for as long as I can remember. Today came the news her heart seems to be failing, and that is amazing to me. Her heart is the biggest thing about her. When finding out my mother was to visit me, her first response was "take Laura some fresh eggs, now." With itchy splotches covering her body after an allergic reaction, she calmly assured everyone "I'm all right." When her sister--mind beginning to wander--said hurtful, untrue things, this gentle soul with a huge heart said sweetly "she can't help it." Maybe her mind is child-like. I know her heart is. Sincere and pure and sweet. And failing.

Today is a day to celebrate the sanctity of life. All life. Every life.

(All of which has nothing much to do with my photo for today.)

Day 21

Today has been dark, cold, and rainy. Once home from church, I didn't venture back out! I spent the afternoon doing laundry, decluttering, and watching the poor Saints freeze in Chicago. As the Patriot/Colts game got started, I made breakfast for supper. If all else fails, post a food photo, right?

Day 20

Of course I spent the afternoon in the park. After spending most of every day in a windowless lab, I just am not able to convince myself I need to spend Saturday inside getting the ever increasing "to do" list whittled down.

Today I was in the company of an energetic 12 year old who was always willing to perform for the camera! He laughed, ran, climbed, rolled down hills, jumped off walls, and sat for serious photos as well. Always the undercurrent, however, was the fact of his dog's death yesterday. He gave a pat to every dog we encountered, telling most owners that his own dog had just died.

So here he is, flying for a moment.

Day 19

Sunset in the park.



This is my cheater photo. I found it in yesterday's group and don't know how I overlooked it. I love it.

Day 18 My landmark obscured

I don't even know its name, but this building is a friend. It's become a landmark for me--country girl turned city dweller. My sense of direction has never been great, but I'm learning to navigate my new city. Each day as I make the last turn before arriving at work, this building welcomes me. When I'm lost in the city, I know if I head toward it I will eventually end up someplace familiar.

Yesterday I was thinking how pretty the building was against the blue, blue sky (and with the tree to the left budding out red leaves). Today the top half was obsured by the mist, and it was not pretty. But it's mine. I need to find out its name.

Day 17

I work in a small lab with no windows, so look forward to lunch time, hoping the weather will be nice enough to allow sitting outside to eat. Today was a bit chilly for that, even though it was sunny and gorgeous, so I had lunch in my car. Not great, but certainly better than the tiny "break room." I saw sun and clouds, trees and even flowers. It was nice.

Day 16

Winter arrived today after a record high temp yesterday. By the time I was free to walk in the park, it was windy and cold. Oh, how thankful I am for this park, an oasis of "reality" in an urban life I never wanted. Usually I encounter a wide variety of people (and dogs) engaged in an amazing array of activities. I've never, ever been bored! I love days like today though, when the park seems to take a deep breath and relax. The few people around seem like comfortable friends of the park, not needing entertainment or excitement. Everything is muted, remembering and anticipating.

Day 15 Windows and Doors

I had the day off, and headed out first thing to try and beat the rain. These photos are of a church that I can see from my backyard. It has such interesting stonework, a couple of nice red doors, and lots of lovely windows. I took photos of the cemetery also, which are in my "leftovers."

The bottom door is to a shed out in the cemetery. I love how the green plants are growing from inside the door, trying to get out. It makes me wonder what is going on in that shed! The entire cemetery is old, with crumbling stonework and overgrown plants. Probably no one has opened this door in a long time!

Day 14 A Walk in the Park

So I've given up trying to select just one photo. There are lots more on my leftovers, although not all the 81 photos I took today!

Day 13 A Day at the Zoo

This was definitely not a one photo day. I'm not a reptile lover by any stretch of the imagination but it so happened that those photos turned out the best. The baby panda has dominated our local news for weeks, with yesterday being her first day on public display. She's a cutie.

Day 12

Good food and a good friend; who could ask for more?

Day 11: Guess where I went this evening?

I've got other photos from my adventure posted on my leftovers. I came away with empty hands; it was an unsuccessful trip to pick up something for J. which the computer said was in stock. Wrong. I looked at several items for myself, but ended up with no purchase. It was fun wandering around, however, and I ate a good meal there as well. A nice "end of day" treat.

Day 10

I had such a hard time choosing a photo today, and finally settled on two. The sky may not be this pretty again for a long time! I'm putting some others on my "leftovers," though. The more I photograph, the more I see that I want to photograph!

Each morning as I arrive at work, I look at this steeple. I think our building used to be the headquarters for a denomination, but we have a weather vane now instead of a cross. These trees with red berries are all over our "campus." Usually (I'm told) the berries appear, the birds gorge themselves and get sick, leaving their droppings (and even some carcasses) on our patio, and then the berries are gone for the year. I'm not sure what happened this year, but the birds were uninterested, and the berries have been gorgeous.

The trees are confused with the warm weather, and I've watched this one in our parking lot decide to put out new reddish leaves. The view up through the branches to the blue sky reminds me of Van Gogh's Japanese paintings phase.

Day 9: Laura at work

After 20+ years as a wife, mother, and community volunteer, for the last year and a half I've been back in the career for which I trained. It's been gratifying to see what I have remembered, and how I can pull my weight. On the other hand, it's been terrifying. I constantly feel that I'm hanging on by the skin of my teeth! So much has changed in the medical field (AIDS was just beginning to be a concern when I was interning), and with no real time for "re-training," I have to learn what I can as I do the job. I'm learning a lot about myself.

Day 8

Today was a glorious one, weather-wise. Warm, bright sun with a brisk breeze. I ate lunch outside at work and really, really did NOT want to go back inside! Everywhere I looked were crisp, clear shadows.

Day 7

Rainy day. A bit disorienting, after yesterday's beauty. It's been so warm that new plants are popping up and some trees are budding out. Very strange! I have a photo of my filing drawer, which is more indicative of what I've done this day (yawn!), but the wet outdoors wins every time.

Day 6 Epiphany

I spent today with Jonathan visiting my former mother-in-law out in the country. I walked "next door" to the empty house where the aunt and grandmother used to live before their deaths. As I rounded the corner, the memories of the big front porch hit me hard. A lot of living went on there. Now there are just empty chairs.

Day 5

Time to change reagents on the LX20 (chemistry analyzer).

Day 4

My boy is back in town! He's been in the frozen north for his Christmas break, and I've missed, missed, missed him! Both the chickadees are in the nest tonight, and it's a good feeling (even though they made fun of my new camera happy self, and did silly things when I tried to take pictures).

Day 3

My daughter made this pottery vase in the style of Van Gogh. I love the patterns, the colors, and the fact that she made something special for me. It's definitely one of my Favorite Things.