Twyla in action

Twyla in action
Originally uploaded by grlfotographer

Snow

Snow
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

we had a hurricane on Sept 12 and almost 3 months to the date we had snow on December 10th... what a weird year for weather....

virgo rising

virgo rising
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

sometimes things happen for a reason.... and i think there was a reason... and i am thankful for the friend I made.
sometimes 'no' is an answer and it is a good answer even though you might not think so at first.

thank you mi amiga, mil besos

done

break free

break free
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

okay- so i think i am ready to break the chains i put on me....
positive energy.... it will happen... i am letting it go....

and i am putting it out there
law of attraction...

but i miss ....

sara bettens HWF 10/25/08

sara bettens HWF 10/25/08
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

the 'decisive moment'

perfect timing
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

one of my favorite photographers- Henri Cartier Bresson

Baldessari

IMG_2563
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

find the photographer

find the photographer
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

i think i might be getting back into the swing of things... everything got a little dis-com-bobulated- when Hurricane Ike rudely interrupted our daily lives.....

eerie night before Ike

eerie night before Ike
Originally uploaded by SiSter PhotograPher

this was the night b4 Ike- winds were gusting, we were having fun before all hell broke loose...

wow

its been a lonnnngggg time - wow not sure if i even remember how to do all this!
well lets see- ... home coder, but still getting in trouble for 'productivity' , started back to school with drawing 161 and photo prin II - learing to shoot, develop, and dark room with a 4 X 5 camera- went thru a Hurricane- trees down , no power for a few days, but not complaining at all - as other friends went w/o it for two (grumble and bad words) weeks!
so the heart ache and heart break has totally taken a back seat to my thoughts- isn't it funny how things get re-prioritized and then suddenly everything seems and feels different!
so there! ready to start... over...

Nothing will work unless you do-

Maya Angelou


MENTAL NOTE: MUST PICK UP CAMERA AND TAKE MORE PICTURES

today

today i listened to music...

July

July is going to be a quiet month. the girl has gone to her daddy's for the month of july and she took her swing ball with her! I miss her already. and so does her brother but we're not supposed to know that .... shhh!

just another manic monday

didn't want to get out of bed this morning... so I slept in til 6:02! got the dogs out, got the kid up, got into the shower, used my stupid new conditioner I broke down and spoiled myself that I got at Aveda ( favorite store ) some stupid conditioner ( i picked up the wrong one that is why its stupid ) that colors your hair- what ever! rushed in and out of the shower, put the dogs back up, forgot to give the kid her adderall, the kid couldn't find her shoes, so she had to wear her back up pair - (which she was NOT happy about)got her on the school bus, rushed to my daily Starbucks and got my crack. got to work to pull out my productivity booster (aka adderall) and realized for some stupid reason I took it out of my bag and left it at home. omg- talk about feeling panic- talk about pressure - omg gotta make it gotta make it kept going thru my head even as the after lunch sleepies set in and my eyelids got heavier and heavier. But I did meet productivity - i coded 30 charts today. phew okay day is over - walked to my car - i got princess parking this morning!
home now- walk in the door and the kid is already bombarding me to come play with her with her new 'swing ball' kinda like a tether ball but with a tennis ball. As I am enjoying my venture with the kid, then the boy, older taller one comes up to me and mutters some strange words about a man wanting to see an id of one his friends and he called the sheriff. Now i am totally confused- the boy had two of his high school friends over but why would some one be asking for their i.d.? so i walk out, there is a man in his little pick up truck "ma'm i need to talk to you. your son's friend was walking in the neighborhood and I asked him what he was doing, where he was from, where was he going, and to see his i.d. and he doesn't have i.d. on him .I called the sheriff and they are on their way out here - if that sheriff asked to see his i.d. and he doesn't have one - he can take him straight to jail"
by this time i totally feel like i am in the twilight zone 'wtf' keeps going thru my head.
I turn around to see an unfamiliar face amongst the boy and his friends. I could not speak for who this boy was. The man in the pick up truck happens to be our 'neighborhood watch/vigilante ' who takes his volunteer position very seriously! Sharing with me all the break ins and drug dealings that go on in this neighborhood, that the sheriff's department, and the DEA amongst other law enforcement agencies are watching this neighborhood. He must have seen a look of horror on my face because finally after he ripped me a new butt hole, he settled down to introduce himself - and hell if I can remember his name nor do I care what his name is.
the kid that was walking over to our house was stopped for walking to our house from his neighborhood - a couple streets away was African American young man, dressed in the hip hop -ish fashion that many young kids wear today - who is very new to the Woodlands area- just moving here from Houston, just graduated high school and is looking forward to starting college in the fall. Because of his race and his choice of clothing apparel he was judged unfairly as a potential threat to our 'precious woodlands neighborhood' and by his presence will bring in gangs - according to the Neighborhood Nazi -
seriously? .... dude are you serious? I couldn't even believe i was in this situation.
My son and his friend play basketball with their other high school friends at a park close to our house. one day they see this guy just shooting some hoops by himself - they asked him if he wanted to play 21 and a friendship was formed. so that is how this young man came to be in this situation- innocently walking to our house to play PS3 .
Enters the sheriff that was called by the vigilante neighborhood watch dog (other names come to mind but wouldn't be very polite.)
i walk up with "T "to the sheriff's car- i listened to what "T "had to say to the sheriff and it was pretty much the same story that vigilante dude" told me.
the sheriff listened and was very cool. Actually laughed when "T told him that vigilante dude demanded to see his i.d. . I was half expecting the sheriff to talk to me as well but it didn't happen. honestly, i think the sheriff was more aggravated that vigilante dude actually called him to check on T. talk about racial profiling!
but that whole scenario got me pretty shook up- then i decide to go and get the mail.
there lay a big 'ol envelope for me from McDonald's corporation- and i knew what that was... my divorce papers or "your booted off the insurance policy due to the termination of your domestic partnership" i don't know why but it hit me like a ton of brick- between swing ball, vigilantes, racial profiling, and now my divorce papers- i just had to lay my head down and cry for a little bit.
this is very hard....

done

lazy hot summer days

just me and my camera - it makes me feel better... so does spending time laughing with my kids... i gave them life and they gave me mine back...they don't even know

calmer

i am much calmer today... i went to work, i left work to go pick up K to bring her to her friend's pool and then i went back to work. i worked til 5 drove to 1960 to pick up a new script for K because the 20mg Adderall didn't work well at all. it was too much for her little 79lb body. then i drove back to the woodlands and picked up from her friends house. we drove to CVS Pharmacy, but on the way there K discovers a Subway shop. I didn't feel like cooking tonight getting her the 6 inch turkey with swiss cheese lettuce and tomato on wheat with chips and a soda was ok with me.
Get home to start the usual 'walking thru front door' thinking oh sh*t the dishes need to be picked up, but first the dogs all of them are barking obnoxiously - so quickly my mind has to repriotize what needs to be done first- the dishes can wait, but the dogs cannot - their bowels and bladder must be released immediately upon entry of the dwelling.....then i can get to kitchen, unload...load...( which is supposed to being done by two well abled kids 11, and 16 but sometimes they forget ....you know how that goes- maybe i should forget to buy groceries?!
By the time i actually sat down ( well i had to pee after the dogs peed)to catch my breath - the A yells out "Chapa is here" ( like i should have known about his arrival...)- so back on the road, dropped A and Chapa off at park to play some basket ball. Kaitlyn and i drive back to CVS Pharmacy and pick up the new meds. went back to the house only to wait til A and Chapa call for a pick up. i am pooped!

panic attack

no pictures today. stressed, stretched like a rubber band and let's hope I don't snap. i should be happy, grateful, but i unfortunately don't share the same excitement. I am grateful to be given a 30 day trial even though i have been given many second chances. though i have been through some the hardest times and self realization - that i don't like to 'realize'. so many changes- help



you ever feel like someone has their hands around your throat, or like there is a lump in your throat and you feel like you can't swallow?

you ever feel like your head is about to pop off your shoulders? like your heart is racing so fast you feel as though you just might pass out?

you ever feel like ...' omg omg i'm not gonna make it, faster, what if i don't make it?'

i have to do this i have to i have to feed the kids and put a roof over their head i am the sole bread winner in this house

you ever feel so exhausted but can't sleep but instead cry yourself ( hopefully to sleep)?

Summer Time

(does any one know what this is? )


its summer time- this beautiful (i don't know what it is) ? butterfly ? was hanging out on our back door. Nothing seemed to bother it as the dogs would go flying in and out of the sliding glass door almost knocking it off. They would stop and sniff it for a second and then they would go on their merry way- Flicka obsessing with her balls. Luna digging holes and barking at squirrels 10 feet in the air but she is bound and determined she is going to catch it ( in the words of Juno " dream big" ).
Her wings ( i think its a she) looked like velvet, edges looked like fur. her antennae looked like ferns. It looked as though someone or something had hand sewn the designs on her wings that look like eyes. What an amazing creature! it was nice to see something so beautiful and take my mind off all my worries. ( no news if I will have a job come next week...)

laying in bed in my quiet room with my little light on. i like these moments.
my daughter had to journal every day in class. it looked as if her teacher would give the class a topic to write on. for example, what would your best birthday party be like? Now, please know I was not snooping or prying. She left it for me on my desk and asked me to read them. She sure does have a lot of insight. I am glad she journals. she is able to write down her thoughts- thoughts that are so hard for to speak out loud. May 16th was a hard day for her- she was upset that people she loved were walking out of her life. I understand why she was writing that. It sure did hurt my heart to read those words. Reading more of her entries- i kept wondering if she was happy living with me. She says her daddy brags on what a good time they always have and i think it hurts her feelings because she is not there and she is afraid they will throw it in her face that she wanted to live with me. i know she loves me and i know she loves her daddy- and her parents love her so much it hurts. she is a very lucky girl. Motherhood Parenthood we all hope we are doing the best and the right things. i know sometimes i bury my head in the sand like an Ostrich because i feel afraid and i don't want to see or hear what is actually going on. fear i guess... but not healthy for sure. we'll get there.

til tomorrow...
love,
a mom

~tree of life~

kaivalya gita ~ Absolute Understanding~ book i enjoy reading before i go to sleep~

"from the time when man has evolved into a thinking creature, he ( or she) has looked up into the sky above in order to contemplate the existence of a creator. in his mind, he has conceived the presence of a force that he does not understand, perhaps a guiding spirit, an invisible companion. He has symbolized this 'guiding spirit' in nature, conjuring up limitless forms as identities of this 'spirit'- wood, stone, sun, ocean, even hidden depths of the earth. This thinking creature, man, has given this creator innumerable names and has devised several different forms of worship to ensure safety, prosperity, and happiness of his own life. in this creators name, man has laid down rules and regulations for communities, and made them sacred and inviolable, to ensure peace and harmony in his life."

....sweet dreams....

(psst... i want this symbol branded on my skin...)

anxiety ICD-9-CM 300.4 depression

too much noise in my brain
my brain needs to be quiet in order for the anxiety to stop. be still and silent... that is not to say become a hermit and never talk to anyone...no not at all.
last night I took these photos while i was pacing my bedroom trying to comfort myself, calm myself. My brain is overloaded with worry and anxiety. actually the camera soothed me as i just started taking photos of my feelings. i actually stopped cleaning my room and let it get a little messy ( just a little ) so to give me something to do tomorrow.
today, i didn't do much of anything and it didn't bother me at all! i was lazy, but not anxious. i even treated myself to soak and relax in a nice hot bath ( which is unheard of for me to do)
and now the house is peaceful and quiet... no tv blaring...no dogs barking...just me in my crisp clean sheets, my laptop, and one little light on in my room.
tomorrow - i'll get to sleep in - til the dogs start barking .... and another day begins...

lemon drop martini's and my camera...these are a few of my favorite things.
the girl went to her daddy's the boy is spending the night at a friend's house
the house is ALL mine and it is so quiet - i acutally have the tv on as some form of distraction. i need noise to distract me from the quiet. thats funny to me when i always 'strive' for peace and quiet. I blame the girl. she is always watches tv in my room. so i guess i got used to the tv buzz in the background.
I have the whole weekend off...two days in a row.... what to do - what to do...
clean, laundry but what else...
i think i need to draw some and get back into the habit. never forget your ART.
and mine is photography. I need a creative kick in the butt. Anyone wanna take pics with me? anyone? anyone?
Still on pins and needles not knowing if I will have a job come July 1st.
anyone out there?? + positive energy needed +
I see me working from home - i see it in my mind.. i have a plan.

here lies a mother face down...

school's out! no school zones for 3 months endless phone calls swimming sunburns hot rain boredom mall movies boredom whining

today i still didn't find out anything about my job. but tonight i wasn't obsessing about it. I enjoyed my evening. K got to eat dinner at Lupe Tortilla's for Cheer/ Dance club end of year party. The boy spent the day working out and running with his friend. I had waffles with blackberry jam for dinner. tomorrow is the last day of school. Yea! no more school zones for 3 months.

My Monkey

May - started out with term papers and finals. That seems like a life time ago. I didn't think I'd ever get done with all that, but I did. Deciding when a good time for my ex to move out was my next big hurdle. My thoughts were the sooner the better because the process was feeling like taking a band aid off hair by hair and it was really hurting. The moving day was May 16th. That was a bitter sweet weekend- freedom
mixed with a feeling of an empty house. i just wanted to crawl out of my skin.
Next comes the job- or the "smoke screen" lay off with work. Just when I was beginning to get my feet back on the ground - another wave comes crashing towards me( or should I say this is my 'tornado' dream). So June brings a month of anxiety, indecisiveness as I wait it out and see if the hospital will 're-hire' for my position. Hopefully I will still be working come July 1st. my nerves are shot trying to figure out if I have a job or not. you see, it seems from past experience that when i hope i am wrong, i am usually right.
Single mom with two kids and no family anywhere close- it just seems to cave in on me.
I am overcome with waves of anxiety, and I don't feel like moving- just sitting still.
thank goodness for the encouragement of dear friends, and my kids who keep me laughing and the ever so distracting dogs !! ok ok ok- i know i must be going through this for a reason- and try not to fear change so much. There are a lot of things out there I would love to do (PHOTOGRAPHY ) and I know my job skills are unique . I am trying not to fear the unknown but instead look at it as a new future.
my my my i wonder what July holds for me....

so i am still obsessively cleaning - there isn't anything left to clean. what is wrong with me?! i am relieved and happy to have my life and family back! But i am restless, anxious and i am not understanding these feelings. it dawns on me i am not comfortable with me ! i keep telling myself "self' you are on the right track- sure it doesn't feel good and it's not going to feel for a while but this is where i am supposed to be. it sucks! I feel like i am detoxing off something and i have to go through it

Tornadoes

The night before last I was dreaming of tornadoes. It was one of those dreams that the next day just keeps replaying in your head over and over. You can't seem to shake it. I looked up into the sky and I could see the clouds forming in a funnel shape. I could feel the wind whipping around me- i wasn't alone. There were other people- i want to say , hmm i think there were little blond headed children with me. I ran them into the little house and hovered until I felt it was safe to go out. I didn't see much damage but even though I didn't see it, I knew a lot of damage had been done - somewhere. I remember looking outside and it was all sunny and hot. I walked outside assuming it was safe and it started to happen again. I felt more winds picking up and saw the dark gray ominous looking clouds starting to make that funnel shape again . It was like it was right over my head and I could see the inside the walls of this tornado. I think I remember hovering once again and this time a few windows were broken, but still not too much damage.. and then I can't remember much more than that. But what I can remember is very vivid in my head.

What does dreaming of tornadoes mean I asked myself...so of course I 'google' interpretations of dreams , clicked on tornadoes- Basically things are changing which is going to require you to keep up your education or in other words 'get your sh*t together'

Things in my life are changing. Though sad but good things are happening. I mean, it doesn't feel to good but the positives will outweigh the negatives once i get through what I need to get through. So that leaves me scratching my head , thinking..."hmmmm"

We had a department meeting today at work. Called at the last minute and required everyone to be there. Most of us were thinking - oh it's our Director, she's retiring and she is probably officially announcing it and going to tell us who is taking her place.....
yeah well - true our Director is retiring... but there was much more to the meeting than that. We were all told that the department we work in and throughout the entire network will be combined and reporting to Corporate instead of each site having their own department. Looking to cut costs and be much more efficient, I suppose. okay- but everyone has to fill out a transfer form and actually 're apply' for the job they want without any guarantee that we will get the job. We must fill out a new application along with our updated resume and actually go through an interview process - hoping we get our jobs back. I am not to sure I understand all this though. We are going from working on separate campuses to working under one umbrella ( the Corporate office) - it's not like we are being bought out by a different company.

So I guess this is my tornado....you see ...I am really good at what I do. I have been doing for about 20 yrs. My drawback is my productivity which has haunted me my entire career. It is just that productivity while was important was not as emphasized as much as it is in today's "almost on the verge of a Depression " era. My quality however is VERY good. Sometimes I am too detail oriented, other times I am bored, and this past year- well for those who know me- this past year has been a horrible emotional roller coaster ride - a really bad tornado - And unfortunately, I let it get the best of me- spending many of my productive hours worrying, stressing, and crying - and for what.... and now my job is on the line. I mean - I don't mean to be so dramatic- everyone has to do this. But I feel very scared that 'they' ( the big corporate guru's who will interview me - us ) will not let me back on the team. My productivity over the last year has taken a huge nose dive - given the emotional stress i let myself get into.

I hope I don't dream about tornadoes tonight....

anxious

tornadoes- winds of change- the unknown that lurks behind the cracked open door- okay i am just trying to reassure myself- no i don't have all the answers to all the 'what if's' - i can only go as far as i see. i guess it doesn't do me any good to get all tied up in knots about what will happen tomorrow or the next day or next week. for what is going to happen , at this point in time , i do not know, but what ever is going to happen already has happened. i just need be open minded and not beat myself up for what ever i did or did not do- because it's already done- all I can do is go forward. ( the mom side is worried about insurance for me and my daughter though - i have to admit)but i am a good honest hard worker with creative spirit - lurking to come out- maybe it will be a blessing in disguise - kinda like the blessing in disguise that just moved out... ha.
umm ... it's a lay off and i have til June 30th to either hope they 'rehire' me or take the severance package.... sometimes I am so slow...

wow i never saw that coming...okay i am tired of being side swiped ...my body feels like it is frozen with anxiety - like i don't even want to move my body.

Catharsis of the Soul

semester is over... made 3 A's! working normal 40 hour weeks and I feel like I am on vacation!
she's gone...moved out last Friday. . .
The house is quiet , and very clean. I am obsessively cleaning to avoid feeling. The house feels kinda empty. But we fill the awkwardness with laughter and waffles drowned in buttery syrup. It is a very enlightening feeling, sort of an empowerment to have some control over my life, my house, my family once again. don't get me wrong i am fully responsible for foolishly but with good intentions- of putting myself in that situation. Not sure why i feel so sad. after all the lies and manipulation you would think that one would be very happy to be out of that relationship. But all in all its been another life's lesson I suppose. One that many learn a lot earlier in life, but i guess i took the little yellow bus to school.... Now i am with myself ( and my kids of course) and I feel okay. Its sad and weird around the house but i just want to be with me now. i am alone but i am not lonely and I am okay with that. Every cloud has a silver lining....
omg- i am sitting here at 11:00 at night and still watching my daughter's favorite TV shows...just got done with Fresh Prince and now....Tool Time. mental note: must get a life...

chaos

here is my life in a chaotic narrative form: i know that you know that i know....

good night

well good night... or good morning depending on how you see it( its 12:44am) Aaron and I had such a good time today. We both hadn't felt happy in so long we both felt like it was Christmas or something. i am so exhausted but i almost feel afraid to go to sleep because i don't want to wake up tomorrow and not feel happy. ok well maybe i am deliriously tired right now...and the dogs are FULL of energy! thank you dear friends .... sweet dreams

333

another friday night

It's another Friday night.... when is the semester over?! i'll miss my art classes but i won't miss 10 hour days at work and especially those long miserable 10 hour saturdays! one long final exam in history of photography and two presentations to go and i will done May 13th - well - until the fall semester begins and i get to take darkroom - yea!!! and another brain melting drawing class- which may come so natural to some but makes my brain hurt-i like the abuse.
i am so tired....
p.s. i figured out how to make my 'reading list' - look at me!!!

s l e e p

i have this overwhelming need to sleep....when i am confronted with writing a term paper, taking a nap seems like a much better option- perhaps not productive. still thinking and changing my mind and thinking.

dexter

okay, so - one might think i have too much time on my hands- i laugh!! HA!
i say its to help my sanity (or insanity)of NOT having enough time.

term paper

tic toc tic toc...having bad dreams that I turned in my term paper late - so I have got to get this thing started! It's only due next Thursday. topic: compare and contrast the work of two photographers, covering the scope of their work , must include formal aspects of their work through technique and composition as well as my interpretation of meaning through denotation and connotation ( what exactly does that mean....)okay- so my thoughts....as i pass my dining room table with a half naked barbie doll with her forearm chewed off , finding her remains in the mouth of our dog.....on the sofa - you know the drill! it clicks -my favorite subject is my child - Kaitlyn - super star , diva, hero, tom boy- so i think i will dig up some information and write my paper on two controversial well known photographers Sally Mann and Tierney Gearon -who is a bit edgy and controversial, i agree, yet her images still draw me in...so that's it - I will do those two ladies. But I guess i will stick with nude barbie dolls instead of my child-
so i had to change it up a bit- instead of Tierney Gearon , i did it on Nan Goldin and Sally Mann- wow like they are at opposite ends of the spectrum in one aspect but both do social expressions with a straight image ....so we'll see how it goes.

posting pictures for the day

Todays thoughts-
ummm let me get back to you on that....well they were ugly thoughts and i am tired of wasting my energy on those thoughts.

never GIVE UP

a message for the day....

i like this image---- the NEVER part is written in light orange to the very left... don't loose site of that

i do like the idea of journaling with my images to share my feelings and thoughts...sorta like a photo narrative on people and places that touch or effect our lives whether personally, socially, or globally

Today I am home sick with my daughter...
thought i would take the time to catch up on homework but don't feel like it. Instead, Kaitlyn and I are camped out in my room full of snacks, movies and dogs! I am enjoying being sick today minus the sore throat and headache..

thought for the day from my Jones Soda cap-
"Your happiness is intertwined with your outlook on life" thank god for Jones Soda caps!

another day

so another day comes to an end... kaitlyn has a virus, i missed work, and i didn't accomplish all that i planned to do. will someone do my check book, find me a time to view a photo exhibit, since I have to write a three page paper on a Photo Exhibit by next Tueday- Will someone please draw a seated drapery study by da Vinci for my ART 163 class and will someone put a narrative together by May for my photo class and then will someone make dinner, make sure homework is done, clothes are washed, dogs and cats are fed, kiss my children good night.... love, a mom