Road trippin'

We're exploring the South this week: taking a road trip through Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and Georgia. It's wonderful here! And I don't have a laptop with me, so just a quick note from my iPhone.

Wednesday thought wanderings

I was drinking hot white mocha on this cool May evening (but even late-hour caffeine fails to keep my eyes open after the sun goes down - is the night owl in me getting old or what?!) and I started typing a long, sad post about how tired I was, how sometimes it's hard to live in a small town in Idaho, how so many things start to annoy me these days, how it's rainy and my throat is scratchy, how I am 25 and it's very scary, how it's hard to figure out what important things I should do and achieve and how I'm worried that I won't be able to, how I feel like I'm wasting time from day to day, and most of all how much I miss my family and Moscow life...

But then I realized that if I think only about all the sad things and focus on them, then no one will be able to help me get out of this mindset, and I deleted the post. Ben and I went for a walk, we gazed at all the blooming chestnut trees in our neighborhood, talked about how we fell in love with our street long before we found a house here, how we're going to see many of our friends in a few weeks, how it's already spring and the air smells so good after the rain, how everything grows so fast and I already have baby kale, green onions and blooming peas in my garden.

And it gave me strength to admit that feeling bitter won't get me anywhere - at least not to where I want to be. Ben says I pressure myself too much with the future and I need to step back, take a break and refocus. With the future in mind I need to let the good little moments and things in the present lead me through the days. Everything passes, it would be silly to just let all the good things go unnoticed.

lately

Lately I've been very busy, I feel like I'm on a high-speed train and everything is quickly passing by a window. I'm usually a person who controls everything, plans ahead and makes lists, but it's not how I live now. 

This past week at work we were finishing a new issue of a magazine, I was running around town with a camera, taking food photos for the dining guide, then making and editing ads for the local businesses, working on a few website design and SEO projects.. all at once! On top of everything my home laptop with all my files and Photoshop (!!) finally broke, and now I'm struggling with blogging and my regular evening computer activities. 

On Monday (of course!) I woke up with sore throat and running nose and I've been fighting cold since then, some days winning, some days not so much. I'm going to see a doctor tomorrow morning, I only have one week now to make sure I'm fine because... next weekend we're going on vacation! We're travelling south to Texas, Louisiana, Florida and Georgia - I'm super excited, neither Ben or I have ever been there, it should be fun. I'm trying to get as much rest as possible today and get ready for another crazy week full of deadlines and travel arrangements.  

Mineral Point Trail

Hike // Mineral Point Trail No. 82 near Garfield Bay; Ben's backpack // c/o Valentich Bags

It was one of the best days so far this spring, very sunny and warm. We couldn't decide what to do but didn't want to just stay inside in such a perfect weather. I was trying to convince Ben to go to some waterfalls but after reading about that place online we quickly realized that there wasn't any official public access. A bit disappointed, we opened Sandpoint Online and just looked on a map of Lake Walks, found the closest one that we haven't hiked yet and quickly packed into the car.

The drive down there along the shore of Lake Pend Oreille with music and cold coffee was nice itself, but the trail exceeded all of my expectations. It's absolutely fantastic: the views are gorgeous, flowers are everywhere, it smells like pine trees in the afternoon sunshine, there is even a hidden beach and a campground! This hike stole my heart! Now I'm dreaming of a camping trip there later in the summer, watching the sunset and the sunrise, eating wild strawberries off the mountain slopes and just escaping from everyone for a weekend. What a perfect place! I guess I shouldn't advertise for it too much, and better keep it secret :-)

Lomography Monday: Diana mini spring shots

This post took way too long to put together thanks to my dying laptop. I guess I don't have much luck with gadgets lately, this also refers to my new Diana mini film camera. There is some problem with its mechanism, it stops winding film after fra, 10-15.. I used two rolls of film and both of them were jammed almost at the same spot. Those photos that I shot with the Diana are great, though. I shot half-frames but they were cut individually at the film lab. Now we're deciding what to do with the camera: try to return it to Amazon or follow an online DIY and fix it ourselves...

May picnic at the city beach

We celebrated the beginning of May with an after-work beach picnic (and a sunny photoshoot)! Sandpoint City Beach is a wonderful place in warm weather: there is a green park with tall trees, a kids playground, and of course, white sand and a blue lake with mountains as a backdrop. We made a quick stop at the shop to grab a baguette and lemonade, and in just a few minutes we were all settled, entertaining people in the park with our photo posing.

I had such a great time. To be honest, this past week was pretty stressful and I even caught flu, but spending time outside in the sunlight definitely helped me feel better. I think we should have mandatory weekly picnics!

wine paintings by Ben

Hi, this is Ben again! I've been painting with wine lately because it's an interesting color and it tends to make me come up with things I wouldn't have thought of otherwise. Obviously, people are my favorite subject. The wine starts out pink and then turns purple, but it depends on the kind of wine. Bacchus stayed relatively pink.