Creole Wisdom

the very first day

So, there are really no good photos to go with this entry, so you will have to go without.

Rest assured, my very first day interning at The Magazine was fantastic.

I had really no idea what to expect, and found myself nervous Tuesday morning (I am a good preparer, so I am rarely nervous.)

Anyway- what makes this all full circle is that twenty two years ago, my dad used to work in the same building- granted at a different company on a different floor, but in my mom's old photo album there's a picture of him standing in front of that skyscraper donning a very 1980s suit.

Enough nostalgia.

I cannot disclose too much about what I'll be doing, or really specifically for who, but rest assured that it's cool and exactly what I want to do. I am really hoping that this will turn into a career, but again I'm not God, and so I am accepting His will. At the same time I am allowing myself to feel incredibly blessed.

Right now I am profiling Norfolk, VA- a seaside southern city. I get to do fun things like call restaurant owners and ask about local favorites, and search for night spots or good boutiques. Never mind that I would do these things anyway if I was traveling to a new city! 

I love it, and have my own cute little desk- It's all very good, and I anticipate learning a lot, and having a ball at the same time.

I can't believe I'm here. I can't believe I finally work for a magazine.

my life is sweet

Sometimes, life is sweet. It's been that way for me since, oh, Friday. Here's why:

•Flower Show at Macy's with Katherine. I could smell how good it was all the way from the escalator. I love going downtown, and then dinner afterward. Mm Marketplace :)

•Beautiful, gorgeous, perfect weather. Wearing flip flops for the first time all day long. They kind of hurt (isn't it weird how we wear them 1/2 year long then they are suddenly kind of uncomfortable the second you put them on again after months?)

•Photo shoot with Joy on Sunday. People in this city sometimes have a staring problem. I mean, stop conversation and stare. Hm, uptown equals people watching? I suppose!

•Babystting little W and not-so-baby-anymore O. They are seriously the most adorable children ever. Nothing beats a three-year-old asking you if you poop.

•Interviewing at the. dream. magazine. Not kidding. Always making me remember: not my will, but God's. All is well.

•Finally scrapbooking and loving it and catching up.

the new job

A few of you have inquired about this new job that I've hinted about.

The exciting news is, I've started working part time at a downtown law firm. That's about it.

I had interviewed there for a full time position back in the fall, but as things go these days... it turned out to be part-time. I actually don't mind.

I like to do a diversity of things: nannying, photography, melly, and now- the law firm.  Yes, I work quite a bit, and I like it that way. When you are doing something that you enjoy, I find that I can do it for quite a while.

So, I go in two days a week and get to enjoy lunches at Au Bon Pain- as it should be.

And before you ask, no there are no hot, young lawyers there for me to swoon over. And my stack of paperwork and filing is too high anyway. 

And before anyone else dares think to mention- I am absolutely without a doubt never attending law school.

today's photos

I did another photo shoot on Sunday morning. It was the most perfect weather, and the best light for shooting: slightly overcast. Good, good. I'm going back tonight to do a few more.  Isn't Joy gorgeous? I have such beautiful friends- it's the truth. And you know what? They are as pretty inside as they are outside. Isn't it funny how that goes together sometimes (and sometimes not). Good day.

PS

I go to Ireland on Friday. Bah!

Yum.

This is Au Bon Pain. Of course you know what that is. Of course you love it, too.

This my dear readers, is where I will be lunching tomorrow.

Because, it's my very first day, at my new part-time job downtown. I love it.

Can't wait to rock some heels and fun tights. And eat Au Bon Pain, of course!

seward co-op favorites

These are just a few of my favorites from Monday's photo shoot at the Seward Co-op. I love when I finish editing photos a few days before their due date, and I love when so many of them can just be SOTC. Beautiful food doesn't need a lot of changing.

sometimes in life:

It is all about the packaging.

What I love:

-Kraft paper. Is there anything more simple and elegant, and not to mention versatile?

-Good, simple graphic design

-Carbs. Deliciousness in every last bite

What I also love:

-More photography work. I am so thankful.

-Lots of photos to edit from yesterday's shoot at the co-op (these images are from that)

-Leaving soon to work on the Substance Magazine layout

communication binder

I think what I love about plain, 3-ring binders is this: they are a blank slate. You can do so much with them: recipe binders, sorority stuff, of course if you're still in school then you have to have them anyway, might as well make them fabulous.

Here's something I threw together this week: it's a communication binder for the family I nanny for. The parents were thrilled when I showed them this morning (more for the cute photos, I'm sure).

Method:

Create a simple photo collage in photoshop, add desired font and print

Adhere to coordinating patterned paper cut to size (be sure to measure, binder sleeves are not the average 8.5x11)

You can even cut a small strip for the spine- 

Inside I placed a mead notebook and a list of emergency numbers/must knows. 

Go make one today :)

[Now it's time to get siked for Il Gato with Claire tonight. Rest in peace Figlio's]

my job(s)

If I had on a Lilly cashmere sweater (I wish!) then I could say here is a shot of my three jobs. I'm so thrilled, I just booked a great piece of freelance work at a local museum. So happy, and feeling quite proud of myself. It's this weekend so I have a bit of preparation work to do.

I'm really enjoying my new situation. I like the freedom, and the demanding nature of it. I feel challenged. I have no idea where my next photography gig may come from, and I have to keep putting myself out there. Nothing like writing e-mails and never getting responses, but then sometimes there's a message in my inbox. So goes the nature of this.

But, I can safely say: I'm a photographer. Published and working on all the rest of it.

no one said you needed a phd in engineering to work a bjorn

I had my first day with baby O on Wednesday. I thought it would be a great idea to go for a walk. I had him all bundled up in his snowsuit (hands tucked into the ends) and put him in the bjorn. Then I realized that my coat would not zip with both me and him- so then I had to take it off again and put it on for a second time. LOL. Baby equipment is hard to figure out.

 

In other (but of the same) news he is just as precious as can be, and of course I love him already. Cannot believe the epic naps he takes. I'm looking forward to even more warmer weather, so that babies in the tundra can know real warmth.