So I'm on Thanksgiving break from school (rather I skipped science class this morning to start my break early), I've finished cleaning the house, I've finished off a bottle of chardonnay (it was actually a box but only a bottle's worth was left in it), and praise the Lord! Sex and the City II arrived from Netflix. I'm embarrassed to admit how happy I was to see it in the mailbox. And then Liza Minnelli sings Beyonce at Stanford and Anthony's wedding. Maybe it's only because of the nice midday buzz going on, but it was friggin' hilarious.
God I've got to find a job before I die of gayness.
(And no that was not a slur. If you've read my previous posts you know I love the gays!)

Simple Pleasures, or

Making lemonade out of lemons.
We hate our neighbors, that's no secret. As far as the eye can see, we hate every last one of 'em, with the exception of some of Jarrod and Abigail's friends' parents, and we can't really speak about the neighbors we don't know. We've only lived here almost 7 years and we're still waiting for some to acknowledge our presence. But for those immediately surrounding us, we Despise our neighbors, with a capital D.
By transfer, we also hate our house. Well, Amy hates the house because she really hates the neighbors; I don't mind the house so much except that it's located in our neighborhood. We loved the place when we first moved in. Amy busied herself planting and watering and watching things grow. I busied myself watching her busy herself with those things. It was a great arrangement. We were both excited to plant the Confederate Jasmine, 1) because it grows quickly, and 2) because it smells so damn good! In no time it took off, and this is what we have. You have to duck to get to the doors, which is not much of an inconvenience. The several real estate agents who have failed to sell our house tell us to cut it back, but we think it's charming. Perhaps if the agents ever bothered to actually show the house to potential buyers, we would entertain the idea of pruning a little.
Obviously we rarely use the front door, only on the occasion that someone who doesn't know we never use the front door rings the bell. I went out to sit in the rocking chair on the front porch to read this afternoon, and was surprised to find these lovely little vines growing through the screen door. Some would probably pull them away, but I say "What the hell?" I'll just close my eyes and pretend I live in a cottage in the French countryside.

Don't Drink the Kool-Aid!

No cute pictures or snarky witticisms from yours truly tonight (well, maybe a few).
I have to get something off my chest that is weighing heavily on me. Today was Armstrong Day at school, and all the various clubs had booths hocking homemade baked goods (store-bought homemade goods, boo hiss), drinks, kisses (loose sororities), guillotine decapitation (French club), etc. 100s of students and faculty enjoying a lovely afternoon celebrating 75 years of our esteemed university. And then there was the LGBT (maybe a few more letters I just don't know about) booth, the Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Transgendered club, and no one was there. Oh, there were students manning the booth with their rainbow Kool-Aid and Jello shots just waiting for someone to walk up and take some, but no one did. And neither did I. I mean, who doesn't like Kool-Aid and Jello shots? Tell me if the Tri-Delts had Jello shots at their booth if the line wouldn't be down the sidewalk? No one went up to the booth because no one wanted anyone else to think they were gay, or L, B, or T either. That's what went through my mind, if I'm honest. If I walked up to get something to drink at the gay booth, people would think I was queer.
And I hate myself for feeling that way. Some of my best friends are gay. I'm educated. I'm tolerant and open minded. I support gay marriage. Sex and the City was one of my favorite shows. Hell, I remember Backstreet in Atlanta. I was on a college campus in 2010 for God's sake, and I was scared someone would think I was gay. People I don't even know. And people who don't know me. Being in college at this point in my life is different than the first go-round. Class is just somewhere I have to go in the course of my day, and I don't socialize and have friends on campus like the younger whipper-snappers.
I was a coward, and I can't help but feel like I insulted those students who were proudly working in their booth. And I regretfully insulted my gay friends.

Insert "Star Wars" Subtitle Here:

Surely someone will get the title. I have confidence, especially if Scott reads this. For the rest of you, I'm going for "A New Hope".
And for those who are really paying attention, you will notice the new title of this esteemed blog. I know I run the risk of losing my hoards of followers by changing the title, but, as our President puts it, "Change has come!" Our current economy has forced me to change careers and I am no longer in the photography business. Sad faces all around, I know. So we have been living on Amy's salary for several months now, and damn it's hard! But the bigger concern is that photography, wedding photography especially, is all I've ever wanted to do. There's never been a back-up plan for my life. So here I am, 38 years old and struggling to figure out what to do when I grow up.
The writing on the wall was pretty clear for a couple of years, so I started back to college last year. I thought I would be a nurse since that's practically a guaranteed, constant job. The only problem is I'm not great at science, and unless I make all A's I feel like I've failed. So I've decided to be a middle school teacher. I like to think I'm somewhat learned in literature, so I've decided to become an English teacher. Although my British novel class this semester is really telling me how un-well-read I am. Anyway, I'll reserve my ultimate goal for a time when I have a little more confidence in my intellect, but for now it's middle school. I have about 1.5 years to go.
That's still enough time to change my mind, as Amy likes to tell me!

Christine & Jason

Can't wait to do these guys' wedding in June. At least the weather will be a little warmer. Oh, yeah... June in Savannah will be sweltering!

We had a great time wandering around Forsyth for some great photos. They want to move to Savannah after Jason finishes school in Atlanta -- another couple charmed by the beauty of Savannah!

Carol & Andrew

Carol and Andrew chose the coldest day of the year (!!!) to get married outside at the Savannah Yacht Club. The wind was blowing so hard, and it was so cold, but the rain held out literally until we finished with the altar pictures.

The Ross and White families were wonderful to work with. I photographer Carol's sister, Anne's, wedding a few years ago and really am honored the family called on me this time!

I'm Back!!!

My, my. It seems like I've been gone forever. I'm sure whoever was following my blog has long since jumped ship. Blame Facebook. I do. It's just easier than admitting I haven't really had anything going on worth writing about. But that wouldn't be the complete truth.

I have been extremely busy with school. For those who don't know, I'm back in college. Again. Didn't I already graduate once like 13 years ago? Anywho, I am pursuing a degree in middle school education. Who knew I was into masochism? Never did I think I would be teaching English to middle schoolers, but the current economy has sort of pushed me into expanding my horizons. Plus, there's the added benefit of being off during the summer with Amy and the kids and being able to travel. Though on 2 teachers' salaries there may be more staycations than vacations.

Confession time: though middle school has never been on my radar, I have always fantasized about being a college literature professor, elbow patches and all. That's really my end game in getting a degree in education, though the thought of having to write a thesis to get a PhD. or EdD. makes me want to double up on my anti-anxiety medication. In my English class this semester I have the instructor I want to be: he's well-read and wonderfully nerdy.

The fam is fine. Amy has a particularly rough class this year and swears she is going to work as a cook at the Waffle House. Jarrod and Abigail are growing so quickly, and I'm embarrassed that I don't take pictures of them nearly as often as I should. Brucester is still around. He escapes almost daily, but always comes back. Lexi is now a permanent member of the family; although we tried, we just couldn't bring ourselves to give her up. We had 2 cats, brother and sister, but Alex took off a couple of months ago. Jarrod has become the cat wrangler, because Katie usually only has anything to do with him. She's kinda stuck-up like that.