Little bit of Light

This morning I awoke late. Very. very late. Coming upstairs to put some breakfast on for friends that had stayed the night, I opened the door to the most stunning light. There were little bokeh balls splattered across a closet, cast from somewhere outside.

Let me mention how BRIGHT this light was. It was blinding. I can't say that I minded, after noticing something that has probably happened dozens of other times. The thing is, this morning, I noticed.
~Beth

The Happiness of Monet's Gardens

In 2009, I had a lovely trip to France that included Monet's gardens.  Years of admiring his paintings in museums and books did not prepare me for the beauty of the actual gardens.

The story of the gardens is, of course, of the labor of Monet's love for them, bringing in the exotic plants, arguing with his neighbors, and making the grounds the subject of many of his most famous paintings.

But it's also a story of a garden that was abandoned and run down, lacking in funding, and lacking in gardeners.

Imagine a world with reclaiming caretakers like those who restored Monet's gardens...  Now that would be a beautiful world, indeed.  ~ Paloma


Monet was my first true love in the art world. I had a book about his life, and his childhood- it enchanted me. His favorite green cake, his sketches of a teacher that landed him in detention. What a guy!

I can't say I've yet had the chance to find myself in Monet's gardens, but I'd like to think that I maintain a little bit of nice greenery myself. So far, I've managed about three trees in our very solid, clay soil. It's hard, but in all tackiness, watching them grow is one of the highlights each spring. I've just recently transplanted a few, and now, I eat my breakfast each day to new life.

It's a beautiful life- in France, in Germany, in a well-kept garden, or in a suburban backyard. ~Beth

The Happiness of Five

Today definitely got off to its start as one of those days.  Didn't feel great.  Work staring at me.  Monday looming on the horizon and full of deadlines.

Where was I going to find happiness in this little brew of a headache waiting to happen?

And then the nest of little tweeties struck up their choir of "feed me!s"  I wandered over to take a peek, and, to my amazement, all five baby birds were facing forward.

I made a mad dash for my camera, grabbed the tall chair, slowly opened the screen door and took it all out onto the porch.

They immediately stopped tweeting.

Standing on the chair, camera on manual focus, two different camera settings, and we were off to the first shot of all five baby birds.

Of course, could even one of them have smiled for the camera?  ~ Paloma

The Happiness of a Crowded House

You know how difficult it is to get all the kids to look at you and smile?  This nest is filled to overflowing with five (5!) baby birds, who have been making the most beautiful racket for about a week.  But can I get just the shot I'm looking for?

This nest was first built two summers ago, when it was for a family with two babies.  Last year, there were three babies, with one who was very clearly in charge, and we were lucky enough to actually be watching the day he walked out on the drain pipe and flew the coop.

These little guys are getting so much bigger each day that I'm a little unclear how mom is going to sleep on them tonight.  What a happy problem to have!  ~  Paloma


I've posted about 'the kids' before. The baby, who makes me laugh, and the little boy who is just so cute in mimickery, and the girl who is a princess in her very own world. My friends often ask, "how are the kids?" As if I am a proud mama, I talk about teeth coming in, and birthday parties.

I am a kid myself, but to watch these kids grow up - it's magical. They are such a sunshine in my life. I don't mind being a little messy and chasing kids around for hours. I adore these children.

The real full house? Adding in three dogs! ~Beth

The Happiness of Off

Today was the first day in a couple of weeks that I was able to shut off.  It was a summer evening, wet from a passing thunder storm.  The light lingered in the night sky over Lake Ontario.  A pleasing cup of tea and the second cupcake.

In just three hours, I felt the beginnings of being able to "hear," again.

I have asked so many questions across the past two years of so many different people on whether they view the electronics explosion as positive.  Only two other women - both pianists - said that they routinely "shut it all off" so that they can hear, Elizabeth Roe and Olga Kern.

So my today happiness is a quiet one.  It is the place of poets and pianists, of dreamers, of lovers.  Isn't it special to think that it didn't cost a thing to find this much happiness?  ~  Paloma

The Happiness of the Light at the End of the Tunnel

It is near! Grades are slowly emerging, and tests are finishing
One more: geometry. I think you all can just hear the 'ugh' in my voice with that word. What will I do? Use Paloma's post from yesterday - persevere!
I am so close to being finished, and I will be tomorrow at 11 with a fat bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream.
I am keeping the end in sight, and not losing my focus on getting a good grade.
Ich kann diese machen!!  ~  Beth

Confession: I ate this cupcake.  It was from the Baker Street Bakery, and I bought it this afternoon for some still life photography I did for the cupcake blog to which I contribute.

It is no more.

There was a happiness knowing that the cupcake would be the reward for a day of pressing forward in new directions for my photography into the land of limited edition prints, marketing efforts, and job term negotiations.  And, although I had been told at the bakery that it was just vanilla, I suspected lemon from the first whiff, and I was right - a lovely tang of lemon awaited the first bite.

Simple reasons make the sweetest happiness.  ~  Paloma

The Happiness of Perserverance

We all have things we just don't want to do.  And, sometimes, we let those things overwhelm our day.  We might even spend more time dreading doing the task than it ultimately takes to do the task.

How do you stay happy doing it?

1. recruit a friend on the theory that many hands make a lighter load;
2. plan a reward for your timely and thorough completion of the task;
3. just do it.

Stephane Wrembel

For line item #2, I highly recommend a vanilla ice cream cone or a cappuccino or heirloom tomatoes instead of beefsteak, a flop on the sofa with a good book, a walk through the park with your dog, a telephone call with one of your Ya-Ya Sisters, a French gypsy jazz tune by Stephane Wrembel et ses amis...


Clearly, I do better at items #1 and #2 than I do at item #3.

Back to the writing assignment I need to complete!  ~ Paloma

This isn't so much persevering, as it is about allowing yourself to see. It will be brief, more of a reflection than anything:
Have you ever been passenger in a lengthier car ride at night?
Do you
1.) Fear hitting deer, like I often do, and hold on for dear life to be sure?
2.) Close your eyes while someone else is behind the wheel?
3.) Enjoy seeing something outside of your own backyard or normal trekk to Wegmans?

Today, I watched fireflies flash while driving 65 m.p.h down the highway. Fireflies, they're pretty simple. Add a little bit of speed, and you've got the most fantastic summer night sight.

Late at night, when there are deer to be cautious of, or is sleep to be had, take the time to appreciate being somewhere a little less familiar. The rewards are dashing! ~Beth

The Happiness of Candids

In the eight days I worked with four other writers from City Newspaper to cover the Rochester International Jazz Festival, I took at lot of photographs.  You'll even recognize the names of some of the big stars that I had a chance to shoot, stars like the incomparable k.d. lang, Elvis Costello and .38 Special.

The DeBlase Brothers

In these hundreds of photographs of high notes and fame, one moment really struck a chord with me.  These are three brothers.  The fellow in the middle is Frank DeBlase; he was also writing and shooting for City.  Two of his brothers met up with him one evening at the Festival, when I happened to be with Frank.  

The brothers almost immediately started horsing around as soon as they learned I was shooting with Frank, and I could see it was going to be one of those moments of sibling dynamic that would pass if I didn't quickly grab, point, and shoot.

These are the pictures I will look back upon when I am older, and I will smile.  This is the happiness of life, captured in a candid in the town where George Eastman invented Kodak.  ~ Paloma

Taking a risk to ask someone to take their photograph has never been one of my strong suits. It's a challenge (surprisingly!) for me to approach a stranger with such a question. I've learned slowly, that people change when they pose. It's not to say that there is any reason to not ASK before taking a photograph, but be on guard. When talking to a person, their personality shines through. We over think the way that we display ourselves as people, and put up a guard that doesn't read well in photographs.

This girl? I caught her in the moment. If you knew her, you would know that it is a perfect display of Emma's character. Without knowing her, I hope that you could get the same feeling. We were in the middle of a shoot, when she began messing around. It's not unlike Emma, and I hope that this is one of those photos used on a family tree of a great-great niece in many years, who talks about her crazy relative. You've seen those vintage photographs, that have so much character. Why pose, if you can become the old photos full of personality that become a family member's insight, or a girl's inspiration? Find happiness in capturing happiness, or perhaps in being captured in your happy moment. ~Beth

The Happiness in Getting Jazzy

Paloma has been working the Rochester International Jazz Festival for many nights now. Of course, I finally gave in and decided to have a meander! A friend of mine joined me for a solid five hours of people watching.

My memory chip? Who knows, otherwise this post would be full of photos. Seeing people happy, doesn't it make YOU happy? The world is not such a downer, at least not in the area of the Rochester Jazz Festival! The most beautiful women I have ever seen danced their way through massive crowds outside of Java's. It seemed like everyone was dancing, swaying, speaking to the beat!

There was an older gentleman shooting with a -gasp- film camera! I was so tempted to ask for a quick cellphone picture of it. Unfortunately, the light would not have ever entertained the idea. Another man passed us, saying "Smile, smile! Pretty ladies!" It was all in good temperament, and just a genuine gesture.

Two girls in the city on a busy night? It pleases me that so many groups can come together for one festival with no conflicts. I think the jazz just penetrates the body!  ~ Beth

"How He Holds Her"

And that was the story at the Rochester Club.  When the scheduled saxophone player cancelled last minute, in stepped Rochester native Mike Cottone on the trumpet.  He was a little nervous (wouldn't you be?), but the jazz in his heart just pulled him forward on the stage.  First song, good.  Second song, the knees started to bend deeper as he blew higher and longer.  Third song, his whole body started to express the music he was playing, and, at that point, his sound changed too.

Why don't we dance more often?  Why don't we surrender to a beat that we can feel and just enjoy ourselves, even if it's a few minutes of dancing in the kitchen while making scrambled eggs and toast? ~ Paloma

The Happiness of Routines

This week, I'm writing and shooting the Rochester International Jazz Festival for City Newspaper.  This means, quite simply, that I need a working camera, pen, and paper.  And each day that I go through my routine of checking the battery charge, the memory card space, and touching the other items in my press bag, I think it's time I could be writing or sorting photographs.  But, still, I even do the step of taking one test shot of a still life in my house before I walk out the door.

So today's happy comes from this routine showing me that I had not put the charged battery back in the camera.

I just saved myself a whole lot of un-happy.

It's the little things ~ Paloma

Save yourself a little time: you could go into get help or assistance with a negative attitude, thinking that you'll just give them a deadline and walk away, or... think happily.  You never know the situation, so why waste the energy on being rude?
Take this into consideration- when were you last pooped out from a day of SMILING? From a day that you decided would go well?
Make it a routine to smile. You'll be a whole lot lighter going to bed each night.
~Beth

The Happiness of Challenges

How often do we face a challenge and stand still in the face of it and ask why me? and why now?  Maybe we even try to negotiate a bit with the powers-that-be.  Maybe we get nervous and we make the challenge only seem even bigger.

Last week, I had one of those moments of facing a challenge when I was asked about my availability and interest in joining the team from City Newspaper to cover the Rochester International Jazz Festival 2011.  The parameters for shooters at concerts are specific and, if violated, can result in a loss of credentials for the newspaper.  What am I talking about?  The one song rule.  It's get the shots and get out of the way, and do it without getting in the way of the audience.

The notion of covering more than one band per night in all different venues around Rochester in low and variable colored lighting with the action of the musicians with their instruments felt like a huge challenge -- one I nearly talked myself out of.  But, here we are in this blog challenge of 365-days of happy and I simply had to say out loud:  I'm going to do my best.

I'm not going to tell you this has been without challenge, missed shots, shots that blurred, near-black shots with incorrect settings, and crawling around on the floor in the pit in front of the stages.

But, I'm going to put up this photograph and ask if you can hear the music?

~ Paloma

Exam week, and I am terribly sick. The biggest challenge? Convincing myself that I am well enough to ace these little speed bumps!Music makes my head throb, and looking at a computer screen is probably also not the best. If I can get through this obstacle, the rest of my summer ought to be flawless. This is me, bargaining with some sort of higher power- get everything over with now, and let the rest of my holiday be fantastic. It will be wonderful, I am determined to make it so!
~Beth

The Happiness of Lines

 It's senior week, and there are some animals on the loose! To list a few, the pranks have so far involved a...solicitor, water guns, and an army of forks and spoons.

Today, I enjoyed a day of chalk with five other seniors. Here, Mike is creating a giraffe- who knows!
These students are all going away to college next year, and they will be moving out into the world.

Maybe it should be worrisome that they all have the time and free attitude to chalk rather than study before finals, but that letting go is what gets us all through. It was definitely one of the better spent hours of my school year!

Take a walk, go to the zoo, and find some creatures of your own. Explore them in the sky, or just flipping to Animal Planet. Accept the happiness challenge, and little your inner lion roar!
~Beth

"Energy, waiting"

This week, I'm with a team covering the Rochester International Jazz Festival for City Newspaper.  Every concert I walk into has jazz lights, jazz instruments, jazz musicians, and jazz lines.

These shots were taken tonight.  It's the stage of Harro East, before the concert.  This beauty was just sitting on the stage, waiting - impatiently.  The line was so gorgeous that I just had to grab a shot or two to admire the instrument later, which is now.  Just a few moments after I snapped the frames, a young helper came out to snatch up the trumpet and the moment had passed - at least in reality, but not in my camera.

"Still, waiting"

This trumpet was much happier to be played than to sit.

Still life has a far different meaning to some.  ~ Paloma

The Happiness of Summer Sweet Tea

My family sails, and we used to sail up the St. Lawrence to the Thousand Islands. There, we would spend two or three weeks relaxing between about five islands (of a thousand!). I remember how my mother would brew iced tea on the deck when we were at anchor- even more so, I remember when a wake would come and it would spill!

A conservation center in Cape Cod, MA. What a perfect summer day that was!

Today, I was home alone, while my parents sailed and my brother played golf. It was a lovely sunny day, for those of you in western New York. What else was there to do? I pulled out a great big pitcher and eight tea bags. An hour in the sun, and I had perfection!

The sweet, sweet summer is just two days away! ~Beth

And I was scrubbing the inside of our sailboat, Bellatrix.  She is named after a star in the Orion constellation and means "female warrior."  With my purple Playtex gloves, scrubby sponge, and water, I had two years of spiders to relocate and everything else to wash down.

It was water, water everywhere, but we never left the dock. ~ Paloma

Snap, Crackle, Pop so Happy!

It's not your traditional bowl of rice crispies, and the onomatopoeia changes slightly. These babies absolutely melt in your mouth. They are delectable. Cream cheese? Check! Cucumber thinly sliced? Check! The perfect nighttime snack.

I don't believe in eating guilt- when does that make anyone happy!? Number dropping usually is no pleasure as well, but at 50 calories for an eight inch round, I'm all smiles.

Maybe it's not normal to have this relationship with food, I'm not sure! As far as I'm concerned, a nice little rice cake snack is the best taste of happiness after a long summer day! ~Beth

My "pop!" happy moment today is eating microwave popcorn while writing up my post-concert copy from the Rochester International Jazz Festival.  Lots of people.  Lots of music.  Lots of photographs.  And now lots of pops!  ~ Paloma

The Happiness of Accomplishment

Who else out there makes the dreaded 'to-do' list? It's a necessity, and often the only motivation I have to knock some chores off.

Here's my trick: add two or three things that you know won't be so terrible. Crossing off a task is the best feeling.

Und was hab ich heute gemacht? My German speaking final is all done, I did not put it off. Beginning the day well, I finished mowing the lawn, which has taken a couple of days. Next to be done is the poetry project which I so dread. The happiness in knowing how relieved I will be after this last project is finished is all that I need to keep myself crossing tasks off my little to-do. ~Beth

The Happiness of Light

I shoot film.  The 35mm variety and only if it's made by Kodak, which, I will continue to maintain, is the highest quality film for where I point my lens.

I love light.  My never-ending quest is to share the beauty of light.  I wish there were as many words for "light" as there are to the Eskimos for "snow."  Nothing captures light in all its beauty better than Kodak film.

First Universalist Church, Rochester

This shot now takes its place as a personal favorite.  Beth and I were shooting churches on East Avenue, and ended up outside St. Mary's and then the First Universalist Church.  I've seen these churches many times for many years, and finally, there we were, out on the sidewalk, taking photographs.

Not one to miss anything, I thought I saw someone go into the church and wondered if that might offer an opportunity to go inside the church.  It did!  A very kind man took us in and gave us a bit of a tour.  While I'll be putting up various of the shots on my website, this one really reflects the warm feeling inside the sanctuary.  Beautiful wood.  A simple glass window.  An invitation.  ~ Paloma

It's the dash. The dash of light.  It's the same window, bu on the opposite side of the exact same church. It's different film, it's a different camera. It needs a slight rotate, since my camera body is so heavy that it always leans to the right.

Here's the light: why do we see such different beauty? What attracts one, but only then the other can notice. I find myself drawn to views that normally I would not entertain if shooting alone. Paloma and I share these experiences often. It is only the light of knowing that I can see this beauty that keeps me happy on a daily basis. There is no gray and blah here- only dashes of light and deep shadows. ~Beth

The Happiness of a Sweet Treat

I try to eat well. Don't we all? There's the daily yogurt and muesli, and grilled chicken with white milk. I enjoy vegetables, as well. And then there were cream puffs. We're not talking about some superb homemade goods. These are from BJ's, they are frozen, and they are the perfect end to a hot summer day! The cream turns smooth in your mouth, and they perfect temperature can be savored for a long time. It was not a binge- two were enough for me! There's no reason to give up the sweet on a day that seems so.. hot and sour!What's your sugary indulgence? ~Beth

Happiness of Sore

Twenty minutes ago, I was ready to write "happiness of cardio."  I had just returned from a rousing 4-mile walk in the early evening sunlight, surrounded by joggers, bikers, and dogs.

Now, however, I have to title it the happiness of sore.  Ugh.  With warm, sunny weather arriving so late this year, I was delayed in the start of my outdoor workouts.

Thanks to this challenge, I will not groan.  I will not moan.  I will not complain, nor flop on the sofa.

I will be happy.

(I hear every one of you laughing.)
 ~Paloma

I know that the tinge in my back is from a baby. Holding a baby, picking up a baby, leaning over to wipe up the mess of a baby! The question is, how much can I possibly bring myself to mind?
There is a beautiful baby, you all have seen her in other posts, and I couldn't ask for a more pleasant subject to babysit.
However... there's nothing wrong with flopping on the bed right now :)! ~Beth

The Happiness of Positive

"I had a great day, today!"

We all get a chance to say this, at least once in a while.

But, because Beth and I have taken this challenge of 365 days of happiness and we are writing this blog, I do have to start examining the question of whether you can actually decide to be happier and end up, well, happier.

Today, I decided that it is true that in order to be happy yourself, you must surround yourself with happy people, or, at least, positive people.  A girlfriend who will mean it when she says, "I like your dress."  A man who makes the effort to catch up to you to sign your petition for a charitable cause.  An editor who offers you an opportunity because he believes you are ready for it.

It's still spring for another two weeks.  Why not do some spring cleaning and reduce the amount of time you spend with people who make you feel sad or blue or just plain glum.  After all, if I asked if you would rather live in a cloudy climate or a sunny climate, wouldn't your answer be sunny?  ~ Paloma

There are six days of school left. Six days! It doesn't matter how many exams there are after, or that I still have one more Monday morning left. Really, what should these last six days be to me? Should it be a countdown? I don't imagine that numbers are a big enough part of daily life that one more statistic should drastically change my entire mood. This is not to go without saying that the tick-down feels great! It's been a long year, and a weird year, and I'm not sure what summer will be like without having to even think about school for two months. My last six days will be these, and I hope that they will arouse smiles: a maxi dress (maybe two!), the last student council meeting of the year, which are always full of laughs, the eventual end of the school snack line, a few fishtail braids, and the preparation for a much bigger summer than ever before. How do you count down to the best bits of the year- with dread of the time left? Pfft, bring it on, and with a smile! ~Beth

A Foreign Piece of Happy

Who received a postcard this weekend? I did, I did! Coming in from a long day of babysitting, I found a nice card  from Muenchen (Munich!) sitting on the counter. There is never a better surprise than some good ol' snail mail.

"Ich wollte nur HAI sagen," the one card says. I don't know who else speaks German out there, but for a non-punny person, I got this one right away.

Paloma, I still have a post card that you had sent me from France a long time ago. The art is so beautiful. I find that the post cards from the gift stores of museums are the best- keeping budget in mind, too!-  keepsakes of them all.

Will there ever be a more genuine form of communication? The patience that it takes for the extra day to let someone know that you're thinking of them makes it all the better. I don't send postcards as much as I'd like to, but I know that receiving one is an instant smile! When will you next put up the red flag on your mailbox, and drop someone a line, and a smile!? ~Beth

I simply love language, foreign languages, and learning new words.  Just recently, a new friend from Brazil signed an e-mail "Abraços."  How lovely to learn it means "hugs."

For me, the best of the words and the words they evoke result in poetry.  At all times, I have a running scribble pad in my bag and lots of pens.  These instruments are my butterfly net, my tools of capturing what the Muse might bring along before they drift away.  I've been known to scribble on napkins, backs of envelopes, and once or twice my hand.  It's just not the same feeling to be typing even these words, as it is when I write them in long hand.

But how infrequently, these days, do I collect anyone's address?  Even to my friend from Brazil, now Australia, I could only type back "Je t'embrace," trading one foreign happiness for another.  ~ Paloma

The Happiness of Happy

The audio is terrible, but nobody needs explanation for this at all. Paloma, I know you would absolutely adore this child. She has got to be the most smiley little thing! Who couldn't smile after being around this all day? The guilty pleasures of babytime..!

The Happiness of Pink Doorways

Pink door on Park Ave

"Freelancer" is just the right word for what I do because there is an element of being "free" that is unlike anything else I've done.  On my way from point A to point B, I can intentionally turn the corner and go down a different street, just in case I see something beautiful when the light is just so.

It strikes me that we all have time to do this in the course of our day.  How much time we could reorganize into purposeful quiet time with a little hope that we might come across something that will bring us a smile.

I have been down Park Avenue for more than twenty years.  Maybe the door was painted pink only yesterday.  But maybe today was the first time I was actually looking. ~ Paloma

It's the quirky details that always count. It's the crooked shutter, and the paint that peels away to show a bright, older color hastily covered by new owners.  There are the cobblestone houses, that are only just beginning to erode. It's the pink doorway, that just makes the house. Because taking the second to notice a detail about a doorway is allowing a door to open in your mind. Are these the houses that we will occupy in our old age? Will we sit in the center of town to oversee bustling activity, or on a pleasant farmland with a few cats and chickens. Who said aging is going to be frightful? I see only the happiness of eccentricity that's even more permitted with age. Perhaps all of my doorways will be pink... and sparkly! ~Beth

Day Seven: the Happiness of Little

I like to plan, and I like to abide by the plans I do make. A little spontaneous visit every now and then, though... Well that's nothing less than a joy! The hot weather has hardly brought me splendor in the last few days, and my windows have been wide open nightlong for the occasional breeze. Who joined me yesterday evening? A beautiful little moth. Most insects give us all the heeby-jeebies! Do you ever find happiness in some unexpected company, or nature that's fixed itself to your wall for a few hours? ~Beth

These daisies are the lay on your stomach kind.  The ones you saw when you were in 7th and 8th grade in just those moments that you were starting to become your own philosopher-king, when you knew enough to rule your own backyard, and when independence happily ended at 6 or so when the folks got home from work.  In those days of your first job as a babysitter.  In those nights when you dreamt of the moon.  A time and a place where inch-high daisies could feel like what now takes the sunflowers. ~ Paloma

The Happiness of New

Twitter's New Toy:
click-on "Follow"

Teaching at RIT, you might imagine that the students have some degree of pride at teasing me over my techno-no-know skills.  Run me around the Constitution and I'm good.  Remind me that I learned Basic programming in 1980 in the first computer science club in Bergen County, NJ and - well...  So I have to admit some degree of happy at the notion that I'm into the land of (at least) cut-and-paste HTML programming as Beth & I build our blog design template.  It's not a contribution to world peace, equal pay for equal work, or feeding the poor, but, somehow, in their own way, these little triumphs of succeeding at something new do have a way of setting me off on the right foot to face the rest of the challenges of the day.  What's your new happiness today? ~ Paloma


A new sleeping nook. I have found a place where there are no drafts, there is no noise, and the dark is absolutely unfaltering.  After nights of being so sleepless, tonight we'll really see if this really is a new happiness for me. No technological advances. We all just need a nice rest, right? ~Beth