Lucky, fortunate, and good.
November 23, 2011 | Filed Under horses, personal, random | 2 Comments
I think that I am all three.
I’m lucky that I happened to be at the right place at the right time to meet the right people. Connections in my life, in my job, in the horse-world- they’ve all heavily influenced the life that I’m able to lead right now.
I read once that the harder you work at something, the more fortunate you become. I’ve worked hard. I’ve put myself out there. I’ve struck gold and I’ve struck out. I’ve been praised and criticized, patted on and stabbed in the back. I’ve put in my time, but have no qualms about still being on the clock. Those people that I was lucky enough to meet and make connections with? I’ve been fortunate enough that we have a lot in common and that we’ve stayed in touch, stayed friends.
“What we sometimes consider lucky or fortunate are by-products of being good at what we do. Am I fortunate to have a job that I don’t have to ask for time off or worry about whether I only have 3 vacation days left? Yep. Did I get it because I was lucky? Nope. I got it because I work hard at what I do and I work harder at getting better at it every day. By getting better at what I do, I create circumstances around myself for others to notice and hopefully gain from it….Reputations and relationships aren’t based on luck. CEO’s of big firms, top sales guys, athletes and entertainers rarely make their mark on luck. I would venture to bet that in almost every case of self-made successful people, hard work paid dividends multiple times that of luck. Create your own good fortune with hard work and don’t fall into the trap of thinking that someone is doing better that you because they are just lucky.”
I found this little paragraph when I was searching for the difference between lucky and fortunate. People always tell me that I’m lucky. I usually passively correct them, and answer back, “Yes, I am extremely fortunate.” People tell me that I’m lucky that I get such great clients. I used to think that, too. Now, I think that I’m just really good at getting to know my clients- getting to know their wants and needs, their tastes and styles. I’m good at spotting the clients that I know I won’t click with because I can almost read it in the tone of their email. I have really, really great friends. Am I lucky? No. I’m a good friend first- I put time and effort into staying in touch, being kind, considerate, fun, and happy. I’m not a horrible person (I hope?!) that is just strangely lucky to have really cool people in my life.
My luck and fortune and ‘good’ all kind of came together when Dolly and Elssa came into my life.
My luck started when I met Jennifer years and years ago at the Annapolis Valley Exhibition with her beautiful Whitney White- an elegant black mare who instantly stole my heart. My fortune kicked in when a sweet girl from Bermuda saw Jennifer’s pictures on the internet and contacted me about taking pictures of her horse, as the mare was here and she was there. I added a dash of good in by taking the Bermudian sledding and skiing. And letting her know how much I loved her horses. She reciprocated with some good of her own, asking me if I’d be willing (seriously??!) to look after her beautiful horses for her in their semi-retired state. And the good just keeps getting better. Lindsay, my Bermudian beauty, comes to visit as often as she can. We are the best of friends, talking at least once a day via some means of communication. I can’t even count the number of times I start a sentence with “Lindsay was telling me the other day…” or how often she crosses my mind. Her parents are like a second set to me- Mama Lu and Papa J ♥.
I work hard for the good stuff that happens in my life. Very hard. And very happily. I have two wonderful horses to love and treasure. I have a fabulous friend and a Bermudian family just a short plane ride away. I have my confidence back. I have sore legs and sweaty saddle pads, and smiles again.
May luck be with you, fortune smile upon you, and all good (things and not) come your way ♥
(Here are a few pictures from my lessons yesterday- thanks, Ashley! The horses were amazing- AMAZING!)
free falling
July 25, 2011 | Filed Under Photoshoots, people, personal, random | Leave a Comment
I asked her about the words permanently etched into the thin skin stretched over her foot, wincing at the thought of how much that must have hurt. “Free falling?” she asked, her gorgeous green eyes smiling at the opportunity to tell this story again. “They’re the earliest words I can remember.” My curiosity was piqued. She turned around on the floor, her hand still on Carrie’s head and flipped her long blonde hair over her shoulder. She smiled again, this time at her own memories, and told me about her father holding her in his arms, dancing with her to Tom Petty’s ‘Free Falling,’ maybe in the living room, maybe in the kitchen, she couldn’t quite remember. “But those words, that sound, that song, they take me back to that place every time,” she told me, “they’re a part of me.”
Sara loves incense, dogs, and music. She makes incredible salads, and is the best sushi date there is. She sees things through her camera that most people wouldn’t cast a glance at. Here’s how I saw her on a cloudy May day.
Surprise! I’m awesome again!
June 18, 2011 | Filed Under Photoshoots, horses, personal, random | 3 Comments
Everything Julie’s done with Mexi has left me in awe. For real. That little horse is SO damn quiet. She is curious and happy and sweet and very smart. She rarely gets scared and if she does, it’s almost like she laughs herself out of her fear and continues along, albeit a bit more cautiously. She’s got enough personality to fill the entire barn and learns SO fast. I find myself starting sentences with “I can’t believe Mexi…” and finishing them with some description of how awesome she is. Julie tells me most of Kevin’s horses are like that. It’s not new to her and she’s not surprised. I’m surprised enough every time for the two of us!
Yesterday I finally caught myself and noted that it’s really quite funny that I’m continually surprised by her awesomeness. She’s good EVERY TIME, by now I should be accepting of the fact that she’s great and be more surprised if she acts up.
She’s had one bath in her life. A year ago. This is what she did the second time we turned the hose on her. Julie couldn’t stop grinning. Rightly so.
the best one.
June 15, 2011 | Filed Under Photoshoots, dogs, people, random | 5 Comments
As I sit in my new office of my new house on my new 27″ iMac (thank you Dane for all of these things!), Carrie sits not 5 feet away in her (read: Dane’s) white armchair, wheezing. She only wheezes when she’s happy and relaxed- which is most of the time. She is the best one.
She follows me from room to room, and comes running as soon as she hears any sort of movement from the kitchen. She makes herself as flat and motionless as possible when I walk into the bedroom, moving only her eyes from her camouflaged position amongst the black blankets on the bed. “I see you, Carrie,” I say to her, and she can’t help but wag her tail softly, totally giving herself away, the speed increasing as I get closer. I pull my hands inside my sleeves and before I can sit down, she pounces on me, attacking the clothed nubs that were once hands made for patting and giving treats. She will only bite and play if you have something covering your skin. I often wonder where she learned these things- how to play-fight, knowing exactly when to stop, how to sit pretty and how to sing to me in the morning, how she got so saucy if I didn’t put her leash on fast enough, how she balances on sidewalk curbs when we go for walks in the morning. Then I realize that she learned it all from me. She is saucy and neurotic and demands to be fed on time. She prefers walking to running and doesn’t really see the need to get all panty and out of breath. She loves having visitors come to the house. She likes rolling around in the grass. She loves cookies and shrimp and Dane.
Carrie barks at me when I tell her to sit, and I raise my eyebrows and laugh- wondering when she became so outspoken. Mary rolls her eyes and asks me when I became so outspoken. I miss the hint- her telling me that my dog and I are exactly alike. I wipe the dirt off my own bum, then off of Carrie’s back and tell her that it’s time to go home. We hop in the car and as we turn up the hill to our house I turn the music down for a second- I hear her wheezing in the back seat I can’t help but smile to myself knowing that I have the best one.
hoodlums, I tell ya- HOODLUMS.
June 30, 2010 | Filed Under Photoshoots, people, random | Leave a Comment
A few weekends ago I decided to ‘branch out’ and try my hand at stuff that I *know* I’m not really great at. I think I suck at action shots. I like putting people places, telling them what to do, or what not to do, interacting with them, shifting just a little this way or that way. I might have a control problem. Possibly why I’m a self proclaimed portraitist. So, challenge number one was the action part of the day. Challenge number two was the subject matter. Boys. Boys HATE posing. They also hate being told what to do. They don’t really talk a whole lot and when you don’t have one of their girlfriends around, pleading for them to behave and just do what the nice photographer asks them to do, they can be a bit of a handful. Or- they will ignore you. I consider myself to be quite, ahem, assertive (when it’s my shoot!), but when I’m the one who is tagging along, I get a new appreciation for the people I’m shooting, and what they’re doing. I have to sit back and figure out the timing, the good shots, deal with personalities that don’t give a rat’s bottom of a care if I’m there or not. I learn a lot about my abilities and about people on days like this.
For all of you people who actually have a clue about skating: I know these pictures are far from ideal. But I think they’re neat and moody. I have a re-found respect for these fellas. They kiss the pavement more than you can imagine. They have brilliant rolls, and avoid sliding at all costs. They have incredible scars on their elbows. Like really big ones. Somehow they’re able to trick gravity into keeping their boards stuck to their feet. I’ve come to understand that doing this requires a state of mind and a state of being that most people could never grasp. Being good at it requires a mixture of meditation, yoga, aerobics, and gymnastics. You should see the legs on these boys.
It was a great day- slightly overcast, pretty bright, perfect weather for tanning (which I considered before we left, and planned accordingly for). They boys were about as excited as boys get on an early Saturday morning after a late Friday night out. We went to New Glasgow. This is what I came home with. And a sweet tan.
