Halloween November 3, 2009

First I must say that I love Halloween! It’s the only holiday that I even really like. Second I must say as a warning that this is going to be a long post. With that said, on Friday everyone met up at Josh & Lynsie’s for their Halloween party.

Our hosts, Lynsie & Josh.

Little Sadie is so cute in her coat.

Josh, Jessie, Phil, Rachel, & Brad.

Jessie & I. I must say that I loved dressing like this, it was my first attempt at wearing victory rolls!

Max & Jessie. Max went as that scary Sham Wow guy.

I just thought this was a pretty funny photo of Caitlin.

Caitlin & her boyfriend Cody. Cute, right?!

Phil & Jessie

Jessie got a little lap dance by Lynsie’s brother.

The three photography students – me, Ashley, & Jessie. Kisses!

The Next night was Halloween and also Jessie’s birthday so we went out to eat at the Orchard, played apples to apples at Jessie & Phil’s, then went out to The Dive Bar for the rest of the night for some dancing.

There was a guy going around the dance floor with a vampire blow up doll.

We made a few trips outside in the very cold night air which feels pretty good after being in a very hot & crowded club.

The birthday girl!

One sad thing – they no longer offer the ladies drink free here because some guy sued them for gender discrimination. This makes me sad, very sad. I was waiting until 11pm for my free drinks but they never came In return I think they should at least offer some special like $1 drinks instead of charging a crazy $4 per drink. I was very thirsty so I bought 1 drink then refilled the glass a few times with water in the restroom. I get to see the ladies again next Sunday for Rachel’s baby shower, then again in a few weeks for Caitlin’s!

A Song A Day October 28, 2009

Well I’m sure that you already know about my photo a day blog here: http://sarah365.tumblr.com/ I’m surprised that I haven’t missed any days yet although the photos aren’t that great. I guess that I’m lazy and lack inspiration so I usually end up taking plain and uninteresting photos of things in my boring daily life. Well anywhoo, I’ve decided that I’m going to also post one song a day. My first song – “Machine” by Regina Spektor. I thought it was rather appropriate for me since I’m always plugged in.

Oh Job Search, Why Are You Such A Thorn In My Side? October 21, 2009

Everyone knows that I have been unemployed for a very long time now (since Jessie’s wedding) and that’s not what I had planned. I’m getting so sick of feeling useless and knowing that my life is going nowhere. The only thing that has helped a little bit has been selling jewelry and two weddings this past summer. I’m starting to feel like I’m not good enough or have the experience needed for any jobs posted and just don’t know where to go. Today I broke down and sent in my resume to two different cruise lines. It’s always been in the back of my mind as a good idea but I also think that it sounds terrifying. I mean, six to eight months on a ship working 13hour days, 7 days a week with no days off. And it’s not like you can just quit if you don’t like it because you would have to pay your way back home. I’ve been searching around about what it’s like working on a ship and I’ve heard a lot of bad things but also good stuff as well. I hope if they actually do choose to contact me it will be the good things. It has to be better than sitting here on my arse beating myself up and feeling worthless. I doubt they’ll call.

a birthday, a visit from my brother, and loathing of my physique. October 20, 2009

Well it’s been some time since I’ve made a post in this blog so I thought it was time for an update.

On October 10th my mom, dad, and I went to my aunt Denise’s 40th birthday party:

My cousins Tony & Tricia, & me.  Tony lives pretty far away south of here and Tricia lives all of the way out in South Dakota so I only see them a few times a year (although that goes for most of my family).

Aunt Amy & my mom.

Aunt Amy, my dad, & aunt Carol.

Some of us ladies: Kristi, Tricia, Amy, Amanda, me, Carol, Denise, & my mom.

Uncle Chuck brought some Brew House beer. That stuff tasted like coffee.

The birthday girl.

My aunt Carol loves to stand and dance on top of furniture. It’s just her thing.

This past Wednesday Craig came home for MEA break. I think he really likes coming home. This is proven by the fact that he has to drive 6 hours each way. I think he gets home sick plus he gets to see the dogs, sleep in his own quiet bed, and eat all he wants.

This is him preparing a bowl of ice cream which he doesn’t get much of up north:

And big news! It stopped raining and the sun came out from hiding! I think it got into the lower 60’s which is waaaay better than the 30’s & 40’s. That more like it! This is how it should feel. I was thinking that Minnesota was skipping fall completely and heading into the longest, darkest, and worst season ever like some sort of cruel shock treatment. (I HATE winter!)

Today I went with my mom to Kohls to see if I could find a pair of jeans that fit since I haven’t bought a new pair in almost 3 years and mine are getting worn out. I tried on 13 pairs and gave up. NONE of them fit me right and I feel like crying. I’ve always hated trying on pants. Once in a blue moon I can actually find a pair that fits and I treasure that special find so very much. This is one of the reasons that I LOVE skirts and dresses. They are so forgiving and help cover up my larger bits that give me so much trouble (hips, butt, & thighs). Plus they are so easy to find the right size and fit into! I wish this was the 40’s or 50’s so I could wear those clothes all of the time.

Halloween Hair October 2, 2009

I was thinking about Halloween costumes and I was thinking that since I don’t have money I should just wear my navy blue 50’s style polka dot dress for a vintage look and I wouldn’t have to buy anything! The only thing I would have to figure out would be my hair. I really don’t want to buy a wig but I have a really hard time styling my hair. It’s so frustrating and frizzy! Even when I get my hair cut the stylist can’t figure out what to do for me. I’ve always wanted to try victory curls and always wondered how to do them so I found this video:

Such a cute hairstyle and she makes it look so easy! It makes me remember how easy it was to do my hair when it was shorter, it does a cute curly flip thing on the ends when it’s shorter. That would be perfect to go along with my dress but I think my hair is too long for it

This is more of what I was looking for. (I would totally do my hair like this all of the time if I knew how.)

Anyways, I tried rolling some of my hair up like that but it didn’t quite work out, maybe I need something to roll my hair around since it’s so long? Or maybe just more patience?  It’s really hard to try this with waist long hair! All of this is making me want to cut my hair to shoulder length  just so I can do cute stuff to it but I’m trying to resist!

While looking around at videos on youtube I also found this girl:

http://www.youtube.com/user/StrawberryKoiVintage

She has lots of cute vintage tips and tutorials, plus her blog is very cute. This girl has serious style!

Obsession September 29, 2009

Hello, my name is Sarah and I have a serious addiction/problem.

Ever since I first laid my eyes on Stella it has been love at first sight. Now that love has turned into an obsession. I have realized this because I am currently spending a couple of hours or more a day browsing through websites, message boards, articles, and photos on flickr all related to Stella. I seriously doubt that I do much blinking at all and am sure that there are times that some drool drips out of my gaping mouth.

So the question is how do I get over this obsession? I know that I’m already set on getting the new 2010 4 stroke model but what to do until then? And how about once I do get her? Will I be in even deeper? Is there any hope for me?

*Drool*

I’m starting to think that part of the problem is that I’ve always wanted a classic car and of course lust after them whenever I see one. I know that I will probably never own one for various reasons but when I came across Stella I immediately saw her as something attainable that I can see myself on and able to handle. She’s exactly what I want, a vintage metal body with the security of modern technology plus she’s a 4 speed manual so I can get that out of my system also.

The 2010 4 stroke

http://2strokebuzz.com/2009/05/07/the-new-stella-unveiled#more-5224

*Help me!*

Stella!!! September 25, 2009

Last night I was watching the news and they mentioned something about scooters as alternative transportation. I wish they hadn’t done that! I have this little thing that I call scooter lust. Yes, scooter lust. It’s something that happens to me every time I see a scooter or when someone talks about scooters. Just think about how much scooter lust I was feeling while watching Yes Man! It’s always been my dream to live somewhere warm and use a scooter as my main vehicle. I don’t know what it is but I just love them! Of course I was already on the internet and feeling bored so I decided to browse around out of curiosity. I first went to the Vespa page and of course their scooters are gorgeous (especially the vintage style ones) but so expensive!

Then I found the Genuine Scooter Co. As far as reviews go this company trumped Vespa and the scooters are a much better deal. Now I know that I want Stella:

Isn’t she absolutely gorgeous!? I LOVE her vintage styling!

So one day Stella, you will be mine!

Hmmmm, a photo a day or not? September 17, 2009

I was just browsing around and found this article: http://photojojo.com/content/tutorials/project-365-take-a-photo-a-day/ and now I’m thinking that I might want to try and start my own photo a day project. The questions are  should I, could I, and how long would it last? It might be worth a try, right?

On another note, I had a job interview yesterday and I’m not quite sure how it went. I feel like I froze up on some of the questions and I wonder how I appeared to the interviewer. Of course in this economy there were a lot of others that applied for the same  job because he said he was doing interviews all week and I feel like my chance is very small of actually being chosen. I guess if they pick me it’ll be a miracle.

 

Update – I decided to go ahead with the photo a day thing: http://sarah365.tumblr.com/ starting today.

This Past Eventful Weekend September 14, 2009

This past weekend was actually pretty eventful. On Friday I drove over to Chaska to shoot a wedding for an awesome couple and I think that went really well! I do hope that I grow out of feeling panicky and sick on days that I do photo shoots though. I’m okay once I get there and start shooting but the time before that is pure hell for me. Hopefully I’ll get more work from that past wedding because one of their friends just got engaged and one of them is a music producer that took my card so maybe I’ll be doing some artist portraits too? One thing that I’m worried about with that is I don’t have a studio or portable lighting because it’s so expensive and I haven’t even earned back the money that it cost to buy the equipment I currently have so hopefully natural light/outdoor portraits will be okay. The bride & groom also told me that they’ll be calling me in eight months because they just found out she’s preggers. So Jessie will have to give me some tips on photographing babies because I haven’t even ever held one (out of my own will) before.

Also on the morning of the wedding I was woken up by at&t calling me about a job and had me answer some questions. I’m just afraid that I might have messed up because I was literally half asleep and can’t even remember the conversation. I just know that I froze up on one of the questions and that she said she was forwarding my application to a hiring manager and I might get a call within a few days. So maybe I won’t be so unemployed and poor for much longer?

On Saturday the whole family (Craig came home for the weekend) went out for a movie & dinner. We ended up seeing Inglorious Basterds because my brothers and I are Tarantino fans and the previews looked so good. It didn’t end up being what I expected but it was still okay since I’m also a fan of Tarantino’s dialogue (there’s a lot of that) but I do wish there was more action. I thought that since he loved the original Inglorious Bastards film so much and was making this movie because of that one that it would be more like the original but wasn’t at all. Oh, and I would highly recommend the origional if you like campy and fun war films from the 70’s. After the movie we decided to try Baja Sol which was pretty darn good. They have their own salsa bar for unlimited chips and salsa (yum yum!) and the menu was pretty awesome too (lots of vegetarian options). We also had a very upbeat waiter that let me have a Dos Equis although I didn’t have my ID with me.

Yesterday Craig ventured back up north for school and I ended up taking a few last minute photos of Eric since he had to leave today to go to school in Birmingham, England for nine months. He says that he will keep a blog over there so he better uphold his word especially since he won’t be back home until May and he gets something like two months off to travel around Europe. So his blog for that is here: http://ericintheoldcountry.blogspot.com/ Now here’s a few of those awesome (I’m allowed to like my own work) photos from yesterday:

 

Eric in his cowboy/outback hat that he bought during our South Dakota Trip.

Of course I had to shoot some funny face pics:

 Yup, I really love these photos and I think it would be fun to do a collection of friends and family in the same style. Too bad Craig didn’t want his photo taken too  

Labor Day Weekend September 8, 2009

This past weekend of course was Labor Day weekend and I think this was the first year I actually had something to do for the holiday weekend. Usually my dad’s side of the family tries to get most of us together once a year up at  Kathy & Jim’s cabin but this year we had to reschedule for September. I think this was actually the best weather we’ve had (it didn’t rain!).

 

Eric & Jim starting the beer drinking.

 

Craig and his very tiny tent. I would not sleep in that thing. I think it would make me feel claustrophobic not to mention too close to wildlife while sleeping because I like having some space between me and the tent walls at night.

 

My cousin Nick with a beer and a turkey leg.

 

Eric enjoying a beer.

 

Abri & Emily

 

Payton

 

Uncle Steve

 

This was actually a very pretty sunset but the sun doesn’t look right in this photo.

 

Abri

 

Emily (don’t you just love the soft light!)

 

Uncle John, Sammy, & Grace.

The four of us took a short little walk down the beach before dark. I love how sandy the shoreline is on Mille Lacs. It’s for sure one of my favorite lakes to swim in.

 

Some sitting around the fire:

Alan & aunt Mary Ann with Daphnie (the daughter of my dogs Gracie & Luke). They have to drive all of the way from Ohio to visit.

 

Craig & Nick

 

I think that Troy is getting a little big for this.

 

Jim mixed up a giant martini for uncle Tom.

 

The next day it was more warm sunshine

Deja

 

Emily & Grace

 

Pat at the wheel for a while thinking he’s the captain.

 

aunt Kathy

 

Jim, the real captain. (as indicated on his cap)

 

Rick & Mitchell

At the end of the boat ride Jim told a few of the guys to put weight on the front of the boat so they all got up there without really thinking and the whole front end of the boat went down like we were sinking. Thankfully we didn’t sink but sadly I didn’t get that YouTube worthy moment on film   I also went on another ride with the next group and noticed by the time that I got back to shore that I should have put on some sunscreen. I am seriously burned like I can’t believe. It’s painful to raise my arms and the burn has a purplish tint to it. Hopefully it will turn tan and not peel!

 

Dad, Rick, Derek, Mitchell, & Craig.