Well tonight the down arrow key on my laptop broke. Technically it's been broken for about 6 months but I just tape it back together. Well tonight the tape broke in half too. SIGH. A sure sign that you spent too much time scrolling pages on the internet - when your down arrow key is completely broken in half.
The second delicious image is a picture of the grasshopper cheesecake mixture mom made tonight for Christmas in the Park on Saturday - doesn't it look delicious??
One of my favorite things about this time of year is that my grandfather orders us a box full of grapefruits and navel oranges from Florida. Here is the grapefruit snack I enjoyed tonight. YUM
I went for a walk tonight and decided to try long exposures on some christmas lights/decor I found on my walk. I think I still need some more practice but they're not bad.
Well, it's been 5 years since my thryoid came out and boy has it changed my life. It was a huge shock to my 19 year old self that I could possibly have cancer. Completely surreal. The lab technicians (or whoever it is who diagnoses cancer from a biopsy) were fairly certain that it was, mere days after my 20th birthday. Welcome to your 20s. It was confirmed once it was removed and they could dissect it in the lab (or whatever they do).
Despite everything - the fear, the nerves, the "c" word itself, words like "radiation oncologist" and "treatment options", suggestions of taking time off from school... it was a blessing. It changed my perspective on life completely. I chose not to look at the challenge i was given as anything but a challenge. I refused to let major surgery, my "treatment" plan, or anything else get in my way. I stayed in school (albeit taking 4 university courses instead of 5 that first semester) and I went to the bar a mere 15 days after my sugery to celebrate Alex's birthday. During my treatment afterwards, I stayed at Acadia and went to both Snowball formal and went on a roadtrip around New England. I refused to stop living and now, whenever things are getting me down, I can look back and remember that I am strong and if I could live my life through all of that, there isn't much I can't do.
It also helped me realize that there are a lot of very generous and supportive people in this world - and they should be appreciated and emulated. Unfortunately there are also others who are just the opposite. Cancer has taught me that those people - the ones who are all about themselves, the ones who are negative to a fault, the ones who will bring you down if you let them - they are not worth my time or my energy. Since I realized that, my life has been a much happier, much more peaceful one. So, in this season of Thanksgiving (okay for Alex at least), I am thankful for a disease that has taught me to live my life in a way that makes me happy. If I want to do something - I do it. If I dont want to do something - I don't. And that has made all the difference.
I'm sharing 2 pictures with you today. One was taken almost 5 years ago (in early January 2003), just a little over a month after my surgery. The second was taken today and shows just how far I've come in the past 5 years.
Today I had the opportunity to visit one of my absolute favorite places on earth - the beach. Specifically the beach along which our cottage can be found. I have been extremely lucky. My entire life I have lived no more than 15 minutes from the ocean. We can pack up and go at the drop of a hat. Literally it can be a saturday afternoon drive, (or a commute home after work in the summer). I actually like it better early in the year or after labor day - when I'm the only person there - its a peaceful place to go think in solitude.
Besides my awesome family and friends, that is what I will miss most about home when I move. Living so close to my own slice of heaven. It won't be the same once I get to South Carolina - the beaches are much more crowded and they aren't as close by either (at least 3h).
I took a ton of pictures today, so I'll just add a couple since it's late and maybe tomorrow I'll add a link to some more on facebook or photobucket.
Thank goodness. Praise the lord. The invites are done. It took so much longer than I ever thought it would to figure out what we (Jenn and hten approval by Alex) wanted, then to get them printed, and finally cut and stuck inside our DIY envelopes. And we (okay I) only did 12! How crazy is that?!?!? Since I spent all night cutting out invites and making envelopes, it was only appropriate to share my finished product! One more thing to cross off our list :)
Tonight I went to visit my oldest friend Emilee. I've known her since pre-school, we went to school together all the way from kindergarten on up to grade 12. Her family has a cottage beside my aunt and uncles. She's my mom's massage therapist. Needless to say, we've been through our ups and downs - any friendship that long has but yet we're still friends. Since we both lead very busy lives, sometimes we go a while without seeing each other, but we try to fit each other in as much as possible. She is truly an awesome person and I love her. I am really going to miss her when I move to SC but I'll be back for her wedding this summer.
I got sidetracked - shocking i know ;) When I was over at Em's tonight for our grey's anatomy fix, I noticed she had christmas presents - wrapped and ready to go. Wrapping presents is one thing that I'm OCD about. I just am. A total perfectionist. Alex doesn't even like to wrap my christmas presents for me because he knows how particular I am - even though I would rather him do his best than to stress over it. I'm really only OCD about presents that I wrap. Side tracked again. She had some of hers wrapped, which made me realize I need to GET ON with my Christmas shopping. I still have a ton of people to buy for and a month to get it done.
Anyway, Christmas is upon us - and my pic for today - Christmas all wrapped up.
Some days I curse still living home with my parents at 25. Other days though, it's awesome. My mom is retired, so she makes lunch and has it ready for us most days of the week (unless she's out shopping, visiting friends or running errands). Today she started the Christmas baking. Here's the first of several (i'm sure) batches of christmas cookies. YUM :)
My goodness my life is busy lately. I spent the evening finalizing our ceremony, helping one of my best friends pick out baby names, helping dad figure out my brother's tax reassement thing, and packing. My photo inspiration today comes from some things around the house as they get ready for the trekk to South Carolina.
Here are a couple of the pics that I shot in Edmundston today before heading back to NS :)... I could probably be convinced to share a few more tomorrow once I've recovered from 11+h of driving in the past 2 days :)
Sorry this is late. One of my closest, best friends is expecting, and there was a baby shower for her yesterday, so I jumped in the car and drove up to Edmundston to be there for the shower and to have a visit with her before I move on down to the south. Here's one of the pics I took at the shower of the decor :)
I didn't have time to get out and shoot today, which sucks cause it was gorgeous here this afternoon. So, I again had to find some inspiration here in the house. This shirt is part of the Gap Red program, which gives money to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. I know well two people who are HIV positive and this post is for them. You are both adored by myself and others. You are also an inspiration to me and I'm sure a host of others. Watching you both live your lives to the fullest with such passion and grace is truly an honor. I only wish everyone could be so inspired to live each day like it could be their last. My thoughts and prayers are always with you.
K1 visa! Now I can finally start planning! It's gonna be a crazy 52 days. I don't know if we can do it but it's been done before.
This may not be the most artistic, creative picture but it's worth thousands of dollars, months of waiting and a lifetime together!
No big long post today, I promise. Here are some pics I found on my walk today after our snowfall this weekend. I especially love #3 :)
This Natalie Merchant song came on my iTunes while I was uploading my pictures, so and the words struck a cord. THANK YOU to the veterans and the current Canadian military forces. As the rabbi said during the benediction of the Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa - "I don't just support our troops, I love our troops!" (this isn't word for word -but the essential gist"
I don't love war, I think it's a tragic but sometimes necessary evil. I do love the men and women who are willing to give their lives for our country and our beliefs so our children can live a brighter future.
Today my thoughts have been on my friend Ryan. He is currently serving an 18 month tour in Iraq. He is a dual American and Canadian citizen. He has been stationed over in Germany with his wife for over 3 years and last summer he went to Iraq. He will be done his tour soon and I just pray that he will make it home safely to see his wife and son.
My first picture today is a word that was on the cenotaph in my town - Hero. This word is what comes to my mind when I think of the many soldiers who have gone overseas to fight.
Hero - a man distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength.
This last picture wasn't taken today - it was taken back in June. But as one of the most recognized symbols of Remembrance Day, I thought I'd include it as well.
Today is a special day. One year ago today, Alex proposed. Its a day I knew was coming (we'd been dating over 5 years at that point and I knew he had the ring), but it was still a surprise. I really didn't think he was coming up to visit that weekend. The weather was beautiful - much nicer than it is today or most weekends in November here in Nova Scotia.
Today isn't quite how I pictured it would be though. One year later I expected to have my paperwork approved, to be married and living in the South with Alex. I'm still waiting for those things to happen but the end is in sight - I should have my papers in a few weeks, I'm moving on December 29th and getting married January 4th. Finally! It's been a long, hard year and I can't wait to finally be together again! 6 weeks till he's here for Christmas!
My first picture is my shot taken today - pretty good for a point and shoot if I say so myself. The second are two pictures from last year - when we got engaged.
The title of this post is Be Mysterious. That's because it's a mystery subject. The following 4 pictures are all of the same thing - all taken within minutes of each other - just different angles and shooting modes produced different results. I had started out attempting to get a clear focused shot of the subject but conditions like low light and location made that difficult. A few shots in, it reminded me of something I heard about a few years ago and stuck with me. Someone I know was taking a photography class and one of the assignments was to use her camera to create abstract art. Well that's kind of how this turned out.
Can you guess what the subject was?
Love Jenn
It was another cold and frosty morning here in Nova Scotia. I didn't want to leave my bed this morning cause it was toasty warm and the house was so cold (this coming from a girl who generally likes it cold to sleep). I decided to take a few shots on my way to work, since it's dark by the time I get home. The first picture is kinda symbolic of the end of Fall and the second is a cool picture of the ice crystals on the car window this morning. I hope you enjoy them!
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