Spring Break 3 Months Late

I have blogged a few times about the fact that my hard drive crashed right after Spring break. This crash set me a zillion light years behind on my photo editing-- but I am almost caught up! I know I have said that before, but this time I really I am! I have finished editing up until AFTER Spring break which means I can finally post my pictures from Spring break!! Finally. Hallelujah Baby Jesus!

I have sprinkled the pictures around so some may look a tad familiar but here goes...

Spring Break Part 1:

My first few days of break were actually spent in rainy Seattle. I got to go Seattle Art Museum for the first time and Pike Place for the I've-been-there-more-times-than-I-can-count-time.







Luckily, for me, the weather was much more pleasing in California! Check in soon for the rest of my photos from break!

SeaTac to SFO

Welp, my flight was delayed a good two hours so I am sitting here in the SeaTac Airport. I am going home for the summer, leaving Seattle and my Seattleite friends behind for two and a half months. I am excited to finally get back to California, even if it is only for a little bit, to spend time with my family, my dogs, my friends and, maybe most of all, the Mexican food. Oh and I cannot forget the sunbathing on my deck.


I am hoping for a good summer filled with reading and relationships. I plan on cramming my head with knowledge about microlending, immigration issues and figuring out what is it exactly that I want to do with my life after SPU.

Right now though, I am focused on goin' home.

Almost Up to Date

I am finally starting to catch up with my photo editing since I lost all my updated photos about two months ago when my hard drive crashed for the third time. Here are some pictures I took in March of Casey Frazier at Q-Cafe in Seattle. The room had great lighting and great sound quality-- it was a great night, indeed!

*My original photography

**Visit www.myspace.com/caseyfrazier to hear new music from Casey Frazier!

Seattle, C'Mon

Yesterday, while the rain was pounding down on the Queen Anne concrete I drew this picture in Queen Anne Cafe... and then finished it in the Starbucks on the corner where we decided to try and wait out the pour. You know, since we decided to walk to eat lunch and in the middle of our delicious meal Casey, in mid sentence, just stops and stares out the window and utters some profanity that starts with "sh" and ends with "it".

Yesterday, I was thinking that Seattle really need to decide that it was Spring and this back and forth weather just was NOT going to cut it. And then last night there was a thunder and lightning storm-- and now today the sun is out and shining and there is a light breeze.

Alright Seattle, I'll give you one more shot at this Spring thing.

I keep meaning to post

It's May 13th, which means it has been a week since I last posted. I have failed miserably at posting frequently. I hope that I can get back into the groove of things. Maybe this summer, hopefully this week.

There has been a ton on my mind. A lot of masticating on big issues. A lot of really thinking about life after SPU. A lot of making plans for this summer.

Firstly, I recently found out that I am going to Nicaragua this summer with Witness for Peace! I am super excited about this--mainly because it is Nicaragua and partly because I get to learn about fair trade, free trade and coffee farmers in the rural areas of Nicaragua. I am trying to stay a few extra days and explore Managua, but we shall see where the road leads. And secondly, I am interning with Monterey County this summer- I am not entirely sure what that is going to look like yet.

As for life after SPU, I have been really pondering whether to stay in Seattle for a bit or head back to California. I miss the weather, I miss the mentality-- I miss the weather. But, I know that I will really miss the friends that I have made here. Luckily that is a year from now! I have been finding out about a lot of really cool organizations up here in the Emerald City. Two of which are: FareStart and Washington CASH. FareStart provides job training and various other programs for the homeless by running a competitive Seattle restaurant and Washington CASH gives micro loans to people in the state of Washington. Neat-o, I say.

And of course lots of reading, picture taking, picture editing, picture re-editing and being a human has been going on.

Whew. Maybe life will slow down? Probably not.

A Wonderful May Day

I have been meaning to post this since last Friday-- I am only a little behind, right?

I have decided that there is not a much better way to spend a warm, Spring Friday afternoon than by spending time with my boy and riding bikes. We decided to ride from Seattle Pacific University to Golden Gardens and stopped by the Ballard Locks on the way home. It reminded me why I can handle Seattle weather for a little bit longer.

All pictures taken at Golden Gardens, Seattle, WA

TOMS are awesome shoes to bike in!

It's been fun to get to go on adventures again with my boy.

(All my own photography)

I am excited to continue taking pictures on my adventures through the city this Spring as the light is softer and my mood is warmer.

I hope so.

It has been awhile since I've blogged. Spring break was wonderful. It was so very great to be home. It was supposed to rain the WHOLE week I was there and it definitely did not. It was a week full of warm weather and tons of California sun.

It was hard to come back to Seattle and face the rain and sleet. But, that was a week ago and Seattle seems to have decided to give us a taste of Spring. I am sitting outside of Hill Hall in a tank top and Bermuda shorts at 5:33 with a comfortable breeze.

YAHOOOOOO! Spring might actually be here! Maybe I can give my HappyLight a break and get some natural light and Vitamin D.

And to top this all off, I love my classes this quarter and I am excited about my TOMS event that is coming up on April 16th! It shall be a barefoot walk from Seattle Pacific University's campus to the Troll Under the Bridge in Fremont!

COMING SOON:
Pictures from my trip home!

Weather

I like extreme weather. I do not mind when it rains and I especially do not mind when it is bright and sunny outside. And a nice warmth radiating from the sun is always a nice plus, too. This has especially come to my attention while living in Seattle for the past year and a half.

See, I noticed I like my weather like I like my moods: extreme. I like it when it is either rainy or sunny. I hate that in-between state where the sun is poking out from behind the clouds or the fog is bright and blinking is a discomfort. The worst is when the clouds cannot decide whether to rain or not and it does that weird back and forth thing.

I like the weather to be able to make up its mind. Similarly, I like to be able to make up my mind. I think that is why I often feel emotions at extremes. When I am angry I am red-hot angry and when I am sad I am bluer than a whale. My passion for things easily envelop me and I can find myself either ecstatic with joy or heartbroken for the injustices of the world. I can be the happiest, most energetic person you meet. Some days I cannot stop laughing.

This makes me sound bipolar but I do not think that is the case at all. I think I am how I like the weather. I like to feel the heavy rain on my skin or the comforting warmth surround me. It helps me remember that I am alive. It helps me remember that there is this Creator that likes to refresh and renew with water, but that same Creator likes to bring hope and warmth with light.
That's the same reason why I like my emotions the way that I do. I like to feel like I am alive. I do not dwell in my emotions, but I focus on my mood and feelings because they are a catalyst for action. My sorrow and broken heart allow me to speak for liberation and my joy and laughter allow me to bring hope.

I like the weather to be like my emotions because I like to remember that I am alive. And that I am not anything but a mere human who wants to share the world.

Oh, yes!

Last week I was walking up to one of my favorite study spots in Seattle, Caffe Ladro. As I was walking to its Queen Anne location I made two new friends.

I was so excited when I saw these two that I yelped, accidentally dropped (and semi- severely dented) my water bottle and grabbed my camera. After I spent some time watching them with delight and rubbing their tummies I started snapping some pictures, and the white one was startled by the clicking of my shutter and ran inside. It was pretty cute.

Dogs bring such joy to my days and I cannot wait until I can live in the same house as a dog again. Until then, I will wander the streets of Seattle and pet all the dogs that I see. And I will probably continue to creepily take pictures of dogs and their owners and squeal, "puppy" without ever making eye contact with the person on the other end of the leash.