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November 28, 2011 by Anya Elise

turkey and can-shaped cranberry sauce || Thanksgiving food photography

We had a great feasting day on Thanksgiving.

We feasted on bread and potatoes and green veggies and potatoes and gravy and turkey (I almost just wrote “tacos” which would be wrong; though perhaps we should take Thanksgiving in a new direction next year…) and real cranberry sauce and can-shaped cranberry sauce. It was a beautiful, filling, warm, love- and turkey-fest, and I couldn’t have enjoyed it more.

Except perhaps if there had been tacos…

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November 21, 2011 by Anya Elise

a boost || Jasmine Star magazine

I have been tied up and held hostage by questions I wasn’t quite sure how to answer lately.

You know that feeling, right? You have a vague idea of where you want to go, but you can’t develop a strategy for getting there. It’s like you know there’s a peak somewhere up in the distance made of glistening Answers, but an evil posse of Doubts has tied your feet to a massive rock of Questions and to get to that shining peak you have to cut yourself loose first. Bit by bit. Obstacle by obstacle.

Well, recently, I’ve felt like the cutting away of those questions hasn’t gone very smoothly.

Dan and I and our photography business have made a lot of progress in this first year. I won’t sit here and tell you that I’m not proud of what we’ve accomplished. But, there’s so much more we wish to accomplish with it, and sometimes, it can feel incredibly overwhelming to consider how great that distance is from where we are, to where we want to be.

Cue the classic Journey song, “Don’t Stop Believin'”!

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November 15, 2011 by Anya Elise

giraffe || archive redux

Have you ever seen a giraffe run?

No, neither have I. Not in person anyway. I tend to live vicariously through the Discovery Channel. Even with their strangely proportioned bodies, when they run, giraffes look quite graceful. Look into it if you haven’t seen this phenomenon.

Regardless, I have seen a giraffe before though, up close and personal. Namely, this fella. He was taking a little peek into our safari buggy as we rode around at Disney World’s Animal Kingdom this past June.

I suspect he was curious as to what the plains of Colorado look like. (Yes, we have plains, though we’re known for our mountains.) Or perhaps he had heard about the fabulous Rocky Mountains, and wished to join a herd of mountain goats.

Alternatively, he’s just really good at posing for pictures of his adoring fans.

Though, let’s be honest, it’s probably the mountain goat thing.

Makes sense.

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November 14, 2011 by Anya Elise

whales, friends, reunion || Weekend roundup

This is what happened.

It started with three friends who met two decades ago.

They played a game. A game about whales. The goal was to save the whales from the evil catcher ship.

As children, they’d mostly pretend the catcher ship didn’t exist.

They grew up, moved away, went to college, got jobs, they grew apart and didn’t see each other for many, many years.

Then one day, one girl posted a photo on Facebook from a whale watching tour she went on with the second girl, her sister.

The third girl saw this photo and commented about that old whale saving game from years gone past.

The long-parted friends joked they should get together and play it again sometime.

And so they did.

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November 10, 2011 by Anya Elise

newbies || Nine-to-five life

My 9-to-5 life has been in a little bit of turmoil lately. No, I have not lost my 9-to-5 job. And no, I haven’t been called into the head boss’ office once again. I did however get switched around with another co-worker. And while I used to sit almost front-and-center in terms of main office activity space, I now sit further toward the back, in fact, not too far from the boss’ office.

The primary reason for the move is ultimately a good one as I’ll be taking on a few new responsibilities and contributing in a couple of different ways. However, I have to say I’ve been feeling a bit isolated today as I adjust to my new desk. (Again, further from the main office activity space (do I rock at descriptions or what?))

All of this is neither here nor there, though. The point of this post today is to show you my new charges. (See them up there? Say hello.) I inherited those ~~suckers~~ lovely plant specimens when I relocated to my new desk.

Let the record show I have nothing but love for plants. I myself have adopted a number of plants in the past years and have cared for them dearly. (Sadly, only one has survived. The demise of the others may have been self-inflicted. The jury is still out.)

As these three fellas aren’t originals of mine, however, and instead are charges I have inherited, I’m feeling a bit more pressure to maintain their welfare, the likes of which one might feel when babysitting the neighbor’s kids.

I have been assured by their previous caretaker that they are hearty and have survived insurmountable odds during their lifespan.

But, they’ve never met me before.

We’re all thinking it, I’m just saying it: they’re doomed.

(Casey, if you’re reading this, I’d just like you to know I’m more than happy to care for these little fellas. Just check in often for signs of life!)