Archive for the ‘Friends and family’ Category
To my three moms: Thank you.
Every Mother’s Day I have not one, but three women to thank for my life. First there is my birth mother, whom I’ve never met. The only facts I know come from a yellowed letter that describes the details of my adoption. If I could call her today, I’d thank her for the wonderful life […]
Filed under: Friends and family, On this day in history | 16 Comments
Tags: adopted, adoption, happy mothers day, Mother's Day
Because I love travel and photography, friends often ask for travel-photography advice. I’m always happy to help, even if I feel like a fraud: I’ve never taken a formal photography class, nor have I mastered even the basics. Still, here are some ideas I’ve picked up along the way — with a special shout out […]
Filed under: Friends and family, On being creative, Paris, Photography, Travel | 37 Comments
Tags: better photographs, Eiffel Tower, Laurice, Paris, Paris photography, photo tutorial, photographing people, photography tips, Prague photography, Rome, travel photo tips, travel photography, Venice
Notre Dame, in sight and sound
Shortly before my recent trip to Paris I was surprised and honored to receive a note from Des Coulam, author of the wonderful Soundlandscapes blog. “I thought it would be great if we could do something together for joint publication on our blogs,” he wrote. Des’ idea was simple enough: I would choose a place […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Paris, Photography, Psychology, Travel | 12 Comments
Tags: Des Coulam, gargoyles, Haussmann, Kilometer Zero, Lutetia, Notre Dame, Notre Dame bells, parvis, Soundlandscapes, Soundlandscapes blog, travel photography
On January 28 three friends and I had the privilege of touring the Pommery estate and champagne cellars, which double as a modern art museum. My favorite installation was this “house that rains on the inside.” Little did I know that the exact same thing was happening to my house in Minnesota, probably at the […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Minnesota, Psychology | 31 Comments
Tags: homeless, house demolition, insurance, water damage
Paris: 9 days in 10 shots
I fully intended to blog every day, during my most recent (and tenth) trip to Paris. But the days were so full — and the nights so short — that I hardly had time to edit my photos, let alone write. More than any of my other previous visits, this trip to Paris felt like […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Paris, Travel | 5 Comments
Tags: Paris, travel photography
Yesterday I got the news that a former colleague committed suicide. I didn’t know Larry Oakes very well in my days at the Star Tribune. Mostly, he worked out of the Duluth bureau — but occasionally he’d call the news desk in Minneapolis and ask me to transcribe a story. I remember him as a […]
Filed under: Ethics, Friends and family, Psychology, Writing | 17 Comments
Tags: Cass Lake, Duluth News Tribune, Larry Oakes, obituary, Star Tribune, suicide
The 2012 Early Kringle Award
Every year, Steve and I grant a (purely ceremonial and very silly) award to the first friend(s) whose holiday card we receive. Once again, the four-years-running champions are our dear friends Jim and John. Their 2012 card was entirely too appropriate for this incurable Francophile. I will treasure it among my favorite keepsakes. But beyond […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Paris, Photography | 3 Comments
Tags: Christmas, holiday cards, Jim and John, Paris, Photography, Sainte Chapelle, Ste. Chapelle, Travel
I have a terrible confession: I’m bored with my city. “I feel like there’s nothing to shoot here,” I told my friend Craig today after we’d spent an hour strolling through the old milling district, cameras in hand. I brooded a bit as I drove home. “Must find a way to live in Europe for […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Minnesota, On being creative, Photography | 17 Comments
Tags: fall in Minnesota, Mill City district, Minneapolis, Minnesota tourism, Riverplace, twin cities
A European shooting spree
It’s been precisely two weeks since I left home for my latest adventure. Since then I have shot exactly 7,926 photos, seen 19 friends, visited 4 cities, and consumed an estimated 3,022,287 calories in beer, wine and fried food. But I haven’t posted a single word to this blog. Sorry about that. My excuse is […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Paris, Photography, Travel | 11 Comments
My Seven Things thingy
One of my favorite things about blogging is meeting other bloggers. Every day I’m reminded that there are still truly kind people out there, and that — no matter what life may throw at us — none of us is truly alone. Two of those truly kind people are Trisha and Carolyn, authors of the […]
Filed under: Attempted humor, Friends and family, On being creative, Writing | 11 Comments
Tags: blogging, Seven Things About Me, writing
