Grounded!

"There is only one

true love affair;

the one with yourself.

All others are

expressions of it."

- Hemal Radia



Get grounded!

"The surface of the Earth holds subtle health-boosting energy.

All we have to do is touch it and become truly alive.  

Simply by getting outside, barefoot, touching the Earth,

and allowing the excess charge in your body to discharge

into the Earth, you can alleviate some of the stress

continually put on your system."

None of this is new to me, but today I just had to put it

in practice.  Stress levels at work seem to be rising --

of course, that could be all the stuff for Holiday rolling in --

and I haven't been sleeping well, either.

So I took myself outside after the sun had set (it was 107 today)

and now that the ground was cool enough, I set myself down

and took deep breaths, breathing in clean air, and letting go

of all the "dirty stuff" of the day.

Here's hoping for a better night's sleep!!

Monday, Monday

“So. 

Monday. 

We meet again."

Some days after a

typical Monday,

all you want to do

is find a corner

to sit and watch

the world go by.

Sparklers

“Life isn't always about fireworks. 

Your fireworks will come, Sarah. And they'll fizzle out just as fast. 

Life's an experience, not a destination. 

All of us have the same destination, 

but not one of us has an identical experience. 

You'll find someone who will be there 

when the fireworks fizzle out and the sky turns black and love you just the same. 

That’s the one to hold onto.” 

― Marilyn Grey, Bloom

Burning the Candle

Lately it feels like

I'm burning the candle

at both ends.

Changes at my job

has meant an increase

in responsibilities while

still having to deal with

a co-worker who is .....

not up to the task of

his job requirements.

And being his direct

supervisor means

that I must deal with auditing his work,

correcting his errors, and then

reporting it to management.

Which sometimes feels like a

full  time job in itself.  

Frankly, I'm of the mindset that sometimes it's easier to just

do it right myself the first time rather than delegate it to someone

who ... doesn't.   It would be one thing if he was a "newbie" but he's

been doing the same job for 5 years now and still makes the same errors.

In any job, it happens.   However, my position deals with a lot of

what we term "compliance issues" -  rules to be followed as set up

by the DOT, or state and local authorities.  For example,

when shipping aerosol cans, the box has special markings,

and the actuator must be covered by a protective cap.

That's not a company policy, it's Dept of Transportation.

When we don't follow the rules, my company

opens itself up to liabilities, be it in the form

of fines, or, God forbid, an accident waiting to happen.

Which means lately, weekends have become my sacred time,

down time, to do nothing but walk the dog, read a good book,

watch some TV .... anything that isn't going top speed for

9 hours straight!     Happy Saturday!

Post Photo Editing

Sometimes you just have to mess around

with the photo editing programs

I'm a hands-on kinda Gal, that's how I learn! 

Stormin'

“It’s not a bad lesson to learn in the

bleaker months: how you view a storm

is a question of perspective; provided

you find the right rock to watch it from,

it could be the most incredible thing

you’ll ever witness.”

― Dan Stevens







My house sits a half mile from

a freeway that runs east/west

and when something is going down,

it's the freeway that the local helicopters -

news media and police/rescue -

follow to get across the Valley.

Every once in a while, one goes

screaming across the sky

when I'm in the backyard

taking photos..... oopsie!

*giggles*

Storms

“Be peaceful like a mountain. 

Be loving like a flower. 

Be wonderous like thunder.” 

― Debasish Mridha

“You can dance through any storm if thunder is music to your ears.” 

― Matshona Dhliwayo

Blow, Blow, Blow

“When you come out of the storm,

you won’t be the same person

who walked in.

That’s what this storm’s all about.”

― Haruki Murakami, Kafka on the Shore










I love a good thunderstorm,

a rain storm, or even just wind.

When it starts blowing and

there are clouds on the horizon .....

all I want to do is be out there,

to be a part of it!  To be me!

Feeling the power of the wind -

something we can't see,

but we know is part of the Universe -

is amazing to me!

Life Imitates Art

Ever wonder if you can

pull off something you've

seen?

That metal sculpture of

the cowboy silhouette

leaning against the fence

was my thought  ......

*laughs*

Sometimes I'm just plain silly

Maybe Next Time

Some days .... aren't easy

When I have a day off work,

I look ahead at the number of hours

I have in order to do things that need to get done

.... and somehow time gets away from me.

When the list of chores is long,

finding a way to pull some creativity out of that

isn't always easy.

And sometimes in my mind's eye

what I'm hoping for in a shot

doesn't appear in the lens.

maybe next time.

Choose Happy

Happiness is a choice.

Choose happy.

Just feelin' a little bit country today .....

Scanners

Maybe this is a little out there,

but I found where someone was

making photos using their scanner.

And I thought hmmm.....  this could

get interesting!

A little sage, a little Moon Lagoon (eucalyptus)

from my backyard .....

Not sure what to think about this.

definitely wouldn't get any full body scan

out of my scanner!  lol

more practice might make it more interesting ....

any thoughts??

Oshieo

Music has always moved me

and this song in particular

captured my attention and I became

obsessed by it for about a year.

Freddy Mercury, of course, was

an amazing artist,

but there's something about this song .....

link here to listen








When I hear this song

I remember a time when I  .....

was feeling lost and alone,

trying to find myself, my own way,

and someone helped me along the way.

It wasn't meant to be, but everyone who

crosses our paths, whether for a day,

a season, or a lifetime,

always leaves a part of them

with you.  

So thank you.

Itoshiki oshieo idaki

Let us never lose the lessons we have learned.

Rest

The Day is Done

The day is done,
and the darkness

Falls from the
wings of Night,

As a feather is
wafted downward

From an eagle
in his flight.

― H.W. Longfellow







I'm sitting here chuckling as I read this

I was looking for something about "rest"

and if any of you were fans of the Brady Bunch

as I was in the 70s, you'll recall this poem being

read by Mike Brady during a talent show,

while his sons accentuated parts of the poem

with humorous bits of reality .... in this first

stanza, someone drops feathers on his book.

Ok, I admit it, I'm nerdy to remember that skit.

You can watch it here ... its 3 minutes. 

“There is virtue in work and there is virtue in rest. 

Use both and overlook neither.” 

― Alan Cohen

Backyard Time

Just a little backyard time, watching Sadie run about

before the wind kicks up, or a thunderstorm rolls in.

Why does all the fun stuff happen

when I'm either at work, or in bed?

Post Edits

Oh the things you can do

with photoshop!

I love to learn new things,

but sometimes it can be

so time consuming!

As I get older,

I often wonder if I have

lost the art of patience.

They say as you get older,

you become more patient.

Maybe I'm jumping the gun

before the real patience kicks in!

Now if only photoshop could

help a person stand up straighter,

smile a little more ......   :)

Five Years

Anniversaries.

We mark time with them:

how long we've been married;

how old we are;

when we started a certain job

or something as mundane as a blog.

 Yes, it's been 5 years since I first

started posting on ForTheLoveOfGal.

Sometimes, I'm amazed at how time flies.

And other times, it's just one day at a time

and let the rest of the pieces fall into place.

I've gone back and forth with this blog,

wanting to post, wanting to quit,

but mostly wishing that what I'd hoped

to achieve had happened.

But again, I just do my thing and let

the rest of the pieces fall into place.

As of this moment, there have been over

56k visits to this blog.   Probably most are

the same few of you, checking in every day

to see if there's something new.

For you faithful few,

thank you so very much

for taking the time to visit :)

Here's to the next five years ....

~Gal

Tulip

“A tulip doesn’t strive to impress anyone. It doesn’t struggle to be different than a rose. 

It doesn’t have to. It is different. And there’s room in the garden for every flower. 

You didn’t have to struggle to make your face different than anyone else’s on earth. 

It just is. 

You are unique because you were created that way. Look at little children in kindergarten. 

They’re all different without trying to be. 

As long as they’re unselfconsciously being themselves, they can’t help but shine. 

It’s only later, when children are taught to compete, to strive to be better than others, 

that their natural light becomes distorted.”

― Marianne Williamson

Like a tulip, 

we're all unique. 

Different.

and worthy.

Old Soul

She's an old soul 

whose heart speaks

in all but forgotten language.

-JmStorm

Being Good

Being good to yourself isn't corny ...

it's part of respecting yourself

as a worthy human,

no matter your relationship status

or day of the year.




Not sure where I read this,

but it seems appropriate for me.

Sometimes we forget to take care

of us.  We get busy doing for others,

or with our jobs or housekeeping

that we forget to do the things

that make us feel good,

make us feel alive.

For me, that's making photographs.

Another little top I found in the back

of the closet - one last photo before it goes.

Toss It!

They say if you

throw away old things

you make room

for new things.

Or maybe it's

if you want something new

throw away the old.







Either way the saying goes,

it has become my mission lately.

I'm trying to clean things out,

make room for new.

Or maybe it's more that I'm

cleaning things out so my kids

won't have to ..... later.  lol

So a photo shoot with old things that are being tossed!

Relaxed

A fav shot of mine!  I feel like I look ... relaxed. 

Lately I've been doing a lot of reading.

I know I've talked about being an "old soul"

before, and its a topic that continues to 

fascinate me.  

"Have you always felt older than what your age reflects? 

Are you solitary, thoughtful and intuitive? 

Do you feel like an outsider constantly looking into a society 

that doesn’t feel like your home? 

If so, you may be an Old Soul."

I observe my family, and sometimes am a part of it all,

but most times, I am on the outside looking in.

There are parts of me that know that I cannot live my life

as they live theirs.   I'm ok with that, but there's a small

part of me that wishes I could.  I've finally come to the

conclusion that it's ok to be different; sometimes life makes

us feel like we're missing out on something important.

But I've found that in reading up on the topic, I feel at home

with those who describe themselves as introverted, eccentric,

preferring solitude and/or non-attachment,

where empathy and quiet wisdom have meaning and context.

And maybe that's a little too much for this blog,

but ... it's me, being me.

Quirky

In the right light,

at the right time,

everything is extraordinary.    

-Aaron Rose














Ok, maybe it's not "extraordinary"

but I'm having fun experimenting

with filters, light and editing.

and of course, being my own quirky self!

Explore

“Owning our story can be hard 

but not nearly as difficult 

as spending our lives running from it. 

Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky 

but not nearly as dangerous 

as giving up on love and belonging and joy—

the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. 

Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness 

will we discover the infinite power of our light.” 

― Brené Brown

Making these photos

puts the vulnerable side of me

out there into the world.

Thank you for allowing me

to share myself without fear.

Although there's always a 

little fear, to be honest. 

But that's ok, it's good to take chances.

Embracing our fears makes us stronger.

Looking back

“If you can love someone

with your whole heart,

even one person,

then there's salvation in life.

Even if you can't

get together with that person.”

― Haruki Murakami, 1Q84









This is one of my fav authors,

but when I read this, I realized

that sometimes this is how life is.

Have you ever met someone and

thought "Oh yeah, I love this person",

even though you know in your heart

that you could never be together?

I've had that once.

Sometimes I get reflective on things like that.

A sign of growing older ... lots of reflecting.

Dance

“All that is important

is this one moment in movement.

Make the moment important,

vital, and worth living.

Do not let it slip away

unnoticed and unused.”

― Martha Graham








Sometimes the urge to take photos

hits me at odd times of the day.

Which makes it that much more difficult

because I need to find light, or create light.

And sometimes, I just turn the camera to

self timer and dance....

most of what I get isn' t worth publishing,

and then there's this.

Makes me smile ... or dance!

Parasol UP!

Here in the Valley of the Sun
we have a monsoon season -
July and August are typically
rainy, hot, and humid
with thunderstorms that pop up
out of nowhere on any given day.

My parasol won't protect me
in the middle of a storm  ....
but it's fun for photos!