The Photography of Ozlem Haluk

Something in the photography of Ozlem Haluk (AmelieAPoulain on Etsy) struck a personal note with me instantly. Haluk describes her photography as "whimsically experimental".

These images remind me of some of the private and quirky aspects of my relationship with myself, and the titles add to that view.

Aren't they beautiful, and possibly a little self-reflective for most of us?
I love them.

Misbehave-d


Night and day


Perhaps perhaps perhaps



Floating on flowers


Loneliness, is such a waste of time


Little white lies


Milk and honey


I'd like to change



You can find Miss Haluk on her website, on flickr, and on etsy.

If You Love Me, Read Me a Story

The title of this blog post came from a shirt I bought for my son when he was just a toddler. I wish I would have kept that darling shirt, isn't it a perfect sentiment?

Did you know that March is National Reading Month? Being a lifetime fan of reading since grade school days of Reading Rainbow, (LeVar Burton, you're my hero) I had to dedicate at least one post to books because they are such a PURE JOY to my life, and I'm grateful for them!

Some of my favorite authors include: Barbara Kingsolver, Tom Robbins, Sandra Cisneros, Anais Nin, Anne Lamott and Louise Erdrich.

I also take great pleasure in finding old poetry books in the library.
Don't even get me started on how much time I could spend in the library.
One year my son and I visited every neighboring town around where we live simply to check out the library in each one. It was blissful to me. :) And here's a little confession::
I love Children's literature too, so having a son gives me an excuse to read any of the cute books in the kids section out loud. I've had some of the sweetest moments in my life reading stories to my son. ♥ Reading is something I've always wanted him to cherish, it's SO important.
Now he's old enough to read to me. . . and who doesn't love being read to?

So. . . next time you want to do something special for someone you love,
READ A STORY, I PROMISE it will be time well spent.

XOXO


"He fed his spirit with the bread of books." -Edwin Markham



"Books are the quietest and most constant of friends; they are the most accessible and wisest of counselors, and the most patient of teachers."
- Charles W. Eliot


"The love of learning, the sequestered nooks,
And all the sweet serenity of books."
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow



"If you can read this, thank a teacher."
- Anonymous Teacher -



"We should read to give our souls a chance to luxuriate. " -Henry Miller



"Book lovers never go to bed alone."
- Anonymous


Please share your favorite authors in the comments, along with favorite titles. Would love to check out some suggestions next time I'm at the library!
♥

Photos via Weheartit

Freedom Must Feel Like This

Today one of my lovely twitter friends introduced me to the images of photographer
RYAN MCGINLEY.

I love them.

Winter honestly had me feeling like a crumpled up love note in a dirty old waste paper basket.

I'm ready to BREAK FREE. Aren't you?

So far the beginning of March is fantastic!
This past week it's been sunny where I live every single day, and not just dull sunny either. The brilliantly bright kind of sunny. That kind of light makes everything gorgeous. I'm so inspired to take pictures these days.

But more than that, I'm starting to literally ACHE for a road trip, a place far away, new territory to explore.
It's true, the W a n d e r l u s t bug has bitten.

These photographs just make the longing felt even more.

XOXO

Blossoming in Winter

"And then the day came



when the RISK
to remain tight
in a bud




was more painful
than the risk
it took
to Blossom."




- Anaïs Nin




Happy Monday, dear blog readers. We could all use a little extra inspiration on a Monday Morning, right? January is sometimes very hard for me to get through,
I always feel like I'm trudging due to lack of sun light. . . so vitamin D tablets are the answer from now on!
Today one of my twitter friends (@missdestructo) pointed out this article to me and I love it! If you, like me, currently find yourself in a cold climate needing a dose of happy, read
50 ways to Put the Light Back in your Heart.
Hope you enjoy and here's to a happy, productive week!

p.s. Isn't that a pretty poem by Anais Nin? I love her writing so much.
It's due time to blossom, even if it IS still winter. :)

XOXO

photo source : weheartit

WINTERESTING

For those of you who are like me and have a very hard time getting through the winter. . .

remember loving it as a child? I keep asking myself, what happened, why have my feelings changed so much?

I'm trying with all of my might not to let the cold and ice and snow and
dry skin and coughs and runny nose and scary, slippery roads get me down. *sigh*

But most of the time all I ever want to do in the winter is,

SLEEP



DRINK TEA, READ. . . and



EAT SWEETS.



Help! I want to find winter interesting again!!

These photos and quotes brightened my day
and inspired me to do just that.
Hope you enjoy.♥

"In the depth of winter I finally learned that there within me lay an invincible summer."
~ Albert Camus



"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome."
~ Anne Bradstreet



"The color of springtime is in the flowers, the color of winter is in the imagination."
~ Ward Elliot Hour






Doesn't this remind you of the landscape of Dr. Suess's Whoville?



Valentine's day is coming up too, which is exciting.



Let me know if you have any TIPS on how you deal with these winter time days.
I would greatly appreciate it. :)

XOXO

Photos from Weheartit. Click on any photo for source.