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Shutters and Libretto

This weekend was very eventful and in the best of ways! My parents celebrated their 31st wedding anniversary and we of course had to go out and celebrate with steak. :)

Saturday I found myself photographing my wedding photographer. Which was really easy since she & her husband are total posing pros. I still have a ton more photos to go through but I really liked these few. Winter foliage makes for a soft background to envelope your subjects in! It’s also a lovely change from the usual green field & trees we enjoy all spring through early fall.

After the photo session we made our way to historic Duluth where we meandered to one of Jeremy and my favorite coffee shops: Chocolate Perks. Their pillows had the right message.

Apart from their great service, they also make pretty latte art! :)

I also took a look inside the violin shop next door. The windows were filled with string instrument knick knacks. Once again I thought about picking up my long ignored instrument…

Maybe one day I’ll pick it back up! A possible goal for 2014? :)

And then we got pies at Crave Pie. I haven’t had over 20g of carbs / day since January 1st. Not just sugars, but all carbs! So… I satisfy my need to interact with sweet things by making Jeremy eat them. :)

We got the dutch apple and the pecan pies. Jeremy really liked them both. When we got home I made some cinnamon hazlenut coffee whipped cream for the pecan one. It worked out.

Later that night we got to see our friend Sam’s libertto! He was selected to compete in a 24 hour challenge at the Atlanta Opera. We went to see the resulting opera. We were not disappointed.

Sam looked a bit nervous after all the mini operas had been performed and voting had started. I didn’t think he had too much to worry about. He was team green and … well just look at what the baskets looked like:

Whlie he didn’t win the Judge’s favorite (whut?) he sure swept the audience away and won the popular vote! He and his pianist get up to go accept their award.

All of us were thrilled to see him get his deserved recognition.

And we celebrated at Uncle Julio’s in Atlanta. This, FYI, was the best steak salad I’d ever had in my life. It’s $15 and worth every dollar.

I thought it was a fantastic night. :)

Jeremy and I even got to meet Sam’s friend with whom he romped around Central america with for a few weeks: Steven, and his wife Lisa.

I’m looking forward to many many more Saturdays like this one. :) Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend.

January 28, 2013 by Sunira

Photography

This Guy

I can’t seem to get this guy to stop following me around lately. :p

January 23, 2013 by Sunira

General, Music

Icona Pop

Icona Pop — What can I say about this duo? They’re intense, they areyoung, they arepromoting heavy bass, wild lyrics and a excellent set of remixes of their track I Love It. Listen and Rock out.

Listen on Spotify or YouTube

This duo’s hit single I Love It has rocked my ears at least 5x today.

January 21, 2013 by Sunira

Life, Photography

Weekend

Life is actually starting to feel nice and normal. At church we’re talking about “breathing room” or essentially a nice comfort zone between where you are and your limits ( money, time, finances, relationships, etc). I am feeling like I have breathing room! I am waking up every day and pretty much thinking “yes, this is awesome”. I have breathing room at work, I never take work home, I never work on weekends anymore, I have breathing room in my business, my breathing room in my finances is now in a happy place and growing, my time is given back to me! I have enough time to hit the gym, sleep well every night, and do all things that I want to have priority in my life. I have breathing room to be financially and time-wise generous to other people! That was something I missed the most over the last year and a half. I had quit volunteering, and I had to be kind of stingy! Uggggh, that’s so not me!

It’s only January! I didn’t realize how much I missed my breathing room last year. I felt like I was suffocating half the time! It’s felt amazing so far.

Anyway, enough gushing. :p This weekend was fun. I spent a lot of time with my friends Lori, Val & Sam and Jeremy’s sister Lindsay. I went bowling (like in high school!!) and birding. :)

Life sprouting up through concrete and steel. Something symbolic in here!

The frost is on everything. I hadn’t gotten up early enough to see it until Sunday!

More frost lining everything.

The cattails have exploded!

Pretty little moss bits on a handrail.

A tiny little graffiti under the bridge.

I stared at the rich texture of this tree bark for a while.

Streaming sunlight.. one of the best parts of the morning.

Val and Sam among about half the birdwatching crew.

That dude’s lens.. is ridiculous..and I wanted it. :p

A downy woodpecker?

The challenge of taking photos while birdwatching is that the 300mm end of your lens still isn’t going to bring your subject close enough All the bird pictures in this set are heavily cropped.

We saw a fairly uncommon purple finch.

It was freezing and I wanted to be a dragon! :D

This is my favorite picture of the week. Hahahahha.

Only Jeremy looks cool :{

I’m always like a foot taller than my girlfriends but I love being the middle. :}

January 21, 2013 by Sunira

Photography

Quirk

What do you get your quirky friend on her birthday?

Coffee, Music and her name with teddy bears splattered all over Daniel Day Lewis’s face. It’s only right.

Also I need to finish the last couple chapters of Frenchman’s Creek. :) Val … I will have it to you Sunday!!

January 18, 2013 by Sunira

Photography

Birding

Val and Sam had us over to do a little birding last weekend. Before I stepped into their backyard, I couldn’t identify a single bird.. except with general terms like crow, falcon and…bird. Yes. If it’s not a crow or a falcon, it’s just a bird.

I was stuck using my T3i and my 55-250mm but the results were okay considering the fading afternoon light! There’s more noise and color fade than I’d normally write off as acceptable but it was nearly inevitable considering my equipment and lighting situation. Also I had to crop the hell out of these. I just put in an order for a 70-300mm that will fit on my FF camera for better quality images next time. :)

I was inspired after this birding session to take a more active interest in the flora and fauna surrounding us. Valerie identified most of the birds you see below, and I spent some time at Cornell’s Lab of Ornithology getting more details. It was a lot of fun. Oh no, another interest! That’s okay. I love that life in general just keeps getting interesting!

Descriptions are from the database at Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

I mix of birds are enjoying the feeder.

Flocks of tiny Pine Siskins may monopolize your thistle feeder one winter and be absent the next. This nomadic finch ranges widely and erratically across the continent each winter in response to seed crops. Better suited to clinging to branch tips than to hopping along the ground, these brown-streaked acrobats flash yellow wing markings as they flutter while feeding or as they explode into flight. Flocks are gregarious, and you may hear their insistent wheezy twitters before you see them.

$A graceful, slender-tailed, small-headed dove that\'s common across the continent. Mourning Doves perch on telephone wires and forage for seeds on the ground; their flight is fast and bullet straight. Their soft, drawn-out calls sound like laments. When taking off, their wings make a sharp whistling or whinnying. Mourning Doves are the most frequently hunted species in North America.$

A graceful, slender-tailed, small-headed dove that\’s common across the continent. Mourning Doves perch on telephone wires and forage for seeds on the ground; their flight is fast and bullet straight. Their soft, drawn-out calls sound like laments. When taking off, their wings make a sharp whistling or whinnying. Mourning Doves are the most frequently hunted species in North America.

Most of the country drives during an eastern North American summer will turn up a few Eastern Bluebirds sitting on telephone wires or perched atop a nest box, calling out in a short, wavering voice or abruptly dropping to the ground after an insect. Marvelous birds to capture in your binoculars, male Eastern Bluebirds are a brilliant royal blue on the back and head, and warm red-brown on the breast. Blue tinges in the wings and tail give the grayer females an elegant look.

John James Audubon named this bird while he was in South Carolina. The curious, intelligent Carolina Chickadee looks very much like a Black-capped Chickadee, with a black cap, black bib, gray wings and back, and whitish underside. Carolina and Black-capped chickadees hybridize in the area where their ranges overlap, but the two species probably diverged more than 250,000 years ago. Either way they arefat and adorable.

A few birds are enjoying the birdbath.

$A little gray bird with an echoing voice, the Tufted Titmouse is common in eastern deciduous forests and a frequent visitor to feeders. The large black eyes, small, round bill, and brushy crest gives these birds a quiet but eager expression that matches the way they flit through canopies, hang from twig-ends, and drop in to bird feeders. When a titmouse finds a large seed, you\'ll see it carry the prize to a perch and crack it with sharp whacks of its stout bill.$

A little gray bird with an echoing voice, the Tufted Titmouse is common in eastern deciduous forests and a frequent visitor to feeders. The large black eyes, small, round bill, and brushy crest gives these birds a quiet but eager expression that matches the way they flit through canopies, hang from twig-ends, and drop in to bird feeders. When a titmouse finds a large seed, you\’ll see it carry the prize to a perch and crack it with sharp whacks of its stout bill.

$The House Finch is a recent introduction from western into eastern North America (and Hawaii), but it has received a warmer reception than other arrivals like the European Starling and House Sparrow. That\'s partly due to the cheerful red head and breast of males, and to the bird\'s long, twittering song, which can now be heard in most of the neighborhoods of the continent. If you haven\'t seen one recently, chances are you can find one at the next bird feeder you come across.$

The House Finch is a recent introduction from western into eastern North America (and Hawaii), but it has received a warmer reception than other arrivals like the European Starling and House Sparrow. That\’s partly due to the cheerful red head and breast of males, and to the bird\’s long, twittering song, which can now be heard in most of the neighborhoods of the continent. If you haven\’t seen one recently, chances are you can find one at the next bird feeder you come across.

$Northern Flickers are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle expression and handsome black-scalloped plumage. On walks, don\'t be surprised if you scare one up from the ground. It\'s not where you\'d expect to find a woodpecker, but flickers eat mainly ants and beetles, digging for them with their unusual, slightly curved bill. When they fly you\'ll see a flash of color in the wings â€“ yellow if you\'re in the East, red if you\'re in the West â€“ and a bright white flash on the rump.$

Northern Flickers are large, brown woodpeckers with a gentle expression and handsome black-scalloped plumage. On walks, don\’t be surprised if you scare one up from the ground. It\’s not where you\’d expect to find a woodpecker, but flickers eat mainly ants and beetles, digging for them with their unusual, slightly curved bill. When they fly you\’ll see a flash of color in the wings â€“ yellow if you\’re in the East, red if you\’re in the West â€“ and a bright white flash on the rump.

A common feeder bird with clean black, gray, and white markings, White-breasted Nuthatches are active, agile little birds with an appetite for insects and large, meaty seeds. They get their common name from their habit of jamming large nuts and acorns into tree bark, then whacking them with their sharp bill to â€œhatchâ€ out the seed from the inside. White-breasted Nuthatches may be small but their voices are loud, and often their insistent nasal yammering will lead you right to them.

January 17, 2013 by Sunira

Life, Photography

Spicy Bacon & Watercress Stuffed Mushrooms

So I’ve been experimenting with keto-friendly, low calorie foods to help with my weight loss. This one was a winner tonight. It’s spicy, filling, under 400 calories Here’s how to make it.

This shit is delicious

And you can eat all of it. Mmmmmmmm.

Keto-Friendly Spicy Bacon and Watercress Stuffed Mushrooms

Total Calories: 375
Total Carbs: 10g Net carbs: 7g

Ingredients

Fresh Selections – Baby Bella Mushrooms, 8 oz.
Watercress – Raw, 1 cup, chopped
Dynasty – Thai Hot Chili Mayonnaise, 2 Tbsp
Kunzler – Course Black Pepper Bacon, 2 slice
Kraft – Shredded Italian Five Cheese Blend

I was able to get everything on this list at Kroger.

Preparation

Set your oven to 400 degrees.This part is really simple. Take all the mushrooms, remove their stalks.
In a bowl, combine the watercress and hot chili mayo and let sit.
Cook the bacon strips in the pan to your liking and then dice them up. Combine with the watercress and mayo.
Fill each mushroom with the mixture and then top with a tiny pinch of the cheese on each one.

By now your oven should be ready so put those suckers on a nice cookie sheet or baking pan and let cook for between 5-8 minutes depending on how soft and cooked you like your mushrooms.

BAM it’s ready to eat! :)

January 14, 2013 by Sunira

Life

Minus Ten

Between my fitbit, myfitnesspal, and a ketogenic diet, I am making progress on 2012 weight gain. :)

Ten more pounds and I’ll be back at the weight I was early last year. I gained the 20 pounds stressing about my wedding and eating because of it. :) LOL have you ever heard of a bride gaining 20 lbs for her wedding?!! Well just label me special.

2013, you’re off to a wonderful start.

Created by MyFitnessPal – Free Calorie Counter

January 14, 2013 by Sunira

Photography

Bertie

Val and Sam were kind enough to invite me over to do some birding in their backyard. The birds were spectacular, but Bertie was the real looker that afternoon.

Bertie looks over the table at my camera. What a ham! :)

January 14, 2013 by Sunira

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