The Power of Retail

I’ve done it. I’ve got myself a pro account on Flickr! It’s been such a fun time to browse through others photographs and upload my own. The kind of photo’s I have been taking has changed in the past few months, thanks to the influence of my flickr friends and to my spending some time thinking how to take a picture rather than just taking it and thinking about it later on. I was not into photography at all, so this has been a surprising shift for me, but all in all a very fun one too.

Here’s a screen shot of my pro page!

There are so many interesting sites that we come face to face with, but don’t really see at all. The common way is to photograph beautiful things, but it’s often more interesting to notice something completely different and unexpected and turn it into a work of art just by taking an interesting photograph. Sometimes all it takes is having some wonderful sunlight and at other times, just the right angle ot make it interesting.

I never bothered to take scenic photographs earlier, so taking pictures of unassuming things was far beyond. But ever since I have started taking photographs and posting them on my flickr page, I have been inspired to take better pictures, not necessarily of grand and beautiful objects, but of the mundane and commonplace, but to turn them into something worth looking at.

I’ve not been successful on all fronts of course, but the learning experience has been a great part of it and my journey continues on.

No matter where we have lived and will live in the future, we get a lot of guests coming to stay with us and will always have more visitors. For a lot of people it is just more work that needs to be done, but if taken in the right spirit, it can be a lot of fun and very enjoyable too. We recently had an old friend stay with us for a few days and it was wonderful to be able to catch up like this. I myself had just got back into town, but since the house is pretty well set up to receive guests, with lots of extra bedding sets and so on, one doesn’t have to worry about all the little details at all. It is for the company they are coming after all, not to judge you on your housekeeping abilities, but it’s hard to keep that in mind with all the home decor shows and magazines one keeps reading. Everyone wants to be perfect. Well, I’m quite happy to be normal, just as I am, but keep my peace of mind and enjoy myself. Here’s to having more guests over in the future!

As I have started taking more photographs lately, I have begun to notice things and really “see” them, things that one sees in one’s daily life, but doesn’t really notice them or give them a second glance. I spent a morning at the park where I have been lots of times before, but this time I really saw things in a different light, so to speak. I saw things that I would have ignored earlier on, I saw things that would not make me look again, and I saw things that I would not notice earlier as I was not as curious.

Enjoy!

A photograph that I took last month and I really like. The blue sky and the angle of the pine tree came out really nice I thought, and the frame at the top of the roof also added a lovely touch to it. Kasauli has been a regular haunt for me for ages, since I was a child actually, and I have grown to love it more with each trip. I do despair at the dirt one now sees in the khud sides and the way people drive without regard to their own and others safety, but as long as you have a few minutes alone in the pines, everything goes back to being perfect again.

A photograph that I took last month while I was in Chandigarh. This photo is special because I remember playing in this park when I was a child, at this monument especially. The day I took this photo, the weather was spectacular, with a cool breeze but warm sunshine…perfect for exploring the park, finding a nice bench and sitting to introspect, think of new pictures to take, new angles to try out and so on. I’m so glad that we went to the park that day, since I now have these wonderful memories in addition to my earlier ones.

Well, I am finally back from my trip home….this has been the longest trip I have taken since I left on the 1st of March and returned on 4th morning. It was a great trip in all ways, since I got to do so much stuff, and most of all I finally had some free time to just sit back and relax for a while. In one’s daily life, it becomes hard to get beyond the daily worries and work and one puts one’s own health and relaxation last of all, which is what got me into a bit of trouble. But, that’s what going home cures everyone, I guess.

I can’t remember the last time I read so many books in such a short time. These past few weeks, I have read 6 books and started on the seventh one, which I then left since I was coming away! Since I started working from home and spending just so much time working on the computer, I have barely been reading, so it was a really lovely nice change to be able to read so much. Since there was nothing else to really do, I completely immersed myself in the books and sped through them with great gusto!

Enjoy!

Since I’m currently on a short break, am thoroughly enjoying myself being at home and getting a bit of pampering. Everyday seems like a sunday and not having a daily agenda or to-do list is really, really great. It’s been ages since I got to relax like this, since each time I come home there is lots of stuff to do and catch up with, but not this time. Here’s a sneak peak at what my mornings are like!

Enjoy!

I’ve been considering getting a new computer lately. I use a laptop and I’ve had my current one for just over two years now and it’s been a really great laptop to have. What I’m now considering is getting a barebones computer that I can use for things other than work, which I would want to continue to do on this laptop, since it is great to travel with. We already have two laptops between the two of us, so if we get another computer, the first question is where would it go? Once that is sorted out, I’m sure there will be a lot of uses to an extra computer in the house. So, now what I need to do is to do some research and find something that will suit our requirements.