Ahhhhh

When I read this I went ahhhhhhh. No really, I did go ahhhhhh. So, here's your opportunity as well:

"There is nothing wrong. There is simply what is, and what you choose to make of it.
If you spend all your energy on judgment, there's no energy left for progress. And judgment doesn't pay the bills.
You have the opportunity to create something beautiful. It starts with accepting and valuing what already is.
Life's energy comes to you, and you can do with it whatever you please. Very little of what comes your way is under your control before it gets to you, but every bit of what you do with it is yours to decide.
Instead of fighting battles that are already over, simply accept that things are as they are. Then look closely with a positive purpose, and you'll find plenty of opportunities for creating meaningful value.
Life is bringing you amazing possibilities right now. Let them come, let them be, and find joy in making the very best of them."- Ralph Marston!


Hugs!!

Positive attitude and the saga of a plastic headband

Well, quite a few things are going on as I type this, and sometimes I feel as if I just don't know how I will do it all. But, I firmly believe that all things happen at their own time and pace. Just the other day I was stressing about marketing, remember? Well, it seems as the doors have finally started to open up, and I couldn't be more stress free. That's exactly what I meant by saying that all things have their own time and pace to occur.

On a totally separate and random note, I was wearing a headband today, you know, the thin plastic ones. And as I was sipping on a nice hot cuppa' tea, the headband exploded and broke in two. Yeah, just like that!! Could you imagine my shock and confusion? I mean, was my head expanding while I was drinking tea? Am  I getting fat..err, I mean is my head getting fat? Well, it gets better then. So, I opened my dresser and took out another headband - this time blue in color and wore it. Blue looks and feels better, I thought to myself. After typing some frenzied work emails, I decided to go down for a walk. Oh, the weather was super duper gorgeous, and I walked by the Hudson river. I basked in the sun for a while, covering myself with my scarf so as not get too tanned (already burnt my self in the afternoon San Fran sun). And, as I got up to walk back, something popped on my head and fell on my shoulders. It was the blue headband!!! How could it be? Is my head reallly getting big, I thought to myself again. But, this time I almost laughed at myself, shook my head and screamed, "Crazy" without caring about what the passers by might be thinking!! Ha, so much for basking in the sun!

Hugs!

Organic vacation in San Fran...

Happy May!! Oh, its a fabulous May, right? The weather has been super sweet, and when I came back from San Fran yesterday, I was really really happy.

Kartik and I had a great time at Puneet bhaiyya's house (Kartik's elder brother) and he and wife Susan, were super duper hosts. We all laughed, partied, drank, slept, ate like true vacationers and allowed the SF vibe penetrate each pore of our being. If for whatever reason, either Kartik or I talked about "hurrying it up", we were given a stern look of "You New Yorkers" and asked to take it "easy" or "the chill pill."
But, the highlight of the trip was something really organic. Yes, organic. Well, you see, they had an orange tree in the backyard, and all I had to do was shake the tree branches with a golf club, and watch the ripe oranges fall in my lap (umm, yeah, sometimes on my head too). These oranges just tasted delish...so juicy and so sweet. This almost became a morning ritual of mine:  walk around the backyard, reach the orange tree and give it a nice shake for the sweet treat.

How did you kick off your May? Anything special...do share!

 

Hugs!!

This is what Out of Office looks like, right?

Hello lovelies, well, I will be traveling this week to San Francisco until early  next week. So, I will catch you once I am back! Oh, and before I sign off, Happy May!!
I leave you with this pic I took of an interior design store at 16th Street and 5th Avenue..

Hugs!

Meetup - part II

Today I went for round II of photography meetup at the Bronx Botanical gardens, and it was awesome. Before the meetup was scheduled to happen, I had asked the organizer of the meet up, David, if I could do a quick presentation to the fellow joiners, and he agreed. So, I went searching online on all the photography blogs and forum I follow for the topics I wanted to cover, and then I put together a one-pager with bucket loads of useful information. Don't worry, the page wasn't covered in words, it was just the right amount to keep the readers interested!

Ok, I will share with you the most important information about photography that I put together after researching the blogs and forums. This information can be categorized into three basic elements:

PHOTOGRAPHY IS ABOUT...

Who we are: Every picture we take, every angle we calculate, speaks of the kind of person we are and that then gets reflected in the shots we take. Trying to copy some other photographer's style would not do justice to our pictures if we do not exploit our own style, our own self.
This is something I have learnt over and over from all the professional and seasoned photographers, and I truly feel that like anything in life, doing something where we remain true to ourselves is the key. So always remember, who we are!

What do our pictures say: We may not need a fancy equipment or super cool lenses if we don't understand what we would like to convey through our pictures. Therefore, being very clear about the story we want our pictures to tell is very important to getting avant garde quality to our shots. There is no shortcut to this. The only way to get this clarity is through practice, practice, practice! Doesn't matter how many times we get it wrong, the art is to finding a way to tell a story or convey a message through our pictures, and this also ties in with the first element about remembering who we are!

Why are we doing this: This is might be the most important element to photography. If we are pursuing this passion because someone else is doing it, then we should pretty much stop right now, right here. Because there is no point to it. However, if we know deep down why we are immersing ourselves like crazy in this field - maybe because we have a keen eye of presenting things in the most unique way or maybe we cannot live another day without pursuing this art - then we should absolutely feel good and confident about being a photographer. Yes, it can be pursued as a hobby too, nothing wrong with that. But, remember, hobby is nothing but a selfish indulgence into something that makes us really really happy and fulfilled. Either ways, the intentions should always be in the right place.

So, these are some of the things I talked about at the meetup. I also shared some websites that one can learn so much from. Honestly, I felt so good sharing this information with the fellow joiners....it was like I was sharing my full cup with them!  And, yes, it also felt good when all of them thanked me for this totally unexpected voluntary act. Its always a win win when you do it with love!!!

I will be adding some pictures I took soon! Hugs!

UPDATE: Here are some pictures by moi!

Meet Tobi - he was part of the group, and I asked him to pose for my camera, and he obliged kindly - DankeTobi

Meet Fawn - ever fabulous lady who also posed for my camera! Thank you sooo much dear!