On this last day of January 2016, I am making a "Hail Mary pass" on the 2015 slide show. I can be late, but I draw the line at posting the 2015 recap in February.
Here is my excuse. By mid-December, I had the slide show 90% complete. I had chosen photos, selected the music, and I just needed to add the final Christmas photos. And it was cute. Catchy, upbeat, fast... I was happy with the outcome. After the first of the year, I added the remaining photos, and it was complete.
But then I had trouble with Vimeo and YouTube... long story short, the peppy little slide pattern I had chosen wasn't compatible with their platforms. After a few weeks of troubleshooting and various tutorials, I scrapped it and went back to the original. As for the music, I needed a longer song. The trio have had a vintage favorite this past year, and therefore, it seemed like the obvious choice.
After some delay and some esoteric detail that you did not need, here is a capsule of 2015, and may your 2016 be filled with love and light:
The Lindsey Family 2015 from Cathi Lindsey on Vimeo.
Music: "Sowing the Seeds of Love" by Tears For Fears
Photos: All photos by Cathi Lindsey, with the exception of a couple by Skip Lindsey and some random - yet friendly - strangers.
Equipment/Tools: Nikon D5000; Sigma 85mm/1.4; Nikon 50mm/1.4; Sigma 24-70mm/2.8; Photoshop Elements 12; iPhoto; iMovie
Sunday, January 31, 2016
Friday, January 29, 2016
Enumerated Update
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| What is a dictatorship??!!! |
Dear Friends... it is a glorious Friday. William George is running about in his pajamas, playing music on his iPad and dancing. He is embracing fun Friday, and one of the older children, on her way to school, may have stated through gritted teeth, "I cannot wait until he goes to kindergarten."
Speaking of the girls, we sent Grace and Lauren to school after drilling them - Presidential debate-prep-style - social study facts about the American Revolution. They have been having test anxiety, and although they are often 100% prepared at home, they stumble over an answer or two during the test. I had threatened to take a Jason Bourne-type approach... shining a flashlight in their faces at 3am while shouting questions at them, but opted for a kinder, gentler approach.
Oh, I kid.
Other than the above, here's what we are contemplating on this glorious day:
1) The Smashing Pumpkins:
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness was a daily staple during the 90's. The songs from the album were everywhere: on constant rotation by local stations, the videos were shown round the clock, and live performances on nightly talk shows were frequent. Billy Corgin was hailed as a genius, and the album was a once-in-a-decade gem.
All of that said, I had no idea how much thought/planning went into the album artwork.
2) Palmistry: I cannot say that I am a believer in palm reading, but for kicks, this is what it means if you have the letter "M" on your palm.
All of that is very interesting, but doesn't everyone has the letter "M" on his/her palm?
Do you?
3) Modern Love: The NYT has a new podcast based on its wildly popular Modern Love column found in Sunday's edition. The podcast features essays read by actors, but is followed by a conversation with the essayist about what has happened since his/her story ran.
Podcast-wise, I have a bit of a lull going, but I think this might pull me out of my rut.
4) Social Media Code of Conduct:
We are not big users of the social media because it's a total time vampire. I try to peek at Facebook daily to keep a check on school and community happenings, but Skip has given it up altogether. However, Man Repeller's social media code of conduct is hilarious.
"Gut check your creep level."
While that statement tickled my funny bone, anything that has a creep level on its continuum has no real place in my life, meaning I have a low risk threshold.
5) Pronoun Dementia:
One of the aging milestones I have encountered lately (other than farsightedness) is a lapse in the ability to recall/produce pronouns. Names, titles, events... I just cannot seem to produce them when needed. Recently I was discussing some Beatles trivia with Skip and could not produce John Lennon's name. John Lennon! My favorite Beatle! I have been a huge fan since I was eight years old! I thought surely that would have been firmly locked in place.
On a related note and a little piece of trivia, after my mom's aneurysm surgery she was not oriented for quite some time. Her own name was the first piece that she picked back up several days post-op, but she could name the president hours following surgery. The cardiac nurses said that all patients, as long as they are conscious/alert, can state the president's name - even before his/her own name! The brain is an odd business.
That's it for us. Have a wonderful weekend, and I'll see you back here Monday!
Thursday, January 28, 2016
Christmas Gathering with Skip's Parents
Skip's parents were very sick during Christmas, but we regrouped with them after the first of the year to celebrate Christmas. They kept the decorations up, and the trio were ecstatic to have an extended holiday season. We had a wonderful lunch, and Santa was far too generous.
Later in the week we celebrated Gran's birthday. Needless to say, the trio (and we) were excited to celebrate another great year with Gran.
Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Winter Vacation 2015: Rosemary Beach
As mentioned, Grace and Lauren had a lengthy winter break this year consisting of a full three weeks off from school. We went back and forth on how to spend that time because tackling a trip (however small) in and around the Christmas holidays can be daunting, at least to me. Also, we knew that we would likely have rain for much of the break because historically that seems to be the case. While weighing whether to spend a rainy week at home or on the road, we recalled last year's rainy two week break, and then spontaneously decided at the last minute to go to the beach. We totally had a rainy trip, but we packed our raincoats, rain boots and umbrellas and decided to embrace the experience versus encountering cabin fever at home.
We had rain for a few hours each day, and we planned our day around that, meaning we had plenty of time each day to get out and explore. When the rain stopped, everyone would come outside at once, and we met lots of friends in the square and even organized a few "touch" football games. We were there December 28th through January 2nd, and the crowd consisted mostly of owners so the neighborhood had a nice, home-y feel to it - or at least second-home-y feel. We were clearly crashing their Christmas party.
We also watched the Alabama v. Michigan State game, went shopping, spent a morning at an arcade and just simply relaxed. We were envious of all the casual cyclists and are looking forward to taking the bikes in the future. Individually, each child is probably ready, but we need to work on the logistics of cycling with three children. Bicycles + beach equals nirvana in my book.
Santa brought me a new lens for Christmas, and I couldn't resist taking innumerable photos on this trip. Because it's the first time I had used this lens, the shots aren't great, but the subjects more than carry my technical shortcomings. There is a learning curve with any new piece of equipment.
(William George has some good height, but Gracie probably would have topped it back in her jumping prime.)
We returned relaxed, but are ready to return.
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Weekend Update
Last week, for the first time in many weeks, I managed to post on-the-daily. For some reason, I thought as the children grew and became more independent there would be more time, but the inverse appears to be true, particularly with the youngest member of the household.
Have I mentioned that William George has earned the moniker "Prince George"?
At any rate, last year's publishing rate was the lowest since my employment outside of the home so I am redoubling my efforts as a magician to find more time in the day. Let's take a stab at two weeks of daily publishing, yes?
Speaking of George, we have attempted to dial back the car dvd viewing, following the watching of many Christmas movies in the car throughout November and December. We have made the move to music, and George has been requesting Pearl Jam's Lightning Bolt, from which we have an ongoing debate about the best song on the album. He prefers "Getaway," while I think the title track is superior. We debated the merits of both while commuting Friday. First, we picked up Gracie at 11:00 after receiving an email from her teacher indicating that Gracie was not feeling well, and then we picked up Lauren when school dismissed at 1pm due to impending (and non-sticking) snow. The trio watched the snow fall and then enjoyed a "Jessie" marathon.
Saturday Team Starzz had a game, and they won! Gracie had several impressive assists and was a defensive force. Lauren was also strong on defense (a little too strong, as she was called for elbowing), and scored a basket from the free throw line. The game was so good that when the final buzzer sounded it took a second for me to realize it was over.
After church on Sunday, the trio went to visit Skip's parents, and we had a nice lunch and ran some errands. We also finally saw Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation and caught the latest episode of Downton Abbey. I'll let you decide who made those selections.
Hint: Skip didn't pick Downton.
Friday, January 22, 2016
Quotable
The things you are passionate about are not random, they are your calling.
~Fabienne Fredrickson
~Fabienne Fredrickson
Enumerated Update
Today is January 22nd, and to date, there has only been one day this month in which all three of my children attended school. By way of explanation, Grace succumbed to a separate illness this week. Just when it seems like we might be out of tricks/ideas to keep everyone occupied, along comes some sleet to provide a distraction. We are all home, cozy, and watching the sleet from my bedroom window.
In the meantime, here's what we have going.
1) Tom/Gisele: Since professional football is a foreign language to me, I am rusty on the Tom/Gisele Brady allure, aside from the obvious, of course. But, no Oreos? Ever? Now I believe they're the perfect couple.
2) Trilogy: We read constantly, although I rarely mention it here in the main portion of the blog (excepting my going on and on about DFW, although to be fair I particularly like Tom Wolfe, too, and am eagerly awaiting his next novel). Music and books are incredibly personal, and we all have such specific tastes so I shy away from making recommendations.
However, I recently wrapped up the Jane Smiley 100 Years trilogy, and I strongly recommend it to everyone I know. Smiley is incredibly underrated, although she won a Pulitzer for A Thousand Acres. She is a force. The three books - Some Luck, Early Warning, and The Golden Age - were released in April, June and October, respectively. I finished the last installment over Thanksgiving. I really prolonged the reading of that book and was genuinely sad to reach the last page. I immediately recommended the trilogy to Skip and am more than a little jealous that he gets to read it. Look for her name on the list of nominees for the Pulitzer this April, and consider picking it up if you are up for a phenomenal, three-book read.
Post-trilogy, I have been in a reading slump, as sometimes happens after reading something especially monumental. The books would be a fantastic winter read, and I'm a little tempted to read through them again.
3) The Departed: Last week, I bemoaned the passing of David Bowie, and this week Skip is struggling with Glenn Frey's early demise. The thing with Bowie is that he never stopped evolving and only improved over time. Because of that, although I had always liked him well enough, I became a fan as an adult. David Bowie Is continues to tour internationally, and I am hoping for more extensive US dates soon.
Related: His SNL performances have been captured/compiled here.
As for the Eagles, Skip has been obsessed with them since watching a documentary a few years ago (I mentioned it here), and his obsession was solidified with Bill Simmons' endorsement.
He keeps looking at me periodically, saying, "Glenn Frey is dead?!"
4) Seinfeld as Serial: I haven't listened to Serial (individuals falsely convicted/incarcerated rates high on my "biggest fears" list), but the Seinfeld/Serial mash-up is funny.
Also, how Seinfeld and others got their starts.
Lastly, the seventh season of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee is in full swing.
5) January: I marked this to share a few weeks ago, but it's not too late to implement some of these ideas if you're struggling to get through the month of January.
Friends, I hope you are warm and cozy, and may you have something interesting to read or watch. Have a wonderful weekend...
Thursday, January 21, 2016
Birthday Week
Having a birthday two days after Christmas is often thought of as less than ideal, but in our family we find it the perfect antidote to any lingering after-Christmas blues. Naturally, we celebrate birthdays all week, and I try to claim "birthday month" from December 27th - January 27th. The trio usually kibosh my celebration by January 6th, which is Sally's (Skip's mom) birthday.
"It's not your birthday anymore! It's Gran's!"
On the 26th, my mom treated us to a birthday lunch at one of my favorite indulgences - J. Alexander's. Yes, it's a chain, but the fries are one of the guiltiest pleasures on earth. As the smiles below indicate, we had fries all around, followed by an equally decadent ice cream treat.
We spent the 27th packing, but we wrapped everything up in time to have our usual birthday dinner in the dining room. Skip prepared delicious filet, and we devoured our entree and tempted our insulin levels with a delicious chocolate cake.
I had a fabulous birthday and am immensely grateful to/for the five people who made it so wonderful. They are awesome, and there is nowhere in the world I would rather be than sitting down to dinner with their smiling faces.
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Christmas Day 2015
Christmas morning was loud, raucous and absolutely wonderful. This year's Christmas lists were pretty basic, with Lauren and Grace requesting roller skates (their old pairs are becoming snug) and George requesting some fireman's tools and a stuffed Dalmatian. Santa brought those items, as well as a few other trinkets. Some favorites out of the loot include George's Black and Decker work set, and the girls' Fuji Instax cameras.
And because George had become obsessed with this Publix 18-wheeler, Santa loaded it onto the sleigh as well.
Grace loves George's "coon-skin" hat, and therefore, Santa thought she might like a fur hat of her own.
Santa found Grammie at our house as well. That Santa knows all!
And what would a Christmas morning be without a new Snoopy? Of course, like all of the other "new" Snoopy's, he has been thrown aside in favor of the near-black and much-loved original Snoopy.
Skip's parents were verrrry sick over the holidays, and instead of attending our Christmas dinner as planned, Skip delivered dinner to them. For those who are local, we had torrential rains and tornadic activity Christmas night, making it one of the more unusual (read: strange) Christmases we have experienced. Some people have white Christmases, whereas we have Christmas floods. Fortunately, we were at home and able to enjoy Santa's toys, although our thoughts and prayers were with those who experienced difficulties.
We adored Christmas 2015. We are still experiencing the present-opening frenzy and all of the chaos that that involves. We are sticking with our trick of filming Christmas morning, and Skip and I joke that one day we will watch old Christmas mornings and sob uncontrollably.
Christmas 2015, you were awesome.
Christmas past:
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