Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Holy Thor!

What a whirlwind 10 days it's been...I don't hardly know where to start! I guess it would be Thanksgiving - have to share a few photos from that get-together. It's one of my favorite holidays, because it means hanging out with family and eating. What more could you ask for from a holiday? ;) Unless you're the cook, that is...which mom always handles so beautifully! I did make the chocolate pudding pie, as usual, and this year I had help from my new Auntie Donna. :)

Mmmm turkey... (as always, click for larger)
And I always think our table is so gorgeous I have to take multiple shots of it. I'll spare you the majority of them:
And, of course, the requisite group shot (sans moi, since I was taking it):

Chris, Sarah and her boyfriend Jim joined us later that night, but all in all a great turkey day! Especially with mom & dad's new 54-inch flatscreen HD TV! ;)

Unfortunately I spent the rest of the long weekend dealing with the worst migraine I've had in a long time. Apparently turkey can be a trigger, who knew? Guess we'll have to do fish for Christmas, huh mom?

My New Love

As a holiday present to myself (and after finding out what my bonus is from work), I ordered the camera of my dreams, the Canon Rebel XTi. It arrived just in time for Thanksgiving Christmas! As most of you know, I've been daydreaming about owning a dSLR since I started pursuing photography as a serious hobby over a year ago. So as soon as I found out that I would have the chance to spend that kind of money relatively guilt-free, which I otherwise never would, I jumped at it! And boy oh boy is it ever paying off...I'll spare you all the details, but basically I decided not to order the stock kit lens it usually comes with and got the 50mm f/1.4 lens instead, which is ideal for portraiture (which I do a lot of) and low light (ditto). I've been researching this for a long time, and all the sources I trust recommended this lens. Here's what that killer combo did with my very first round of shots, straight out of the box:I know it's not a perfect shot, but hot damn! Compared to what my old camera did in those same lighting conditions, it's a miracle. I definitely still have my point-and-shoot since it's pocket size is so handy and the Rebel can be a bit too much for taking photos at a restaurant or something, but I am totally in LOVE. Next on the list is a zoom lens (the one I got is a fixed length, meaning if I want to zoom in/out I have to do it the old fashioned way: with my legs), but it'll be a while before that happens!

And of course, had to show my appreciation for the new toy:
R.I.P.


Chris' grandmother Henriette (on his mom's side) passed away last Monday, peacefully in her sleep. She would have been 82 on Saturday, the day of her funeral. Chris' mom, Gisele, has four sisters, and they all have kids (and one grandkid), so it was quite the family gathering. His grandfather was actually the rock of the bunch, making jokes and stuff. The cousins are all pretty close, and I was grateful that even with their grief they made me (and the other girlfriends/boyfriends) feel welcome. In order to try and be of some help, I offered to make a poster of some family photos of grandma to display at the viewing and funeral:
I didn't get to know her as well as I would have liked, but I do know that she was a lovely, caring woman and is sorely missed by her family.

In between being with the family on Monday and the funeral on Saturday, I had an open house for one of our projects at work on Tuesday and then the company holiday party on Thursday, both of which I was responsible for. So it's no wonder that Friday morning I woke up with a horrible head cold! Luckily I was able to get rest after coming home early on Friday so that I could be there for the family on Saturday, and Sunday and Monday were spent under blankets too. I'm mostly over it by now, just a cough and a lovely peeling nose to match. :P

Now I'm looking forward to doing a Secret Santa gift exchange with my girlfriends on Friday and some vintage shopping in old town Orange on Saturday.

But before I go, just wanted to share some photos I took the weekend after Thanksgiving, the full extent of which you can see here.
~T
Quote of the moment: "Let us so live that when we come to die even the undertaker will be sorry." ~Twain

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Wow, that is a muy chingon camera and I want one now! I know I saw it, but seeing the photos is better proof. ;o) I agree, great table.

Sounds like an eventful last few weeks, glad you're better for this weekend - see you then!

NO