Oh, my poor neglected blog!

Again. Sigh.

When I get into my bloggers-block mode, you can always follow me at twitter. I also waste quite a bit of time at facebook:

I'm big into the LastFM thing, too!

See How Dorky Cool I am?!

This picture taken at Primanti Bros! And if you know Primanti Bros, here is the group for you:

Burgh Moms Club.

:)

I Moblog!

Trying something new, just for fun! I am using a cool service over at Utterli to send live pics, texts, and even audio (have not tried the audio yet, but it will happen!) to my NEW MoBlog (mobile blogging) from my cell phone.

So If I am at the drug store and I see a pooping penguin candy dispenser, I can snap the pic with my phone and send it directly to my moblog! Fancy, huh?

So, go check out Not Another MoBlog (clever, eh?) and if you are feeling adventurous, you can even go sign up at Utterli and follow me. It's kind of like Twitter, only you can post pics and audio and more, too.

I even have a cool new sidebar widget on this blog to show off my latest moblog on my other blog... try saying that ten times fast!

I have it set to "cross blog" with the new blog I set up on blogspot. It's pretty simple. This could be fun... ya'll should go sign up, make your own MoBlog, and then we could, like, link each others Moblogs! Fun times.

Fun times, until my next phone bill comes in, that is...

Come Back! Please?

As you can see, I am slowly but surely getting this blog put back together. Not done yet, but getting there! I miss blogging so much, I miss all my fave blogs and I miss all my readers and bloggy friends (wow, how dorky did THAT sound?)

Due to my super long Hiatus, I know I have lost a lot of readers but I'm hoping to gain you back! I will be maing my rounds to all my fave blogs over the next few days.

Check back soon, because I am BACK baby, for good!

Maybe I will just come back here.

Yeah, I'm not digging it at vox too much. I have more time now that Maya is back in school, and.... I miss it here! I miss blogging here and I miss my bloggy friends and the interaction... and I miss all the reading and keeping up with all the blogs on my blogroll that I LOVE... so, yeah. I need to redesign this place and open back up.

:)

Hi

I just can't keep up with this blog much anymore!! I don't know what it is.

I'm not saying I am leaving or quitting. I'm just saying... sorry, I must be going through a phase, but I know the phase will be over soon.

I do have another online journal, that's a bit more personal, but it's mostly friends only. So here's the deal.

If you have a livejournal account, leave me a comment or email me: java_mama@yahoo.com and let me know what your livejournal addy is and I will add you. If you don't, well... go get one. Haha.

Feel free to do this even if you've only been mostly "lurking" here.

I'm not leaving this blog, though. So stop by from time to time!

By the way... good news. Maya was asked to try out for the "team trainers" program at gymnastics, which is a pre-team training program. So, she did... and she made it!

So, now I will be diving into the world of competitive gymnastics. I'm nervous and excited at the same time. I have read so many good things, but so many bad things, about this level of gymnastics.

But, they seem to think she has what it takes, and she loves it more than life itself right now!

So, Where have you been?

...You may or may not be wondering.

Life gets in the way of blogging sometimes. Which is a good thing, really.

I've been working a lot, got a decent amount of hours, which is awesome. However, this leaves less time for my family and therefore, even less time for my dorky internet addiciton. Haha.

I know I put up that cool photo meme thing and I still totally plan on doing it, and I soooo appreciate the responses... very cool ideas, people!

I just can't promise when. Hopefully soon.

Thank goodness I'm not attempting NaBloPoMo this month, eh??

Keep in touch, though, internet. I'm still here, I swear.

p.s. I'm seriously considering purchasing the Sony a200 instead of the Nikon d40 or d60. Any opinions?

Send Me On A Photo Scavenger Hunt!

A fun photo "meme" I thought I would try!

Leave me a comment, and tell me 1 to 3 things you would like me to take a photo of. It can be anything. A place, person, thing, concept, color... whatever.

I will do my best to take all the photos with either my digi camera or my new lomo fisheye camera, and post them here.

Then post this, if you want, on your blog and let people tell you what photos to take.

This could be a lot of fun!!

News!

I'm becoming a bad blogger again. That's ok though, because I'm enjoying time with my family and working...

I have exciting and terrific news. I'm getting my camera!!!! The perfect starter dslr, the Nikon D40. Isn't it beautiful:



Hopefully, if the deal at work is still going on, I am also getting a cool bag and a second zoom lens.

I love the people I work with. Love them. This one guy, Chuck, is a professional photographer... he does everything. Weddings, portraits, you name it. He even has his own studio. He really liked my work so far, and he's going to have me "shadow" him to learn the ropes of professional photography. He also teaches digital photogrpahy classes.

Speaking of which, I am taking photography classes as soon as the next session starts.

So, the ball is rolling. I can't wait! Can you tell I'm excited??? :)

I admit, I have a problem...

I am an addict. An internet addict.

Yes, I've posted about my 'net addiction in the past, but... it's gettng worse!

I have signed up for so much crap that I don't have time for it all. I have profiles all over the internet, people! All Over!

We've got your typical Myspace and Facebook pages to start with. Then I am a member of a bunch of motherhood and parenting sites and forums... Maya's Mom, Cafe Mom, the list goes on.

Then, you've got your photography and art sites, like Deviant Art and Flickr, and a few others I don't even go to anymore. I found one just the other day called Robot Laundry, but luckily I managed to have the will power to click the little x in the right hand corner instead of signing up.

Then you have random things like Ravelry, for instance. I haven't even been knitting lately, I'm too busy with my latest photogrpahy obsession.

It has to end, I know it does... I drop by these places once in a blue moon anymore...

Oh, and I also start blogs (other than this one, of course) that I don't update... like my Photo Blog, for example.

Can anyone recommend a good 12 step program for this sort of thing?? Anyone??

This N' That

I'm still here, I'm alive, I swear! I've been reading other blogs but no time for posting my own or leaving comments. Busy, Busy, Busy!

Maya's "little cold" turned into pneumonia and she was home from school all week. Poor kid. She is all better now, though! Just in time for her gymnastics class today. She takes gymnastics at Gymkhana and loves it. You should see the spark in her eyes when she's going to class, talking about class, coming from class...

She's actually really good, too. She may even compete someday! Yeah, I'm her mom and maybe a little biased but... I've seen her do things in class that the other kids couldn't do... anyway enough bragging from mom...

In other news, I'm still lovin' the job and thanks so much to everyone for wishing me luck on the interview and the congrats for nailing it. I'm learning so much and I love it. I'm also studying some photography on the side, I bought a few books and I'm even taking notes because, well, I'm a dork like that. I finally understand about shutter speed and aperture and fun stuff like that. Hopefully someday I will be able to afford a kick-butt camera... I want an SLR in the worst way. But I still love my little canon powershot.

Well... as always I will leave you with a photo, and there are new photos over at My Flickr Page and My Deviant Art Gallery.

31st post in 31 days.

Well, I did it. Here's my 31st post in 31 days.

WHEW!

My first day of my new job was awesome.

I have a migraine and I am going to bed so, good night all!

Rambling and Good News, Too!

One more day and NaBloPoMo is over for March. I might do it again, someday... but not for april, not soon.

I thought if I had to post everyday, it would somehow inspire me. Motivate me. I think the opposite has happened. The pressure of not wanting to mess it up was just too much, and when I feel like I am being forced into something... well, I hate that. Now that I can blog at my own pace, I will most likely post almost every day anyway... but I won't feel like I have to, and I will be more relaxed, and blog for me, which is what I intended this blog to be all about in the first place.

Everything has been so crazy these days. My sister was injured in a car accident and is going to be having surgery, my daughter has a pretty bad cold, I've been pretty busy with my volunteer work and the Obama campaigning, and some days I'm just tired. The coumadin I have to take every day messes with me, and I hate it. Maybe I will have more answers after my heamatologist appointment in April. (For those who don't know, I take coumadin, which is a strong blood thinner... well, actually it's rat poison haha... due to being hospitalized with a pulmonary embolism in January).

I had a point when I started typing, really I did. I guess what I am trying to say is, now that the pressure is off I will feel more relaxed and blog more freely. I love this whole concept, and I love the sense of community in some parts of the internet world. I have "met" through various online journals such as mine many awesome people. Many great moms, artists, writers. I love being a part of this and I feel like I came on strong and lately I have been so... disconnected. I know I still have readers, I see my site stats... and that's great. I still read all my faves, too. I may not comment as much as I used to but, I still love everyone as I said in an earlier post. But from now on, I am blogging for me, not because NaBloPoMo says I have to. I know it was my choice and I am glad I experienced it, I am. It has taught me that I am better off blogging for myself, and reading other blogs for my own enjoyment and education and enrichment, and for the sense of community I love so much.

I tend to ramble a lot when I'm exhausted. Heh.

Onto something a little more coherent and concrete... I got that job I wanted! I start tomorrow morning, and I am super excited. I am going to be working for a well-known, major photo company. I'm going to do lab work in a photo lab, as well as working with customers, cameras, photography equipment, etc. I am sooooooo excited about this.

It pays a lot more than my last job paid, too. I wasn't expecting that. My new manager, I like him already. He talks a lot, like I do... the "interview" was more like a fantastic conversation between two people with a common interest. So this should work out nicely.

I am also excited about all the things I am going to learn about photography now!

I have to be up bright and early for my first day, so... probably best I get my butt away from this computer and into bed, no?

My Bad

I have not been a very good blogger. Heh.

I promise to start actually writing something substantial on here, at some point. Life gets in the way sometimes. I haven't even had a chance to read my favorite blogs recently.

I still love all of you!!

Photo Blog

I started a photoblog: Click. See. Feel. Still needs some work, but go check it out!

Ask Me Anything!

(Note: I'm making some changes around here again, so If things look wonky or huge parts of my site are missing, that's why!

Update: Well, I am pretty much done, but a few things aren't working right. My brain is fried so I will have to fix the "bugs" tomorrow. Like the links not working on the pull down menus, and some links missing... don't freak out if you were there before, but aren't now! I'm getting to it.

What do you think? It's a lot darker than my last one, I know I like it but... still not so sure.

Any input, suggestions, advice... what you like, what you don't like, etc. would be great!)

So.. I have seen this on so many blogs,I decided to give it try. The good old Ask Me Anything! game. Leave me a comment with a question, or multiple questions and I will answer them tomorrow! It can be anything... silly, serious, whatever. Even if this is your first time here, join in!

I am shamelessly begging for your participation in this, otherwise I will end up looking like a doofus with no questions to answer tomorrow. Heh.

Friendship Chain

I was tagged by Juliana to do this friendship chain. I'm tagging everyone on my blogroll!!

~~Begin Copy~~

This is the easy way and the fastest way to :

1. Make your Authority Technoraty explode.
2. Increase your Google Page Rank.
3. Get more traffic to your blog.
4. Makes more new friends.

Rules :

1. Start copy from "Begin Copy" until "End Copy" to your blog.
2. Put your own blog name and link.
3. Tag your friends as much as you can.

1.Picturing of Life 2. Juliana's Site 3.Not Another Mom Blog!

~~End Copy~~

In other news, I have officially signed up to be a volunteer for the Barack Obama campaign in my county. So excited!!

Also... any liberal blogging moms out there? Would you be interested in joining a Liberal Mom's social network? I'm considering creating one, but please, let me know what you think!

Yay, Me!

Well, I did it. I changed over to blogger beta, the whole xml deal. Complete with a fancy new look! It took me forever but as far as I can tell, I didn't lose anything and everything is working as it should. After I'm done posting this, I can't wait to close my laptop and go to bed.

It's been a crazy, hectic, and did I mention crazy? week. Maya was sick to top it all off, so sorry for neglecting all my wonderful daily reads... tomorrow I'm devoting some time to being a 'net addict again so I can catch up with everyone out there in cyberspace.

Well, I think my bed is calling my name...

The Internet Is My Crack!

First, my very first Haiku for Haiku Friday:

Oh, dear internet
Why can't I escape your grip?
Rehab I may need.
How true it is, too. I thought this might be a good time to highlight just a few of the very cool things I have come across on my surfing adventures.

First up... The Shape of a Mother. For those of you other moms who have ever felt, well... like a cow. I know I have! This sight is wonderful... Stop looking at celebrity mommies who are fake, who can afford to spend zillions of dollars mutilating their bodies into looking "perfect." Go here and see Real Moms with Real Bodies!!

Next, because I am a huge sucker for anything artistic and unique, check out Bent Obects. You will be amazed at the creativity that goes into these sculptures!!

While surfing about, I keep seeing all these really cool knitting moms. I always say to myself, ooooh I want to make funky hats and scarves!! Well thanks to Knitting Help I have decided to go ahead and learn how to knit!

Last but not least, here's my profile at Maya's Mom. I love this social/blog network for a few reasons... obvious reason number 1, my daughter's name is Maya! Also, it's very addicting, love the unique set up and you can find groups for pretty much anything.

If you're looking for some interesting blog reading, check out the "I Read" section on my sidebar!

Test Post

Because every awesome new blog needs a good old fashioned test post. DUH. I can't believe I am jumping back into the blog world... It feels good to be back!! Hopefully I can look up some of my old bloggy friends and maybe they will even remember me... that would be cool.

My random thoughts for the day: I am going to vote for Obama, and I LOVE my new digital camera.

Hope everyone out there in cyberspace is having an awesome day!!