Public Speaking

   I'm taking public speaking.
  I don't know what my feelings are about this. Nervousness, yet in a strange way confident in what I think I can do. Generally I'm a quiet person. It's hard for me to be the first one to start a conversation. I'm not very witty around new people. Once someone gets to know me, I become more outgoing and relational. In reality, I fear that talking with someone new they won't like me and only leave myself embarrassed.
  A teacher once told my class and I to challenge ourselves. She said if we never challenged ourselves, we would never learn something new. I agree 100% with her. So I think public speaking will be good for me, even if there are hard times when I'm jittery and standing in front of a room full of curious eyes. It will challenge me. I will learn, grown and meet new people. If people never challenged themselves with something that made them a 'tad' uncomfortable, then the world would be sitting ducks. There would be no accomplishment or even the effort of trying. We cannot stop growing in our mental,spiritual and physical health.
  There are countless of opportunities for each person every single minute,hour,day that is waiting to challenge them. Waiting to challenge you. 
  And the results of challenging ourselves?

  Priceless.


  This verse is one of my favorites. It assures me that I am not alone in my journey. The path God has directed me to is steady and firm. When we do things that challenge us, God is right along side us. He is upholding our path.

The Lord makes firm the steps
    of the one who delights in him;
 though he may stumble, he will not fall,
    for the Lord upholds him with his hand.

Psalm 37:23-24

Sweet 16

Saturday was my sister's sweet 16! She spent the day getting treated like a princess with a facial, massage, pedicure and dinner to Buca di Beppo. As a present from me to her, I took her photos of an abandoned couch left on the side of the train tracks. It made great pictures, so I thought I'd share them with you. 

School Supplies

  Even though I am now in college, I still love school supplies. I love going to the store and purchasing fresh new items to start the year. I love the colors of the notebooks, planners, folders and pens. It speaks to my inner soul. Ever since I started kindergarten, I have loved the process of preparing for school.
  I can't say what my favorite part is. Buying or organizing my supplies into my book bag. All of it is great.

What is your favorite thing about going back to school?

Movie Quotes is What Brings Us Together

In my family, movie quotes are apart of our everyday conversation. We say them more than necessary when we talk to each other, it's become almost too natural.  Below are just a few out of the countless(!!!) movie quotes my family and I say:

Marriage is what brings us together...

- Princess Bride (Favorite movie!)

Don't talk about me like I'm not here...

-Steel Magnolias 

You're a corker Shannon, you're a corker...

-Far and Away 

Don't make me sing...
-SNL skit (Technically not a movie but a favorite quote) 

At least I didn't use a spoon...

-Robinhood: Prince of Thieves 

I'm clean, I'm clean!
-Baby Mama

It's a little bit funny...

-Moulin Rouge 

There you have it! A handful of the main movie quotes we say all the time. Some of them mean nothing at all, but somehow stick in our heads and attach themselves to our family circle.

What movie quotes do you say and are your favorite? 

A Day in the Life: Machado

My final project for my photography class last semester. This is the artist statement I included with my project: 

Machado is a bust that sits on top of my family’s piano in the living room. We originally got him at a yard sale and the previous owners of Machado told us a little bit about him. They said he was their uncle and a famous doctor in Brazil that helped to bring medical rights to the poor. He was hand made by a famous artist. Since we bought him we've moved several times, but he’s stayed with us. For my final project, I wanted to do a self portrait of Machado. He has an interesting, kind face and people who see him are fond of him. He seems part of the family. For being a bust, he seems to have so much personality as if he was a real person. I wanted to capture some silly and realistic features of Machado so I decided to take him along with me to the places I go most to. We went to the school, the library, the light rail, the grocery store, the laundry mat and more, capturing Machado as if he was an actual living person. He did all the tasks a human would do if he had the arms, legs and well, a full body. I was inspired by the Travelocity gnome that is always captured in various places, making people smile by his innocent looks. I thought Machado would be a new twist on it being that he weighs 20 pounds and is a bust. As I took pictures, it seemed his facial expression would even change with the different settings of the pictures. Sometimes he would be more smiley than others and then he would be serious, gazing out and pondering. It was quite interesting to see how the backgrounds changed the perspective. Overall, it was an interesting experience.

These are the pictures I submitted: 

The End.

Hoped you enjoyed!