The Shadow Project

I really love this world of the blogosphere. It strikes me an incredible place where people share their dreams and sorrows in intensely personal ways and I am awed by the creativity that I see out there. Maybe one day I'll do a post on all the cool women out there (it just occurred to me that most of the blogs I read are by women. I wonder if I'm just drawn to those blogs, or if there are significantly more women who blog?)

I always love discovering a new blog-- to date I follow 107 blogs in my Google Reader. Thankfully, not all of these people post every day, but I can always tell when I've gone a few days without checking my reader.

Today I stumbled upon a delightful blogger who runs a blog called Color Me Katie. She's a twenty-something Brooklynite who is a photographer by day and artist in her free time. Reading her blog is captivating-- her goal in life seems to bring smiles to other people's faces.

She made this music video with her boyfriend using a Ben Folds song. I'd never heard the song before, but I found it enchanting, and her video (and blog, in fact) make my heart ache to be in love.

Trains from katie sokoler on Vimeo.

Her most recent project involved cutting out shadows, pasting them around the neighborhood in Brooklyn, and waiting for people to walk by so that she could snap a picture at the exact right moment.

The result is that the people's shadows appear to have a life all their own. It reminds me of a Hans Christian Andersen story I read when I was a child.

Here's some of her photos:





You should check out Color Me Katie's blog, where you can see more photos from her "Shadow" project as well as her other art projects.

I'm off for the weekend-- I'll be in NY catching up with an old friend who is visiting from Germany. I won't be posting but WILL be celebrating May Day (which is my own holiday that I claimed for myself. I get to be Queen of May-- I'll tell you more about it next week).

I have to post this picture before I go-- I just found it today and it's of my German friend and an old roommate of mine.

That's me in the middle. I'm 5'10" (177.8cm). The girl next to me is in heels, but still! I feel short:)

Have a great weekend and Happy May Day!


XOXO,

New Shoes at Birdcage Vintage

Special thanks to clearphotostamps for making my beautiful vintage frames!
(She did them as a special request for me!)

I just did a shop update and all of these shoes are now in the shop! I'm not sure how other sellers do regular shop updates, because just listing these five pairs of shoes (what with the weighing and measuring and describing, etc.) took me all evening!

I'm working on doing another photo shoot so that we can post some more dresses. I'm trying to think of something special for the shoot. Anyway, thanks for stopping by!


XOXO,

The Swine Flu Scare

Another perspective on how we should react to this "epidemic." I thought this was interesting. The man does have a point.

XOXO,

More Ways to Waste Time Online

While using Google Image Search tonight I stumbled across Google Image Labeler. It's a game where you play online with an anonymous partner 'tagging' images with labels. When you and your partner match words, you get points. It's fun (if you're a nerd like me), and it helps to make Google Image Search better.

Why not try it out? Each session lasts two minutes.

Click Here to go to Google Image Labeler

XOXO,

It's That Time Again!

Yep, library time. I should mention that I don't necessarily read all the books that I take home (although I read all of those from my last trip to the library). I treat the library as sort of a smorgasbord where I roam the aisles and grab every book that catches my fancy. Everything I bring home I want to read, but I sometimes when I start a book, it just isn't that good, and at other times, the book is recalled to the library before I can read it.

Here's what I picked up:


Why I Picked It Up: Because BFFs Corrie and Laura both recommend it, and dear Sierra seconds (thirds?) their suggestion.




Why I Picked It Up: The book discusses the stresses that face teenage girls today. It sounded interesting to me as a woman, but even more so when I consider my 15 year old niece.




Why I Picked It Up: It was in the "Classics" section. I'd never heard of it, but I liked the title.




Why I Picked It Up: I love the Bronte sisters, but somehow never read this one. I found in the classics section and it promises to "eclips(e) even JANE EYRE." Sold!




Why I Picked It Up: I grabbed this one because the title piqued my interest. Being from the south means that manners were always ingrained in me since day one. I'm sure they could still use some polishing, though!




Why I Picked It Up: I read Gladwell's first book, The Tipping Point, and really enjoyed it. And, hey, who doesn't want to learn more about being successful?





Why I Picked It Up: This book comes highly recommended from dear Emily at Songs I Sing. She even did a blog post about it. It's a children's story, and it looks amazing. A quick internet search reveals that this book is beloved by many.



I also picked up some DVDs, although why, I'm not really sure. I don't do much movie watching these days-- it seems blogging and keeping up my store uses up any time I might spend on a movie. Nevertheless, here's what I grabbed tonight:






XOXO,

Birdcage Vintage-- It's in the Shop!

I've been planning on doing a shop update post, but I'm so slow about getting these things posted, that by the time I get ready to do the post, the items have sold. So, here's what we've got in the shop right now. I've got some more cute dresses to go up, and shoes, and purses, so keep checking back!

XOXO,

I Won!

At the end of March I entered a contest that I saw posted on the Craft Magazine blog. I'm always entering these things (and you should too!) because you never know, you might actually win!

The book is filled (over 400 pages) with lots of fun crafts. The how-to-make silhouettes one caught my eye (I LOVE silhouettes!), as did the making candles section. That said, I think I'll pass this book along to my twin, who is infinitely more crafty than I am and adores Martha.

Do you use Google Reader? It's a great way to follow your favorite blogs, as well as other websites. You just subscribe to the websites feed (it's easy-- Google Reader will show you how) and voila! Instead of having to go to each blog's page each day to see if they've updated, it'll all come to you in a nice format in the Reader. That's how I stay on top of the blogs I read-- which means-- I always know when there is a new contest to enter. (Like this one where some crazy blogger is giving away tickets to see the Jonas Brothers in concert in Canada. If you win, they'll even fly you there!)

XOXO,

Fighting

Years ago when I OFFICIALLY started modeling, I was quite pleased, when, after my first day of castings, my agent called to tell me I'd booked a job. MY FIRST PAYING JOB!! as a model!! How exciting. A week later I shot for Men's Health Magazine and promptly called all of my friends to tell them I'd be in the __ issue.

Well, you can probably guess what happened. That issue came out, and I wasn't in it. Nor was I in the next one, or the one after that. As far as I know those pictures have never been run. How embarrassing.

You'd think I'd learn my lesson.

Yesterday, a film opened called Fighting. It stars Channing Tatum, Terrence Howard, and Luiz Guzman and it got rather mediocre reviews. All that, dear reader, is not important. What's important here is that I am in it.

Okay, well, I should clarify. I haven't seen the film (it's not high on the priority list either) yet, so who knows if our scene made the cut. And when I say I'm in it, what I really mean is that I'm in a scene in a crowded dance club, where I play a model. There were about ten of us models hired to fill out the scene, and we were, in a word (or two), glorified extras.

You probably can't see me. But maybe I can see me. Which is cool-- it's my one, and probably only, foray into the film biz. And, if I didn't make it onto the silver screen, I still had an awesome three days of shooting.

Me with some of my friends on the set of Fighting. This scene was shot at Marquee Nightclub in NYC.

XOXO,

The Sailor Husband

My sister emailed me this picture of my grandfather and I just had to share it!

Three days before New Years Day 1946

(Granddaddy is on left)

XOXO,

How Cute is Grandma?

Grandma was a member of the WAVES. The WAVES (Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Services) was a WWII-era division of the US Navy that consisted entirely of women. Grandma was just a girl of 17 or so when she joined. She once told me the story of how the boy she was dating had enlisted when the war started, and was killed in battle. When she found out he had died, she decided to join up to take his place.




When Grandma was in service she was stationed in Miami, which is where, I imagine, the above photo was taken. The fellow in the short-shorts is NOT my Grandfather, but he sure is cute, and Grandma looks like she is having a great time. I love her swimsuit and can clearly see where I get my hips from.

So, where was Granddaddy? Well, he was stationed at Pearl Harbor before she met him. He was there when Pearl Harbor was bombed, but emerged unscathed. He would later be stationed in Miami, where fate intervened and he met Grandma.



Here's Granddaddy with his shipmates (He's the good-looking chap in the middle)





And you know what happened after they met? They married in Miami, moved to South Carolina and had three kids. This is one of my favorite pictures, with my mom when she was little, and my uncle.



XOXO,

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!

You may or may not know that right now happens to be one of my favorite times of year. The sun is finally peaking its head back out from where it hid all winter long, the birds are twittering and beginning to burst forth in song, and the flowers are in bloom!


My favorite flower, which deigns us with its presence for such a precious short time, is the Sakura, more commonly known in the US as the Cherry Blossom.

My own love affair with this flower dates back to my high school years when there was a Cherry Tree in our schoolyard (which, sad to say, has been since chopped down and replaced with concrete). On May 1st of 1995 or 1996, a sweet boy crowned me the Queen of May and presented to me a bouquet of Cherry Blossoms. I have since loved that flower! The blossoms are exquisite, and as they mature, their petals paper the earth in a type of confetti.

The Japanese practice "hanami," which is the culture of enjoying the flowers, namely the Cherry Blossom. Each year in Japan the weather bureau announces the blossom forecast, and the people closely watch for the blooming of the Sakura. When the time is right, thousands of people gather under the Cherry Trees in parks and pass the day and night away in celebration.

I lived opposite the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens in New York City for several years and always celebrated Hanami as well as the Sakura Matsuri, which is their annual rite of Spring. I would spend my Saturdays strolling amongst the flowers. After the Cherry Blossoms started to wilt at the beginning of May, the heavenly-scented lilacs would come into bloom followed by the roses in June.

If you're fortunate to live near public parks or gardens, don't miss this opportunity to view some of nature's finest offerings. Celebrate Hanami!

Here are some pictures from the Flickr set called
Hanami: Cherry Blossom Viewing at Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Couples Canopy by CocteauBoy

Planet Cherry by David Reeves

Waiting Spring by Catching Flies

XOXO,

Only on Twitter

So, those of you on Twitter know that it happens from time to time that someone you don't know will start following you. I'm still new to Twitter myself, so I'm not sure how these people/accounts find you and why they'd be interested in the musings of me, which mostly consist of what I had for lunch that day.

Anyway. Today I was scrolling through my followers, and saw one that I don't recognize. His/Her name is WeKnowtheTruth, and that intrigued me a bit, so I clicked on their profile. There in the top left hand corner was his profile pic. I squinted a bit (these profile pictures are so small), did a double-take, thought, "Nah, it couldn't be," and then zoomed in on the picture for a closer look.

This is what I saw:


Yep. That cracked me up.

XOXO,

The Dating Life of Models

I blogged the other day about the model-centric May issue of American Vogue (which I have yet to lay my hands on. I've seen it at the newsstand, but after our April 15th tax day, I have precious little money to spend on such luxuries. I'll probably just head to the library and have a good read later).

One of the stories included in the issue is about five of the models and who they are dating at the moment. I know what you're thinking-- that this is fodder for the gossip mags-- but the accompanying photos are decidedly less Us Weekly and more high fashion.

TatianaTheAnonymousModel used the Vogue spread as a springboard for her own humourous article on the dating habits of models. She explores the types of men that models date. For example:


1. The Fellow Model

As modeled by Arlenis Sosa Pena and Rene Rodriguez
Representative sentence from magazine copy: "When asked if they ever shop together, they answer in unison, 'Always!' "

Pros:

• Knows the industry, understands its demands
• Empathizes with the indignity of having your hair pulled for a living (kinda — this happens less to boys)
• Can tell you if you look castings-ready or not in the mornings

Cons:

• You can wear his clothes. But he can also wear yours.
• You both do the exact same thing for a living every day. What on earth are you going to talk about?

To learn the four other types of men that models date click here to surf on over to her post.

Maybe it's just me, but her post made me laugh, and somehow struck me as true to life.

XOXO,