While most everyone I know is approaching the Gratitude Project with a daily post, I decided my brain would explode if I tried to keep up that kind of pace and am going to post weekly progress updates instead. As I mentioned before, I’m using this project as a way of pushing to shoot more for myself; a means of getting back into the daily groove as well as refine my appreciation for daily life.
Chocolate — I know this isn’t the most serious way to kick off a project about gratitude, but don’t laugh! I’m a serious chocoholic and though I sometimes have trouble keeping treats as treats, I’m grateful that I get to enjoy a nibble or a chomp whenever I feel like it. Y’know, until I’m diagnosed with diabetes in 10 years. Gotta live it up!
Fresh Produce — Sometimes I go to the grocery store and I come home feeling defeated. It’s no secret that I spend a lot of money at a certain upscale grocery store. Once, I paid $8 for 3 apples at this store that shall remain nameless. I walked home staring at my receipt in disbelief, futilely pledging to never shop there again.
But more often I come home feeling extremely lucky that I even have access to such a store in the first place. One that not only provides me with the ability to fill almost any hankering that may come my way, but also strives to be a responsible business I can feel okay with throwing my whole paycheck at.
Oh, and those apples I spent $8 on? I remember the day vividly, because not only was I pissed, but those apples were freaking DUHLICIOUS.
Old Friends — Over the weekend I shot a wedding with Allyson, who was with me at my first ever wedding back in Humboldt. I snapped this shot on the drive home, unknowing at the time just how awesome it would turn out.
Chris was supposed to be my second, but Harlowe booked a last minute show in Tacoma, WA. I couldn’t be happier with the way things turned out, though – everything about Saturday felt like old times and I can’t wait to rekindle more of those warm photo fuzzies with my Riggsby.
Rain Boots! — Given that this will be my third winter in Portland, it’s remarkable that I’ve made it this long without a pair of good, sturdy rain boots. I held out last year due to my lust for these Loeffler Randall lace-up booties, and by the time I had the gall to buy them winter was over so I forgot all about it. That’s my specialty, btw: procrastinating on something long enough til it’s a nonissue.
But pictures don’t lie – this winter I’ll finally be prepared! The world shall be my oyster as I fearlessly stomp through any puddle that comes my way!
It’s been an incredibly long time since I purchased a brand spankin’ pair of new shoes, though, and these babies need some serious breaking in. My first outing with them left little red rings around my ankles where they’d been rubbed raw. Ouch!
French 75 — I’ve never really been the best at “cutting loose.” I do it all wrong and end up on one extreme end of the spectrum or the other. One of my favorite college tales is having a Harry Potter marathon and drinking gin and ginger ale, but everyone in the house got so tossed that none of us could properly say the phrase anymore. Thus, the “gin-gin-jaroo” was born. As for the marathon? Let’s just say I only made it to the Prisoner of Azkaban where I was forced to retire to the upstairs bathroom floor.
Then, there was the New Year’s Eve I celebrated by drinking 7-Up and eating Cheez-Its. YEEHAW!
Once I figured out when to stop (which happens to be immediately after the first drink) I realized that social drinking can be fun. Since I don’t work a crazy job that requires me to be up at 4am anymore I’ve been doing just that, and the French 75/76 has been my go-to cocktail (with a pretty neat history to boot!).
New Friends — Portland is an amazing place for creative types to live. Thanks to the internet I’ve made some pretty awesome connections that I hope will continue to grow over the coming years.
I snapped this photo of Vanessa this afternoon when we got together for lunch on Alberta. She was on break from work so we didn’t get to do any serious shooting, but our friendship has been blossoming since our first meeting back in May. She is wildly sweet and super fun, and I’m so thankful that even as I transition into the “serious adult” portion of my life that I’m still able to meet people and make new friends.
That goes for all the new friends I made this year, by the way.
Clean Water — On that very lunch date I mentioned above, Vanessa and I passed on our waitress’s offer for coffee or juice, noting that we could both use more water in our life. I don’t want to get all preachy here, but sometimes the disproportion between my endless supply of clean water and how much of it I actually drink is disappointing. Back in April I briefly met up with Pei Ketron, who recently visited India. This photo of hers really drives it home for me.
So drink up, guys! It’s good for you, and is totally an overlooked privilege of ours.
Oops, I got preachy, didn’t I? Sorry. :]
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That’s one of the best pictures of a sweaty bottle of water ever.
Nice idea with batching up your posts instead of making a post every day. Wish I’d thought of that. Instead I’m hitting less than .500 so far :-/
Whoa, girl, whoa. There is just too much goodness going on here. I wish I would have done a weekly post too, haha! But I think having to take a photo a day and writing about it has really boosted my creativity (I’ve been in a bit of a slump).
I can’t help but reply to each one.
Chocolate: you will hear no argument from me. Chocolate is a must in my life too. And PS: I seriously laugh out loud when I read that last sentence: Cory and I always joke about the exact same thing!
Produce: We live a block from Whole Foods, 3 blocks from Trader Joe’s, and 5 blocks from New Seasons and each is constantly beckoning to us. Unlike the majority of society, I happen to love fruits and veggies and probably crave them more often than anything else (chocolate and ice cream coming in at a close second).
Old friends: I recently reconnected with one of my best friends from high school. It had been nearly 5 years since we spoke, and 2 days ago I photographed her engagement photos. Rekindling a friendship can be the best feeling ever!
Rain Boots: Do you know how many things I have hemmed and hawed over only to have them either 1) be completely sold out in my size or 2) no longer needed. I can SO relate. And even though they are a bit painful, those boots are so darling! Here’s to hoping they break in quick!
French 75: I’ve never been much of a drinker. I think it’s because I was always the “trustworthy, sober, look after every one else” person. But I do enjoy going out with Cory or a small group and grabbing dinner and a cocktail. Living in a place like Portland, how can you not?
New Friends: Well, I can bet you already know my feelings about this one… :)
Clean Water: Ahhhhh!! I was having this conversation with Cory this morning. I’m so bad about remembering to hydrate. A few months back I tried to be proactive and bought a Clean Kanteen and everything, but still will forget to bring it with me. *Sigh* I get points for trying, right?
kim, i love you!
Oh Kim! You’re the best! This list is delightful and your photos are eye candy.
I’m so honored to have made your list. I left our lunch today feeling giddy! I totally didn’t want to return to work. It was just so much fun to hang and talk shop, I wish we had all afternoon. I also wish I had my film cameras with me. I love that photo you took of me… it really was a lovely scene we were in. Until next time, my friend!
I love the photo of you and Allyson in the car! Typical Kimmy face!
Also, i love love love your boots…green is great! It appears fortunately that you did not inherit my super wide foot which makes it nearly impossible to wear snappy boots like yours…sigh….
Holy moly do you take awesome photographs. Love your style. Thanks for stopping by my blog by the way!
Thanks, Jonathan! I’ve been a lurking admirer of your work (and Suki ;) for a while and thought I’d finally come out of the shadows — Hooray for mutual inspiration!
Love seeing and reading about what you are grateful for. Love those apples! And seeing Alberta makes me just a little sad. Oh how I miss Oregon!
You know, I think it’s a really smart idea to do the gratitude project as a weekly round-up project rather than daily. I work from like 8 – 5, and so it’s totally dark when I come home now, and I’m stumped for what to take a picture of. I would’ve much preferred to do something like this — in fact, that’s what I’ll do next year!
Anyway, I love your picks. I love appreciating the simple things in life, like a good apple (Honeycrisp, btw? I’m guessing Honeycrisp), to more complex ones, like new friendships. Also? Chocolate is an awesome pick.
Totally! I don’t have a set schedule anymore, but I definitely imagined myself feeling very rushed with the project on a daily level. Now, I just go about my business and at the end of the week I take a gander at what was important enough for me to photograph!
Also, you know I’m a fellow Honeycrisp lover, but these apples are actually Cameo apples. I’d never had them before, but they were crisp, sweet and delicious. Best of all, they were on sale for 99cents/lbs. :) Love ya, Honeycrisp, but damn, do you burn a hole through my wallet!
Woah kids, I have those same boots! Mine are black & they ARE awesome boots indeed! I too, procrastinated about getting them, but it paid off because apparently rain booties go on super clearance in the middle of summer. They did hurt my ankles also when I first wore them, but after a few good walks in the forest & bike rides to work, they are so comfortable (& stylin’) I can’t believe it.
Amen! Preach it Sista! Bout that water business, I am SO happy I can drink glorious cups of clean water everyday…and eat chocolate.
Yes! Rain bootie twinsies! I’ve been wearing mine every chance I get for little walks here and there and they are definitely starting to break in. The first day was the worst, it’s all uphill from here! And oh, I so wish I had been smart enough to purchase them in the summer time. It’s like buying a bathing suit in the winter — super smart, but it just isn’t on my radar!
I really love all these pictures. And there were many, many moments where I actually laughed aloud at the commentary. Especially to “Old Friends.” I’ve been doing the everyday thing with this project. So far, I’ve only missed posting on one day. And I’ll have to agree with you on the chocolate thing… My parents bought four bags of chocolate candies for Halloween trick-or-treaters and at the last minute, decided not to hand them out, so I’m stuck eating them all. I mean, hey. Someone’s gotta do it, right?
I think we’d be bffs.
We’d eat chocolate and wear our loeffler randall rainboots and eat apples at the park.
Have you had coffee crunch from chocolove chocolate? It’s REALLY good. I ate the whole bar yesterday….
Coffee crunch? Oh my word! I’ve had one or two of Chocolove’s other flavors, but never even seen that one on my radar. Next time I’m at the store, coffee crunch is going in my hot little mitts. Thanks for the head’s up!
Also, in lieu of a very ambitious trip we half-planned to Holland, we’ve decided to stay in the Americas for our next vacation and perhaps visit friends in NYC. If you’re still around, let’s be BFFs and eat chocolate and apples in the park while wearing our rain booties!
I can only say that all of these are so, so so true and valid and valuable. THIS PROJECT IS SO GOOD for all of us. Hooray!
I am craziest about old friends and new friends, i think. So important to let them know how appreciative we are of them!
So many gorgeous shots here, I can’t get over it. Your use of composition and texture to tell the story is incredible! I’ve always wanted to visit Portland, your photos all make me want to even more. :)
Thanks, Trude. :) Portland is a lovely city (and definitely another world compared to So. Cal!). If you ever come up for a visit sometime there are lots of us photo nerds that’d be happy to go out shooting with you, for sure!
YAY, KIM’S EVERY DAY LIFE POST!
What is your favorite type of chocolate? Do you like the chocolate with the flavors (like orange?). Tom and I are both not really fans of chocolate, but friends from overseas send us bars every once and a while and they are. so. good. They’re usually dark and all natural and just… DELICIOUS!
I’ve never been much of a drinker, either. But I do enjoy the occasional high quality beer (I feel I have to say that because when I lived in the States I hated beer!) with friends!
It’s funny, but I drink about 2-3 liters of water a day and sometimes it makes me feel insanely guilty because I think of all the people who can’t/don’t drink even half that much. So, thanks for bringing that up, it’s definitely something to be thankful for.
Sadly I must admit that, while I tend to teeter on the edge of snobbish in some areas of food and drink, when it comes to chocolate I am quite unsnobby. Actually, that’s not totally true, but I don’t have a taste for dark chocolate. I am, shamefully enough, a sugarholic as much as I am a chocoholic. In my defense I owe it all to an unfortunate Halloween overdose as a kid (let’s just say I turned into a human bottle of chocolate syrup), and I haven’t been able to eat dark chocolate ever since, except on rare occasions. Also, I’m not a fan of fruit IN my chocolate. I like fruit with chocolate, but once you start stuffing raisins and cranberries into my bar, I’m out! My most favorite chocolate is any kind that involves something crunchy and salty in the mix. A square of milk chocolate with smoked almonds and big ol’ crystals of sea salt is my idea of pure Heaven!
Great set! I am totally going to have to try French 75 – sounds amazing!!
I am so behind on your blog! My little vaca threw me way off. lol
So YAY for new friends…. and that water photo is making me way thirsty, and a little jealous of that bottle. I need to drink more water as well…I tend to get it all dirty with tea too often. I really noticed how spoiled I am with water when I traveled to Europe a couple years ago. In Spain you have to buy your water, they don’t provide tap water, and it is super pricy. I think I was dehydrated the entire time I was there. Here I am with clean, cold, filtered water right at my finger tips and I’m not even drinking it….. yeah. lol Anyway.
Time to go read your other posts! :-)
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