Not trying to justify the splurge :p, but I've been a happy snapper for as long as I remember. My first digital camera was when I still a senior in college, somewhere in 2002. I remember I dropped that inside a bus in Washington DC when my dad wanted to hand me the camera, then he gave me money to get a new one :D. I also remember a camera we lost somewhere in Santa Monica Beach, we went to Target that night to get another one since we couldn't imagine going on a vacation without a camera.
Since I first got a digital camera, I don't think I have ever left house without it. Really, I never care how heavy it makes my bag. I'd rather lug it around than having to miss moments I wanted to capture dearly. I don't remember how many pocket cameras I've owned since my first encounter with one. I also don't remember the model names at all. I think I've gone pretty much all makers :D. Last camera I bought was a Lumix LX3 and the first rather serious camera was a canon G3. I, together with Oki even had a photo blog and we went photo hunting all the time and bought fun filters to create different effects. Ohh and we also own a Lomo that we still keep until now. Not sure if it's still working or not.
I'm not good at photography but I know I want to be good at it. When we bought a digital SLR for the office, a Canon 500D, I fell in love with it. There were times when I could take it home and played around with it but with the events that we're invited nowadays, it's rare that the camera is available in the office.
When we went to New York City in 2005, Oki spotted some street vendors selling Broadway poster frames and brought home quite a few of them. I think they were priced at $5 each. In our St. Louis home, they were neatly hang in our study room. Now, we don't have many space to hang wall decors so Oki hang them in the kids bathroom. Not a perfect place to hang these pieces, no matter how awesome they are. Sometimes, I feel they are kind of creepy.
So sometimes during the lebaran holiday when Oki wasn't home, I got an idea to change the picture into something more bathroom friendly. I bought some scrapbook paper at Heritage factory outlet in Pejaten Village, choose the ones that match with the bathroom theme, cut the paper and replaced the poster.
Last week on November 26 the Muslims celebrated Islamic New Year, a month in advance of the Gregorian calendar. Enough to give me a double take on my 2011 resolution and realize just how far behind I am :D.
I heard it's good to pray before the year closed down and the new one rolls up, well anytime is always a good time to pray, but the moment seemed to be perfect to turn a new chapter. Too bad I was having my period so I didn't do the five times and pray. Well, come to think of it, I rarely take my time to pray after sholat. It's almost always Assalamualaikum and up I went to fold my mukena. But I do pray everyday, everywhere, anytime of the day. Could be when I send my kids and husband to work, on the road, when I kiss my loved ones, when I take a shower, when I'm about to sleep and I could only hear my own breathing, anywhere. I found that most of my deepest, intense & sincerest prayer happened when I'm in the car. I like to look at the sky when I do that, it's like looking for the superpower up there. When I say pray, I don't always ask, mostly just saying thank you wholeheartedly for everything he has given me.
Anyway, I read one quote from Surah Ar-Rahman that hit me and sent me all shivering that day, "Maka nikmat Tuhan yang manakah yang kamu dustakan?" :((. Whoaa! I was immediately seeking for forgiveness after that. This quote shall be my guide in life from now on.
Happy Islamic New Year, may we build a firmer roots of Iman in our hearts :')
I heard it's good to pray before the year closed down and the new one rolls up, well anytime is always a good time to pray, but the moment seemed to be perfect to turn a new chapter. Too bad I was having my period so I didn't do the five times and pray. Well, come to think of it, I rarely take my time to pray after sholat. It's almost always Assalamualaikum and up I went to fold my mukena. But I do pray everyday, everywhere, anytime of the day. Could be when I send my kids and husband to work, on the road, when I kiss my loved ones, when I take a shower, when I'm about to sleep and I could only hear my own breathing, anywhere. I found that most of my deepest, intense & sincerest prayer happened when I'm in the car. I like to look at the sky when I do that, it's like looking for the superpower up there. When I say pray, I don't always ask, mostly just saying thank you wholeheartedly for everything he has given me.
Anyway, I read one quote from Surah Ar-Rahman that hit me and sent me all shivering that day, "Maka nikmat Tuhan yang manakah yang kamu dustakan?" :((. Whoaa! I was immediately seeking for forgiveness after that. This quote shall be my guide in life from now on.
Happy Islamic New Year, may we build a firmer roots of Iman in our hearts :')