Kodachrome

I'll be the first person to tell you that I am not exactly the world's best photographer. I'm probably not even the best photographer in the house -- I'm willing to bet that at least one of the cats could out-picture me in a dance-off, and they don't even have opposable thumbs.

I mean, occasionally I will catch a really nice shot of a daffodil or a cosmo or something, but to get the pictures of Cupcake that I usually post, I have to sort through lots of "outtakes." There are literally thousands of images on my hard drive, and most of them are not very good for much except blackmail later.

So I will not lie -- when I got that fancy new camera kit earlier in the week, I have to admit, it intimidated me. There are, like, lenses and stuff. Lens caps and new focus options and ... ok, listen, I had a hard time getting the strap on the camera. And I know that most "professionals," or at least the semi-competent dilettantes, use Photoshop, and I am hopeless in that regard.

What I am saying, I guess, is: I got a Nikon camera, and I love to take photographs. But please don't judge them yet, is all. Although even I will tell you, we're off to an interesting start:

Tiny Bubbles

When I think about childhood, I think about springtime -- it's probably that whole sprouting and flattering sunlight and bunnies thing (well, before kids learn that bunnies do other things besides hop around and leave plastic eggs all over the place). And of course when I think of springtime, I think about daffodils and ... bubbles.

I still love bubbles. Back when I worked at the insurance company, before I was a "team leader" and didn't need to be a role model for future generations of overworked, underpaid, overstressed, underappreciated cubicle drones everywhere, I used to keep a toy box on my desk. No, really -- it was a 4"x6" index card box with a Post-It note taped to the front that said "TOYS" in magic marker.

And in that box, I kept all sorts of wonderful things (in this way, I was not entirely unlike Batman). I had Tonka trucks, and Happy Meal prizes, and random knick-knacks I found around the office, and a bottle of bubbles. Always a bottle of bubbles. When things got really bad at work, when we got behind on paperwork or overwhelmed with ennui, I'd bust out those bubbles right in the middle of the day. Five minutes and some iridescent soap, and all was right in the world.

I'm feeling a little under the weather today -- not sick, but a touch unhappy, and I could use some sparkle therapy. So if the weather holds, and it doesn't start raining the second we get in the car, G and I are going to stop at a drugstore on our way to pick up the Cupcake from school, and we're going to find a park, and we're going to blow the shit out of some bubbles.

Cupcake Calendar: April

If you happen to be playing the home version of our game, April and June are in a tie for my favorite month of the 2009 Cupcake Calendar. I'll explain what I really like about June when we get to it, but let's discuss April first, shall we?

Okay, first of all, how can you not just adore that happy little grin as she holds that blue plastic egg in her chubby little fingers? I don't even remember what was in that egg, probably some candy or a little trinket, but she sure looks proud of herself for finding it, doesn't she? And the picture with my Nana Haldaman is such a cute one for both of them.

But of course it is the "sad panda-rabbit" face that does me in. Cupcake was only part of our family for two weeks and two days at that point, and having Easter dinner with everyone is very overwhelming even when you've been related to these people for 35 years, as I have. We hadn't even eaten anything yet, and you can tell she's wiped right out.

(You can also see my early Garanimalism in action, what with the headband and matching bib and all. It's an illness, really.)

Yesterday at school Cupcake was supposed to get her picture taken with the Easter Bunny -- one of her teachers put on the outfit and sat in the lobby. It went about as well as can be expected. She didn't scream or cry, but she would NOT sit on the Bunny's lap. Guess we'll see soon enough what happens this year.

Wordless Wednesday: Daffo-down-dilly

Early Anniversary Present

Well son of a bitch. Looks like G is trying to FORCE me to learn to use Photoshop after all. The rat fink.