January 2008 Archives

One of my goals for this year was to organize a local photowalk. Well I'm off to a good start. The first photowalk has been scheduled for February 9th.

Several photographers in the DC Metro area will be meeting on February 9th at 2:00 PM for a photowalk of Bethesda Maryland. We will meet at the street level plaza of the Bethesda Metro station.

The route is about 2 miles long. The road along Woodmont offers back ally shooting (in a safe environment) and also some older buildings and store fronts. Wisconsin road is your typical restaurant row with newer modern store fronts that can give you chances for street shooting and neon/light trails in the evening.

Additional information can be found at the following links:
Upcoming
Photowalking.org

Here is a map of the route.


View Larger Map

In celebration of the Elvis New Year I propose the following resolutions and goals for the coming year. One thing I have learned in my 40+ years is that trying to resolve to NOT do something usually dooms me to failure. That is why I structure my goals to add something rather than taking something away. So for me, setting a goal to drink 64 oz. of water a day will help me feel full, and subsequently I will eat less. The end result, loose weight.

I have broken them down into the following major categories.

Both Michele and Emma had plans to be out most of the day and I was at home today trying to think of something to do. I thought of going to the National Zoo and some of my other normal stomping grounds to take pictures.

Then I remembered, "Hey I have this fancy new GPS toy, lets give it a try."

So I went to Harpers Ferry West Virgina. I have always wanted to go there to check it out for photographic opportunities and it is only an hour away.

A friend asked me, so what is up with the Elvis New Year?

Well the answer is two fold.

First, Elvis is the King. I say he deserves his own holiday. On January 8th of this year Elvis will turn 73—you know Elvis still lives don't you :-)

I'm really not that big of an Elvis nut. I have never been to Graceland and don't have any collectibles. I just have several good memories going out to celebrate his birthday with friends. That was back in the day when we looked for any reason to go out and hit the clubs. I even met my wife 20 years ago on that date while celebrating his birthday.

The second reason is that the 8th is a very convenient date for me. The end of the year is always very hectic. There is no time to do planning. When it comes to resolutions (and goals in general) I firmly believe that you need time to sit down and think, discuss, and plan. Michele and I tried to take some time away last week to spend a couple of hours to go over our goals. Well due to problems at home we never got the time we needed. We finally were able to carve out 15 minutes of time to sit and talk and I jokingly said, well you don't need more than 15 minutes to plan an entire year. How about "be good to myself and others!" There Done, easy peasy.

Honestly, If I can just do the above statement, my world and those around me would be much better. But I need to write things down. Since I'm an INTJ, I feel I make better progress towards my goals if I can write them down. It also helps me to pre-visualize my goals, which usually helps to guarantee success.

One added bonus of postponing my goal setting process is that I get to see everyone else's plans and resolutions while I build mine. I just listened to Martin's Podcast Episode #119 and it already gave me some great ideas for goals this year. So here it is the 2nd and I feel comfortable taking the time I need to get my thoughts inline before  the "King's" birthday.