Friends passing through...

Hannah is one of my many internet friends. In this day and age it's a pretty common thing and people don't think much of it, but she and I met somewhere around the age of 13, and a few years later met in person at Cornerstone Festival. Our hangs are always short but so very sweet! Before she headed off to her next tour stop we grabbed coffee at Barista Parlor and then visited a snazzy hat shop (where the boys she is on tour with bought some pretty rad hats) and then a candy store on 2nd. I remembered to grab my camera on my way out of the house and am so glad I did! Below are a few photos I snapped during our little adventure.

Tori

Tori and I met through a mutual friend on Facebook this past winter. We were both in the process of planning our moves to Tennessee. Last night we finally got the chance to get together in person! Tori exudes an excitement for life and has an infectious, warm laugh that makes her glow. We went to a beautiful recreational area to talk, and I ended up capturing some images of this lovely lady.

Evenings in the backyard...

I'm staying with my friends Lori & Chris this month, just outside of Nashville. I have been enjoying my time here with them so very much! They are some of the most fun, kind, and loving people I know. Their backyard has become a favorite hangout spot for me. I sometimes spend my mornings there eating breakfast, or nights playing my ukulele. 4th of July weekend we set up some lights in the tree and enjoyed an evening of beer and conversation. I grabbed my camera and snapped these next few photos.




















My first 2 weeks in Tennessee have been filled great people, delicious food and drink, and adventure. The following is a little something I wrote while I was laying in bed this morning, slowly waking up…

Eyes wide. Wind blowing. Feet bare. Tongue tasting. Drink poured. Hips swaying. Heart wide open. Music playing.

So much goodness. So much newness.
I'm navigating streets and exploring the hearts and minds of people.

I've never been so happy to be so terrified.

Small towns with cool old buildings

Yesterday I took some photos with some lovely young ladies. We Walked about a local, small town and found some cool old buildings to use as backdrops. It's supposedly spring now, but the wind was breathtakingly cold and we all had fairly frozen feet after an hour of being outside. I'm holding onto hope that soon the chill in the air will be gone and bits of green will be popping up everywhere.

Here are my favorite shots...

Nashville - January 2014

Nashville. I don't exactly know what it is that made me fall in love with this city. Ever since my first visit when I was 17 I've continued to come back. Each year I love it a little more, and each year I tell myself that someday I will live there.
I got to visit for about a week at the end of January. It was such a wonderful trip, and I am constantly reminded of how blessed I am to have such wonderful people in my life, and to be able to go on trips like this to visit them.

I suppose I'll start with sharing a little bit about the people in this city I love. Nashville would still be a great place without these lovelies inhabiting it, but it would definitely be lacking.


Sarah is the reason why I even came to Nashville in the first place. She's been like a big sister to me, and is by far one of my favorite people. When I was sixteen she took me out the country with a group of wonderful people and we spent a week in Guatemala. It was the beginning of a wonderful friendship, one that I treasure dearly.


I met Lori at Cornerstone Festival a few years ago, and lucky me, she lives in Nashville with her husband Chris so I get to see them generally once a year. We went out for brunch at Boscos - it's pretty fantastic and I definitely would recommend it! They had live jazz, and the woman singing had a voice as smooth as butter. So good!


I met Natalie when I was 18. I got to share one of the craziest/best experiences of my life with her - India.
This girl is wonderful at telling stories, and she never ceases to make me laugh.


Erin and Sarah lived together for a time, and that's how I met her. One of my favorite memories from the visit that we met was all of us girls, done up all pretty in our sundresses, preparing for a 4th of July party they were hosting. It came time to get the grill going, and we realized that the only charcoal we had was a bag that had been rained on. Not exactly the best thing for trying to get a fire started. In the end, we squirted pretty much an entire bottle of lighter fluid on the charcoal - and PRESTO! - we were able to grill out. I had never lit a grill, so I felt pretty badass for making it work with what we had, and all whilst wearing a dress. Ha!


Parker and Erin moved from NYC to Nashville this past year. I met Parker when I was 18 and on my way to India. He is a fantastic photographer (www.parkeryoung.net) and a big inspiration to me. This was the first time I'd met his wife. She has a style that I adore, and from what I hear/see she is a pretty stellar hair stylist. Despite just meeting her and spending only a short time with her, I could see that she just r a d i a t e s enthusiasm for life. I think vibrant is a perfect word to describe her.


James I met on my previous trip to Nashville through my friend Valarie. I got to enjoy some live music, ice skating, and an awful game of darts with him and some other cool cats during my visit. We also went down to the farmers market and did a bit of swing dancing. Such fun! It was also sunny with a high of 63 that day - pretty perfect.




I have a tradition of getting my picture taken with Mr. Dragon each time I visit. This is #4.




Due to my friends' work schedules, I had some me-time. On my first day I made chocolate chip cookies and added just a bit of white chocolate and some pecan pieces. Mmmmhmmmmm!


I love to walk and explore on my own. I spent an afternoon doing so in East Nashville on my second day. I enjoyed some coffee at Bongo Java, wrote some letters, popped into a few cute shops, and just enjoyed the fresh air, sunshine, and pretty little homes in the area.


























I can't wait to go back. <3

Soon...

So far this fall has been mostly sunny and warm, and I've loved every minute of it! However, I am greatly looking forward to the crisp bite in the air, wearing cozy clothes, and sitting in front of the wood stove to watch the flames dance. So for now, here are three photos I shot on film that remind of what's coming. <3

Adventures on a road less traveled.

Last night Bridge and I went in search of a backroad to adventure and take photos on. We saw a "Rustic Road" sign and decided to give it a try. It was a fairly narrow road, and parts of it ran along (what I think was) the Kickapoo river. It was a beautiful little valley! We found an old abandoned barn in a field that we stopped to take some photos at.

I shot some film, but I won't be sending all my film in to get developed until I get back from Chicago and New York City in August.






























And of course, last but not least, the two of us goons. :)