What am I going to do with my life now that Harry's gone? (part I.)

I am slowly thawing the winter cold away and getting rid of the chills as well as the medication induced hot flashes.
Pardon me; I do not have hot flashes I just pretend to take imaginary trips to hot countries :)

No matter what weather however, I find myself wearing an extra layer of clothes in comparison to the rest of New York City walking around in flip-flops and tiny mini skirts. I am sure you all know the group of those, who wear furry boots in July and sandals in February... I do not like them! They make me feel colder than what normally am ...

Well, it's almost May and the warmer weather is bound to improve (in addition to my mood) my relationships with at least two people - Olie, who's been so patient with me while blasting the heat at the office wearing short sleeves, sweat trickling down her face and Geoff, who has been suffocated under two blankets nightly. Hey! Liberation day is coming guys! And just for the record of it - I want no whining about wanting to gust the air-conditioning!

I am so alive! I feel that all the plans I've had for the rest of my life I'd like to accomplish now- I don't just mean soon, I really mean RIGHT now!
I sat down the other day and listed all the childhood and adulthood dreams I once had and decided to actually pursue them....

About ten years ago while I was a starving student at a university and working for, as well as living with a lunatic family I decided to define my own financial success.
For most people it's:
1. A house with a pool
2. A BMW
3. A flat panel TV (?) ....

I decided to downgrade from such a dream and strive for reality.
Here is my list:
1. A pair of leather pants
2. Rollerblades
3. An almost professional camera so that I can take pictures (like the Japanese) ...

I AM PROUD TO ANNOUCE THAT I NOW HAVE ALL OF THEM!
(Took me 10 years? Wow ...Let it be my consolation, that some people never get the BMW, but I surely wore my leather pants to many hot events - mostly involving men.)

Last week I acquired the last item out of the three, a camera made by CANON called Rebel....

Mom bought my first camera at the age of 15 in St. Petersburg or as it was called 16 years ago - Leningrad, in Sovietskyj Soyuz (Russia).
I clicked away the entire trip stopping at every house or tree and proudly carried it around, dangling from my neck as if it was some priceless necklase. Sometimes I'd pretend to be "The Photographer" and make everyone pose a certain way or ask the folk to play along not seeing me ...
" Just act natural as if I wasn't here" ...
"Smile!"
"Relax"
"Show a little more meat!"
"Now that's just great!"
" Say queso, cheese! "

I've always been great at giving directions, the problem is the execution ... Out of a roll of 36 shots - 20 turned out to be pictures of "Leningrad by Night" - pitch dark - black, another 12 came out a little better - "Leningrad by the eye of a drunk" or let's just call them by today's terminology: "Leningrad after using Bausch and Lomb's MoistureLock". The rest of the pictures developed actually OK.

So, yeah I have absolutely no education in photography. I am an incapable, enthusiastic amateur, however standards are created by comparison ... If you take my mommy as an example I am still somewhat of an expert! At least as far as holding the camera still ...

Here is a situation ... we'll be on a trip and I'd ask her to take a pic ... will find a beautiful setting by let's say a fountain, I'll ask Geoff to stand and model for a second so that I can adjust the distance ... Mom will then take over the camera shyly:
"But you can not complain if it does not come out, ok?"

There! She just gave our luck away ...

"OK, ok ... I'll be glad if you just get our heads in the frame. .. a body would be nice, if you get the fountain, you'll be a star!"
"Don’t worry about the rest, we're tourist, concentrate on the heads!"

(Oh Geoff .. you actually like the fountain?)

She takes over the apparatus .. it's a whole damn process!
... covers her right eye with her right hand,
holds the camera with the left,
we put on an immediate cheese and stand still and wait for the big moment ... The moment, that will never disappear from our lives, because will have it printed on paper, put it in a beautiful picture frame and place it on the top of the fireplace (Oh yeah, that is someone else's dream ... I did not wish for a house, so no fireplace ... will keep it on the computer screen instead) ...
... and we wait ..
and wait ..
and wait ...
"Elviiee where do I press the button?"
She is looking through the viewer one eye covered and scared to move because the perfect picture will go away, trying to figure out with what exactly should she press the darn button, which ends up being the flash anyway ...

After so many years yearning for the "real" thing I am now a proud owner! Yesterday, for the first time I opened the box and made a decision of a lifetime - I will read the manual! A small book - a bit thick for a manual for my taste, but now that I spent my entire wage the least I can do is learn to operate it well....

I really have no idea how many schools it takes to be able to take a picture, but I am sure I have not taken the course in reading stupid manuals ... should have I bought a pre-manual for understanding them?!

So far no pictures and I love my mom - she's just a better cook than a photographer :)