Hawkeye

No, not the guy from M*A*S*H*, and yes, I am old enough to remember that show.

I apologize for the silence. This past month has been a pretty challenging time. I am preparing for my oral qualifying exam (which is this Tuesday), which means lots of reading, writing a proposal, preparing a presentation and dealing with nervous jitters. Basically, most (if not all) people pass this exam, but it is a rather stressful experience.

On top of dealing with grad school, my laptop decided to go into death throws the past few days, making it totally unreliable. It also humiliated me in front of my boss, which made me want to drop kick it into the ocean. I was very worried that I was going to spend a better portion of my weekend shopping for a laptop, instead of de-stressing. Tony surprised me yesterday afternoon by bringing home a new Macbook Pro (well, I guess it was slightly used, and on CLEARANCE at the base...it's a model that they JUST replaced). I was anxious about it at first, because I'm not totally used to the operating system, but I think that I'm starting to enjoy it.

I woke up at 6:00 AM this morning (Saturday), and it seemed to play Laguna Beach on Hulu (a website that lets you watch full TV episodes) just fine. Don't judge me. Laguna Beach, the Hills, yoga and diet coke are responsible for my sanity this month.

There are other awful things that have transpired this past month, but I'll spare you the gory details.

Ok. On to the meaning of the title.

Last time, I posted about a hummingbird that lives outside of our balcony. This post is about the hummingbird's arch nemesis...dun,dun,dun...the HAWK.

Tony was talking to his mom on the balcony last night (he sent her flowers at school for mother's day---how sweet!) while I was getting acquainted with my new computer, and all the sudden I think he must be having a seizure. Arms flailing. Odd grunting noises. "Pointing" using his eyes.

As I walked out side, I saw him.

"What you lookin' at?" (for Amber)

He was so beautiful in the evening light.

I thought he was gorgeous, until I realized he was looking for a snack. The baby bunnies by my apartment were done for. He began his hunt.

I decided not to stick around to see what he was going to yank out of the bushes. I want to remember him as regal and powerful, not as a bunny killer.

I couldn't post a poem for this guy, simply because there was no poem any better than the hummingbird poem I found.

Enjoy your weekends, and the spring weather. If you happen to be reading this before Tuesday, May 11, say a little prayer for me and my exam :).

Day 61-64: A mish-mash.

Day 61:

I love plants! Especially those that feed me. I started a planter with tomato and basil on Monday. Tony and I started a out-of-the-pot garden back in San Antonio, but most of the plants died a ghastly death due to the outrageous heat and too much sun. Sigh. Hopefully these little guys will fare better.

Day 62:

I need to relax...on so many levels. One of my favorite things in the whole world is tea. I haven't really tried a tea I didn't like, and I love trying new flavors. I'm also a big fan of loose tea. A few leaves never hurt anyone...at least I hope not! Tuesday night I tried to wind down with a mug of peppermint tea.

And yes, I did crop the picture so you can't see me looking like a fool in the reflection of the teapot...

Day 63:

I was exhausted, and forgot to take a picture. Sorry. I did, however, get suckered into a Face-deal phenomenon called "album cover." Here's what resulted below. The instructions of how I got my band name, album name, and cover photo are listed below. Face-deal and I have a love-hate relationship.

1 - Go to "wikipedia." Hit “random”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

2 - Go to "Random quotations"
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

3 - Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 - Use photoshop or similar to put it all together.

5 - Post it to FB with this text in the "caption" and TAG the friends you want to join in.

Day 64:

I was able to take a picture outside! It was still light out when I remember to take a photo--holy cow. This is a picture of trees outside of our apartment in the setting sun.

Day 54-56

Unfortunately, I feel a bit drained today. It's midweek, I'm exhausted, and just a *little* down and out.

I have big decisions to make, but I have to wait until I'm all nice and pulled together to make them. No big decisions should ever be made while riding an emotional roller coaster without a dang harness. 

Geez, enough of this vagueness. Onward to the mediocre photos:

Day 54:

I came home with a 1.5 day migraine on Monday to find Tony dramatically smashing our keyboard. I'm still not a 100% sure what happened, but believe you me--that keyboard got whatever was coming to it and then some! There was a roar, a snap and a shower of keys by our apartment's dumpster. Awesome. I had to go to the Wals-Marts to buy us another one...

Day 55:

The empty ash tray. Yes, I know it looks disgusting, but I like keeping it around (um, outside). Every time I see it I'm reminded of how long Tony HASN'T smoked. As of today, Tony hasn't smoked a cigarette in 52 days. I'm so proud of him.

Day 56:

What can cure a breakdown? Shopping therapy, among other things. Tony and I went to Costco this afternoon after I left work about 2 hours early. The funny (actually, very sad) part is that I still put in a full 8 hour day. I bought a vat of laundry detergent and a rotisserie chicken for dinner :). See the ethereal blurriness around the detergent? That, my friends, is shoppin' therapy.

One more for good measure. I still love my ring. I will always love my ring. It is without a doubt my most precious and valuable personal possession (i.e. I would straight up die if anything happened to it). I even wear it under my lab gloves, even though it has a tendency to squish my hand a little bit. I feel a bit vulnerable without it. The ring has molded to me--it signifies my transition into the role of wife, and it represents a decision I will never question. 

Plus, it's shiny :). 

The Resolution

It's the New Year! And yes, as cliche as it is, I'm making a resolution. The past 6 months have been very challenging, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. My loving husband has done his best to keep things cheerful in the house, and he is constantly surprising me with new fun things to do, whether it is driving out into the mountains, or just taking a walk around the neighborhood.

He also believes that I never really take time for myself, and that I never really buy anything that I shamelessly *want*. This, for the most part, is true. Mostly my money is spent on bills, groceries, and gifts for others. I'm the "saver" of the family. He's very attentive to any hobby I strike an interest in (i.e. I express an interest in cooking, and I have almost every known kitchen gadget and utensil known to man), and he happened to notice that I enjoy photography.

This lead to my birthday/Christmas present this year, a very nice Sony alpha350 DSLR camera. It's beautiful, and complicated. I'm getting the hang of it though, thanks to the internet and trial-and-error experiences. In an effort to get a lot of use out of this new camera, and to have more fun during my time here, I am making a resolution.

Every day for the next year, I want to take a photo. There are a few clauses to this resolution. I will more than likely not post every day on this blog. I will, however, update as often with I can will all of the photos I've taken up to that date. I cannot have this be a burden in any way, otherwise I'm much less likely to follow through. The photos are not all going to be magical. If I'm tired, they may be of a wall, my foot, or our messy apartment. Some with be straight out of the camera (SOC), and others will be edited. As is described by the name of the blog, photography provides us a mirror with a memory, and the collection of these photos will document a year out of my life as a wife, student and scientist.

Here is a starter photo, even though I did not take it today and it's not technically the New Year yet.

This is a photo of a cactus in Borrego Springs, CA, out in the desert area.