Photography/Hearts

So, I'm totally taken with my new DSLR. It opens up a whole new world of creativity that I was keeping bottled inside and it was slowly driving me insane. I am by no means a photographer and will probably never refer to myself as that. I own a camera, that's it. I don't use photoshop. I don't manipulate every photo before I post it. I think people who do that are fooling themselves into thinking they're awesome at photography, when really they are just adept at photo editing. Either way, photog or graphic designer, I'm more a pure-ist when it comes to my photos. I'll crop or maybe adjust the brightness, but even that is stretching it. I've shot over 8G of JPEG photos so far and I'm loving it. Definitely giving my WD Passport a workout. I'm learning more every day; I've stepped out of the land of AutoFocus and I'm not sure if I have the option that I'll ever go back! It's just fun. Fun, fun, fun. I've noticed I've been on a pretty even keel emotionally, too, since taking up the Canon. It's been a great investment, and I know it will pay off tremendously this summer. I am so excited about giving my other passport a workout, as well. I don't want to jinx it tho, so until I confirm my tour, I'm keeping things "close to the vest" so to speak. I'm sure once all the arrangements have been made and there's no going back, I won't be able to keep it to myself anymore. I'm crossing so many things off my bucket list this year, which is amazing. At some point, maybe I'll post about my progress. Regardless, I'm having the time of my life in doing so and plan for more of the same! This new job cramps my schedule a bit, but it leaves my weekends free for travel and there is a LOT of that planned. It's a big wide world out there and I plan to take advantage of this weather for as long as it holds! Besides... I can study for the GRE just as easily floating in a Canoe down a lazy river while someone else does all the work as I can in my bedroom, Right? I didn't realize how much I missed my freedom and being able to just get behind the wheel, ending up somewhere interesting and not at all the norm. I missed cruising with the windows down, the radio up and my puppy's head hanging out one window. One thing I've learned is that feeling like no one loves you isn't the end of the world, it's the beginning of opportunity. I never realized just how many people really love me, because they choose to, not because they are supposed to or because they feel they have to or "should." The worst thing in the world is "shoulding" love to death. Who cares what you should do! What do you want? Be real, be you, be loved. Forget the dumb shit, because that's all it really is. :)