A Bike and a Smile

I've been getting a lot of smiles on my bike ride to work lately. It's been odd, people see me coming and they smile at me. It took me a while to figure out what was going on. Why all the smiles? It turns out, they were smiling at me because I was smiling as I rode. 

You see, riding my Italian city bike makes me happy. It's not as cool-looking as this bike I found in Pavia early on in my time in Italy, with its stylish zebra basket liner, but my bike still makes me happy. With it's basket, fenders, chain cover, dropped bar and completely uncool kickstand it is a comfortable, functional bike. It is me.

I've had a lot of experience with bikes that were not me. You see, a long, long time ago I hated riding a bicycle. I taught myself to ride a bike at 8 years old. I never got that comfortable, like the other kids who had been riding since they were 5 and were jumping off curbs around the neighborhood. As a teen, I went to summer camp where one of the activities was cycling. They put everyone on 10-speeds, assuming we could ride them. I was nervous and scared on the 10-speed, all leaned over on a twitchy bike. I felt like I was going to crash, and eventually I did. So much for biking! 

And then... about a year after getting married, I mentioned I might like to try out mountain biking. The bikes looked more comfortable and it was the latest craze. My husband, an avid cyclist prior to our marriage, turned so fast into the parking lot of the bike shop it was almost illegal. Newly armed with biking gear I started to ride the trails with my husband and other friends from work. It was all guys, and I tried to become the cool biker chick. I tried to like mountain biking, I really did. But after a couple of years I decided that I just didn't get why people would want to ride on these skinny dirt trails that you can easily ride off of. I didn't get why people would want to ride on paths with obstacles like roots or rocks in the way intentionally. I made myself ride with the "must-have" clipless pedals for a year, to see if I would eventually like them. I hated them as much the day I took them off as the day I started with them. I forced myself to do all manner of things that didn't seem to fit for me, in order to "become" a mountain biker. I tried to fit in with the mountain biking crowd, my husband and the guys I worked with. For years, I tried. It never worked.

What I did discover though, is that I liked biking to work. I liked the routine of getting out there, twice a day. Clearing my mind by working my body. Both getting somewhere and getting some exercise. Riding an exercise bike, nowhere? Ugh. Riding a bicycle to get somewhere? Perfect! 

One of the things I loved in Italy and Europe is that bicycling is not only a "sport" but a way to get around. A bicycle is an acceptable form of transportation. You don't need snazzy gear and spandex to ride a bike. It opened my eyes to these bikes that were both comfortable and functional, with maybe a bit of style too.  I loved the look of the city bikes that were everywhere. I captured them with my camera but I think it was my heart speaking through the lens, reminding me this type of bicycling was for me. 

So, last summer I went out and found a city bike. It's an amazingly huge and heavy bike, no worries about the lightness of frame here. I sit upright on a comfy seat. The bike has fenders, a chain cover, front and back racks, lights that run on a wheel generator, a kick-stand, wheel lock and a bell. It has the requisite drop bar in the front for riding in a skirt (although I've only done it that one time). I added a basket to the front rack, for even more functionality. I think I'm going to add some flowers to the front of the basket, that would make me even happier.

I look strange riding here in the US, among the mountain bikes on the bike path. There are more and more "city bikes" around but they still aren't that common. My bike is giant and odd-looking. But I'm no longer trying to fit in, I'm just trying to fit me. Seeing as I'm smiling as I ride without even know it, I think I finally got it right. 

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What's going on around The Kat Eye View of the World...

• The current Exploring with a Camera theme is The Color Wheel: Part 1. Check out the post and join in the exploration.
• Are you ready to find your own unique vision through photography? Tomorrow is the last day to register for the fall series of the Find Your Eye e-course. Class starts Sunday, September 25! Visit here for more info.

A Postal Mystery

Here we have a row of one of my recent fascinations, newspaper boxes. Some empty and abandoned, others and in use. All in a neat row outside of our town's post office. I loved the light coming along the wall, pointing to the row of these colorful boxes.

An appropriate photo to go along with the news of today's postal mystery.  Let me set the stage...

The Liberate your Art postcard swap had just finished up, and I was contacted by my online friend Elizabeth, from Puerto Rico.

"Kat, I never received any postcards. Did you get mine?"

"I've sent out everything I received! I don't remember if I got yours or not. If you didn't get anything, I probably didn't receive your cards. I'm so sorry!"

An unsatisfying ending. Until...

Yesterday. The postcards she sent to me in July for the swap arrived in the mail yesterday. Over two months after she had sent them.

So I have 5 cheerful postcards that Elizabeth liberated into the world two months ago, now looking for a home! I would like to get some postcards back to Elizabeth too, so if you would like to send Elizabeth one of your postcards, I will send you one of hers. You don't have to have been a participant in the Liberate your Art postcard swap to do this. Email me kat [at] kateyestudio [dot] com with your interest and I will send you the details. The first five to respond are in!

One last participant. A postal mystery that will never be resolved. All I need is a few generous readers to help make Elizabeth's swap happen! Can you help?



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What's going on around The Kat Eye View of the World...

• The current Exploring with a Camera theme is The Color Wheel: Part 1. Check out the post and join in the exploration.
• Are you ready to find your own unique vision through photography? This is the last week to register for the fall series of the Find Your Eye e-course. Class starts Sunday, September 25! Visit here for more info.
• You can subscribe to the Kat Eye News to stay up-to-date on all the happenings around here.

Heart Message, Acknowledged

On Friday, I wrote a Message from your Heart. Turns out, that was a message from my heart. After two months of living in a whirlwind, the time to pause had come. I needed to listen to my heart this weekend, slow down and do what I love. Some photography, some painting, some time with friends and some organizing. (Maybe the organizing wasn't something I love to do, but my heart thanked me just the same.) I had some general, wide open ideas of what to do with my time, and a lot of flexibility within my days. My whole being seemed to give a big sigh of relief.

I have realized, once again, I can only go at warp speed for so long. It's time to focus back in on the basics, listen to my heart and not try to do everything under the sun. If I could do it over again, I wouldn't plan so much for right after our move home from Italy. The great news, though, is the whirlwind is past and I can set my pace going forward. That pace includes photography excursions, like yesterday's, which yielded this lovely photo from downtown Corvallis. My heart sings with all the yellow! The pace includes time to paint, and to hang out with family and friends. Time to write and create new classes.

This message really hit home as I was preparing my guest post for Ashley Sisk today, on The Care and Feeding of Inspiration. You have to listen to your heart, in order to find and keep inspiration. You can't expect it will always be there for you, if you are charging ahead, ignoring your heart.

Message from my heart, acknowledged.

Linking in to Creative Every Day and the Creative Exchange today.





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What's going on around The Kat Eye View of the World...

• The current Exploring with a Camera theme is Process of Elimination. Check out the post and explore with us.
• Do you want to deepen the connection between your heart and soul and your photography? Registration for the fall series of the Find Your Eye e-course is open! Visit here for more info.
• You can subscribe to the Kat Eye News to stay up-to-date on all the happenings.

Where in the World

Here is part two of yesterday's little "Where in the World" quiz. I'm not going to give you the answer yet, but this is the opposite place. After seeing this image do you revise your answer on which image is from Europe and which is from the US? Tomorrow I'll tell you which is which.

It's an interesting comparison, isn't it? I have enjoyed finding that my images are not as different as I would have thought between the two places. Sure, there are definitely differences in the details. That's the fun of photographing places, finding those little things that make each place unique. But at the core, my "eye" remains the same, and I'm loving the discovery.

Ti Amo

Ti amo means "I love you" in Italian. Where there is graffiti in Italy, you often find this phrase mixed in. What is it about love that makes people want to declare it to the world in this fashion? It's as if it somehow makes it more permanent, less subject to the whims of life and human nature, if it is written down. Not just written down on a piece of paper either, but on a permanent structure, something that will be around a while.

I have to admit that my personal suspicion is that many of the romances with declarations of love in graffiti don't last. Call me unromantic, but grand declarations of love in spray paint are not what makes a relationship. To me, love is trust and honesty and acceptance, not words on a wall. It is support day in and day out, not flowers or candy on a specific day that calls for it.

While I love to capture these little message of love I find left about, I also wonder about the stories behind them. What brought someone to this point, and what happens after the ink dries and fades away? I hope the couples have found something more lasting than ink on a wall. I truly do.

London Photowalk: The Report

Have you ever met an online friend in person? If you haven't, I encourage you to try it. You might be a little nervous about how it is going to work out, but you will likely discover that your online friendship and interests translate into real life meetings naturally. That's been my experience anyway, and I've now met quite a few of my online friends in person as we travel around Europe.

The London photowalk was a great way to meet a few photography friends at once. Justine, Laura and Christine joined Kirstin and I for a few hours of walking and talking last Sunday. I'm thinking we should call them phototalks, because we talked about photos more than we took photos. It was chilly so we popped into a cafe for some hot chocolate for a while, and later finished up with lunch.

A few hours with some fellow friends who love photography was heaven. We talked about cameras and classes and what we love to shoot. We talked about our families and kids and jobs and current events. They already started talking about where to go for future photowalks, and I'm sad I won't be there!

Below are a few of my favorite images from the photowalk. I'm happy to have these images, but I'm even happier that I now have a real world connection with more of these wonderful women photographers. Justine, Laura, Christine, Kirstin - thank you all for coming! Links to their photos can be found below.

We met at the Greenwich train station and started through some of the old brick houses. I wonder what's up in this attic?

The Greenwich Circus is beautiful, I love all of the shades of brown.

Along the way we found some nice color, and texture. Justine had fun peeking in to see what was behind this broken window.

Christine must have been attracted to the brick buildings too, stop by her blog post here to see her photos.

We stopped to talk equipment now and then, it was fun to see what everyone had. We had quite a variety among the five of us. Below Justine and Laura admire Kirstin's tiny Lumix.  Kirstin has another photo of us talking cameras on Flickr here (scroll down to the comments below her photo).

We climbed to the top of the hill in the park (not sure which one it was!) to the Royal Observatory. I enjoyed the mpressive views of the city and another wonderful English sky.

But the best part of the Royal Observatory was visiting the Meridian line. Greenwich Mean Time ring a bell for anyone? Thanks to Kirstin for capturing the moment for me.

One of the things I wanted to learn from Kirstin was flare - she's a master! Thankfully the sun decided to appear for a few brief moments for some instruction. I think I figured out my big problem - I need to learn to use the Live View mode on my camera because I need to shoot into the sun. Below is an image straight out of my camera using live view, I didn't even know how to focus in this mode at the moment I took it. I kind of like the tilty-out-of-focus-odd-composition though, as a memory if nothing else.

We ended up at the naval college, which is where many movies are filmed since it still looks like the 19th century with no stoplights, etc. Gulliver's Travels and The King's Speech are two recent films that had scenes shot here. My favorite part was this collonade. I loved how the light was streaming through, and the light/dark contrast of the columns. Laura has another image of this same location on her blog here, Justine's is here, and Kirstin took one of all of us shooting this area that is really fun (linked above).

We stopped for lunch after this and then went our separate ways, although we'll stay connected online. Another great day, bringing my online connections into the real world.

So, where shall I go photowalking next?