Everyday Photos by Jodi Anderson

that dark slide into Winter

Is it just me, or does this seem like the darkest slide from Autumn into Winter in years?  There is nary a sunny day, save for a few hours here and there.  And, um, I'm not even up for discussing the lack of COLD nor the lack of SNOW. 

I seem to close the shades and turn on the lights by 3:30 PM.  That reminds me of a poem I wrote several months ago.  You can read it HERE. 

Yeah, well, um ... that is pretty much the extent of things these short, dark days: feeling a bit groggy, working on projects, thinking about Solstice celebrations, and trying to catch up on communications with some of those that I love (but don't see/contact nearly enough). 

Love to you all. 

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

our tribal village

Just a few shots that go with "the other side" and "girl".  At least tentatively. 

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

gratitude and shop news

This is my entry for the gratitude photo challenge over at The Women's Colony.  I found it difficult to express what I am thankful for with just a few photos.  To really emcompass all that I appreciate and hold close, I'd have to post 2,179 thousand pictures.  I stopped at six.  They should represent family (human and otherwise) as well as food and shelter and time spent together. 

(If you're reading this before Monday morning [11/23], please come back for the direct link to The Women's Colony's list of challenge participants, links to their photos, and also the announcement of the print and card set winner.  You can leave a comment until 6:00 PM CST for a chance to win.) 

Just a friendly reminder that you can use the code WOMENSCOLONY11 at my shop through late Monday evening to receive a 10% discount at checkout. 

  © JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

we're waiting for you

The most favorite time of the year for me is the dark months of November, December, and January.  I love the symbiotic relationship that I have with darkness and light.  The frigid, subzero temperatures that blow through my bones baptize my body and and mind, yet without my husband here ... I fall into an emotional coma. 

(He is in Nicaragua for most of the next few months to build a wind farm that will power, among other things, a beautiful and eco-friendly resort.) 

December holds Winter Solstice, my birthday, our 20th anniversary, and the eve of a new year.  All seeming so meaningless now, despite attempts to focus on projects and family and love and friends.

Instead, I write bad poetry.

Still, the photo of Luna above, it is what my heart looks like inside of my body. 

Waiting. 

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

giveaway announcement and blah blah blah

I am participating in a print and holiday card giveaway over at The Women's Colony this week.  (All the details are RIGHT HERE.  Just leave a comment on that post to enter.)  There is also a discount code on the site, valid through November 23rd, that will take off 10% off of anything that you purchase at my shop.  I guess that it's sort of an early-bird sale. 

Saturday was so grey, like most all of the last two months.  The cats and dog napped all day long.  I felt groggy and nothing quenched my tired body and mind.  It brightened up a bit on Sunday, but it is still ENTIRELY TOO WARM for mid-Autumn.  Sheesh, weather, wake up and get cold already! 

My husband is in Nicaragua this week, laying the groundwork for a wind turbine farm, the building of which he will oversee.  He looks to be gone most of December and January.  Any other details depend upon the weather there, the delivery of parts, and how well the machine that is the wind industry operates during this project. 

We will miss him a lot, especially during solstice and my birthday (25 of december).  He is, howevever, returning home for a week, of which our 20th anniversary falls smack dab in the middle. 

X and I each have a lot of plans naturally, both together and apart, to keep us busy and forward-focused during this time.  That said, I will take full advantage of those extra quiet moments, which is when I work best on photography, writing, thinking, planning, and producing.  And reading.

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

feeding the birds with luna

It is no secret that I love the onset of Winter, the thinning of days and the slant of light (if there is any!) and the way that we hold onto the daylight a bit and then settle in for the long, dark evening. 

I don't like, though, how a month off of solstice, I can already only find enough light to take a photo when Luna and I go outside to feed the birds.  (We also grow lots of bird-food plants, like sunflowers and hollyhocks, which we leave out for them to strip clean.)  Actually, I really don't mind so much at all.  Darkened photos and grasping the daylight work for me. 

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

the shop.

This is my very official and very quiet announcement that my shop is now open.  (It is hosted by BigCartel; There is a link at the top of this page.)

If you know me on Facebook, please see my link there and use the friend/family discount code. 

If you don't know me on Facebook, you can wait until Monday, November 16th and then go to The Women's Colony.  Look for my post that day in "Room With A View".  I will provide a temporary discount code there that expires around midnight on November 23rd.

(this shot is from the photo series 'girl', and you can see most of the photos so far HERE.)

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

and on wednesday, she got down to business

I'm working today.  Really.  I am.  Just as soon as I post these photos that depict why I never get anything done.  Oh, and THIS and THIS. 

Also, there are two new "the other side" photos HERE.

Okay, now ... work.  Right.

(reflection as I look in one bedroom window and out another; watching the dog and cats watching something else; finally, a blue sky; the shed out back)

  © JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

flickr groups

I thought that I'd share some Flickr love today.  They have photo groups to cover just about everything imaginable.  Just lately, I realized how important they are to me in all sorts of ways, including inspiration and community. 

I have personally started about a dozen groups, but most are fairly quiet, like "Sauk County".  "Home Comforts" has the most members and is probably my favorite, other than "Wisconsin River".  My newest group is "The Women's Colony" and it is collectively owned by the contributors of said community. 

I recently joined "this table is a sign of a life well lived".  It is the inspiration behind these photos.  Truthfully, at this moment, if I were to take pictures of all my tables, I don't know that one could see the table through all that is piled on top of it.  Well-lived, indeed. 

Simple Tess's "Life Is Beautiful As Is" IS so very inspiring to me.  It also appeals to my just-say-no-to-Photoshop philosophy.   

While I do take a lot of cat photos, sometimes I join a photo group just for the name.  A good example would be Pussy Wagon.

In conclusion, if you belong to Flickr and haven't joined a group, why are you waiting?!

© JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

yard journal :: 06 november 09

(catnip, lavender; two bird feeders soon thereafter moved, house and hollyhocks in the background; hollyhocks; a raised bed with sage still green, trellis made with sticks from yard that has a plant protector on it for uknown reason; herb and perennial beds in foreground, several vegetable beds beyond the adirondacks; compost with a lung [before], compost with sifter [after])  

I don't trim my plants for several reasons, including that I believe that the foliage helps to protect a perennial while overwintering it, and I also love to see bits of garden in contrast to the deep snow of Winter. 

  © JODI ANDERSON. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.