Lithuanian-born photographer Tomas Januska takes the art form to new heights — literally! — with his series titled Gravity. The aptly named photos capture people mid-jump and exude such a sense of joy and excitement. How fun would that be?
[Via sho & tell]
I must confess: I’ve sort of been lacking on the Pinterest front lately. Sad, I know, but what better time to get back in the habit than the most patriotic of holidays? We “ooohed” and “ahhhed” over red, white and blue pins last year, so I thought it only appropriate that we continue the tradition, starting with this beautiful barn…
Happy 238th birthday, America! The Friday links are coming up this afternoon! xoxo
So! I know I’m going to sound like a broken record, but…how did October sneak up on us so quickly? It’s like we blinked, and it was here. I’ve never been one to document the changing of the seasons, but for some reason this year, I found my eyes drawn to one particular tree every day. It’s always fun to walk around our neighborhood and look at the fall foliage, but that one tree? Well, it just stood out among the many trees that line our street (and yes, that’s my shadow in some of these photos, wheelchair wheel and all…).
It’s the tree I see every time I stop typing away and look up from my desk. So I did a little experiment this year: I took photos as the leaves began to change. I took the first photo about two weeks ago when I saw the first hints of orange leaves.
Several evenings since then, I’d go outside and snap a few photos. Those orange leaves quickly turned into deep reds with the occasional yellow. I can’t imagine what our neighbors thought, but it was exciting to get an up-close-and-personal look at nature marking the passage of time. It sort of felt like I was looking at nature under a microscope.
And last night, even the trees down the block were beginning to show their fall colors. Aren’t they beautiful, friends? Do the leaves change in your backyard? xoxo
One of the (many!) perks of living in the Midwest is driving through the country in the fall and seeing barns towering in the distance. With the changing landscape as its backdrop, these beautiful structures seem to come alive. Well, how cool would it be to convert a barn into a cozy sleeping nook?
Talk about rustic charm! These spaces look so warm and inviting — the kind of place I’d like to hole up in all day and just read magazines. Oh, yes, and drink apple cider. Lots and lots of apple cider. Who’s with me, friends? xoxo
[Via 1 Kind Design]
I’ve never fully understood those people whose very core being is affected by the seasons. You know the type. The man whose depression neatly mirrors the wintry blizzards and the dark cold nights. Or the woman who grows restless with the first buds or sprinkle of rain on the first day of spring. Or even the child who can barely sit still on the last day of school, the promise of warm, endless days of summer a mere three hours away. I remained ever the skeptic. That is, until a few years ago. My sister and I were out on our usual morning walk. For the last few days, I’d been feeling out of sorts. Was I coming down with a cold? Was I suffering from lady troubles? Did I eat a bad batch of my mother’s famous Hamburger Helper? But sadly, no hypothesis rang true. And then I saw it on that walk. Peeking out from the patch of grass, practically hugging the bark of a summer tree, lay a lonely little leaf. Like a diamond in the rough, it stood out proud and distinct in its tiny shady glen. Though its colors were not in full bloom, there was no mistaking its metamorphosis. A collage of deep reds, light oranges and faint yellows scooted the once lush green hue out of the frame.
That’s when it hit me: The colors of fall — a harbinger of things to come. And then, like magic, for the first time on that very walk, my sense of dread and doom following the end of summer transformed into anticipation. I anticipated the chilly fall afternoons and evenings, where people warm themselves with a tall glass of cider. I anticipated the frosty mornings as you walk to school or work, plowing through the frost-laden grass with a light jacked zipped up tightly to your chin. I anticipated squealing like a little girl at the prospect of carving a massive pumpkin, carefully placing every seed aside and then roasting them in the oven and lathering them with a touch of salt. But all the while, I couldn’t help but wonder: Does fall get overshadowed by the prospect of the holiday season a mere two months away and the nostalgia of those lazy hazy days of summer? Is fall the Jan Brady of the seasons? And is it not fall that is really the most wonderful time of the year?
The day was perfect for a trip to the apple orchard on that hot — and uncharacteristically humid — September afternoon. “Let’s go and get some apples and donuts for dessert,” suggested my mother. Leave it to her to have all the good ideas. As I stepped out of the car, I heard my shoes meet the gravel path, sending swirls of rocks into the afternoon, and then heard the faint sounds of a fiddle in the distance as people mingled about the pumpkin patch and apple fields or just enjoyed shooting the breeze on the farmhouse porch. I was in love. In love with fall and all its splendid gifts. My heart pumped even harder when we stepped into the shop. The smell of taffy apples, cider and donuts intoxicated my lungs. My eyes were mesmerized by the hardwood floor that squeaked its presence like an ancient house, and I meandered up and down the aisles like a child browsing Santa’s workshop. The bags of shiny apples. The pumpkin decorations. The fall candles and wreathes. It was almost like being wrapped in a giant bag of candy corn. As we pulled away, our apples and donuts in tow, the sun swept across the field, and the wind blew a cool fall breeze. I felt calm. No worries. I sat calm just like that small, tiny leaf that lay under the tree. Go forth and enjoy the season of colors and coolness. Carve that pumpkin with a scary face. Eat as many donut holes as your little tummy can hold. Maybe even rake a pile of leaves only to jump headfirst into their mattress-like cushiness. Now, all that’s left to complete my fall puzzle is a large bag of candy corn. Sugar jitters be damned!
P.S. More apple orchard fun! :)
[Photos via We Heart It]