I'll call these the "Before" pictures.  A ginormous, "historic" snowstorm is supposed to hit Chicago tomorrow night.  But then again, at least once a year, some enormous, disastrous storm is supposed to hit Chicago, and everyone starts panicking:  "I heard a foot...No, I heard a foot and half...No, it's three feet and an icestorm...Stock up on supplies, everybody!"  And after all the murmurings and gentle panicking, is it ever as bad as the weatherman makes it out to be?  Er, no.  So we shall see what the above scenes look like on Tuesday and Wednesday.  Historic snowstorm?  Or just snow?  BTW, baby brother, I am outside, in the cold, shivering, just for you.  I made it all of ten feet outside the door.   

I call this photo "The Evidence."  Now everybody, including my hairdresser, knows for sure.

I have promised my brother that I will actually go outside to take my picture tomorrow.  For now, I just want a little green...

It's laundry day and my bathroom is doubling for a clothesline.  I would like to point out that, in spite of my mother's doubts, I really did spell "cockamamie" correctly yesterday.  Just don't ask me to define it.

This is what I've been doing today.  It took me a little over a year--not of sustained effort, of course--to finally figure out how that cockamamie loom worked, but now--woo-hoo!  A scarf is in the works.  

Back again!  And here's my favorite thing right now (besides chocolate) -- my radiator.

Hmmm...it looked cleaner before I took the picture.

 A few of my favorite childhood books.

This is Herman.  Say hello, Herman.  (Hello, Herman.)  My brother made Herman for me one Christmas--at my request--and he has traveled everywhere I go ever since.

And now you know what conditioner I have in my bathroom.  

I love candlelight--it's so soothing and soft.  It's relaxing just to look at.  

All I can say is, I'm being exceptionally lazy, which means I need to pull out all the stops this weekend.

Um...almost forgot to take a picture, so here's what I came up with at the last minute.  Now I want to play Mexican Train.

"Snow! Snow!  Come out in the snow!  I want to know, do you like snow? Do you like it, yes or no?" I like it better when I'm on the inside looking out.  But it is pretty.  

These are the light fixtures in my apartment.  Which, in actuality, are hideous.  They're covered in about twenty layers of apartment-beige paint, and probably the paint is the only thing that's keeping them from falling apart.  But...viewed through the nifty little piece of holographic film left over from a science of light class, and--voila!  How pretty!  A classmate took an entire series of photos using this in all different types of light--I may have to give it a try.

Night-time shot #2

Yes, I skipped a day. And, yes, my mother called me to ask about it.  Thanks, Mom--I know you'll keep me on track.  So, here it is: my attempt at a night-time shot.  A rather sloppy attempt.  I'm going to come back to this another time and see what else I can do.  If you have any suggestions of pictures I ought to be taking here in Chicago, let me know, and I'll try to get them for you!

No time to take a picture today.  I have some classic literature to read.

I'm making progress!  I actually got outside today.  So here we have a picture of my church and a picture of a food vendor who was crossing the intersection right next to it.  I took his picture mostly out of amazement--I see a lot of these guys in warm weather, but mid-winter?  I also finally pulled out my wider-angle lens instead of my trusty 50mm.  Sigh.  I need to stick with this lens for a bit until I get the hang of it.  Bye-bye, beloved detail shots.  I will visit you soon.

I swore I was going to go outside today.  I hurried home while it was still light...I was all dolled up in my coat and hat and long underwear and gloves...I grabbed my camera...and I made it as far as the laundry room.  I have no idea what happened.  

Day three, and I still haven't braved the outdoors yet.  What can I say?  It's Chicago.  In January.  And I'm really a native Hawaiian trapped in the body of Midwestern farmgirl.  

I am not a food photographer.  I am also not going back out in the cold to take a photo after spending too much time waiting for a bus.  So here is a picture of my dinner.   My goal is to take a photo every day, but I'm allowing myself the freedom to take crappy ones, too:)

It is the first day of a shiny new year, and I'm feeling exceptionally virtuous.  I've already worked out, washed dishes, done laundry, mopped the floor, colored my hair, and started a blog.  This state of affairs is not going to last.  Except the hair coloring.  There's no way that's going to stop until I can flaunt lovely silver hair.  But while I'm still in self-help mode, I have three New Year's resolutions to put into effect.  First, to finally, finally, make it to the end of the year without giving up on my "read-through-the-Bible-in-one-year" reading plan.  Second, to work out on a regular basis.  Hmm...that leaves room for loopholes.  Once a month is a regular basis, correct?  Let's say 3-4 times a week.  And, last, the entire reason for inflicting myself on the cyberworld--to take one photo day.  To force myself to take pictures when I don't feel like it, and to prove to myself that quantity is what actually leads to quality.  If a picture is worth a thousand words, than I'm not sure what I'm about to say about my life and my world in the upcoming 365 days, but we'll see.