In Bloom

Spring is here! Of course, I live in Southern California so that doesn't really mean much. But I love the idea of "starting fresh" and I did experience my first real winter this year (snow isn't just in the mountains, apparently). I stopped by Trader Joe's the other day and saw there were ranunculus in season, and I couldn't help myself. I can't resist photographing flowers against dark backgrounds, I just like the moody contrast.

These flowers were just a small little pick me up, and a small reminder that spring is in the air. I've been grappling with a lot of things in my life lately, and I'm using this new season as a time to reflect and focus on myself. 

So - hello, spring. Let's see what this new season has in store for me. 

Museum Days

Oh hello blog, it's been a long while. A lot has happened since my last post and trip to Seattle. You would think I'd have a post lined up about my travels since then: Chicago, Wisconsin (long story), and Washington, DC...but instead I have a post about a place I can't seem to get enough of: Downtown Los Angeles. This is my small step back into blogging and photography. I had a few rolls of film I finally got developed, with a few photos from a day I went to the Broad and explored the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The photos from the Natural History Museum were taken on my iPhone because I tried to shoot medium format at the museum, but I'm apparently terrible at manual focus. 

I've passed by the Walt Disney Concert Hall numerous times, but I never really took the time to explore it. There's a small garden a top the stairs, and there's some great views of Grand Ave. I'm itching to see the LA Philharmonic perform there, I eagerly check my emails every Tuesday for student rush tickets.


I visited the Natural History Museum in New York last winter, and the Natural History Museum in DC recently. I realized I hadn't visited the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles since I was in middle school, so I decided to take a visit. I really enjoyed the "Becoming Los Angeles" Exhibit and getting to learn a little bit more about the history, geography, and cultural phenomenons that helped shape the city. The Nature Lab was a cool little room too, it's geared more towards kids, but it has interesting facts about the microclimates surrounding L.A, and a neat little nature garden.

I have a few ideas lined up to help me get back into photography and blogging, but let's see if I actually get around to executing them. I've started using a planner again, and I've gotten into the habit of journaling regularly, so that's taken place of blogging. But I'm itching to be more creative, so let's take another go at this.

Catch A Falling Star and Put it in Your Pocket

Lately, my bones have been aching for adventure. Maybe it's because I'm stuck at work indoors most of the week. Earlier this week I looked up the weather for Friday night and was excited to see clear skies in the forecast. So after I got off work Friday night around 10pm, I drove up to Malibu's El Matador State Beach just to star gaze and catch a glimpse of the milky way.

Of course I had to take photos of some star trails! This was only about 30 minutes of trails because the tide starting getting too high for us to stay. Funny how much my definition of a fun Friday night has changed since college.

Seattle Love

One morning, a few weeks ago, my sister and I were feeling down about recent events in our lives. My sister started talking about taking a trip, and I remembered seeing an email from Alaska Airlines for a 24 hour airline sale that morning...and before you know it we booked our tickets for a weekend trip to Seattle. Later that night I told my brother, and he joined too - sibling trip to Seattle! I was in Portland, Oregon a few months ago in May and I loved it, so I was ecstatic to have the chance to visit the Pacific Northwest again. 

Our first day was spent doing typical tourist things. We took a ferry to Bainbridge Island to grab a late brunch. We took a walk around the famous Pike Place Market, visited the Central Library, and went to the top of the Space Needle to see the sunset. While waiting for our time to get up to the Space Needle we stumbled upon a free concert (with free snacks!). Not bad, Seattle.