SMASH!

I'm hooked on Smash:

Color!

One of my photos is in this group show - the blue one at the bottom right of this poster. Because I've been working so hard on my thesis I haven't been taking pictures or doing anything fun for weeks and weeks and weeks, so I'm really looking forward to seeing my photo up on the wall with all these other photo artists and schmoozing at the opening reception.

Lemonade-Detroit

Here's an interesting short film about the resiliency of Detroit.

"Lemonade: Detroit" - 17-minute short. from Erik Proulx on Vimeo.

My Week With Marilyn

My Week With Marilyn is one of the best movies I've seen in a long time. I really enjoyed it - start to finish. It's very well done and Michelle Williams is amazing. I was skeptical when I first heard she'd be playing Marilyn Monroe, and I wasn't convinced when I saw photos of her as Marilyn, but now I can't think of anyone more perfect for the role.

Two Years of Counting

4,379 visits have been made to this blog since 12/24/09.

It's been two years now since I added a hit counter and I'm pretty amazed at the results - especially considering how infrequently I put things up and how little promotion I do.

Last year at this time I'd had 2081 visits, this year I had 2298.

78% of people who click onto this blog come from the United States, but it has been visited by people from 79 countries, including Bulgaria, Jordan, Ireland, Russia, and Estonia!

I know that just because someone happens to click onto this blog for whatever reason doesn't mean that they actually read any of it, but still.... it boggles my mind.

I really like the idea of blogging, but I think this kind of blog - a personal blog - has pretty much been replaced by Facebook. In an amazingly short amount of time, blogging has begun to seem somewhat old-fashioned!

I say I don't have the time to blog, but I do find the time each day to visit Facebook. I scroll through all the recent status updates, maybe play a video clip or two, look at some photos, make a few comments, and play a few games of Scrabble. I wonder how much time that eats up?

If you're one of the few people who actually reads my posts, and especially if you've actually read this one: Best Wishes for a happy new year!

My Barbie

I haven't owned a Barbie in a very long time, but when this one came to me unexpectedly I knew she had to be mine.

We inherited a box of toys for our grandchildren to play with at our house, and among them was this Barbie. I immediately picked her up and declared her mine. The first thing I did was to brush her hair and put it into a braid, which turned out to be a lot more enjoyable than I would have guessed.

I had a collection of Barbies when I was a girl. My first Barbie was an early 1960s "bubble cut" Barbie. I had one of those shiny black Barbie cases with the little pink hangers and a great collection of outfits that are now collectible. I eventually acquired a Ken, a Midge, a Skipper, and all their outfits, too. Unfortunately, my mom gave my entire Barbie collection to my younger cousins without my permission when I was in my 20s.

Over the years I have occasionally bemoaned the loss of my Barbies, but I'd never thought of getting a new one until now. As soon as I had this Barbie in my hands I wanted to get her a new outfit. And some shoes. She definitely needs some shoes.

I Googled Barbie clothes and, wow! So much cool stuff. I saw vintage outfits, hand knit sweaters, beautiful gowns, and trendy casual wear. I'd really like to get my Barbie into some jeans, a nice top, and a decent pair of comfortable shoes. She'll need some new clothes because I'd like to start taking her with me and photographing her in interesting places.

For now she sits on a shelf in my office. I stop and admire her at least once a day.

The Descendants

The Descendants is a great movie. I give it four stars. Terrific script, fantastic setting, great acting, but do plan to bring a hankie if you go see it.