from the Ponte Vecchio, Florence

It had been a jam-packed day in Florence. We had walked the city, been to the Museo Galileo, stood by the River Arno watching the rain fall, debating on whether or not to continue on. The clouds parted, and we started across the Ponte Vecchio, over to Boboli Gardens, where I was enchanted by cats, enamored with landscapes, and in love with every last architectural detail I could find there. We had arrived a little out of sorts, due to the rain, but left happy, smily, go lucky.

We ducked into a small courtyard, and had a bite to eat, and more than a sip to drink. It started to sprinkle, but our bellies were full, so we walked arm in arm back toward the hotel. As we neared the center of the Ponte Vecchio, we stopped, breathtaken by the lights shimmering on the river and the wet night. That’s when I knew I had to get this picture.

No tripod in hand (but really, when do I ever have one of those around), I sat my camera down on the edge of the bridge, straps wrapped tightly around my wrist, for fear of knocking it over the side. Snap once. Snap twice. Third time’s a charm!

Filed under:
365 days of stories, Florence, Honeymooning, Italy, My Art, Stream of Consciousness by Courtney

Alice’s Conundrum

Meandering through Heian’s gardens I stumbled upon this sign and stood, staring, awaiting the Cheshire cat to appear.

‘Cheshire Puss,’ she began, rather timidly, as she did not at all know
whether it would like the name: however, it only grinned a little wider.
‘Come, it’s pleased so far,’ thought Alice, and she went on. ‘Would you
tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?’

‘That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,’ said the Cat.

‘I don’t much care where–‘ said Alice.

‘Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,’ said the Cat.

‘–so long as I get SOMEWHERE,’ Alice added as an explanation.

‘Oh, you’re sure to do that,’ said the Cat, ‘if you only walk long
enough.’

Alas, no Cheshire cat, so I chose a path…

Filed under:
365 days of stories, Books, Japan, My Art by Courtney

Peace Lantern, Golden Gate Park

To give myself a good kick in the pants to start posting more often, I thought I’d share some of the stories behind my photographs. Starting today, I’ll be posting one story of each photograph. Some may be short, some may be long, some may be real, and others may be fictional. I’ll try to post daily, but that might not happen – so we’ll see how long it takes to get to 365 posts! Today’s story is of the short, real, factual, you-might-actually-learn-something variety. Look away if that’s scary!!

A couple of months ago, I spent the day in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco with the family. I’ve always wanted to visit the Japanese Tea Garden, so even though it was closing time, we decided to go in and enjoy what time we could there. I’m glad we did, because it was a calming, beautiful place to wander around in.

As I turned a corner, marveling at the sun-dappled light filtering down through the trees, I came upon this lantern. A peace lantern, it was given to the U.S. as a sign of friendship, celebrating the U.S. – Japanese Peace Treaty, from a group of Japanese school children. The description moved me, so I snapped a quick shot of it, documenting the sentiment so as not to forget.

I never have taken a picture I’ve intended. They’re always better or worse.
Diane Arbus

This quote from Arbus is one of my favorite quotes, and that’s how I felt about this picture (for the record, it came out “better”). The muted feeling of the greens with the jolt of warmth from the sunlight makes it one of my favorite shots from that day.

Filed under:
365 days of stories, My Art by Courtney

This site sooooo reminds me of my early voodoo series.

Devaney’s Hell

The inspiration for studies in Voodoo

Filed under:
My Art, Others Art by Courtney

No, not our U.S. Treasury – treasuries on Etsy.com.

First, my “Temple Door, Belur, India” photograph from the Architectural Details series was featured in Righteousnightowl’s Express Your Secret Self treasury, which was full of fun and funky pieces, including a purse with the Virgin of Guadalupe and a technicolor octopus sculpture that I love.

Then, Missgaylee put together an Esty Ozdessy with pieces that are right out of Oz. My “Yellow Brick Road” photograph from Postcards from Another Reality really stands out as it’s the only non-green-hued image in the bunch.

Filed under:
My Art, Shop by Courtney