17/52

17/52 hands*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

hands*
This past Friday I was able to make it to one of Emily's tennis matches. I don't know a thing about tennis. I guess they didn't win the match. Better luck next time.

16/52

16/52 bench*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

bench*
I realized that I had not posted a photo last week. This was taken for the subject "bench". Although, this is not really a bench.... it's the back of the couch. Bailey's favorite spot.

15/52

15/52 Depth of Field*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

Depth of Field*

The depth of field (DOF) is the portion of a scene that appears acceptably sharp in the image.
This week... I felt like it was only a small DOF. The rest of the week was a blur. Easter came and went. I had work, while the kids had the week off.
It was a pretty stressful week. I had one person out for the week and had to train another. Then I hear through the grapevine that my boss feels like I'm basically slacking. I'm going to consider the source / boss. Ugh! Well I can say that I am extremely burnt out! So I'm sure that shows.
I can't win.
When I get home... I'm done.... this house reflects it too. I need about three weeks to myself. That will never happen.
I'm not sure how to get out of this.

14/52

14/52 Easter*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

Happy Easter*
I planted hyacinth bulbs when we moved to this house. They finally blossomed so I cut the stems of flowers to bring them in the house. They smell heavenly. It is a smell that I associate with Easter, that is why I chose this for the photo of the week.

13/52

13/52 jagged*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

jagged*

Trying new things... I've never cooked an artichoke. I am going to try it today. I'll let you know how it goes.
I can't believe the end of March is here. I'm at a loss for words right now. Not much to post.

12/52

12/52 backlight*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

backlight*
Spring is here on the calendar… but not quite here in Michigan. My sweet hubby helped bring spring to me with these tulips.
Most of my recent photos have been “processed” with an editing program to create a vintage feel or some other sort of processing. To me, it’s another way to be creative. This photo is straight out of the camera. Other than a slight crop, this is it. I wanted the evening sun to be as pure as it was when the photo was taken.

11/52

11/52 blue*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

blue*
Please leave your shoes at the door.

Taking off one’s shoes at the door can be a simple celebration of everyday life, as easy as kicking off your shoes at the front door to symbolize leaving behind the harried outer world, then lighting incense and being soothed by the subtle aroma of lavender wafting through the house.

What an uneventful week... same stuff. Work, school, tennis practice & dance for Emily, football workouts for David. Oh yeah, Emily will be playing tennis this year. She told me that her coaches told her that she was really good. I guess those lessons over the past few summers helped her. It's been a while but at least she has an idea. Mike and David have been running together at night. Mike has been doing great losing weight and eating healthy. David is conditioning for football and track.
Have a great week everyone!

10/52

10/52 work*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

work*

I like hugs and I like kisses,
But what I really love is help with the dishes!
~Author Unknown

Emily and I had a good Saturday. We spent it at Birch Run and Frankenmuth. We went into a few stores and got some pretty good deals. I wanted to go to the Fossil store. I found a purse that I wanted and got a great deal on it. It was 50% off the marked down price. So it was about a 68% savings off of the original price.
We headed to Zehnder's for a meal. Emily ordered off of the vegetarian menu. She got a huge plate of steamed vegetables. There was cauliflower, broccoli, carrots and a whole zucchini and whole yellow squash. It came with spinach ravioli. She liked it. She ate the entire zucchini and a little of everything else but brought a lot of it home. She at my cottage cheese an entire plate of bread, half of my plain mashed potatoes and some of their delicious noodles. She must have been starved.
We are going to have to do this more often.

9/52

9/52 flare*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

The challenge this week was lens flare. There wasn't much sun this week to get any great flare shots. I took a walk today in the park and the sun was trying to peek out from behind the clouds. I got what I could.
Let me tell you... walking in the park on a snowy day with my headphones, listening to music and camera in hand is very theraputic. It's been a long, rough week. That walk helped me clear my head. I know fresh air and exercise is good for one's well-being. I really need to do that more often.
Have a great week ahead. I can't believe it's March.

8/52

52/8 Diptych Collaboration*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

Diptych Collaboration*
From my "hometown" Detroit.
The first photo is something I see on a regular basis. This big Uniroyal Tire is on I-94.

"Not surprisingly, the Uniroyal® Giant Tire has been turning heads for more than 40 years as one of the nation's most recognizable roadside icons.

The Uniroyal® Giant Tire was originally created as a Ferris wheel attraction at the 1964/1965 New York World's Fair. The wheel held 96 fairgoers and was powered by a 100-horsepower motor. More than two million people rode the Giant Tire Ferris wheel during the fair, including Jacqueline Kennedy and her children, John Jr. and Caroline."

The second photo was taken in the Compuware Atrium. The family and I were there last Sunday for Detroit's Winter Blast.
This past week was Winter Break for the kids and I. I took the week off with them. We didn't do a lot. I needed a mental vacation and it was nice not to have to do anything. Although I wanted to do a lot of organization around the house, I had no motivation. Oh well.
The kids and I went to the Detroit Institute of Arts on Friday. I wanted to take them because they are both in Art class this trimester. They recognized a lot of pieces from their books. Afterward, we had dinner at the Cass Cafe, located on Wayne State's Campus. It was an interesting location. They specialize in "unique" foods and offer Vegetarian dishes. I've had take-out from them at work and have been wanting to take the kids there, especially Emily.
I'm not looking forward to getting back into routine tomorrow, but I guess we have to do it! lol

7/52

7/52 water*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

Lunch Break

Most days I don't take a lunch break. I don't have time or I am covering for someone else. I suffer! lol The day we got snow I decided to head out to one of my favorite spots in Livonia near my job. It's at Hines Park. On this particular day all of these ducks were waddling about and eating the snow. They might have been digging for something with their beaks. I enjoyed the simplicity of sitting in my car ( didn't bring my boots ) and shooting through my open window.

The End*

The End*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

From my flickr page....

"I am done! I was a bit late posting this for a couple of reasons. For one thing... I wanted something special for my last photo. Another reason, I was just plain busy. And finally, I couldn't come up with anything out of the ordinary. So I decide to just get it over with and do something. I was inspired by Ingrid Michaelson's cover art Be OK."
Her song is playing on my blog now.

So... you all know that I've been doing a 52 week project. Some of the photos were of me but did you know that I've been doing an exclusive Self Portrait Project? Not many people knew, especially my family. They'd think I was crazy. Of course, my flickr friends knew. I don't know why I did it. Some may say that it is narcissist. I guess you could say so. It was more so a challenge. It's hard taking pictures of yourself! There are so many people on flickr that make it look so easy. They were truly an inspiration.
If you are so inclined, you can veiw my set here.

6/52

6/52 close up*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

close up*
It's Super Bowl Sunday so I thought this would be fitting for the theme this week. These are mini helmets that my husband has collected. I won't be watching the game tonight. Not even for the commercials. I'll catch the good ones tomorrow on the news.
I am not much of a football fan unless it's "The Murph" is playing... that would be my son.

5/52

5/52 winter*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

winter*
It's too cold to go out and shoot this week. It's 25° out there. Besides... there is no snow... It's dull and drab out there. I am not up to going out to shoot "winter". So I decided to make my own "snow". Coffee filters and cupcake wrappers make pretty good snowflakes.
Have a great week ahead everyone!

Rest in Peace

In Memory of

Robert J. Murphy

October 14, 1931 ~ January 22, 2009

4/52

4/52 yellow*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

yellow*
Why does losing a pet have to be so heartwrenching?
Our yellow lab, Sidney went to doggy heaven tonight. She was fine yesterday but something happened this morning. Don't know why she got so bad like that so fast. She was 5.
She was my baby.
I was hers.
I will miss seeing her waiting for me in the window and greeting me at the door with her "baby" in her mouth to give to me. I'm going to miss those soft warm ears. I'm going to miss her snores at night. I'm going to miss my Sidney girl.

This is of David, giving her one last hug before she left us.

3/52

3/52 me*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

Ugh! Why was this so hard? I am not afraid of selfportraits but for some reason, I was so uninspired this week. I feel a lack of creativity! I’m really unhappy with this and I really don’t have time to fix it. OH WELL!! This is me!!! Screwing up, procrastinating, sucky photos… blah!

This week ended up turning out pretty good. Something happened that I didn’t think would happen and it turned out for the best. Everything is going to be ok. That was why I posted that rareity for me, a poem. I don’t write poems but that just spilled from my mind that day.
God answered my prayers when I was starting to think he forgot about us.

breathe*

breathe, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

I was being pulled under by a heavy weight tied to my ankle.
I struggled.
I needed to breathe.
I grew tired.
I could only see darkness.
I started to fill with water.
I was going down fast.
I was being attacked by the piranhas.
I was bleeding.
I know they bit the rope because I felt lighter.
I could feel myself rush back towards the top.
I could see something.
I took a breath and could feel myself fill with air.
I got sucked back under.
I started to panic.
I wasn't coming back up.
I struggled once again.
I could see the light.
I couldn't reach the surface.
I broke free.
I gasped for air.
I am breathing.
I am treading water.
I am free.
I am breathing.
I am waiting for the big rescue boat.
I am going to stay above water.
I am not going back under.
I have a new breath of life in me.

~Jennifer Murphy 1/12/2010

2/52

2/52 Happy*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

Happy*
Got my toothpaste, got my brush,
I won't hurry, I won't rush.
Making sure my teeth are clean,
Front and back and in between.
When I brush for quite a while,
I will have a happy smile!

*sung to Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star
Now go back and read it again.



I forgot to post this to my blog Sunday night. I took the photo, that's what counts! lol
Part of my "resolution" for this year is to get the us to the dentist. My last dentist was a jerk. He was mean to patients and staff and I've grown to hate going or taking the kids. Well.... it's not doing us any good. I vowed to assign us to a different dentist when I was picking out dental insurance in October. So now I just need to get us appointments to have our teeth cleaned. I'm quite embarrassed that it has gone too long.
I have to go today to have a crown put on one of my teeth today. It will be the last appointment for me at this "new" dentist. I really liked this office but unfortunately they don't accept my new insurance. That's where this other one comes in.
Wow! I bet you didn't expect to read about dentists did you?

1/52 year 2

1/52 new toy*, originally uploaded by Jen likes to snap pics*.

My new toy*
I'm starting a 52 week project again. For this week our theme is NEW. This is my new phone. I know, no big deal. But I've been cell phone free for 6 months prior to this. I had 2 flat tires in that time also. Talk about stupid. No phone to call for help. So I'm excited about my new BlackBerry. My phone before this, that broke, was the freebie that they give away. It was your basic run of the mill phone. This here does everything! I can even go to flickr while I'm on the phone. Hopefully it won't be to roadside assistance.