I was going through my picture folder from last year looking for the shots I’ll be including in the 2006 chapter of “City of Nouns: Quotes and Thoughts From the Nightside” when I came across this one of a tree in Howe’s Cave, NY. I remember it from last summer, but I swear I don’t remember that sunflare looking like a knife out of heaven. Nothing was done to the picture in photoshop, no exposure adjusting or shadow boosting, nothing. It’s as if the picture were film, not digital, and had begun to deteriorate. But, since that can’t possibly be true, I think I’ll just hum a few bars of the Twilight Zone song and go about my business, ever mindful of the sun and its potential to stab me. (Doo doo doo doo.)

Still in his pj’s on a snowy Valentine Wednesday, Bradley glances at the clock on the stove.

“It’s 11:33. Let’s see. I’d be packing up my language arts stuff and heading off to math right about now.”

“Perfect!” I say, “You should get your math book out! There’s no better day than a snowday to catch up on your studies.”

He whips his head around, locks eyes on mine, darts pierce my pupils. I actually flinch.

Bradley is an animated speaker. Always has been. Today he was telling us how one of his teachers handles “the problem child.”

“You always know exactly how angry my social studies teacher is,” Bradley said. “She has very clear body language.”
We know a thing or two about body language around here.

“There are four levels of anger management.”
(Note to self: Bradley desperately needs his fingernails trimmed.)

“First there’s the ‘flick.’”
As in “go away you bug.” But I’m just guessing.

“Then there’s the ‘head squish.’”
As I understand it, the teacher literally stands in front of the classroom and shakes her head and clinches her lips like Tom Hanks — “there’s no crying in baseball — THERE’S NO CRYING IN BASEBALL.”

“Then there’s the ‘rip ‘n’ stomp.’”
This one has sound effects. Ooh and I deliberately darkened up the Lego junk on the floor behind Bradley’s feet.

“And finally, if she’s really mad at you and nothing else has worked, you’ll get the ‘GUN.’”
A little too much History Channel you think?

“That’s it. Can I go now?”

O.k. just one more and then I’ll put the camera away, I promise.

Then Gregory came in and saw the Bradley pics, and demanded, “Take pictures of ME next!” Can you BELIEVE it? YAY for me!!! Sibling rivalry ain’t all that bad!

Coming soon: pictures of Gregory.

THE OLD LOOK

At first I really liked my old logo, but after about a month it started screaming, “Change me! Change me!” I didn’t like the swirly fancy zapfino font as part of the biz identity because I wanted to be able to edit the swirls in various programs — control freak, remember. Problem is, not all programs allow access to glyphs. (For the non-font fanatic, font families that have glyphs have alternate shape choices for some letters.)

Assuming I didn’t lose you yet with that glyph discussion, it drove me crazy that photoshop wouldn’t let me choose from the available glyphs. Admittedly, this might have been a fixable problem — I never investigated whether it was or not — I just lived with the basic letter shapes.

As I poked around the internet, I started seeing zapfino on lots and lots of things. And I started worrying that I’d hit a serious snag in the creativity department. This was about a month after I’d ordered my business cards. And then things got really busy. No time to redo the logo. I grew to hate it.

So, since it’s winter and we’ve gotten barely any photogenic snow, I decided it was time to rethink the logo.

THE NEW LOOK
No zapfino! Yay!

And while I was at it, I decided to fiddle around with my “jows circle thingie,” as Gregory calls it, to give a slight touch of creativity.

I wanted to emphasize the J, and have the option for a three tone look while maintaining a design that would also easily work as basic black and white.

Why did I want to emphasize the J? There’s a certain je ne sais quoi, that comes with nearly every J.

Click here to read my J story.

I put the key in the ignition, then turned to be assured that my children had properly buckled themselves in. Gregory: check. Bradley: absent.

“Where’s your brother?”

“I don’t know.”

I looked all around the parking lot and finally saw him standing by a minivan, an exchange of Legos in progress.

I proceeded to back up, then started forward to ease by my son. As I approached him, I locked the doors and began to speed up, driving past with a stare into his eyes.

“MOM! Wait!”

I made it to the end of the parking lot before I stopped.

Bradley jogged to the car and stood, head cocked to one side, waiting for me to unlock the door.

“Julie,” he moaned, exasperated, as he slid into the passenger seat.

“Julie?” I said.

“I’m going to stop calling you mom,” Bradley replied. “You don’t deserve the title.”

I looked to my left and grinned.

I love dramatic simplicity.


I also love Jen’s beautiful smile.


We were shooting specifically for pictures for Evan’s upcoming baptism. This one is my favorite I think.


Or maybe this one.


Or this one.


Ok, but not this one.


Evan spends a lot of time studying his dad’s face.


Jen and Jeff are such a cute couple!
I loved working with them!


And Evan is SO cute!


Such cute little tosies!


Evan was kind of attached to his pacifier, so I tried to think of a creative way to document that. I love this shot!


Ok, so this is the “truthful” shot. Me, Jen and Jeff working hard to “catch” Evan without the pacifier in his mouth! I love the look on Jen’s face!


I always wanted a dramatic black and white photo like this of me leaning over the crib adoring one of my boys. I’m so glad to be able to give one to Jen!


I love her “baby shoes” necklace.


She’s a beautiful mom!


Ok, I will not comment on the total hunk factor here.


This looks amazing printed big!


I believe Evan was telling his dad to send the photographer away already.


Children grow so fast. Look at his tiny hands. In no time they’ll be sitting at the kitchen table arm wrestling. (My son, Gregory is 6 and he beats me every time!)


It is not easy to get a family shot with a tiny baby and every’s looking at the camera all at the same time. I’m so lucky.


Did I mention how CUTE Evan is?!

Click here for Jen and Jeff’s slide show!

A rose for Lisabeth.

I’ve GOT to get to South Carolina to take pictures!

This cat sits still for sunshine.

I realized I had not included paw pictures in my previous cat parts post.

I edited the “Cat Parts” slide show to inlcude the new offerings.

Click here for the show.

I came around the corner and there was this, this PERSON pulling up the carpet and then vacuuming underneath it. And then he vacuumed the living room and the dining room and the kitchen and the …

gulp…

STAIRS!

He sort of looked like my 12-year-old son, but…

nah.

So I’m hiding out in my studio typing this and thinking maybe somebody out there reading might CALL THE POLICE! I don’t know who that vacuuming child could possibly be.