Creative Juices: First Train Home by Imogen Heap

Happy Monday, friends! We're going a little funky for this month's Creative Juices. Despite the fact that I never understand any of the words to Imogen Heap's songs, I love the electronic, dance-y vibe. (It's kind of embarrassing to admit, but my college BFF and I used to play/sing Hide and Seek every, single morning [and afternoon and night if I'm being completely honest] of our senior year. We thought we sounded exactly like Ms. Imogen. Pretty sure we drove our other roommates nuts. :) ) This song isn't new, but I've been listening to it a lot lately and thought I'd share in case you missed out. And really, WHAT is she saying?? "Frisbee one by one, your final unlaminate, desperate for some kind of contact." That's probably it. ;)

July Goals + Creative Juices

The fourth of July always meant summer's halfway point when I was little and on summer break. I'm not sure that's really accurate, but in my mind we were on the downhill slide back to school once July 5 showed up. I remember it was always a little shocking to realize that we had to go to school the next month. I hope, hope, hope that summer's sticking around a little longer this year because a) I feel like we haven't had a lot of it with this weird weather and b) I think I blinked away June. Where did it go? That's the thing about being a wedding photographer. Your busy season is right, smack dab in the middle of the (best) season and you tend to get consumed with all things photography until the weather cools down and you wonder what just happened. :)

For the rest of July, I'm really going to attempt to shut down my computer earlier and soak up some of summer with Nathan. We finally got our outdoor furniture and eating outside more often is high on my list of things to do! For the rest of my July goals:

Professional

  1. Shoot four fabulous July weddings (two down already!) and stick to a three-week turnaround on each (whew, that two-week turnaround is HARD with double headers!).
  2. Start designing albums for my June couples.
  3. Submit at least two weddings for feature.
  4. Blog every weekday.

Personal

  1. Read two books (Wild, 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess).
  2. Eat outside at least two nights a week.
  3. Enjoy two more Indians games.
  4. RELAX at the lake house (i.e., no more than a couple hours of work a day).
  5. Work out four times a week.
  6. Finish planning our August vacation (whoo!).

And because there just aren't enough weekdays in a month to blog everything that I want to blog this time of year, I'm sharing my July Creative Juices in my goals post! If you've seen Pitch Perfect, you know this song: Cups, sung by Anna Kendrick (who knew she could sing??). I am currently obsessed. It's so fun and reminds me of that movie. If you haven't seen it yet, you must! So good!

Creative Juices: Who You Are by JJ Heller

I've been listening to lots and lots of JJ Heller lately. I identify with her style, so her songs are perfect for when I'm editing! I especially love the "Who You Are" video. It's so beautifully done, I love the message, and it inspires me to cook. (I need to watch this while I'm complaining about making dinner. ;) ) If you like this one, also check out "Until You Came Along" and "If You Fall." Happy Monday!

Creative Juices: The Daylight by Andrew Belle

Happy Monday! For me, Mondays are just like another other day and don't necessarily hold the stereotypical "blah" like they do for others. That's the beauty of working from home and doing something you really enjoy, I suppose! When I worked for the fraternity, despite the fact that I liked my job and the people I worked with, Monday mornings always just kind of stared me in the face. I had a one-hour commute just to get to work, and that long drive was daunting at 7 a.m. when I was half asleep. Having good music on those car rides was a lifesaver (that's when Nancy's radio still worked).

If I would have known about Andrew Belle when I drove back and forth from Cincinnati to Oxford, I'm sure my Mondays would have been a little better. This song is beautiful and I love when it surprises me on my iTunes shuffle. Enjoy! :)