All flowers in time bend towards the sun.

It's only the second time in my life I've gotten flowers on Valentine's Day from someone who didn't give birth to me. And these ones are much prettier than last time. Hooray!

...stormy weather...

It's storming outside right now. This picture is from this summer, because if I were to take a picture of what is outside right now, it would be a big, whiteish-gray blur, and nobody is particularly interested in seeing that.

This one, however, I think is kind of neat.

I had grand plans most of the weekend and this week to get up very early and take pictures of the sun rising over Lake Michigan. As luck would have it, it's been cloudy every morning for about a week. Somebody must be telling me to sleep in.

Oh-woah, domino.

My family was never into cards when I was a kid, and I blame this for the fact that I don't understand a single card game outside Go Fish. I'm not sure if it's a midwestern thing or a Wisconsin thing, but around here lots of people play Euchre (a game I can't wrap my head around no matter how many times I am taught) or Sheepshead (which is, I'm told, a more complicated version of the aforementioned game - oh the humanity!). Half a dozen people have attempted to teach me Euchre since starting college, each one proclaiming him or herself "the best teacher in the world." Unfortunately, even the best teacher in the world will struggle with a pupil who has no knowledge base of cards on which to build the rules of Euchre.

I wouldn't mind, but it makes me feel a little culturally stupid to be the only person I know who is completely unable to play a relatively simple card game.

That's why I'm thrilled to have friends who like to play dominoes instead, a game which requires no partner, no trump, and little or no skill. It also invites much trash-talk with no base in fact, which is the only part of Euchre I'm any good at - and let's face it, most of the time table talk is frowned upon in cards anyway. How can playing cards be a social activity when talking is likely to get you thrown in the stocks?

Choo-choo, Alfred! Fetch my dominoes!

I'm glad I hitched my apple wagon to your star.

It's been quiiiiite a while since I posted something, but I can explain. My semester started the day before I posted the previous post, and since then has gotten a little out of hand. Suffice to say I've felt a little more inspired to worry about writing papers on data organization schemes than take my camera outside (where, I might add, it is three whole degrees right now) and capture pretty things.

This picture was taken this fall before things got too dangerous for cameras outside, and now that I look at it, reminds me vaguely of the cover of Wilco's Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. I don't mind, as it is a fine, fine album. I slightly mind the fact that Yankee Hotel Foxtrot has a much better picture of the city forest condos on the lakefront. Alas!

Also - HARRY POTTER. That's all I have to say. Interpret as you will.