Day 30 - Finish Line

I had intended to end my challenge with a super duper shot! A real autumn whopper! But, my busy life has a tendency to get in the way of my plans. The work day of a teacher is unpredictable and sometimes you just get swamped.

The sun was almost below the horizon as I got home today. The lighting was terrible, and therefore I was happy just to get a shot that wasn't all washed out and blurry. So, this might not be what I intended, but at least it's alright.

Thirty days, don't they go by in a wink. It's been so much fun seeing what everyone (links low to right) has come up with each day, and I'll really miss that. Congratulations too all of you who made it! You are super awesome!

Finally, I'd like to end this challenge with saying that this is not the end, the end of this blog, that is. I'll try and drop a line or two, once or twice a week, and I hope to see you all here, dear readers and fellow "challengers" :).

Cheers!

/MrsHjort

Day 29 - Early Dusk

I shot this as I got home today. Sweden has reached the point when it's dawn as I go to work, and dusk as I go home. Daylight savings will end in a month... It feels like we're living in Mordor for 4 months each year.

Yes, the day's grow shorter now, and the angle of the sun becomes more and more acute. The lack of light causes the body to stop producing vitamin D3, and a lack of vitamin D3 can make you feel tired. Therefore, Mr and I try to think of what we eat during the winter.

Vitamin D3 can be found in a verity of healthy foods, like fish, egg yolks and various deary products - which isn't a problem for us, since we usually eat a lot of all those things.

For a long time Mr and I have been very strict with what we eat. Periodically we have not eaten anything sugary at all, nor any fast food or snacks. Stress, however has finally gotten the best of us, and nowadays we eat fast food far more often than I'd like (not to mention snacks, I have a thing for salty things). But at some point, I guess you just have to give in, and be "sloppy" for a while. I look forward to when things calm down and I can take the time to cook again.

/MrsHjort

Day 28 - Flavor

Autumn is slowly creeping into my green house. The last tomatoes have been harvested, and it's time to take care of the last herbs as well. This shot is of Thai basil. The leaves have a very aromatic scent, and I love going into the greenhouse just to smell them! The taste is a bit bitter sweet, but it adds a little something extra to whatever you use it for. We usually add it to soups or curries.

I love Thai food! In fact, if I could only eat food from one country for the rest of my life, I would choose Thailand, no competition! There's a lovely Thai restaurant here in town that we frequently go to, so often in fact, that we've gotten to know the staff. Last time we where there, I ordered something I don't usually eat, and our waiter went "Oooh, trying out new things today are we?" The friendly atmosphere is part of what I love about that place, not to mention the menu!

What's your favorite food?

/MrsHjort

Day 27 - True Colors

"Sedum spurium" is this plant's name. It has leaves all year around but during autumn some of the leaves turn red while others don't. I just love the way the crimson brightens up my flowerbeds.

There is color all around now - it's the time right before the trees start shedding their leaves for real, and everything is still hanging on. As I look out through my window I can see all possible shades of red, orange and green in a beautiful mix.

It's growing colder now, there has even been frost outside in the mornings, and I've already worn my winter jacket more than once. It won't be long now, before the trees are naked, the colors are gone and nature goes into its hibernation, awaiting the coming Spring. I hope winter is short this year.

/MrsHjort

Day 26 - Life

This little hare stopped by my garden today. Usually they're very shy - so first I snapped a few shots through my window - but surprisingly, he didn't react when I opened it a moment later. He just sat there, calmly, patiently eating the grass. I rarely see animals in our garden, but their tracks can often be seen in the snow during winter.

I got some sad news today. A friend of mine is very ill. She's one of the most wonderful persons I've ever met in my life, and I've come to care for her a lot. I hope, with all my heart, that she will get better.

Life is a fickle thing, things can turn around in a wink, for better or for worse. That's why it's important to treasure every moment, and not to miss any opportunities. Even if it is just opening the window, to snap a picture of a hare.

Cheers dear friends

/MrsHjort

Day 25 - Autumn Cat

Miiow, mieow! On my way to work today I heard meowing. As a cat owner one responds to the sound instinctively, like a mother to a child's cries. It's funny but it's true. It turned out that this little kitty cat (she's not mine) had been left out alone all night, and was eager for some attention, poor thing. She brushed up against me and looked disappointed when I could not take her with me and rescue her from the rain. I hope she got home alright.

One might wonder what's "autumny" about a cat in the rain, so, well, let me explain to you. So called "summer cats" are a bit of a problem here in Sweden. There are heartless (or ignorant) people who buy a kitten during the spring. The little kittie is cute and fun to play with for a while, but, when the Autumn comes, they grow bored with the almost full grown cat and abandon it where ever. They think that, since cats are natural hunters, the cat will be able to survive on its own, but they are sadly mistaken. Most summer cats don't survive the winter.

On a more positive note though, there are wonderful people too. I have a friend who once found a kitten in a waste bin (!), she still has her - Nova (the cat) now has the fortune to have a loving permanent home. I really admire people like that! They give me hope :)

/MrsHjort

Day 24 - Scarlet

Strangely, one can walk right by something every day and not realize it's beauty. I found this today, and it grew right outside my own doorstep. I've previously written it off as a hopeless case, since I couldn't find ways to shoot it without getting things I didn't want in my shot. But today, I saw this little branch that I've never noticed before, funny how things just hit you sometimes.

I hope you like it too :)

/MrsHjort

Day 23 - Golden Moments

I've been meaning to shoot these rose hips for a long time now, but the lighting hasn't been favorable until today. They grow in a place that is usually shaded at the time I when go to work (and they're shaded when I walk home too), but the light has drawn nearer and nearer each morning, as the days grow shorter. Today was the day, today they finally glowed as the early sun rays hit them.

Today has been filled with those little moments of happiness. I just love days like that. Somehow my Mondays are usually very stressful and I come home with a frown on my face, but Tuesdays, Tuesdays are very nice. Fridays are even better though, for obvious reasons ;). There's nothing like sitting back with a hot cuppa (or a nice glass of wine) on a Friday afternoon, plus, Fridays are "fika days" at work. If you've ever been in Sweden you'll know what I'm talking about haha.

What's your favorite day of the week?

/MrsHjort

Day 22 - Messages in the Wind

I've learned to value peace and quiet. I really enjoy my walks home from work with only my own thoughts as company, listening to the birds sing and the wind in the trees. It's so nice to breathe the fresh air and to get to enjoy all the pretty things around me. Autumn beauty can be found everywhere. One has to enjoy it while it lasts.

The winter walks are not as pleasant. I've never liked cold, especially the last 4 years, since I've become more sensitive to it, due to an injury. I can always predict bad weather, and especially during winter.

Today was the coldest day yet, it was the first Autumn storm. The temperature wasn't that low, but the strong winds and the humidity enhanced the effect. I even wore gloves toady. Brrrrrr! Winter's coming...

/MrsHjort

Day 21 - Autumn Rain

I was surprised by myself this morning. I looked out the window, saw some gorgeous water drops and could not help myself. I was like a little kid with a bag of candy. I ran up on the second floor to get my camera gear, jumped into my shoes and went outside to shoot the droplets, they were just so beautiful :). I love when that happens, when you just cannot resist and get into that artistic trance, shooting picture after picture with a smile on your face.

I chose this one for today since I want to use the same lens throughout my challenge - I shot with my macro lens today too, but I'll save those for a rainy day (haha). And, this was the most "autumny" of my shots today anyway. The greens are a little bit muted and you can see some brown hidden away in there as well.

Have a nice Sunday my friends :)

/MrsHjort

Day 20 - Prickly

I really liked how these caught the light today. Even ex-flowers can be beautiful. I like shooting prickly things, even though I don't do it very often, and I really love shooting nature, as you've probably noticed. Especially closeups and macros.

If you were to look through my photo albums, you might notice that I very seldom shoot people. And if I do, they're very often candid shots. I've never been very good at arranging portraits, and I like the natural look to a photo taken when somebody is unaware. Somehow, photos like that come alive to me, and they take me right back to the moment, rather than to the process of shooting the it, if you know what I mean.

Don't get me wrong though, I really admire those who can arrange beautiful portraits. It must be really hard to get all those little technical details just right and to capture the "essence", the "personality" and the "soul" of the person posing at the same time.

I guess it's a skill like any other, either you're a natural, and just "know" how to do it or you're like me, and need to practice, practice and practice. :)

So, dear readers, what do you prefer to shoot? And what is your Achilles' heel :)

/MrsHjort

Day 19 - Little Berries

There are may berries growing on the rowans this autumn, you might even say unusually many. It made me think of superstitions today, and how people try to predict the winter in different ways. Some say that if the birds eat all of the rowan's berries before new year it will be a mild winter, I've also heard that bullfinches are signs of harsh winters...

I can't say I believe any of those old sayings though, I have almost never seen a bullfinch, no matter the type of winter. As for the berries, I just enjoy looking at them, or shooting them with my camera. :)

/MrsHjort

Day 18 - Colorful Chaos

When the stress level is way, way high and you have so many things to keep track of that you feel totally confused. When your day has been an emotional roller coaster and you're so tired you're ready to drop. When life is crazy in general... Then it's nice to have a someone who'll dust you off and take care of you, and like usual, that somebody is Mr.

No words can describe how thankful I am for him, my second half (my better half). Today he cooked a two course dinner for me as a surprise. Nothing could be more welcome after a day's hard work, than to come home to the smell of tomato soup and roasted chicken :). Mr, you truly are the best!

/MrsHjort

Day 17 - Autumn Leaves

The trees are beginning to shift colors for real now. Most of them are still green, but one can't help but to notice the subtle changes - some red here, a little gold there. They were very pretty today as the sun was on its way down. It reminded me of a song by Eva Cassidy...

Today has been a good day. I've gotten a lot of work done and feel well prepared for tomorrow. It's nice to be this far into the challenge too. Though I know I'll miss it when it's over - it's so much fun to see what everybody shoots each day (for those who don't know what I'm talking about, check out the links down to the right, there's some awesome stuff there) and I so enjoy reading everybody's comments. Thank you so much!

/MrsHjort

Day 16 - Misty Hills

This morning I finally managed to get a shot of the morning mist that I was satisfied with. I wanted the sky just right, with the soft color blue that comes just before sunrise. I shot it just in time this morning, the sun was literary just seconds away.

I love how magical the world looks early in the misty autumn mornings. It takes me back to the innocence of my childhood - I was one of those dreamy kids with a lot of imagination, seeing fairies and monsters everywhere. Back then, I looked at those hills and thought that they were enormous, They were mountains to me, high and mighty with mist at the top. Little did I know haha. But I guess everything seems larger when you yourself are smaller, not to mention inexperienced ;).

/MrsHjort

Day 15 - Conclusions

Endings, Autumn is full of them...

The season on color is almost finished, but if one looks hard enough, one can still find little splashes of color among the withering flora. Even now, beauty can be found all around, though some little plants are just barely hanging on.

It's nice in a way though, that winter's coming. Winter means less work in the garden. We've already taken care of most of the things we need to do in the autumn - we've re-organized the strawberry plantations, pulled up the last weeds and moved the last bushes. The only thing left is to do is to maintain the lawn and harvest the last herbs. It's a nice satisfying feeling you get when you get things ready.

Speaking of completing things, Mr has just taken on the last big renovating project, so our home is almost ready now. That final wall has been knocked out, and that has made our living room not only larger, but a lot brighter. It will be great when it's done and we'll finally be able to have people over :). No more sawdust everywhere, no more planks laying around and no more dirty boot-prints in the hallway. It's been over a year since we've moved in, during that time we've changed a lot of stuff. It's so nice to finally have the finish line in sight. Just like now...

The End

/MrsHjort

Day 14 - Hunter or Hunted

I found this little rascal in our garden today. Spiders are not my favorite animals, like most women I think they're kind of creepy, especially those big ones with long legs, uuurgh! Fortunately I almost never see them inside our house - since our cats like to catch them and enrich their usual diet of cat food. Our furry friends are very handy that way, they catch anything creepy that comes inside our home.

What creeps me out the most though is not spiders, nor any creepy crawly thing. I have this thing for jelly fish. I don't know why - I've never had a bad run in with them or anything like that, but I simply cannot swim in the ocean without getting totally paranoid and uncomfortable. So much so, that I could probably count the times I've be into the ocean on my fingers. This summer I've discovered something cool though.

Mr talked me into snorkeling when we were in Thailand, and after asking about 5 different locals about jelly fish I finally caved and tried it out. Anyway, I discovered that as long as I was able to see all around me, through the snorkel's glass, I felt safe, and it was a wonderful experience. I guess it all boils down to control - as long as I know the spiders are outside, and the jellies aren't close, I'm fine.

What creeps you out?

/MrsHjort

Day 13 - Colorful Jumble

Today has been a very hectic day, I haven't had more than than a minute to rush outside and shoot something, anything! We're talking adrenaline all over the place. I've been running around all day fixing things and answering phone calls. Thus, today's shot might not be up to snuff in my book, but it certainly reflects my mood - like Rick suggested in a comment on yesterday's shot. I completely agree with him!

As I'm terribly tired, I'll cut my ramblings short today and collapse into bed. Goodnight dear readers, sleep tight :)

/MrsHjort

Day 12 - Lingering Guest

Autumn isn't all brown leafs and rain. There are still sunny days and sunny flowers. Actually there are quite a few of them, and even the one of my evergreen plants has begun blooming, and I didn't even know it could!

Sunflowers can often be seen during fall around here, which is why they are still "autumny" to me. I so enjoy the last flowers and I hope I will keep on finding flowers for my calendar photos - I would like them all to be authentic out door shots. If this mild weather keeps up, maybe I'll be able to (knock on wood).

The sun sets later and later in the evenings now. As I write this it has already gone down. The day's are colder too and every morning a mist lingers here in the valley where I live, spreading drops of diamonds on every blade of grass and every sunflower petal.

/MrsHjort

Day 11 - Little Bells

So, strangely enough brown got my attention again today. The light made those little wilted flowers glow so prettily against the grey behind it. The sun is quite low when I go home from work nowadays, it creates interesting shadows and brings out beautiful nuances of color.

This was one of those, "perfect photo moments". You know, a moment when you find something you really really like, and you don't care how stupid you look, shooting a wilted plant, in your own street, crouching down like like some maniac, blocking the sidewalk entirely. My neighbors must think I'm crazy :)

/MrsHjort

Day 10 - Brown

The leaves have began to fall, not all of them, but the oaks have started early. I don't particularly enjoy this part of Autumn. As some of you may know, I'm not a fan of brown, which is probably why I adjusted the hue in this photo towards the red spectra. Too many days of the year up here are dominated by various shades of brown, all of them just as boring... well, to me anyway. I like a little color in my photos.

Speaking of color. I sometimes get the question "what is your favorite color?" But I never have an answer to that. I like a lot of colors, but none more than the other. I'm drawn to color combinations instead. A color on its own is boring. Several together are a lot more interesting. However, there are just too many combinations to chose from for me to pick just one. So, this time, as so very often when I shoot brown things, I'm not satisfied with what I get and have to tweak a things bit to get the combinations right.

What's you favorite color? :)

/MrsHjort

Day 9 - Thorns

Today has been one of those days, you know of which I speak - the really bad ones that you really have to struggle through. So, prepare for one of my more philosophical ramblings ;)

This picture got me thinking of life; it's sort of like a thorny branch - it filled with beautiful things, things that make you smile and good days that make you happy. But, when you come to the thorns, it really stings! Sometimes there are more thorns than usual, but, then again, there will be times when the pretty red leafs take over too. Hopefully nature balances things out and you just have make the most of things.

My life has had it's fair shares of ups and downs, like any other, but I'm lucky to be able to say that I've been very happy, even though I've had to struggle sometimes. So, in days like this, I like to remind myself of just how good life really is, because, if you only focus on the thorns, they will take over.

So here goes; I am lucky to have a wonderful husband, as well as wonderful loving parents (and in-laws) who live close to me. I'm privileged to have a beautiful home to live in, an education and a job that I enjoy. I am fortunate to have the opportunity to peruse my interests and hobbies, and I get to hang out with a lot of cool people. And at last, but no way near the least; I am blessed with good health! Life is good :)

/MrsHjort

Day 8 - Change

Behold! The gloomy overcast autumn light is here, washing out colors and making shooting difficult. In days like this it's nice that nature itself livens things up a bit by changing into its fall costume.

I shot a lot of picture as I was walking to work today. It was raining pretty hard, and I tried to balance my umbrella in using my arms as I was shooting, it wasn't easy. The light was terrible too, and most of my shots ended up blurry as a result of longer shutter speeds. I hate shooting in the rain.

Luckily the weather was better after work and I found this little nugget on my way to visit a friend. It's perhaps not what I would had chosen if my other shots had worked out, but at least it reflects today's "autumny" mood.

/MrsHjort

Day 7 - Harvest Soup

Today we had tomato soup for breakfast again, yum! We make it from scratch using our home grown tomatoes and herbs, and It's very easy to make.

Run tomatoes in a food mixer and pour them into a saucepan until you get the amount you want, heat it on the stove. Fry some minced unions in butter for a short while, so that they stay crispy. Add the unions to the soup and put in some herbs, pepper, salt, tomato puree, bouillon and cream. Viola! Ready so serve.

The soup can be made real quick, but the post-ed of this photo was a lot more work. I had trouble getting the white balance right, since I shot this indoors and autumn is a bit problematic when it comes to light here up north. You either end up with too much yellow or too much cyan. I tried to get use of the daylight as good as I could, shooting near a window, I hope it turned out alright. Any pointers or tips are welcome. :)

/MrsHjort

Day 6 - Apple of My Autumn

Here are the apples I promised to show you. We currently only have one apple tree that brings us fruit - since we chopped the other one down and replaced it with two baby ones. But this one has loads of apples. So many in fact, that one of the branches now touches the ground.

Apples are so pretty in Autumn, and we've already made some yummy apple pie. Speaking of pie, maybe I'll try and grow pumpkins next year. I love pumpkin pie too, and it would be pretty cool to try.

I remember one of my friends was planting some flowers in a balcony flower box once. Her sister "helped" and put in a few pumpkin seeds for fun. Ironically the seeds sprouted very fast, and ended up taking over the whole arrangement. She got a lot of pumpkins. What's even more ironic though, is that all of them, despite their appearance, tasted really bad. I guess I'll have to do some research before I choose which seeds to buy haha.

/MrsHjort

Rose - August's Ruby

Roses... women love them. Symbolically they carry a lot of meanings.

It was long ago that I last got flowers from Mr. Don't get me wrong, I'm definitely not complaining - we have three little monster at home (a.k.a. cats) that make the process short with any flowers, especially those in vases. So, they often don't last very long (they get eaten) and they often involve a lot of extra chores (the vases get knocked over). The only kinds of plants that seems to be working around here are orchids, they must taste bad haha.

Anyway, it was long ago that Mr brought me flowers, and therefore, I tend to get nostalgic when I see them. The courting days are long behind us, we are now on our tenth year living together and our seventh as a married couple. My! How time flies... It has been some very happy years :). Let me tell you about how Mr and I ended up together.

We met through mutual friends, and went out a couple of times. The second time Mr was very quiet, and I thought that things were going really badly. "I'll never hear from this guy again", I though while he was driving me home. The stereo was on playing songs by his favorite band, and I awkwardly tried to make conversation, it was uncomfortable.

As we stopped outside my home, the silence grew even more intense, and finally I said something like "Well, um, anyway, thank you for tonight", and was just about to get out when he said something unintelligible. "Sorry?", said I, and again came the mumbling, "pardon?". Then came the most unexpected thing I've ever heard in my life. He said, "I'm in love with you".

I was dumbstruck! Totally and utterly dumbstruck, I couldn't get a word out of my mouth for what seemed like ages, and the only words that were floating around in my head were in English, which would be weird to say out loud, since we're both Swedes (but I'm half American, hence the "head lingo"). Growing more and more panicked, I figured I'd have to say something to the poor guy, who had just confessed his feelings to me, and was sitting next to me, so vulnerable and anxious for my answer. So, I blurted out "feeling's mutual".

Since then, Mr has been at my side, best friend and boyfriend combined. He truly is the best :)

/MrsHjort

Day 5 - Unexpected Beauty

This is a familiar sight in the autumn, but one more often thinks of this as a nuisance than beauty. In autumn this isn't so much of a source of irritation as it is in winter though, but then, I'd have to say that I think it's even more beautiful when the temperature is below zero degrees Celsius. Can you guess what it is? I did  a few of these "guess what" photos in my previous challenge, so it's only fair that they creep into this one too. :)

Today has been a good day. It's been a hard week, short though it was (I was home sick for two days). I really had to struggle - this dumb cold has made my normally alert mind sluggish and numb, which makes my work as a Math teacher that much harder. But today, I've at least felt almost like myself again, and it has certainly had its bright moments. It's always nice to have a Friday one can feel pleased with before the weekend. I hope your Friday has been good too.

/MrsHjort

Day 4 - Morning Sun

I love my morning walks. I only live about a kilometer from work, so I always walk there, and lately the morning sun has greeted me every day. I love the way the early sun rays make everything seem slightly dreamy. The colors come out more somehow, or maybe its just because of all the lovely contrasts... All shadows are long in the morning.

I found this little fun guy on my way today. He's perhaps not the most beautiful of fungi, but the light fascinated me and the dew made the grass glisten. It's nice to stop and admire the small things in life sometimes :)

/MrsHjort

Day 3 - Red Harvest

These are currently growing in my greenhouse. They are growing in abundance, and we have made a lot of tomato soup lately. I really enjoy them though, there's so much more flavor in tomatoes that you grow yourself than those you buy, plus, it's very cool to watch them grow too. I love it when hard work pays off.

We grow a lot of things, the greenhouse is also filled with herbs, and outside the vines are beginning to ripen, bull I'll save that shot for later. The apples are also on the way (later...) and we have squash that are larger than a newborn baby (we can't keep up with them, we have to give them away). Harvesting is certainly one of Autumn's charms.

I feel a bit better today, and I was back at work too. There was so much to do though! As a teacher, things sort of pile up on you if you are ever away. It's been a long day, but now I'm finally all caught up :). It's nice to feel that you're on top of things, I'm sort of a control freak that way haha, or well, at least when it comes to work. Now for some well needed R&R :)

Cheers, see you tomorrow

/MrsHjort

Day 2 - Dressing Warmly

Thank you all for your kind comments. I'm still feeling under the weather, but better than yesterday. I'm dressing warmly and drinking tea.

Autumn is in the air now, as we say here in Sweden. The sun is shining, but you can smell a certain aroma that gives the Autumn away. The air is cooler too, and a bit damp. The fact that Mr has finally put a blanket inside his duvet covers is also a clear indicator. Autumn has come...

I don't really have anything against Autumn, it's the cold of winter that I'm dreading, and the long dark nights (spare me!). Autumn is a prelude to that, but in itself, it's not that bad. At least not in sunny days like this, and it's very pretty when the leaves start to change color. I just have to let go of the fact that Winter's coming (Moaha, there! It took one day before I snuck that into here, I love Game of Thrones!) and enjoy those last days of warmth and color.

/MrsHjort

Day 1 - Hot Drink

I have never taken a sick day in my entire life, never! Therefore, it's quite ironic that today, the first day of my September 30-day challenge, is my first. I've been tossing and turning the whole night and feel like something the cat dragged in. Sniffle sniffle, let me score some sympathy points here ;).

I have decided on the theme for my 30-days, and this month is going to be all about Autumn. So, to start off, here's a shot of my favorite tea, to warm those cold fingers of mine. I love tea, but seldom drink it in the summer. Now, however, that Autumn is coming, my tea selection will face some serious pillaging.

What's your favorite tea?

/MrsHjort