The Little Things No. 23

The little things really do add up, which is why every Friday I end the week on a positive note with appreciation for the little things in my life that make up a greater sense of joy.  I hope you join me today in appreciating the good, no matter how small. I will also be sharing links from time to time about things that are inspirational, funny, beautiful, or important.

Because this is about appreciation rather than perfection, I’m not only including my professional quality photos, but some cellphone snaps as well. You can expect to see a more candid look into my life every week with my The Little Things blog posts every Friday.

Dear Friends,

Although a little rainy and stormy, this week has been a good week. Connecticut, for the first time since March, recorded zero deaths from Covid-19 and most people in our local communities are taking masks and social distancing very seriously. I’m very worried for our country right now, especially because our leadership (or rather lack thereof) is causing cases to skyrocket across the country and our current administration is also emboldening racism. It’s a lot to take in so I have been trying to get back into my daily meditation practice and spend time outdoors. How are things currently where you are? I hope my letter today finds you well.

I’m missing my friends from out of state, but I also made a new friend last night. I love getting to know local artists and creatives on Instagram and it is really incredible when you get to meet them in person. I made a new friend! In the time of Corona virus, this can be tough to do, especially as an adult. We went to the beach with Matthew to do come drone photography and it was a lot of fun.

Here are the little things that brightened my week:

Hamilton on Disney+. I’ve only watched the first half so far, but I do love it. At first, I wasn’t sure if it would live up to the big hype, but wow-oh-wow! I don’t want to say more in case I give anything away. I wanted to but tickets when it first came out, but it was too expensive, but then it won a bunch of awards and I knew the chances of me seeing it would be very nonexistent. I’m so happy that this is now recorded live for the world to see.

Fireworks over the lake where I grew up. (This cell phone snap isn’t very good, but I was enjoying the show, not photographing it.) All public events were cancelled, but Lake Zoar has always had a wonderful selection of fireworks. This year, our neighbors (and my cousins) went all out to bring joy to one another. People gathered on their docks to light them off and people watched from the shore and on boats in the middle of the lake.

The positive reaction to my Art History Experiment. Want to know more? Click here. 

Making new friends!

A stormy weekend is ahead of us, but I’m looking forward to a cozy weekend at home. -Hopefully some extra time to clean our apartment.

My new plastic film camera. I know this one sounds silly, but when I was five I won a dark purple plastic camera in a kindergarten fundraiser and I’ve been a photographer ever since. I never knew what happened to my camera (I believe my mom got rid of it long ago). I have some really great film cameras, but nothing that I could slip into a bag on the go and not worry about. So I found a new little plastic camera for fun, simple, on-the-go film shots. I thought it would be a creative way to get back into my roots this summer and to take photographer a little less seriously to have a lot more fun.

What are you thankful for this week?

With appreciation,

Courtney