The Lancer

Something amazing happened the other night. And that, was the release of Gears of War 3.



Now, I'm a pretty big nerd for this series. I love the action, the gore, and just overall, the story pulled me in especially in Gears of War 2. When I heard they were making a replica Lancer (the main weapon from the game and also it's pretty much my favorite weapon I've ever used in video games) I had to jump on it. It is the first addition to my Nerd Wall which will be housing various other weapons, posters, and video game collectibles throughout my life. And I'm happy this one got to start it off.




WOOOO!
Now, time to go back to playing...

Brooke

Fallen Into Fall

This is why I love our weather here, it went from 105F on Saturday to being 60F by Monday morning. We have literally fallen into Fall. And what a glorious season it is.

This past weekend was a little crazy. Let me just put this into perspective:


Friday-Met up with a couple good friends of mine late at night and took a walk all through our little town traveling about 6 or so miles by foot on a random, spontaneous adventure all through the night. Didn't get home til 730AM! Picture above was taken along one of the streets headed into downtown Fairfield.

Saturday-Woke up around noon even though I was waaaaay tired but I didn't want to waste my day. Watched some Roswell, went to my parents, and started playing xbox. Got a really sick feeling, passed out on the couch for 2 hours, came home, and went straight to sleep again.

Sunday-Woke up early to pack up the car and head to Louisville for a couple photo shoots for some friends/family. Got there around noon and didn't start shooting until about 2:30. Shot all through the afternoon and into the evening when the sun finally went down and after the shoots, I stopped by my grandparents new home they just finished building and fell in LOVE with their new place. Couldn't get any pictures of it since they are still unpacking but my next visit I NEEEED to get pictures. They have such amazing interior design taste. And let me tell you, I have fallen in love with them and Paul and I literally stayed just to talk to them until 2am! Now, I don't know if you're grandparents stay up til 2am just to talk about the randomest stuff in the world but I will say I give my grandparents some major awesome points for being so amazing (who's grandparents stay up that late for one???). They are truly inspiring to me.

And then after we got back, I started the work week back up (because when you work in retail you do not get such luxury holidays like Labor Day off...). And then last night my girls came over (Jessie and Holly) and we had a paint party and watched Roswell making props for my next stop motion movie. Sooooo STOKED to make it! Not sure when I'm going to have the chance to or not though...

Then tomorrow, my in laws are coming into town from England! I have to clean the whole house in the next couple hours to get it prepped for tomorrow (going from a closing to an opening shift sucks).

Man, life feels like it couldn't get any busier right now.

Brooke

Busy Bein' Born

YES! I have made it through this long year's journey. The journey and adventure of my 365 project! It's been tough, long, bumpy, and I've almost given up many times on it. It has been one of the hardest things to keep myself up with and a huuuge post it note in the back of my brain to never let myself forget it. It's kind of like that feeling you get when you have an essay that is due next week, and to get that perfect grade you need to research, develop, and keep writing drafts and drafts before the final is ready. That's what this 365 has felt like. And even though a lot of my photos kind of sucked hard core through the project, it was all reminders to me for my first year out on my own starting my adult life. The glasses I wore, what my hair looked like at the age of 21, what style of clothes I chose, the things I saw, loved, and surrounded myself with. 50 years down the road I'll be able to look back on this past year and instantly remind myself of this personal journey. One thing is for sure, I'm a lot more confident in the way I feel about myself now more than ever. And that was a goal to achieve by doing this project.

Even though these photographs don't mean much to many people, they mean the world to me and after all that is what any art form is supposed to achieve. Expression of one's self to the world. I don't feel the need to post all of my pictures here on my blog as they can be seen on my flickr except for the one above because it is my final image to my 365. I'm so RELIEVED to have this all said and done! If you are interested, the full photo set can be found here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/brooketownsend/sets/72157624858855716/

In other news, I'm heading to Louisville this weekend for a couple photoshoots for a family member and a friend of hers. It's going to be the first kids session I've done in a LONG time so I'm kind of nervous! And excited : )

Brooke

The Wilds

So, I had this past weekend off! The hubby and I were supposed to turn it into a weekend getaway and go camping but due to complications of last minute planning, lack of funds, and Paul gaining some over-time (which is ALWAYS taken...) we decided to wake up super early Sunday morning and drive our way out to Cumberland, Ohio (only about 3 and a half hours away) and spend the whole day out and about.

As I mentioned before, The Wilds is the largest conservation center in the entire North America. Over 10,000 acres of land where animals can roam freely across vast areas to live worry free of predators and eat from a natural environment. In all reality, it's a perfect combination for endangered species to feel well enough to breed and repopulate. Genius.

And since I like taking pictures and it's kind of my thing, this is what I got to see:








These two just makes me laugh super hard core LOL






So, I decided to throw a very short, simple video together from the few amount of clips we got at the wilds. Kind of offers even more perspective to the magical views even under the very cloud skies (which we eventually got rained out!! Luckily RIGHT as the tour ended)

SIDE NOTE: Why is it whenever I make a video and the screenshot behind the play button always has the WORST face I could pull??????????

-Brooke

you've got me on my toes

So! Where to start? It's been a roller coaster couple of weeks for me. I found a screenshot from one of my favorite games (Ocarina of Time) that has the best words that can be said to me right now.



And it is easy for me to feel discouraged. Especially when no one is able to hold me up when I'm down. Because.. let's face it, all of us have our mountains to climb. But, there have been harder things I have gotten myself through and someday I'll look back at this time and realize that the mountains I feel I'm climbing are just grains of sand (ha, to anyone who can guess what song that is from SUPER KUDOS to you!!). So. The superhero in me needs to awaken and start flying again.

I did a photoshoot yesterday for a friend I used to work with. I'm going to be photographing his wedding this November and I'm so stoked because it will be in the aquarium down in Newport! Pirate themed and all. I'm SOOO EXCITED. AHH.

I discovered a place I need to travel to. In NYC, there is a place called Staten Island that apparently has a junkyard of old, forgotten, and misplaced boats that are generations old. This website has the best pictures and info I could find about it: CLICK HERE.

Also, at the beginning of September, the hubby and I are planning a weekend camping trip to a place called The Wilds out in eastern Ohio. As the website describes, The Wilds is one of the largest and most innovative wildlife conservation centers in the world. Located on nearly 10,000 acres in southeast Ohio, it is home to rare and endangered species from around the world living in natural, open-range habitat, as well as home to hundreds of indigenous species. And this place offers safari rides, horse riding trails, zipline tours, and the like. Can't WAIT. If you are interested, you can find out more info about this place here: CLICK HERE.

I'm getting a list together of places I want to photograph in Cincinnati of abandoned buildings and just neat buildings that have interesting architecture. Hopefully my curiosity can keep me out of as much trouble as possible..... got close to being fined for trespassing recently at a nearby mining facility :x And all I was trying to do was find a place to turn around..... :):):):P

Well, time to update my "Bible" a little bit before I get some sleep. My little book of inspirational quotes, ideas, pictures, and things that just move me. By the time I'm 80, this little book will be huge.

-Brooke

PS: title taken from LIGHTS new song called Toes

Dear Society:

I've come to the conclusion that you don't know what it is that you want. And you never will. You pace around in your life searching for something that doesn't matter all based off an unbridled emotion that keeps you from thinking clearly a lot of times. You set life to make it complicated, more than it needs to be. You are attracted to drama in ways just to excite your subconscious and give you something to try and be entertained by. But it never does entertain you fully. Because it's never enough for you. You just keep chasing your tail and waste your life with pointless drama into a never ending abyss of betrayal, hardship, and self-destructive motives. And for what? You have the choice just as equally to step away from all the mishap and walk yourself onto the path of happiness.

Forgive. Love. Dare to be yourself.

Because you deserve happiness, Society. The full cup of joy, love, bliss, and enlightenment. Sure, when faced against 7 billion other human beings, all of our wants will never be met. But we can accept certain mishaps about our lives to be something beyond life changing and create new opportunities for ourselves to grow, learn, and be something more than you've ever been before. Society, I know you can do it. Nothing is ever impossible when you set your mind to it. There once was a wise Jedi that said "Your focus determines your reality." Sooooo true. (Thanks Qui Gon). Retrain your focus, Society. We should strive to be all that we can be. No matter what we are faced with.

-Brooke

Summer Love.

My amazing friends Jessie & Holly came over tonight so we could go out and take some pictures together. It's always nice when you can share hobbies with people you spend the most time with in your life. We are able to bounce ideas back and forth and enjoy each others company without saying a word. I got some good pictures, and judging by some of the ones my sister uploaded to her facebook, she got some good ones as well. I did focus mainly on nature shots but since I do post a lot of those, I decided to throw some newbies out there <3







.::Brooke