I'm not a terribly patient person. I hate lines and I walk by the cars to avoid the sidewalk traffic (mostly in Times Square after work). If someone grabs a cab after I've been waiting for a long time, they will certainly get an earful - "haven't you heard of cab etiquette!" I also can't stand getting in an elevator with the person that take it one floor or when the elevator stops and it's full of people - what's the point of stopping? It's awkward for both people on either side of the door! Don't we have the technology to make it to the next requested floor without stopping?B u t....I have also been the person that walks up to the street and hails a cab without a wait - sometimes the person waiting is halfway down the street and you don't always see them or your hurried because you're late for a reservation or you just want in the cab so hands can roam and kisses don't have to be shared on the street. I've also been the person that sees something and will stop dead in my tracks to take the photo stopping the flow of traffic. Lessons have been learned while waiting in line with females wiser than me. I hardly take the elevator one floor though because I prefer the stairs (although my vertigo would disagree).I suppose we can all be what we dislike at times and we should remember compassion. It's easy for me to forget this - especially with myself - and it's easier for me to be critical and harsh. I just may have been that girl that believed in love so much that she stayed far too long in something that wasn't working. That same belief in love may have made that same girl "overshare" and that eagerness may have been too much for some. But I'm also the girl really DOES believe in love, goodness, and light and I'm learning to be the girl with more patience. Sometimes loneliness can be overwhelmingly intense, but this time I am trying something different - I am really learning how to be. In some ways, I think I've craved this time to myself. This scary, exhilarating place of choice within myself. As more time passes, I really understand the idea that you have to love yourself before you can be in something. It doesn't mean you're selfish or egotistical, but it's about respect.I am okay. In fact, I am more than okay - I think I realized that when I jumped in Lake Michigan. The more okay with myself and all of my parts, the better off. So here's to patience and taking time. Somehow I know that the rest, really will fall into place.

Well, here we are. The last month of summer.August. Overgrown greenery and the beginning of crisp leaves. Beautiful evening light. The last of the longest days and preparation for a cool (hopefully, but doubtful - I hate climate change) fall.We will enjoy afternoon tea for a wedding celebration in Chicago and welcome the return of dear friends who made a huge difference halfway around the world.This summer had rough patches and this little heart has been pushed and pulled in too many directions, but we're getting through it. Just a little bit at a time. *direct link*

  **Feature photo and 1,4,8,13,14, and 15 by the very talented John Kester! 

It was time to get the guitar out and I had the best entourage of friends for support. Thank you all for coming and to John for taping!p.s. This guitar group is the nicest and most supportive group ever. You're all the best. Thank you for welcoming me into your musical family! xo 

The roses are almost gone, but the hydrangeas are in full bloom. While I love, love, love the flowers; I can't help the nagging feeling of the shift. The summer heat lingers  and the golden sun of June isn't quite as bright. The overgrowth of green and turning leaves. The air is hazy... I wish New York fell into the cool fall of the Midwest, but alas this place seems to have two seasons. Cold and Hot with a couple of weeks of Mild in between. But New York makes up in other ways. It's coming on five years of being here. Isn't that crazy?! It's been five years of "being a grown up". So much choice, so many thoughts, and so much change.Apparently their color is based on the pH levels of soil.

...was that of MP3 Experiment 9!** I had every intention of actually participating in this year's experiment, but I learned a lesson about technology. Don't always rely on it! About three minutes into the fun, the app crashed and I couldn't hear anything. I shared headphones until they started running around as ghosts. Then I decided to make myself useful and take some photos.Next year, I will make sure to download the mp3 as a backup!Last year's was also a blast!  

Make for a lovely bachelorette party, for a lovely gal.

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**i. lost kimono in queens / ii. tranny bingo / iii. fire island with the friends / iv. volunteering on the upper east side with a pretty sunset and a woman that made hundreds of ohms / v. sketchy place for prosthetic teeth / vi. a conversation with a stranger....(i'm the green texts, she's the gray).

Hello July,Summer is here. Summer is hot. The kitties sleep on their back with their bellies in the air.We have many fun plans this month, including a day of berry picking and running through wildflowers. Mischief will be made at this year's MP3 experiment and we will enjoy the rooftop with our French friends. The guitar will be re-strung with attempts to play at an open mic.July means beach days, clear skies and puffy clouds.The sky will shift and the greens will begin to fade ever-so-slightly. This will stir some feelings, but we will enjoy the moments because we are learning to live with change.

it was a good trip home. a painting was created with dandeena and the dysart streets were quiet. the ditches were filled with flowers and i stopped to appreciate love on the side of a barn (near albion, iowa). the wedding was perfect and the friends were (overly) reminded of my love for them. quality time was spent with mary while driving for my lost items... a charger, a ring (thank you). and i was reminded to slow down while driving (thank you mr. police man for not giving me a ticket!). a long walk through george wyth (with a random chair in the river) made me realize just how smart aj has become. the best malia kofta (seriously, i've tried many) was consumed at masala in iowa city and i hung out with the pie man foraging for berries and walking through tall grass. corn was everywhere and a rabbit greeted me at my childhood home. i'm not sure i fully understand the tears that fell the night. hard sobs and gulps for air. it was overwhelming, but it was okay and it was worth remembering.

**This is a photo I did for Ms. Jenna a few years ago, but didn't document it. I'm glad I finally did. This was one of my favorites!The poem is by Brian Andreas.

Last week I took a trip back to the cornland for Jenna's wedding. We met during a movement class and I befriended her in my usual way..."Hi! I'm Kim, you seem great. My girlfriends and I are having a spaghetti dinner tomorrow night, wanna join?" Years later, after that spaghetti dinner we are still close despite being miles apart.Perhaps it was working at Disney and being as pretty as a Disney princess, but Jenna has always believed in love. I'm so thrilled that I was able to be part of her day and meet her handsome and fun prince.The week was great, filled with new friends, old friends, laughter and love.Yay!**Congratulations and here's to a life full of love!p.s. thanks to Jesse (Brittanie's man) for taking the pics of all the yams!  Their wedding was a couple of years ago and equally beautiful! xoxo

it had been years since returning. at least five. since then, a storm removed the row of trees that provided a canopy for cars. now everything looked so desolate. so bare. it was windy. the door shut behind her in a startling way. it was so windy. so bare. one foot in front of the other through the dry grass. how it longed for rain, needed it. she sensed it would be coming. she sensed that relief. perhaps, she was trying to distract herself from her actual surrounding. her eyes found the space and she stared at the coarse granite. the wind wrapped her hair around her head. she closed her eyes, "so now what?"she wished for a sign. for the wind to stop, for the sky to open. she heard nothing, she saw no sign. so she just sat. no tears. just breath. and wind.

Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, and back to New York...It was a beautiful wedding and weekend. The June skies were as pretty as ever - especially when you pull over and lie down in the middle of a New Hampshire highway to stare at endless time traveling stars.I love how photos take you back to the moment before and after that "click".**Thank you, Julian, for being a lovely travel companion and sharing the camera. :)xo

Four guys, four girls (all stereotypes present), taking a trip to Atlantic City and staying in a sketchy motel on Iowa Ave (keep in mind that five us are from Iowa - although we mostly became friends in NYC). Thankfully, it wasn't a horror movie. Just an awesome trip.I feel the need to explain this photo...this was a misunderstanding: Hayden said, "make a kissing face", I thought he said, "make a pissing face". Instead I made a very confused face! (btw, notice the guy that looks just like the statue!)It was worth it.

Photos from the "big camera" to come soon....