so here's a smidgen of a friendsgiving.
okay, it's more than a smidgen, it's so much.
i love it.

So, we kind of got married backwards of how everyone else does it; normally, everyone gets to go to the ceremony, and then less people go to the reception because it expensive to feed and water everyone... we did it the other way around; very few people got to be at our ceremony (i'm thinking that it was right around 20 people all said and done, but EVERYONE got to go to the afterparty.

The point of all this is that not everyone knows that we wrote our own vows, and we both thought of them probably less than 24 hours before we actually did the getting married thing. Obviously, e-ham had to show me up and have more thought-out, longer vows than i did... but my vows have been in my thoughts a lot recently, especially this week. It was very simple for me; I said, "Every day is full of triumphs and tragedies, and, whether it be a triumph or tragedy, I will be by your side every day."

I've been thinking about all of this just in terms of how life works, and this week has been the epitome of little triumphs followed by tragedies. I'm working on balancing it all out with each other, because tragedies tend to draw out much more sorrow from me than the amount of joy that comes with triumphs. It's been so incredibly up and down lately... I was elated early this week when I got a third and fourth interview for this incredible job, and crushed beyond belief when I got my rejection for that job on Friday. We were fortunate enough to go to the Garmin-Cervelo Team Presentation on Thursday; we also went to Colorado Springs to visit Caroline and Clayton Friday and Saturday, but the realization that my unemployment wasn't enough to sustain activities for me beyond bills hit hard right as we were leaving (also known as it ran out for the week, AHH!).

Every day is filled with little triumphs and tragedies, and I am really working hard to make all of those little triumphs far outweigh the little tragedies we encounter.
Things will work out, this I know. I'm adhering to the philosophy that "you can't miss what you never had" when things don't work out the way I wanted them to.

Little triumphs for the week include discovering what kind of monster really resides in the attic (Ralph the squirrel) and Carter's homemade (and improvised!) pumpkin pie, and the puppies loving on each other, erik and clayton racing together once again, and time spent with good friends in Colorado Springs. Celebrate my triumphs with me.

big ring cyclocross, a great (but windy) last Saturday.

happiness is e-ham getting 4th!

it's been really great to have time to get to all of Erik's races lately, I can't remember the last time that happened.

shannon & kevin.

I had the fun of second shooting a wedding last Friday, so good! say hello to Shannon and Kevin! They had the coolest wedding, in a commercial airplane hangar, at XJET just south of Denver in Englewood. Feast your eyes on their love!

kevin and his groomsmen had a lot of fun getting their ties right, they can be so tricky!

so much love.

spent the better part of a saturday afternoon in Brighton at a lovely cyclocross race.

highlight reel:

i'm always looking for wonderful inspiration... i happened upon the painter Kim Piotrowski's blog and i LOVE what she does! please enjoy it, she is so talented.

http://kipiboo.blogspot.com/

i love a good brainstorm session inspired by all of that.

so. we have these fabulous friends that are more like a family than friends. in fact, everyone calls it a family. we had a wonderful dinner with part of this family, erica and jason fowler, a couple days before we left bloomington, and hursh (aka erica) gave me this card. what was inside was one of the most fabulous gifts anyone has ever given me. i will share it with you all now, because i think it is a masterpiece:

Hursh's Top 10 Things to Consider when Moving to a New City/State

1. After you get all the boxes, bags, and laundry baskets into your new residence, set up and make your bed ASAP. You can do many things with your floor covered in newspaper, packing tape, and cardboard. Sleeping is not one of them.

2. When in doubt... drinking while unpacking is always a good idea. It will also help soothe the blow when you break your favorite trinket from growing up. Slippery bubble wrap!

3. Go up to the door, knock, and introduce yourself to your neighbors in the first few weeks. If they are great... then you can ask them to get your mail when you are gone; if they are really weird... you know who not to borrow a cup of sugar from.

4. Find out what the local magazine, newspaper, website is. I'm not talking about the Sunday times; I am talking about publications like NUVO and Indianapolis Monthly. Theytell you what are cool things to do, new restaurants, local events, etc.

5. Go to said things you find in magazine/newspaper. These places and events are

a. cool and mostly local.

b. cool and local people go to them = FRIENDS!

6. Don't change who you are because you are in a new place, instead find people who like to do what you do too. Sometimes it takes a few tries...but you will find it. Stay persistent!

7. The best way to figure out where you live is to run the streets. You can drive places, lace up, and go!

8. Get involved with something outside of work. Could it be the IU Alumni Association-Boulder edition? What about a local Photographer Meeting? Or the local running group? Find that group that is a Labor of Love. It will help keep you sane and busy!

9. You will cry at least once in the first few weeks and think.. "why did I do this to myself?" At this point, you have to suck it, make lemonade out of lemons, and remember that "happiness is a choice".

10. Above all else... remember that you can always go Home again. And Home is INDIANA! Those same people who loved you when you left, will still love you when you come back. Real friends pick up right where they left off.

Today has been a real #9 day. and i'm so thankful to have this wonderful gift and all of our wonderful friends. thank you hursh.

i spent last saturday at the Boulder reservoir, and got to watch the fabulous Katie Compton school the entire field of the elite women's cyclocross race (as usual, she's a beast). plus, it was so great to go to such an awesome race and it was only ten minutes from our house! WIN!

can i just say.... i cannot believe i live in colorado.

in case anyone hadn't guessed, erik and i made a major life change.

erik got offered a job at university bikes and it was the reason we'd been waiting for to move out of indiana.

anyone that knows me will know... i love all things as they were; i might be the most nostalgic person you've EVER met. film will always trump digital for me, my grandma's christmas ornaments from the early 1900s are a few of my most cherished possessions, and the day my aunt gave me her old record player was the greatest ever.

this transition was harder for me than i ever thought possible, probably because of my severe nostaligism (i made that word up; i definitely have that condition). who would think that moving to a state where the sun shines for more than 300 days a year would cause me so much grief?

all i have to say is...

thank goodness for skype.

i've never had a real reason to use it before, but now i relish my little alycin skype date breakfasts and all the times i call kristen on skype and she's not fully dressed.

i'm just spreading out the love over the whole country now.

also, thanks mostly to the urging of caitlin #2, i decided to FINALLY upgrade my darn phone. i've long been drooling over the iphone, mostly because of the camera. i mean, i love my mac computer and all, but the phone has the nicest camera of any cell phone, ANYWHERE. i finally got one.

and with much happiness, i started a new mobile-photo-only tumblr of "iphoneography".

http://takingitallwithme.tumblr.com

enjoy please!

obviously, i still have the other tumblr at http://caitlinrhamilton.tumblr.com if you want to see photos and none of my blathering on about them.

much love!