challenges

Photo Blogging Challenge (January 2022): Black and White

February 1, 2022

The one month I would have loved to have been able to use color photos, and I selected black and white as the theme.

Go figure!

That’s OK, though. That’s part of having a challenge like this. Sometimes images you capture won’t always fit the theme, so you have to figure something out!

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Black and white is always cool to me, but more for nostalgia. As a kid, I learned how to develop my own film. There was a darkroom in the house when I was growing up. I was also a “darkroom technician” at a local weekly paper.

So black and white reminds me of newspapers of old, and the smell of the chemicals etc. It always gives a cool feel to photos.

But, in today’s way of photography, no everything fits black and white. We are so accustomed to having everything in color that sometimes taking said color away is almost jarring. But there are some scenes that still scream to be without all of the color.

I’m excited to see what others have come up with.

I hope everybody has had a great start to the year!

Here are my five for the month!

1. Harper!

It’s hard for me to put Harper in black and white because she has such a beautiful color. But this one seemed to work out well. This is her frolicking in the snow!

2. Abandoned car

This is something we found while out geocaching. It’s always interesting to find an old car in the woods, no matter how far from a main road.

3. Cold picnic

I was out for a wintry walk with Harper at a local park and came upon this scene. I thought it worked quite well in black and white, though the pieces of blue in the sky were nice.

4. #BallLife

No matter the season, Harper love retrieving and chewing on her Chuckit! balls!

5. Covered bridge

I had the post all set for publishing, and then I passed this Sunday and I loved the look. I knew it would be perfect for this challenge. So I snapped some shots and had to, unfortunately, eliminate, some ice!

If you took part in this month’s challenge, make sure to link up below.

And for those of you who participated, make sure you try and get to other people’s blogs and comment (here, too!).

Let’s continue to grow this challenge and have a strong community. Come back and check out the others who link later on, too! NOTE: We have a Facebook group for those who participate in the challenge and are interested. I’ll post any announcements there and hopefully it can be a place where things are discussed and some interaction etc. You can access it here.

** CHALLENGE CHANGE **

From this point forward, I am going to do the next theme at the bottom of each linkup. Also, the posting date will now be the first of each month, thus giving you the entire month to take the photos etc.

That means it’s a one-stop shop! Hopefully this helps out with everybody.

So, below is the linkup for January. Make sure you drop your link there. The theme for February Photographer’s Choice! Remember to come back on March 1 to link up and check out the theme for that month!

Photo Blogging Challenge: January 2022 results

Feel free to leave a comment, or e-mail P.J. at hoohaablog@gmail.com. Also, please “Like” A ‘lil HooHaa on Facebook! You can also follow me on Twitter @softball29!

20 Days of Chill 2022: Plan it! (Day 20)

January 28, 2022

Let’s talk planning.

I’ve always wanted to be somebody who could plan things well. It’s not that I can’t plan, per say. It’s that I don’t do well with planners and organizers.

That’s not for a lack of trying.

Over the years, I’ve tried many things ranging from traditional pen and paper to electronic ways. Nothing seems to work, and I end up failing. I keep trying and trying.

Over the past year-plus, I’ve been slowly working to make it better. Last year, I tried too much and I failed. This year, while I have a similar setup as last year, it’s better in several ways.

The main reason is I have one planner – my Hobonichi Weeks – that I am trying to use as my EDC and have it be for all aspects of my life. The main issue, however, is that I can’t get into a good flow with it.

If you are a planner of any sorts, my guess is you’ve seen videos and such about it on YouTube or other social media. The people doing these spreads definitely set aside time to do it every week and they look amazing.

Problem! I don’t have the time or skill they all have to create these planners.

I feel I’ve found a decent setup for my planner, but it’s utilizing it more. I know the things I need to do in that regard, so I’m getting there. I have so many things I want to focus on – Harper, videos, blog posts, baseball games and other entertainment, bills/finances, health-related items, work-related items etc. As you can see, it’s a lot to jam into one planner.

I’m trying to color coordinate things as well, so a quick look helps. That’s slowly coming along.

The thing with the Weeks is 200 or so blank pages in the back. I like this as it gives me a place to go more in-depth, but there’s also the reality that I need to be able to find these items, so I’m trying like hell to create myself a system so things don’t get lost, and so I also don’t waste a lot of those pages.

The reason I am trying to figure this flow out is because I’d kind of like to set up this whole planner now so when I have things to add, I can do it and not worry about not having things set up etc. I tend not to write in the planner pages that aren’t set up as maybe I’ll change it etc. But if I settle in on how I like things, I can add appointments and other things to the planner as they come up. That makes this Weeks way more valuable to me and more likely I’ll start carrying it to most places I go.

It’s a lot to work on, but it’s somewhat coming together. Eventually, being I’m switching almost fully to Apple products, I really want to also start utilizing the Apple Reminders and Notes apps to help with all of this.

How about any of you? Are you planners? If so, what do you use and how do you stay focused in doing it?

One final note when it comes to planning – the 20 Days of Chill. You can mark this down that the 2023 version starts on January 2!

This post is part of the 2022 20 Days of Chill Writing Challenge hosted by A ‘lil HooHaa. Please check out the links (intro I themes) if you’d like to see the setup and themes! You don’t have to do every theme if you don’t want to! And for those participating, take a moment and check out the other participants!

Link up:

20 Days of Chill 2022: Woof (Day 19)

January 27, 2022

Like I wasn’t going to have a few themes that covered the dog world and though Harper isn’t much of a barker, woof indeed!

As we come to an end of this January’s challenge, Harper will be approaching her nine-month “birthday.” It’s crazy how fast time has gone by with her. From this cute little furball to a beautiful “adult” dog. I feel as though she’s reached her growth peak – give or take a few pounds and such – and I’m happy she’s not huge. She’s the right size. Now, that’s not to say a growth spurt isn’t coming, but my vet seems to think she’s peaked and I’m OK with that.

Everything else I’ve seen in Harper since I got her in July is truly amazing. I look back at the initial thoughts I had from getting her, the ups and the downs, the frustrations and celebrations, and everything in between and it’s been a journey unlike anything I’ve ever had.

I had wanted a dog for a long time. But I never really found what I had wanted. I went looking at shelters and everything else and I contacted rescues. Nothing fit and nothing clicked.

Then, it did.

I had been on a waiting list for a golden (after a couple of years of breed research) and I never heard anything back. Well, when I contacted, nothing was ever happening. I knew I didn’t want to try and train a dog in the winter (goodness… I look back now and realize how much I would have hated doing it in the winter!) so I was in a spot where I needed to find a dog.

A couple of late-night searches via Google allowed me to find a spot and soon enough we went and looked at the puppies, met the pup’s parents, and put a down payment on one.

Seems she was the runt, too.

The roller coaster began a few weeks later when I picked her up. She was nine weeks old. Within 15 minutes of leaving the breeder, she threw up. I stopped, cleaned it up and got her settled (I had brought a laundry basket for the front seat). She settled in and slept the rest of the way home.

Then she was home. So much excitement. She explored the yard and sniffed around. She ran and followed me around. That night, I had her sleep near me in the basket. Midway through the night, she was out and exploring on her own.

Exploring is a theme she’s followed throughout her existence.

That first month was extremely hard. We had a session with a trainer the day after I picked her up. Two hours of a session was extremely tough to take in. In the end, I didn’t feel a connection with the trainer. I needed to start anew.

But the emotions. As I look back, I have to be honest. I was looking for any reason to bring her back to the breeder or rehome her. Anything. Despite taking two weeks off from work – I was a true idiot. I thought she’d be everything I wanted in two weeks.

Here’s the kicker – when I would see other dogs who weren’t well behaved or barked a ton or whatever else, I’d always say “That’s because they aren’t trained well.”

And here I was ready to give in because Harper was yet just a baby and needed to learn.

I had emotional breakdowns. I second-guessed every single thing I did. There were times I fully regretted getting a dog. I hated that my life changed so much.

And a side note? I had researched so much and knew what I was getting into and I still wasn’t ready or prepared.

But, I persevered.

Two saving graces for me – finding a trainer (who I still use) who had empathy and the uncanny ability to not only train your dog with you, but also train you. As a first-time dog owner, I was lost. I was frustrated. And I was drained. Nanci was one of the most important pieces for me keeping Harper and making sure she was my dog.

The second was finding a doggy daycare that I trusted and that had an owner who looked at it more than a business. For a few years I had driven past one on my way to work. One day I called. I asked if we could stop by and meet her. So after a training session, we stopped. She met Harper and us. I felt at ease. She owned goldens. It was warm and welcoming. Harper still goes there once a week, and that’s also where she gets boarded if needed. I trust my dog fully with Moriah and I can’t speak highly enough about her and her services (she’s also a groomer!)

The fact is these two ladies truly saved me when it came to Harper. I can’t speak highly enough about their professionalism, humanity and how they treat animals. I feel fully blessed to have both of them be part of this journey I have with Harper.

Over time, things improved. The lifestyle change for me is still hard at times. I have said many times that if I could take what I know now, and go back to last June – I would say I’m not doing it. But that would also mean taking away the emotional connection I have with Harper.

The emotional roller coaster is a little more level now. I can’t say I don’t get frustrated at times – I do. I know I have to be more diligent about Harper’s training. I have to set her and myself up for better success. Overall she’s amazingly well behaved. But, she’s still a puppy. We need to work on jumping and making sure she doesn’t do it.. And we need to work on drop/leave it because she constantly is picking things up on our walks. She still nips and bites at times, but it’s pretty playful. That doesn’t make it right, though, so we’re still working on it.

She’s involved in dog sports and I look forward to the spring when we can start dock diving again. We did it at the end of last year and she really enjoyed it. I see dock diving as her sport, that’s for sure. And I have so many ideas for videos and photos surrounding that!

Nine months old. It’s truly crazy to think how fast the time went and all the different emotions that went along with it. She’s a true gem. She doesn’t really bark. She’s usually pretty chill. And she loves to have fun. In time, I hope she likes car rides more than she does now as I look forward to exploring so many places with her.

There are times she’ll be on the couch near me at night and she’s off snoozing. I’ll sneak a peek over and she looks so peaceful and it always makes me think how lucky I am and still be in disbelief that she’s mine.

Link up:

20 Days of Chill 2022: Where will you go? (Day 18)

January 26, 2022

Originally, I was going to start this post with a quote – which is something I strive not to do as I find it a bit lazy to start a post that way.

Instead, I do it with my own thoughts.

The world is a huge place full of journeys and trips and experiences. Your spot in life make it infinitely large or much smaller. Factors are not limited, but can include finances, time, family, or the lack of interest in exploring beyond what you know.

I like to explore. And I would love to venture into Europe more, or other places that might never happen. But I also want to explore my own country as it’s vast with a ton of amazing history.

My window of where I want to travel has also been reeled in because of Harper. The reality is, one of the reasons I got a dog is because I wanted that best friend. One I could explore with and see so many things. A golden retriever’s lifespan is 10-12 years, though many do go beyond that. But, even if you get a 14-15 year old pupper … many at that age will not be looking to go on crazy hikes and such. Plus, if Harper reaches 15 years old, I’ll be much closer to retirement, anyway.

I figure my true window of traveling big with Harper is more in the now-8 year range, give or take.

So, the planning starts now.

In two years, I’ll be hitting a major milestone. I’ll be half a century old at that point (!) and I’m in the beginning stages of planning a major road trip. This will be geocaching based, but also a chance to see many places, bring Harper, and explore as much as possible over a two-week stretch.

Originally, the plan was to drive across the top of the country and then back home across the bottom. Along the way, we’d hit as many National Parks as possible.

One issue? Well, it seems many national parks are not dog friendly. Though I get it when it comes to animals living in the park to what could happen to plants etc., I also wonder how parks have not found ways to make things dog/pet friendly. Being outside is part of the greatness of having dogs.

For example, I don’t see the point in going to Yellowstone if I can’t take Harper to see Old Faithful. I’m not leaving her in a car, or putting her up at some boarding place at the park.

It just means I need to reevaluate where this trip takes me.

We could still do the cross-country trip and instead be selective where we go, and what we see. Or, we could change direction all together. Acadia National Park in Maine is apparently very dog friendly. Maybe it’s an east coast trip where we start to go down the coast, and then flip it around and come back up and end up in Maine. And the best part of that is when in Maine, we might be able to go into Canada and get to a few provinces (geocaching wise) such as Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and maybe even Prince Edward Island, pending on travel time.

Or maybe there’s some sort of a mixture of things. The road trip is the way to go, though. I don’t plan on flying Harper as I don’t like how it’s done. That would rule her going to a place like Iceland with me.

The good thing is I have a couple of years to plan this out, but I will be finding a place for sure. And the plan, of course, is for Harper to be with me every step of the way!

As for where I will go? We shall see soon enough!

Link up:

20 Days of Chill 2022: Let’s get social (Day 17)

January 25, 2022

Let’s get social!

There are so many directions I could go with this theme, but after a lot of thinking, I decided to talk about social media. There are definitely two sides of social media – the good and the bad.

I like to focus on the good.

Since October, I’ve been working on another Day Zero Project. If you don’t know what that is, the Day Zero Project is where you set 101 goals to finish in 1001 days. I’ve done it several times before and haven’t ever finished.

And why?

Well, when you set goals you can’t really finish without going crazy, then it makes it hard.

This time around, the majority – if not all – of these goals are able to be done in the three years. Some of my goals are social media items, particularly branding them a bit better, or at least I should clean them up a bit and utilize them a bit more.

So a good way to start with that? Right here. Consider this a social media post to show what I have. Feel free to follow any of these and also to leave your names/channels in the comments below. I’m always looking to follow some others.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/softball29

This is one of my older social media accounts. I probably don’t use it as much as I could, but I do plan on changing that some. I like it for a lot of different reasons, but at the same time it can be so tough to use with everything going on in the world.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HooHaaBlog/

This is my page for my blog – and it’s something I need to work on utilizing more. So feel free to like it and follow along as I attempt to grow it.

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZh9rIx8hakFRsYUpfSXqsg

This is something I hope to grow, so I really need to get in there and clean things up a bit and organize. Right now it’s just kind of all over the place. My first goal is to get 100 subscribers so I can change my URL! Help a guy out!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hoohaa29/

This is my Instagram and honestly, it’s just looking at the world through my eyes. There’s a bunch of Harper, a bunch of other things. Follow along!

I have a few others – such as the normal TikTok and Snapchat stuff, but I kind of use them more to watch things rather than use them. It’s funny with TikTok, too, as I keep seeing followers, but I haven’t shared many things, outside of a few clips of Harper.

And in case you are interested in following Harper, she also has a couple of social media channels!

Harper’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/harper_dublin/

She already has more followers than me! I’d like to get her to 2,000 as she moves along. This is basically where I will be “journaling” her life there. Lots of fun so far!

Harper’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/HarperTheGolden/

I need to really start working on this a bit more to make it fun. We’ll see what I can do about it to get it going.

My hope with social media, though, is that it grows, but in a positive way. I’m sure, in time, there will be plenty of new social media platforms out there for all to use and grow. My only hope is that we utilize these more for good than for bad.

Link up: