Self-Portrait

What! A post on a Saturday! What nonsense is this? Well, this is a farewell. I bid you adieu for the next few months, May, June, July, and August, to be precise. The next couple of weeks will be filled with traveling and last minute ventures. The summer will be spent leading a bike trip across the country, so unfortunately that means I will not have time to post everyday. In other news, I have been cheating on this blog with a new one: Bike & Build & Be Awesome. The new one will have pictures and random anecdotes from my summer adventures. I know this will be a loss, four whole months of empty, but I will return triumphantly in September with new pictures and esoteric comments.

Portrait

This is my friend Tess. We lived together in Flat 24 during Grinnell in London. She used to tell the craziest stories about her internship with the Scottish National Party. This picture is from our day trip to Brighton to see the English Channel.

Portrait

Two girls who worked in my lab in Thailand.

Portrait

This is my friend Alison. I don't remember why she was waving a broom in my face, but it must have seemed like a good idea at the time, since I took this picture. You can check out her blog of adventures in South American here.

Portrait

This is my friend Britt. You may remember her from this post. She's pretty amazing. Pretty and amazing, both at the same time. Right now she's off in Utah doing silly things.

She's actually doing important things. I'm just bitter that Utah stole her away from me.

Stupid Utah.

Portrait

I present another portrait of Maraja. I am actually really proud of this one. It is not a bad photo, but I think the editing really makes it pop. You can see the original below for comparison. This is the first photo that I used different layers and filters to create the final effect. Finishing this photo was more work than I usually put into my photo editing, but the outcome definitely makes this a useful technique to use more often in the future.

Portrait

This is my dog Lissie. She used to beg for food that she didn't even like. Finally I would break down and give her some, and she wouldn't eat it, because of course she didn't like it. But then she would beg for more! If you're eating it, then it must be delicious. Such is dog logic.

She passed away last week. Not entirely unexpected, as she was 14 years old, but I still wish I could have seen her one last time. You will be missed, my Lissie.

Portrait

This week's portrait is of my friend Anna. This Portland inhabitant is a source of almost constant inspiration for me. Every time I talk to her she never fails to put a smile on my face, and I firmly believe one day she will take over the world.

Latest Anna-ism:
Anna: Portland is really a very small town.
Andrea: It has at least a half million people.
Anna: Yea, exactly. Small.

Portrait

I have this friend named Maraja. She's pretty awesome. One of the first things you learn about her is that she likes to laugh – and when she laughs hard enough she starts to cry. It's kind of inevitable. In the picture below, she isn't crying because she's sad – that is a tear of laughter. I have long forgotten the joke. But it must have been awesome.