she likes cherries

project 365 is fun

If you're on Flickr you probably heard about Project 365: as the name suggests, you have to take (and upload) one photo a day for a whole year. It does sound easy and... Wait. On second thought, it does not sound easy at all.

But it's a challenge and it's a lot of fun. I jumped on the bandwagon on January 1st so today is my 9th day. Although I'm a total newbie at this, there are three things I would highly recommend for anyone planning to start (you can actually start at any day, you don't have to wait for the first day of the year):

1. Remember to take your camera everywhere. It sounds basic and obvious but I've already left my camera at home before leaving to work and regretted it later. Positive side: you might need to shop for a larger bag! Yay!

2. Keep a list of stuff you wish to photograph and update it often. Always have paper and pen with you because ideas pop up when you least expect, and you don't want to write on your arm with lipstick like I did once.

3. Pay attention at what's around you. Things you see everyday and would probably not notice/think about twice -- at home or on your way to school/work/grocery shop/hair salon -- can turn out to be great shots.

Oh, and I might add a 4th tip: if you're photographing the inside of a store or someone's booth at a flea market/craft fair/etc, ask for permission. Most people will say yes, but some will say no and that's their own right. Either way, you'll earn some points for being polite.

Finally, I would also recommend Kylah's great post on the subject. This post is another good resource. And you can follow my progress on this challenge here.

(Doing Project 365 this year? Did it in the past? Let me know in the comments! I would love to see your pictures).

the real real job

I work for this little company you might have heard of:

There's this whole mystique about Google and I find it funny. It is not the Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory, you know. Although I admit that I would have some good laughs telling you that yes, we do have strawberry milkshake coming out of drinking fountains, ponies that take us from one meeting room to another, and Norwegian goose feather pillow fights at 3 p.m. everyday.

But I would never lie to you like that.

At the end, it's just work -- with all the good and the not-so-good stuff it implies. Most days, however, I wake up happy and excited to be doing something that I feel proud of, that is such a good fit for me.

Being more specific, I work for Google Books. And I'm a total book nerd (books will be a constant subject on the blog). Everyday I get to support publishers and authors while they help us by adding their content to the already humongous online index of titles.

If you don't know Google Books, I would like to invite you to check it out. While you're there, you can read some of my all-time favorite classics, for free:

"Pride and Prejudice"
"The Wind in the Willows"
"The Picture of Dorian Gray"
"Alice in Wonderland"

PS 1: Due to copyright laws, the books linked above may not be available in your country.

PS 2: This is my personal blog and it is not related to Google. All opinions I share here are my own. :-)

out there

2010 was awesome. But my favorite thing about the year that just ended is how much I traveled. I love going places. Seeing new colors. Smelling different scents. Hearing melodic accents. Tasting exciting flavours. And 2010 allowed me this and so much more.

I went to Mexico. One of my dream trips. Now, whenever I need to escape and go to my "happy place", I envision the warm, clear and calm waters of Playa del Carmen.

I went to New York. And it reminded so much of my home town, Sao Paulo. On that same trip, I went to Boston, Salem and Portland (Maine).

I went to Seattle and Portland (Oregon), and decided that if I ever leave the Bay Area I will certanly head to the Pacific Northwest.

I went to Palm Springs and I dreamt about having martinis by the pool of my cool midcentury modern house in the desert.

And to end the year with a big bang, I went to Paris.

I'm really excited to see where 2011 will take me. Because I know for sure I'll be out there.

well hello!

It has been a while since I wanted to go back to the blog community.

(Go back? Yes. I've been a blogger since 2003 in my native country, Brazil. My two best friends and I decided to put together this blog and we wrote tirelessly every single day until the end of 2008. The blog gave us more happiness we could possibly have wished for. It gave us so many new friends. It gave us a sense of community. It gave us some memorable parties. It gave us a weekly column in one of Brazil's top magazines. It gave us a published book with our names on the cover. And it gave me the best time of my life.

Wow, that was one big parenthesis. Guess I should close it now).

So, about having a blog. I've been going back and forth on this one for over a year. I miss writing. I miss having my space in this forsaken land that is The Internets. But things are so different now.

I'm living 6,468 miles away from home. Yep, I actually had to look this one up. It's an awful and scary number. So awful and so scary there was nothing I could do than try creating a new home for myself. Now I'm in this strange in-between places where I feel I'm not even here nor there. Anyway, it's an interesting thing having to learn the basics when you're 30. I remember it took me a while to memorize which coin was which. Like, why the hell the 1 cent one is bigger than the 10 cents one? Go figure.

I'm speaking a different language. I have to break the news for you: I'm a talkative person. I don't shut up. I like to say what comes to my mind, and my mind is a weird place with things happening all the time, in different levels. Kinda like Inception. But no Leonardo diCaprio. The thing is while I have mastered a lot of English, I'm very far from being able to communicate the way I would like to. And it frustrates me so much. So I apologize upfront for disconnected thoughts and bad grammar.

I'm working. I have a full time job. No more free lance Journalism for mama. I have to leave my house, drive my car to an actual office, and work my ass off from 9 to 6. I love my job, I really do, and I can't believe how incredibly lucky I am for having got this opportunity. But the truth is now I have to sit in front of a computer screen for hours, which leaves not much room for computer fun. So when I get back home at the end of the day I crave for more physical activities, like squeezing my kitties so hard until their noses turn blue. Oh I don't do that, you know. Geez.

So this introductory post is really long and I almost forgot what I was talking about but yeah, I decided it is time to create a blog despite all odds. I have no clear idea on what it will look like yet. I like blogs that have lives of their own. So I will just try to come here often and see how it goes. If you promise you'll try to come here often too we can meet and be friends.

It sounds like a neat plan.