Dog Photography

Check out this website to see some amazing dog and horse photography by Tim Flach.

http://www.timflach.com/

Words

Wordle: Click this picture to see What I want to be remembered for

 

I LOVE words. I love learning new words.

 

These two words describe me well 🙂

oenophile and gastronome

 

Want to expand your vocabulary?

Have a new word delivered to your email each day.

Click here to sign up.

 

© 2011 Jennifer M. Karn

Some of this and some of that

PostSecret was really great this week. My favorite? I too want to say “F*ck You.”

Heading to San Francisco in February for a few days of work meetings. I sure hope I can squeeze in a few good workouts and some relaxation.

Bought my plane tickets for my six days of fun in the sun. I’m going to Florida with a friend in March. Planning on some shopping, and sun bathing, and drinking 🙂

I’ve been reading a book called The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon. The VP of Sales & Marketing at my work is trying to boost staff morale. I think it’s a great idea. The book is a very easy read and is quite inspiring. We will all be doing activities based on the 10 secrets of leading a positive life and career. We can all use a little help getting on the bus every now and then 🙂

After being in a slump the past six months, I’m trying to get back to exercising and eating right. I’m thinking about running the Cleveland Rite Aid Half Marathon again this May. In 2010, I ran it in 1:44 which made me smile from ear to ear. I only have 111 days to get my butt in shape.

Cleveland is loaded with great places to eat. After all, we’re home to Iron Chef Michael Symon – owner of Lola and Lolita. This great city also has pockets of adorable neighborhoods. One of my favorites is Ohio City. I’ve recently discovered Heck’s Cafe.

I’m really itching to take an online writing course. I think I’m going to sign up for one in February. Can’t decide between memoir and creative writing.

I sent in my 2011 application and membership dues for Buckeye DockDogs. One of my 2011 goals is to get Scarlet to jump off a dock. That little girl better make mama proud.

Check out a few of my most favorite blogs: photography, fashion and style, loss, laughs, travel, writing, family, friend, running, and books. How do I keep track of these blogs (and the other 49) that I follow? Why, Google Reader of course!

Don’t forget to check out my other blog, Life After Death.

Tomorrow is Monday – the start of another work week. I hope you all have a healthy, happy and safe week.

© 2011 Jennifer M. Karn

If you had a time machine that only let you spend one hour in a different time, what date would you go to?

August 24, 2008 – 6:00 A.M.

If I could travel in time, even if only for one hour, I would go back to the morning my husband died and beg him not to go to that race.

He died on a Sunday.

(WordPress Topic #15)

© 2011 Jennifer M. Karn

What do you want to be remembered for?

(WordPress topic idea)

This is a question that stops you for a moment and makes you think. It had this impact on me, anyways. Why? Because my husband died and no one had a bad thing to say about him. He was such a wonderful person that over two years later, people still talk about how kind, caring, giving, happy, smart, and downright wonderful he was in so many ways. He had an impact on a lot of people’s lives. I often think what a better person he was than me.

So, when I die, I want to be remembered for great things, too. Below is a list of 50 things I would like, at minimum, to be remembered for:

1. kind
2. caring
3. helpful
4. thoughtful
5. fun
6. exciting
7. happy
8. loving
9. intelligent
10. giving
11. accomplished
12. organized
13. great mom
14. good friend
15. trustworthy
16. honest
17. funny
18. making people laugh
19. leader
20. mentor
21. educator
22. tech savvy
23. devoted wife
24. kind to animals
25. volunteer
26. writer
27. runner
28. athlete
29. someone who brought light to a dark room
30. world traveler
31. patient
32. understanding
33. silly
34. good listener
35. good daughter
36. talented
37. willing to sacrifice
38. sister
39. aunt
40. reasonable
41. humble
42. fair
43. friendly
44. willing
45. forgiving
46. courageous
47. strong
48. hopeful
49. inspirational
50. Mrs. Karn

© 2011 Jennifer M. Karn

2011 Goals – Not Resolutions!

I’ve been trying to avoid this post. I didn’t want to fall into the cliche of writing about New Year’s resolutions that will not be kept. You know the ones? The ones two months from now no one remembers. I’ve never been one to announce a resolution for the year. Instead, I tend to write a list of things I want to accomplish or finish during the year. It’s sort of a “To Do” list, but not really. Some items that end up on the “Goals” list for the year get there because they stayed on the “To Do” list way too long.

I saved this list on my desk top for easy access (titled “2011 Goals”) and I printed it and placed it in my leather journal. My journal isn’t for writing, it’s for organization. All my “To Do” items go in my journal and I always carry it in my purse.

At the end of the year, remind me to update you on what I’ve checked off 😉

Goal	Date Complete
1.      Take some writing classes
2.      Start my memoir
3.      Travel – NYC, Europe, Hawaii, San Fran, Florida, cruise…anywhere but here
4.      Get Scarlet to jump off a dock
5.      Home improvements – my bedroom, kids’ bedrooms, fresh coat of paint in all rooms
6.      Create a photography book
7.      Take lots of pictures
8.      Read one book a month
9.      Jump out of a plane
10.  Compete in a Triathlon
11.  Go skiing in NY, PA and/or the west
12.  Take kids on vacation
13.  Eat at different restaurants in NEO
14.  See Cleveland Orchestra
15.  Visit zoo
16.  Visit Cleveland Art Museum
17.  See Rascal Flatts in concert
18.  See Pink in concert
19.  Get a photo on Kevin’s headstone
20.  Set up will and trust
21.  Run a road race in NYC
22.  Go to Ohio Pyle
23.  Canoe/white water rafting
24.  Attend some wine tastings
25.  See Burning River Roller Derby
26.  Go to Ohio State county fair
27.  Take kids to Niagara Falls
28.  Post weekly on my WordPress blog
29.  Put house on the market
30.  Continue to search for peace and happiness.

© 2011 Jennifer M. Karn

Post a Week in 2011

I’m accepting the challenge to post at least once a week. Will you?

Bumblebee

I’ve been playing around with Adobe Photoshop Elements and Picasa today. I plan to do a lot more with my photography in 2011. I took this photo in Lorain, Ohio in October 2010 at my son’s cross country district meet.

1. Filtered Black & White

2. Saturation

3. Soft Focus

Military Coat

I’ve been looking for the perfect long, red pea coat for two seasons now. I really, really want this in red!

Is your running partner of the four legged variety?

I’ve been a runner for several years. I particularly love to run in the cooler weather. I also like to run with my dogs. They make the best running partners. My adorable canine companions never talk too much, they don’t complain about the weather, they are always excited to go running and they stay by my side the whole time.

Thanks to the vast options of running trails in the Cleveland Metroparks, we get to run along scenic trails surrounded by nature. On hot days, the dogs get to swim in the river as a special treat. The one item that makes my running experience with my pooches so great is my special running leash. The Buddy System Hands Free Running Leash is the best invention. Along with my Ascics, Garmin, and iPhone, this great dog leash makes running safe, fun, and easy.

My Shepard mix is getting too old to run 6-7 miles. So, she stays home lounging on the couch these days. Jackson, my 3 year old Golden Retriever, is an excellent running partner. He knows exactly what to do and does it with perfection every time. My new challenge is Scarlet. She’s my 9 month old Golden. I like to wait until they’re about a year old before having them do too much since their bones are still growing. However, I plan to take Scarlet on a test run this weekend to assess her potential. She’s rather rambunctious compared to Jackson, so I think it will be an interesting test run.

Scarlet

Jackson

St. Malachi Run finish line. First race of the season every year.

Spit Point in South Mastick. One of my favorite running trails.