2012 Year In Review

2012 was the year of firsts and lots of early morning bootcamp workouts. I set a challenge to see if I could train and complete a half marathon, a sprint triathlon and a marathon in one year. The answer would be ‘yes’. Everything I accomplished this year was worth every early wake up, every ache and every doubt that flitted across my mind. I’ve completed events that up until fairly recently I could not picture myself completing. This sweet feeling of accomplishment is one I want to remember and hold on to as I embark on new challenges in 2013.  Lets have a look at what can be accomplished when you are not afraid to dream big and work hard.

Fort Mifflin Photowalk

 

Commissioned in 1771 on Mud Island with the principle architect being Pierre Charles L’enfant.   Originally called Fort Island Battery until the fort was taken over by Colonial forces during the Revolutionary war.  400 colonial soldiers manned the fort with one directive – delay General William Howe and his fleet for as long as humanly possible giving General Washington and his troops breathing space.  There was no expectation that the men at the  fort were going to defeat Howe –  just slow him down. In the end, the fort was massively outgunned by the British fleet and was subsequently recaptured by British forces.

A British officer was said to have remarked, “the behavior of the enemy…did them honor, nor did they quit the place ‘till their defenses were ruined, and the works rendered to rubbish, setting the works in a blaze when they could defend it no longer.”

Due to the brave actions of the colonials at Fort Mifflin, General Washington was able to get his forces to Valley Forge for the winter.

Where in the Web is Tania?

The interweb is a huge entity and growing by the nanosecond.  It is a place that I find endlessly fascinating and have joined a social media site or two. To make it easier to find me, I’d thought I’d curate a list of other social media/websites that I’ve joined and actively participate:

RebelMouse
RebelMouse is a curation of my social media expressions and now is a Page within this blog. You can click on Skye820 and view my curated social media footprint in one place.

Digital Rev
Great photography site with a social media backbone. Another area to get more eyeballs on my photography, learn new techniques and meet new photographers.

About.Me
About.me will replace the About page on this blog.

Urban Garden Goddess
A blog I’ve had for a few years where I document my struggles and successes in urban vegetable gardening.

Tumblr – A place to share more of my Instagram goodness. Honestly, what else do you do with a Tumblr site?

Come join me on Pinterest, soon we will all be assimilated 🙂

These sites are in addition to the usual suspects of Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

The Pogues – Fairytale of New York

Wouldn’t think of closing out 2012 without this classic song:

Instagram VS EyeEm

 

A few weeks ago a friend shared a link to what seemed to me at the time another photo app  – EyeEm – trying to out shine Instagram. I took a few photos using the app during a recent long weekend in Annapolis, MD then promptly shuffled the app to the back burner.

Recently, Instagram updated their Terms of Service to include wording that appeared to signal their intention of using member photos  in advertisements without notifying or sharing revenue with the creator of the photo. There was no opt-out of this change outside of deleting your account before the new year.  Needless to say, it brought an outpouring of criticism from stunned users.  Cofounder of Instagram, Kevin Systrom responded to the outcry by stating Instagram has no intention to sell you photos.  Which by and large is true, but they have reserved the right to do so.

I get that Instagram has to develop a business plan and profit module. If Instagram content curators happen upon a photo of mine they would like to use for advertising purposes, I’m happy to sell them the  photo for this purpose. To be clear – I want their business to continue to be successful but not by trampling on the content makers that make Instagram such a success in the first place.  How difficult would it be to set up a photographer fee schedule for those users who would be interested in selling photos for Instagram advertising?

2012 Christmas Village Memories

Christmas Village in Philly is a great way to celebrate all the good things of this season. I try to make a visit or two every year to check out the decorations and the goods for sale in this market. The village is based on the amazing traditional German Christmas markets.

You cannot help but smile when visiting this market. The wares, the music, the lights and the food makes this place a great way to celebrate the Christmas season.

Casting Crowns: I Heard The Bells on Christmas Day

Christmas Eve 2012

Ode to Joy flashmob:

Time has gotten away from me this week and tonight my family gathers together for a traditional Wigilia dinner.  And to the delight of my nieces and nephews, presents are opened after dessert is served. Christmas day is a quiet affair with sleeping in late followed by Mass and breakfast.

What are your plans or traditions on Christmas eve?

May my readers have a joyous Christmas and a New Year full of happiness!

R.E.M. End of The World

Or not.

Back To Good – Breakfast With Santa

Spent Sunday with the niece and nephew at Longwood Gardens Breakfast with Santa program. Ava was so star struck when meeting Santa she forgot her carefully curated list of Christmas gifts, making my little diva quite contrary until I promised to help her write a letter to Santa.