~:[CH15 - Day 295]:~ Way Down ...

 

~:[CH15 - Day 295]:~ Way Down ...

After watching Hadestown on Broadway, I was singing for the rest of the night. The songs are quite catchy and this time was no different. As I transferred the photos to my computer, I was humming the music after a wonderful display from our drama department. It was a beautifully arranged performance and they had a number of cast members perfect for their roles. It's not always easy matching the right people with the right roles, but them seemed to have it down this time around. The musical is a bit dark and the lighting makes it tough to shoot, but I did what I could and ended up with some night dramatic shots. During an exhausting week, I was glad I was able to sneak over to catch the musical, as if I missed this one, I may have been a little down, way down. Have you seen Hadestown? What's your favorite Broadway musical?

~:[CH15 - Day 294]:~ Weather or Not

 

~:[CH15 - Day 294]:~ Weather or Not

I got asked a lot the past few days, "Will your race get canceled?" We typically run rain or shine, but this season, we've had a lot of races canceled or altered due to the heat. Strangely enough, just a week after the heat, we had a storm roll through on senior night. The weather held off during setup, rained as we prepped for the race, then stayed clear during the race. The result? We ended up with some strong times and some good spirits after the race. Our senior night happened with some rain, but the underclassmen helped make it happen despite it all. Of course, just as we started to clean up, the rain came pouring down. I was soaked by night's end, but I wasn't miserable, I actually was content. The race went well, the senior night went well, and for the most part, it seemed like all was in order. The storms will come sweeping through trying to mess things up. However, you just have to do your best to be resilient, to prepare for the worst, and just hope for the best. It won't always work out, but whether or not it does, at least you know you did what you could. You can't control the weather or whether it will happen or not, but you can help your chances just a bit.  Always give yourself the best odds.

~:[CH15 - Day 293]:~ Another Frame of Our Memories

 
~:[CH15 - Day 293]:~ Another Frame of Our Memories

I don't particularly like picture day, but today was quite painless. We seemed to quickly get our snap and that was the end of it. What I enjoy about picture day is capturing a moment that these athletes will treasure for the rest of their lives. It's a frame in the many memories they'll collect in their lifetimes, but for some, it will be some of the greatest memories they keep. As I captured moments here and there for them, I enjoyed looking back on them and wondering what things will be like for them in about twenty years or more. Will this just be a little dot on their radar or will be a lasting mark that will be one of the core memories they keep close to their hearts. Regardless, I capture these moments and plant that seed to see what eventually becomes of the moment. While I cannot control what happens beyond, I can do my best to give them another frame they can keep in their memories.

~:[CH15 - Day 292]:~ Rewarding Myself

 

~:[CH15 - Day 292]:~ Rewarding Myself

With this busy schedule, I decided to reward myself and open a booster box of the 30th. I've actually been quite lucky during this stretch and today my luck continued. While I didn't pull the ultra rare Mew, it still was a nice hit amongst a fun collection of cards. The stretch that has past was difficult and the next stretch ahead looks daunting, so rewarding myself a bit definitely keeps up my motivation and helps me power through when my exhaustion overcomes me. I got a few things done, but overall, I was just hoping to survive the next week before I get a little break. Did you get any hits from the 30th?

~:[CH15 - Day 291]:~ Relief

 
~:[CH15 - Day 291]:~ Relief

This weekend was a bit stressful. With a first year festival, it was difficult to predict. Scoping everything out and figuring out how to operate definitely has it's challenges, but it's a relief when you survive and it's all over. It was hot today. With the craziness of the fans, I ended up wandering around the site today trying to find a place to capture my footage. I went to the second stage and captured the BAD Challenge. While doing so, the idols were handing out water to the crowd to help them from the heat. I was impressed to see them doing this out of the goodness of their heart. It's obviously good PR for them, but still yet, it was something they instinctively did when the water came out and the staff was handing them out. It was cool. Despite the crowds, I got what I needed and headed to my car. From Friday, I was working and capturing media for about nearly 50 hours, so I was happy when the day wrapped up. As exhausting as a loaded schedule could be, the relief when it's all over is quite satisfying. Not only does the R&R time feel better, you also have the satisfaction of what you accomplished. I wish I could go into hibernation for the next week but unfortunately, it will be a busy week. Wish me luck!

~:[CH15 - Day 290]:~ Squishing It In

 

~:[CH15 - Day 290]:~ Squishing It In

Awhile back, I agreed to capture media at a first time festival being organized by a friend. Little did I know that everything would fall on that same weekend. An event I normally cover, MUN, and cross country all had something today and the day itself was quite overwhelming to think about. I traded my MUN coverage, I had to not attend the other event, and I went with the team to the meet before heading to the event. Luckily, the event was close to the meet and the timing wasn't too bad. After catching most of the meet, I headed to the venue, tired from the 5:45am start to my workday. I was a little stressed knowing that I was fatigued and that it was a little warm. In the end, I survived. There was a lot that caused issue as I was capturing these moments from the barricade. Luckily, my entrance was near the stage and I causally walked from there to the stage. It got a little crazy behind me as girls were arguing and I kept getting pushed on with someone even sitting at my ankles, not allowing me to move much. Within the chaos, I made two new friends who dealt with it all with me. One was another media person covering the event, another was a teacher. My schedule was packed, but the area I was in was packed even more. Still yet, I accomplished what I needed to and was happy with the content I was taking home. There was a lot to figure out today to make it all work, but somehow it ended up that it all worked out in the end.

~:[CH15 - Day 289]:~ The Winds of Change

 

~:[CH15 - Day 289]:~ The Winds of Change

It was going to be a busy weekend ahead as I tried to figure out what to do. I canceled one event as it was an impossible feat to do it all and another, I figured would be too tough to make it. With practice canceled, I had a short break before heading to our team event. I found out that one event I was going to cancel, ended up being canceled due to the winds. In a past year, the wind blew all the tents and I think the organizers wanted to avoid that issue again with people inside. One of the performers decided to hold a late night LIVE performance and in the end, I ended up photographing it. After our team event, I jammed over to the studio and captured the moment. I knew that doing so would make the busy weekend busier, but I guess you just make a decision and in the end, deal with the consequences of it. I am not sure how I'll hold up over the weekend, but for now, I'm glad I took the time to attend even if it meant a few less hours of sleep. Mother nature intervened in this case, but in life, sometimes the winds of change help create a path that you didn't thing would originally be there opening up a new road of opportunities. Don't be afraid to take it.

~:[CH15 - Day 288]:~ Let's Do Our Best

 

~:[CH15 - Day 288]:~ Let's Do Our Best

Let's just say, this new conference has gotten off to a rocky start. With heat playing the biggest factor, it exposed the many issues with lack of communication, planning, and organization. Even before this whole fiasco started, we already saw that how they ranked the leagues was problematic and today it showed. While many of the predictable teams fell where they should have, you could see where the faults were with teams falling way behind in their leagues. Regardless, our athletes took on the challenge. They did what they could in their races and I was proud on how they took on the challenge. Our lower levels actually impressed as they won three of the four divisions with frosh-soph girls, who were created at the last minute, ended up in second. There's only so much you can control, but you can control how much effort, time and energy you put it. Even if doesn't end up taking you to where you had hoped to be, you still need to be proud of what you did, because in the end, it will be the thing that helps you the most in life. If you show a consistent effort in all that you do, on average, you'll find the success you hoped for much of the time, even when other factors don't fall in your favor. I hope that things get better in this new conference, but for now, we'll do what we can, hoping everything else falls into place.

~:[CH15 - Day 287]:~ No Matter How Much ...

~:[CH15 - Day 287]:~ No Matter How Much ...

No matter how much thought or planning go into your life, you only control so much. You can make things fit, plan things out, but at some point, somethings just don't work out as planned. I fit my weekly schedule today and found that the Clippers preseason game fit perfectly into it. I was excited as I've always wanted to see Yuki Kawamura in person. Some tickets in a great seat went on sale and so I snagged them, but the Monday before, it was announced that he was waived to my dismay. I was hoping for some type of miracle, but in the end, there was silence and he would not be there. In the end, I got to hi-five all the players and enjoy a good game, seeing Jokic and Murray up close. It was a preseason game, but it had season vibes as they were ramping up for the season ahead. No matter how much you plan, don't fret when things don't work out. Make the most of the moment or pivot and change course. No matter how much time or energy you spent, just know, you shouldn't let that hold you back. Sometimes things aren't meant to work out and today, that was the case. Still yet, I enjoyed the moment and it ended up being worthwhile. For others, they may change course and while it make some time, sometimes that new course may lead to greater things. 

 

~:[CH15 - Day 286]:~ Already That Time

 

~:[CH15 - Day 285]:~ Already That Time

It's that time of year again where we start to round out our Nationals team. It's amazing how quickly the time comes and goes and it's already time to start training a new group of juniors. It's quite the rigorous process alongside the demands of junior year, but often, these students are able to find that balance. Before we know it, it will be time to go to New York and then soon after, we'll start this process again. With each passing year, this process comes and goes quicker and it makes me wonder, how fast will the time go when I'm older and grayer. For now, I'll sit back and continue to soak in all of these experiences and do my best to live in the moment, because before you know it, the present will soon become the good old days.