I've been deceiving you

It came to me that my Frugal Queen title may sound deceiving to some, as they see my facebook and twitter posts on all of the things I have bought. It's true that one of the wikidefinitions of Frugal is "suppressing instant gratification by means of fiscal self-restraint." If I am truthful with myself and others, I may not fit this defintion completely, as my husband and I struggle with the need instant gratification daily. But further defining includes, "reducing  waste, seeking efficiency, and defying expensive social norms while aiming to cut expenses, have more money, and getting the most from one's money." THIS I can relate to. When learning how to budget, one must know what they want out of life.  Do you dream of traveling to far away lands, feeding the homeless or a little of both? Whatever your convictions, this is where you start. I believe you can do anything you set your heart on if you know what it is. Most of us don't have the money to spend on EVERYTHING we want, and changing your views on what is important is a good start (but a totally different blog post :) Once you know where you DO want to spend your money on, where can you cut costs? Can you ride your bike to work? Try cloth diapering instead of disposable? Cut out HBO? We decided that our Iphones were worth cutting out a landline for.  That fun field trips were worth cutting coupons for. A scooter and the long way to work on cold rainy mornings was worth saving the gas.  And steak dinners weren't as important as a meal for the less fortunate.  So my definition of frugality might be slightly different than most, but I stand by my goal of living life to the fullest while spending the least amount of money.  

My Obsession Confession

I love my camera.. My father inspired me to take pictures as a child while traveling across the country, admiring natural wonders and man made creations.  He carried at least one camera wherever we went snapping pictures of anything from flowers to Mt Rushmore to the Hershey factory. I came to appreciate color, composition, emotion, movement, and general artfulness in a picture. Tinkering for a couple of years with my advanced point and shoot,  I often had sittings for friends and family.  When finally able to finally purchase my first DSLR, I was in Heaven.  Comments on my Facebook pictures grew and I loved the new possibilites that came with a better camera but something was missing.  A DSLR comes with an extensive manual, which of course I didn't read. I needed instruction.  I found it in an all day workshop a few weeks ago, and I feel that I've blossomed as a amateur photographer. Now that "manual" mode on my camera doesn't scare me, I can focus what really matters: my subjects. Photography for me has become an obsession. It's capturing a moment in time, a look, an emotion. I use pictures as a trigger to help me organize events in my horrible memory. Some people say put down the camera and live the moment away from the vewfinder..But I live through my viewfinder.

I know this is completely different from my normal content but for some reason felt compelled to share.  I've spent the week documenting my friends' visit on "film," and loved every minute of it. If you have a hobby that is your passion, don't just meddle in it.  Do it all out.  Get training, take a class, hang out where the professionals are.  You won't regret it.  I'm hoping to post a few of my fav pics, and I'd love it if you'd leave comments.  Constructive criticism only please :)