There have been loads of videos and photos and stories that I’ve seen and read over the last few days about the tragedy in Japan.  But there’s one image that I can’t get out of my mind.  It’s quite a simple photo, but it speaks to me on so many levels.

This whole thing in Japan, being so close to the hurricane in New Zealand has seemed quite surreal to me.  I was in the office on the day that the tidal waves hit the coast, and was actually standing next to colleagues watching the live broadcast on CNN as the wave hit the coast.  It was incredible. It didn’t seem real really.

But this particular image from Big Picture makes it hit home.

Connor is little too, and I can imagine how scary that must be.  No actually, I can’t think I can imagine it… but let’s pretend I do.  I can just see his face being similar to this, with that little frown on his face.  OMW how scared  this child must be.  And I can just imagine how scared that mother must be that’s behind him (well, hopefully it is his mother)

It reminds me of a sci-fi horror movie, and it’s just freaky that this is actually real, and not put on by some actors in a studio somewhere.

In fact, like normal, Big Picture‘s photos are just incredible, and are much better than watching the videos and TV and general newspaper sites.  These photos tell the story properly, not some rambling person with subtitles.

My heart breaks for them all… and all the people trying to directly help.  It must be so terrifying. So terrifying.

What has made this real for you? What photo/image/video has stuck in your head?

If I could work from home, I would do so at the drop of a hat.  Seriously.

I know I can’t do that with my office job all the time, but today, I decided that I really didn’t need to be in the office.  Ididn’t need to talk to anyone about what I was needing to do… so I worked from home.

I get so much more done!! I whip through that stuff so quickly when I’m at home. At work, I procrastinate.  Seriously, even with the kids at home and being noisy playing with cars and Lego and XBox, I managed to get through it.

And I still had time to play with them… well… build a few Lego cars and houses for Connor.  And I managed to get to collect the photobook I needed to deliver… and I delivered that and a canvas and 2 DVD’s to 2 clients.

It would suit me perfectly. It really would.  It’s just a pity my job really can’t work properly if I work from home every day.

One of the places I went to today was very clever.  I dropped of a client’s DVD at Autostyle in Mayfair.  Apart from itching to walk around with my camera, which I didn’t because Connor was with me and getting whiney… I was impressed.  OMw I’ve never seen so many car parts in one place… Connor was in his element with all the shiny mags and lights etc etc.  And you know what he spotted… a HUGE pile of kids toy cars!! So, I ended up getting him 2!  What a sneaky ploy… they must sell a fortune of those cars!

If you’re wondering about the photo… I took it with my new toy… again my iPhone is just awesome.  And on the subject of photography… my #365 is ending soon and I’m undecided about what to do with 2011… apart from making photobooks with the photos!

LOL!! Well, thing is, I haven’t gone anywhere.  In fact at this moment I’m extremely frustrated with this blog.  I’ve been trying to find a better layout for the entire evening, and I’ve just given up and reverted it back to the way it was

I think this photo of Connor, that I took this afternoon, sums up my feelings tonight…

I just cannot get this theme to like my background images I’ve created.  Then I tried another theme, and couldn’t get the colours to change, and the default colour was hectic.

Anyhoo, I’ve decided to fight with it another night… and to do a little bit of editing before I go to bed

Think I’ll take the kids to the zoo tomorrow

I kinda overdid it this weekend, and booked too many shoots.

I have travelled almost 250km this weekend! It was rather nuts… but I actually had a ball with the variety of different shoots… but I’m a little tired and a little worried about all the editing on my plate now.

It started yesterday morning at 8am in The Hill, south of Johannesburg… then dashed to Fourways to pick up canvases (and that was a DISASTER again… wish they would put some love into their finishing… so one has to be redone… AGAIN)… then dashed home to pick up the kids… then I dashed to Lifestyle Garden Centre for the opening of Leigh-Ann’s new belgian chocolate shop, Sjokolat (and had yummy amarula and choccies)… then dashed home for a quick lunch… then dashed to a newborn shoot in Kempton Park at 3pm… then dashed home to drop off the newborn stuff… then dashed to Greensleeves for a 50th birthday party which I was photographing.

Was a little mad hey?

Then today the only shoot I did was Cat’s family shoot… then I zooted to get some photos printed for a client, only to discover the place has run out of matt paper…   AARGGHHH… then zooted home to get the boys to drive to Parys for lunch with Lance’s mom.

And now… I’m blogging the photos and trying to catch up… after punishing the kids for breaking the new water spray that I bought yesterday for R400!! The broke it by jumping on it while the water was going because swimming wasn’t cooling enough for them!

It’s been rough!

So you know I’ve been a bit haywire recently?  My life is in disarray because I’m so freaking busy.  I don’t actually know whether I’m coming or going at the moment.

So today, I had to laugh.  I promised Marcia that I’d be at her office by 3pm to deliver her photos from her shoot.  At 3:45pm I check my email while sitting in traffic about 5 minutes away from her office, and I see she’s commented on my blog.

I will help you with your time management, seriously. There is a really quick exercise I do with people like you that frees up their time really quickly, for essential things like sleep, husbands, family

LOL! How’s that for an opportune moment for me to read that… after being late delivering her photos?! LOL!

Anyhoo, so we chatted while I was there, and I think I need to get my life in order again.  I think I’m going to use her services next year.  I had no idea how clever this chick was!  I mean, I’d seen her other site Organising Queen… but I didn’t actually take the time to really read it.

Anyhoo, I think she can help me.  Even though the thought of asking someone to help me seems so defeatist, and this should be common sense really; if she can help me organise my life so I can outsource at least some of my admin… I’d be ecstatic. 

I feel restless.

Very restless.

I need a change somewhere in my life again.

It’s not like I don’t have enough going on right now… with all the photography, and 2 massive projects at work that is splitting my time, and 4 hours in the traffic daily because of the kids schooling and Lance working like he is.

This feeling has been building for a while… and today it was very strong. Maybe because of a call I got about blogging today.  Maybe because of another conversation I had today.

Is it just me that gets more restless the more stuff I have going on in my life?

Maybe I should just buy something… like a new car… hmmm…  normally that sorts the feeling out.

One thing is for sure… I should really stop blogging like this, because inevitably I’m going to get a few phone calls tomorrow, or some strange knowing comments.

Naming your business is important right?  You have one try normally.

When I started my photography blog, my own domain… I decided after searching long and hard on the internet, to use my real name.  Not Jenty.

The thing is, I’m kinda known as Jenty now though, because of all my blogging over the last few years.

In fact, today, Andy Hadfield asked me why I didn’t use Jenty for my photography.  I didn’t really have a reason.  He reckoned that Jenty would suit a rock-star photographer… yet Jeanette Verster is the name for a pro-photographer.

Hmmm…. I like the idea of rockstar. I like to think of myself as not run of the mill, and kinda funky.  Yet, Jim the other day commented that he’s never seen a funky woman photographer… which made me laugh.

Anyhoo, the deed is done, it’s Jeanette for my photography, and Jenty for blogging and other social media… no wonder people are constantly confused

It takes a while for people to connect the dots and realise I’m the same person.  I’m not just a photographer… I do have a day job LOL even at work it’s confusing for people… especially when they meet me for the first time because most people at work call me Jenty too.

1. Connor thinks that my dad needs to get Bakugans for his 60th birthday which is coming up soon. LOL!! Can you imagine?
2. I arrived 10 minutes early for a meeting… the person made me wait on the street outside their house until the allotted time. LOL! How weird is that?!
3. I made a HUGE blunder by going to meet a prospective client…. without my portfolio!! LOL! I’ll be surprised if I get that wedding
4. I didn’t take a photo for my 365 day challenge… just never had the time
5. The Mac specialist at the Incredible Connection store in Fourways looked at me blankly when I said that I needed an adaptor specially for the Macbook Pro… dude had never noticed that the 2-prong plug on the machine is non-standard. And then promptly told me that they didn’t sell them… seems useless to me… how can you sell a machine without selling the thing that’s going to allow it to work properly!
6. Prolabs is driving me nuts… this photobook I ordered is taking forever and no-one can seem to tell me for certain where the hell the book is!! They better find it by tomorrow! To say that I’m annoyed is an understatement. In fact, the book was supposed to be the subject of my photo for the day.
7. I still haven’t found the time to collect my new Moo card shipment from the post office.

It was one strange day…

Got this quote on email from a colleague and I really liked it

“We are living in a storm where a hundred contradictory elements collide; debris from the past, scraps from the present, scenes of the future: swirling, combining, separating, under the imperious wind of destiny.” Adolphe Rette` La Plume 1898