The Gypsy's Project365

I am actually fairly good at keeping my New Year’s Resolutions.  In 1999 I resolved to journal everyday instead of haphazardly.  I have now been doing just that for more than 10 years and am the richer for it.  This year I’m adding another layer to my journaling.  I’ve started a Project365 -- taking and posting at least one photograph each day.  Not only do I hope to better chronicle the important moments in my life, but I also hope to improve my photography skills as well. 



So, what has this first week of 2010 contained:
  • January 1: I took this image just after midnight as our annual New Years house party danced  outside to our New Years theme song. 
  • January 2: my dear and gorgeous friend, Terra.  Her favorite Norwegian verb (and yes, she is just the kind of girl to have a favorite Norwegian verb) means “to cozy oneself.”  That’s just what we do!
  • January 3: butter cookies -- my favorites in part because they are edged in candies named for an artist.  Yep, the real name for sprinkles is “Seurats” -- after Georges Seurat, the pointillist painter.
  • January 4: a friend gave me a vase of paperwhites for Christmas.  They bloomed for the New Year.
  • January 5:  Lucy, our dog.  Because of her coloring, it’s really hard to photograph her face.  I got a good snap today.
  • January 6:  Each year I add one ornament to my collection.  I bought this one in Venice in 2009 -- a gorgeous gilded plum from Murano. 
  • January 7:  We have a 100+ year old oak tree in our yard which is home to a delightful family of squirrels.  Lucy chases them.  They chatter at her. And I think both parties are very, very happy.  This guy paused to watch me as he was making his way across our fence.
I am uploading my Project365 images each day to my Picasa feed (feel free to subscribe!).  There’s also a slideshow playing in the right-hand column of The Gypsy’s Guide.  And every once in awhile I’ll blog about the images I’m taking, of that you can be sure! 

For more information about Project365 and information about how to start your own, check out these links (link list updated frequently):

    Are you doing a Project365?  Leave a comment with the link, and let us know! 
    Thanks to all of you joining in from DeliciousBaby.com's Photo Friday!

    Is that a Da Vinci in your bathroom?


    Imagine discovering that the painting you bought for a mere $19,000 just might be worth a cool $150 million -- all because a fingerprint was found in the paint. That's what may have happened to the owners of "Profile of the Bella Principessa." For years the painting has been in private collections. It was purchased at auction in 2007 for $19,000 by a Swiss art collector. But then things got very interesting...

    Leonardo da Vinci not only used brushes when he painted, but he also utilized his fingers and hands, often leaving behind fingerprints in the process. When examining "Profile of the Bella Principessa," art experts found a fingerprint which, upon closer examination, matches fingerprints found in another da Vinci painting.

    Fascinating! Later this month I'm interviewing Dr. William Wallace, one of the art world's foremost experts on Michelangelo and author of a new biography. You can bet I'll be asking him about the intersection between art and technology in our ever-changing world.

    Read more and watch a video about da Vinci:
    Possible New Da Vinci Painting Found : Discovery News (view on Google Sidewiki)

    Contests and Winners

    Happy New Year!  I hope your year has started off well. I know that’s true for several readers of The Gypsy’s Guide.   They’ve started off by winning! And if you didn't win, there's another chance for you! Read on...


    Congratulations to Elizabeth! She is the winner in the Happy New Year’s Giveaway and will be receiving a gorgeous, leather-bound journal from Venice in her mailbox very soon. Elizabeth blogs at A Nut in a Nutshell, and you can follow her on Twitter: @blueviolet.

    Elizabeth, I hope your 2010 book is filled with exciting tales!


    The PwP prize winners have all been chosen and notified.  Many thanks to all of you who contributed so generously!  And congratulations go out to Lora!  She won my prize -- a two night stay at the luxurious Shangri-La Hotel in Vancouver, B.C. courtesy of KiwiCollection.com.  Lora, I hope you have a fabulous time, and please let us know what you think of the hotel. 

    I’ve also heard that several Gypsy’s Guide readers are winners in other drawings.  Congratulations to you all! 

    In case you haven’t heard, Passports with Purpose raised more than $26,000 -- twice our original goal.  Not only will we be building a school in Cambodia, but it will also be staffed with a nurse, a cook, a gardener, and an entire garden of produce will be planted so that the children at the school can have a nutritious meal each day.  That’s all thanks to you! 

    I’ll be participating in Passports with Purpose again next year, and if you would like to be a sponsor, donate a prize, or be a blogging partner, contact me. 


    Later this month author Robin Maxwell will be stopping by to talk about her book O, Juliet, to be published just in time for Valentine’s Day.  Robin writes popular historical fiction including The Queen’s Bastard, Mademoiselle Boleyn, and Signora da Vinci.  Her latest, O, Juliet, is a retelling of the Romeo and Juliet story set in Renaissance Italy.  I’m reading it right now and will be reviewing it later this month.

    This week Robin is hosting a giveaway on her blog.  The winner will get a signed copy of O, Juliet as well as a gorgeous heart necklace.  Stop by her blog, leave a comment, and I hope you win! 

    Thanks to you 2009 was a great year at The Gypsy’s Guide, and I’m looking forward to all that 2010 has in store.  Ciao!