So You Think You Can Dance - Top 16

Favorite routine - Miranda and Robert - just because of its fun factor
Favorite male dancer - Ricky
Favorite female dancer - Sasha
Favorite choreography - Tabitha and Napolian
Favorite costume -Sasha's Dress
Best use of a prop - The bed in Tadd and Jordan's routine
Most likely to go home - I haven't a clue. I am afraid it might be Ashley and Chris because of the strange routine they got from Sonia. I hope not as I love them both.

File This Under You've Got To Be Kidding Me...

These shoes by Louboutins are actually up for auction to raise money for the English National Ballet. I'd love them if they were made with a little kitten heel! These look like a death trap.

From Rue Magazine

I love how this dining room mixes styles and woods. I especially like the dining room table. The magazine spread is from Rue Magazine...an online design magazine.

Woman With Parasol

Just love my iPhone. I took a picture of a vintage postcard, a picture of an abstract painting I did. Then used the Photo Toaster app and the Diptic app. I then cropped the bottom off to make it a rectangle instead of a square.

Photo Toaster app 

Diptic app

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20 Again

Favorite dance of the night - Ashley and Chris

Favorite female - Sasha

Favorite male - Chris

Favorite choreographer - Spencer Lift

Favorite song - Please Mr. Jailer - Rachel Sweet

Favorite lift - Tadd lifts Jordan and dances the waltz while she was in the lift

Most likely to go home - Jess, Nick, Iveta, Missy, 

Update - Well I guessed 3 out of 4. Wadi left tonight with Nick, Iveta and Missy. Hated to see Wadi go home. He was one of my favorites.

iPhone 5 with New Camera

Rumor has it that Apple is releasing the new iPhone 5 in September. And it is suppose to have a 8 megapixel camera. Cool!

The picture at the left is a new app I am trying out called tweegram. You can publish notes directly onto Instagram.

Both of the tweegram and Instagram are free.

Beach Volleyball

Beach volleyball on the beach in Santa Cruz, the boardwalk, sunny days, taking pictures with my iPhone. Life is good!

Happy Father's Day

I love this picture of my family. My dad looks so California cool. I'm the short one, with my dad's camera.

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20 Results

Everyone danced so well. The judges kept everyone. So glad they did. Two couples will go home next week. Fabulous dancers!

A Picture of a Picture

I have had the Instagram app dowloaded on my iPhone for quite awhile. I am just now spending some time playing with it. @joshjohnson has a regular forum where he posts projects. Today the project was take a picture of a picture. Here's my entry. If you are on Instagram you now can find me @photogcynthia.

Instagram - it's free.

So You Think You Can Dance - Top 20

First week of finalist competitions on SYTYCD and it looks like it's going to be a great season. I love this show. It is without a doubt my favorite reality show!
Best Couple - Melanie and Marko
Best Female - Melanie
Best Male - Wadi
Best Choreography - Travis Wall
Best Lifts - Wadi and Missy's  Demon routine
Best Music - Turn to Stone - Ingrid Michaelson
Best Costume - Sasha - loved her dress

Great dances, my guess for who will go home - Miranda and Mitchell (who didn't dance because of an injury.

Way too many commercials - luckily I have TIVO

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

In State of Wonder, pharmaceutical researcher Dr. Marina Singh sets off into the Amazon jungle to find the remains and effects of a colleague who recently died under somewhat mysterious circumstances.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett had me completely hooked within the first few pages. It was clear that a heroine's journey was set into motion...a journey that takes place in the Amazon jungle.

While in my 30s I also flew into Manaus alone and travelled up the Rio Negro part of the Amazon River into the jungle. I still think it was crazy taking such a trip by myself. I was a woman alone, completely dependent on the strangers I paid to take me up the river in their small boat. Every day I thought about how easily I could just disappear in the jungle and my family would never know what happened to me.

My trip was far from heroic. I just wanted to take photographs. When I checked into my hotel after a week in the Amazon I almost started to cry when I saw that my room had both a shower and a bath tub. Dr. Sing goes to save lives.

While reading State of Wonder, all of those memories, fears, smells, the mysterious beauty, the oppressive heat, the relentless bugs, came rushing back to me. Whether you have been to the Amazon or not, this is a wonderful book...a must read if you enjoy books about adventure and heroic journeys that change and transform the main character.

Hydrangeas

Quit Taking My #%/* Picture!

I think Lola is tired of my photographing her. She gave me "the look."

This Month's Top Ten Tips From My Favorite Magazines

1.  Martha Stewart had these festive paper lanterns in this month's Living, which I thought were so much fun. You don't have to cut the tissue circles yourself, but can find them at Hygloss Products, $6 for 480 five inch circles. You can get 12 inch paper lantern frames at Pearl River for $3.50.

2.  I found out about Canopy and Stars in this month's British InStyle magazine. Cool way of camping throughout the U.K. You can stay in a gypsy wagon, a yurt, tent or a treehouse. Ever since I was a little girl I wanted to live in a gypsy wagon. This could be my chance, at least for vacation.

3.  I love how designers and artists can find fabulous color palettes all around them. House Beautiful put together a gorgeous palette from the jewel scarab beetle from Central and South America.

4.  I have been trying to decide on window coverings for our guest bedroom. The simplicity of these windows are really charming. What do you think? Too simple? (Also in this month's House Beautiful.)

5.  I saw this Tiffany flower holder pendant advertised in Elle. I'm not sure how practical it would be with a flower bouncing up and down on your chest, in a little vase with water, but it sure is beautiful.

6.  Love this blown glass collection of lighting pendants from Vancouver Canada's Bocci.

7.  I mean really...don't you want to have breakfast on this patio? Living Etc is probably my favorite magazine. It always has so many beautiful ideas.

8.  I have never been big on pink rooms, probably because the men who have been in my life would be horrified with the idea. However this room (also in LivingEtc) makes me think pink offers all kind of fabulous possibilities for color combinations. I would have thought a yellow couch with pink walls would feel like an easter egg. This one feels modern, fun and sophisticated. 

9.  My mom used to make these from her leftover pie dough. They weren't quite as fancy. Food Network Magazine calls them Pie Fries. We just called them yummy.

10.  Several magazines mentioned this limited edition bag by Tommy Hilfiger and modeled by Renee Zellweger. It's the fifth bag designed by Hilfiger to aid Breast Health International.

My Favorite iPhone/iPad Journal App - My Daily Journal

I have downloaded and tried so many journal apps. I recently downloaded My Daily Journal and it's terrific. I'm not the only one who thinks so. This app was recently ranked the #1 iPhone, iPad, iTouch journal app on iTunes.

What I like most about My Daily Journal...

•  It's very easy to use.

•  You can lock your journal with a password.

•  You have a bunch of fun fonts to choose from.

•  You can manually set the date.

•  You can use your own photo as a screened background for your writing.

What's missing now but is coming soon...

•  I would like to be able to add photos, not just as a background...that is coming in a future update.

•  I would like to be able to sync between my iPhone and iPad...that is also listed for a future update.

This is a useful, great little app that will just be getting better and better. Right now it's specially priced at 99¢.

My Daily Journal app