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Location: Dakar, Senegal The last few months have been jam packed with excitement, I am writing this blog from Dakar where I am visiting an awesome friend who does non-profit work here. Last year I was here with a small team of artists, we painted murals night and day for a couple of weeks--which was tons of fun. This visit has been nothing short of delightful. I've been spending my first couple of days hanging out with kids at a great community center. Many of the kids in that village can't afford to go to school, so there is great opportunity for learning there. Last month I was at a similar community center in the Philippines--I am falling in love with the work that is going on around the world. It is filled with the love of God, inspirational, challenging and encouraging. There is so much that we can give all around us. Upcoming Trips: March: Photo trip to Los Angeles March 29-31st, Fresno MCC Sale April 1-2 April: Portland, OR April 6th-9th. Carlsbad, NM April 13-17th June: Dallas, Texas June 5-8, Carlsbad NM June 8-11th _________ Shannon Varis
Photographer. www.redcouchphoto.com | | |
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It is 4 hours until I leave for the next trip, did I mention that it is also midnight.
Just for the record, it is not my goal to be an insane traveling person but
I seem to fit the bill right now! Right now there are colored suitcases,
a duffle bad, art, a pelican case and a diversity of equipment
spread ALL over my parents hard wood floors. Travis (pictured above-- www.travisoberg.com)
will be playing some music in New Mexico and Colorado and I will be taking
photos (and showing a little art). I should be packing right now, but
this seems like a perfect time to write a blog so I can increase the packing pressure.
If any of you are in New Mexico or Colorado, you should come hear Travis play and
hang out! Other states: If you feel left out and would like some photo love--you
should just ask me to come, I like saying 'yes'.
NEW MEXICO SHOWS: (come, come, come--you will love Travis' music)
Carlsbad, NM: Trinity Hotel-FRIDAY JULY 30th 7pm
Carlsbad, NM: BLUE HOUSE SUMMER CONCERT- SATURDAY JULY 31st 7pm ($5)
COLORADO:To be announced.
Have a great week everyone. Be filled with lots of encouragement to do the things
that you love and to bring people with you.
Shannon Varis
www.redcouchphoto.com | | |
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It's 4 hours until 4am and that is when I am leaving for the roadshow. Right now
there are colored suitcases, a duffle bad, a pelican case and a diversity of equipment
spread ALL over my parents hard wood floors. Travis (pictured above-- www.travisoberg.com)
will be playing some music in New Mexico and Colorado and I will be taking
photos (and showing a little art). I should be packing right now, but
this seems like a perfect time to write a blog so I can increase the packing
pressure.
NEW MEXICO SHOWS: (come, come, come--you will love Travis' music)
Carlsbad, NM: Trinity Hotel-FRIDAY JULY 30th 7pm
Carlsbad, NM: BLUE HOUSE SUMMER CONCERT- SATURDAY JULY 31st 7pm ($5)
COLORADO:To be announced.
Have a great week everyone. Be filled with lots of encouragement to do the things
that you love and to bring people with you.
Shannon Varis
www.redcouchphoto.com | | |
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UPCOMING PHOTO TRIP: Carlsbad, NM July 5th-11th
On July 5th, I travel to Carlsbad New Mexico to book Senior and Family Pictures.
I've grown to love New Mexico and especially my frequent visits to Carlsbad. I always
look forward to hearing what the girls are talking about at Terri & Co beauty Salon and
getting to sit on the porch at Blue House Cafe. It's been amazing to be able to shoot photographs
over 200 families in one place and being someone that travels on average 3 weeks a month, I'm
thankful to have met so many amazing friends in the Southwest!
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|  Location: Senegal
A couple of days ago, I got sick. It started the morning that we were painting the deaf school, but it was so incredibly hot and we were working so hard, I wrote the nausea off to that. I don't think I turn into a baby very often but throwing up is my one way ticket to the following:
*As I mentioned above, turning into a complete baby
*repenting of all my sins
*sincere prayer for trading in throwing up for diarrhea
*a practice of all of my anti-throw up tactics (taking slow and deep breaths, drinking 7up, laying completely still, removing myself from smelly places, trying to fall asleep)
I finally gave in and realized that the horror was inevitable, I was going to throw up. I won't enthrall you with the details of the first place that I had to throw up--that is a story all its own and this story is actually about the ice cream man.
Yesterday, everybody else drove eight hours into the interior of Senegal and I stayed home to recover from the above. I was still a tiny bit woozy during the day but then I began to feel my glands swell. For several days, I've had an ever so slight ache near my jaw and yesterday a became a little more climatic with the swelling of glands. Insert the fact that I am very imaginative, in Africa, by myself in an apartment and feeling symptoms that I can't write off. In my mind, the swelling of glands equals an infection of some kind and any number of not good things.
My mom's friend that is a nurse recommended that I take some antibiotics for the stomach stuff---it just so happened that I had 3 pills with me from my last trip to Northern India, but only 3.
This morning I decided I would try and walk to a pharmacy to see if they had advil and the antibiotic that I could finish taking. The problem? I only know one road and my familiarity with the road ends at an ice cream shop.
I got myself ready to go, writing phone numbers down and a note in case I got lost. I tried to take a few little precautions (since I am totally alone).
I unlocked the front gate door and turned right. Everything in the area is pretty much dirt roads and buildings. I was sifting through the sand with borrowed flip flops as I walked and observed sunday morning in Senegal. It was so peaceful this morning, sunny and very quiet. I walked by a group of young guys grabbing a rickety old taxi, a few old men starting a fire for breakfast, a convenience store (more like a convenience hole in the wall) and looked around for the neon green 'pharmacy' sign.
I got to the end of the road which finishes at a large stone round a bout, looking passed the guy selling phone cards and all the businesses that were closed (9:30am is still pretty early here I think). I made my way around the large round intersection, making sure there weren't any crazy drivers around. My conclusion was that since I didn't see a pharmacy, I would go to the only place I was familiar with--an ice cream shop. Maybe I could figure something out there.
I walked in and noticed that there were still getting everything opened. I smiled as I observed the teenagers working--talking to each other loudly and expressively as they cleaned. I sat down and a nice girl brought me a menu. I speak almost NO french and almost NO woolof so I amused myself in my head wondering how all this would turn out.
I somehow ordered a crepe in half english and half french. It literally took one hour to get the banana crepe and so I played boggle on my iphone under the table while I waited. When the girl came back I asked her if she spoke English and if there was a pharmacy near by. (That whole conversation happened through facial expressions, a few english words, a few french words and a the visual aid of some medicine I had). I discovered there was one down the road.
I finished my crepe and approached the girl again in the mixed language I spoke in the above paragraph to find out HOW FAR the pharmacy was and if I could walk there. I found out I would need to take a taxi, give him 500 franks. Hmmmm...questions began to surface in my mind. If I got in a taxi, how far would I go? Would I be able to get back? Would he understand me at all, what would I do if he didn't understand? I'm not sure getting in a taxi was the best idea. I looked worried I'm sure. I said to the girl, "No French". She looked back at me like she understood why this might be a problem and grabbed me to walk outside. I thought she was going to hail me a taxi and put me in or something but instead she approached the two ice cream shop motor bikes parked outside. They are like old rickety mopeds with a medium sized cooler on the back with an imprint of the shop name.
She discussed something with the boys out there and in a matter of seconds, I was on the back of an ice cream shop motor bike getting a ride to the pharmacy from one of the young drivers. We weaved in and out of traffic and down some dirt roads to the pharmacy. I was kind of laughing in my mind and so appreciative. I spoke 'shannon' at the pharmacy. Good news? The pharmacy had advil and the antibiotic and the ice cream man waited to give me a ride back!
I said thank you and spoke the little woolof I know to him when we arrived back, "Al Humdililiah" which means 'thank God'.
ha ha. That's what I did this morning.
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