One thing I struggle with when traveling is the urge to keep moving — to find the next thing when the scenery around me begins to look familiar. Is that a bad thing? I know I sometimes need to slow down and wait in order to get great photos, but I know I’m often too impatient.

It’s funny how, when you’re traveling, everyone you meet has advice or suggestions on where to go. Don’t get me wrong — I’m not complaining. On the contrary, I enjoy learning about new places. It’s just that it can get overwhelming. If I took all the good advice I’ve been getting, I’d be gone for two years rather than two months!

One of the many things I enjoy about traveling is hearing the dialects and accents change as I travel from one area to another. Oh, and local food is a fun thing to experience too. I experienced my first pastie (no, not the kind with tassels, it’s pronounced “pass-tee”) in St. Ignace, Michigan at a friendly little place called Bessie’s (how could any place called Bessie’s not be friendly?). It’s a pastry stuffed with meat and potatoes and vegetables, and it’s very filling. They served it with gravy and cole slaw. Not something I could eat every day, but enjoyable. While on Mackinac Island, I had a very good whitefish dinner at Millie’s on Main. Being more of a seafood than a beef and potatoes kind of person (I grew up in Maryland, after all), I would have to give the edge to the whitefish dinner.

I’m enjoying meeting people along the way. Traveling is usually a good way to be reassured that, by and large, most people are nice. Especially in campgrounds, where my tiny camper draws lots of attention (although it also does that at gas stations and restaurants). It’s pretty funny to pull into a camp site with this little thing, when two sites away there’s a family with a huge RV, five kids under the age of 10, and two dogs. Which begs the question, who’s really braver making a trip like this? Me alone, or them?

I haven’t yet found a routine or rhythm to this whole blogging-from-the-road thing. Quite honestly, whenever I’m required to write anything, my first instinct is to procrastinate. Plus, it’s not always easy to find a reliable Internet connection.

But I am making notes here and there, and I promise I will share photos once a week, if not more. I’m also posting quick updates on Twitter, so please feel free to follow me that way, via the link at the bottom of this page.

I’m happy to report that the camper is really comfortable to sleep in. Way better than any tent and sleeping bag I’ve ever used. Everywhere I stop, someone asks me about the camper, so it is indeed quite the conversation starter! It puts a hit on the gas mileage of the Prius — I’m getting 35-40mpg instead of my usual 45-50, but that’s about what I expected.

I’m off to explore Mackinac Island today, and the weather in the UP is quite nice. Cloudy but pleasant in the 60s and 70s. Talk to you later!

First, an introduction. Charm City Art Club is a group founded by Baltimore artists Jeff Caporizzo, Michelle Sanzi Kermes, and me. You can see more about us at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Charm-City-Art-Club/308859099749

When I started planning this trip, I thought about what kind of photographic approach I was going to take. Was I going to concentrate on a particular type of subject matter? Shoot a in a particular style? I really didn’t want to constrain myself right out of the gate. My day-to-day photography is an exercise in exploration, so I wanted to bring that approach to this project as well. In short, I’ll photograph whatever strikes my eye, whether it’s a creation of nature or a rusty truck or an interesting character.

But I also felt that this trip needed an artistic angle or goal, and an opportunity presented itself at a recent recent meeting of the Charm City Art Club. Michelle mused on how interesting it would be for me to act as a lens – literally – for my fellow CCAC members. We talked about it for a while and agreed to collaborate on a project.

As I post pictures from my travels, Michelle and Jeff will select images and respond visually with works of their own, in their respective mediums. The ultimate goal is to present our works as a series of triptychs. Since this project is still very much in the early stages, I’ll save details until later! In the meantime, please visit CCAC on Facebook and become a fan.

I’ve long been a fan of the cool design and architecture blog Materialicious, which features contemporary and eco-friendly design projects and products from around the globe. So you can imagine my excitement at being featured on their blog here!

Even though the Baltimore Orioles have been having a tough year… um, decade, I’m a hometown girl and will always be a fan. So I was excited when writer Rafael Alvarez announced The Daily Camden project on the “Welcome to Baltimore, Hon!” blog. Each day a different photographer captures a scene of Oriole Park at Camden Yards. You can see my entry by visiting the above link, and clicking on “May 10, 2010.”

My photograph “Circle Shadows” is featured on the Australian photo spotlight site Qwertypics.com

Upon popular demand, I’ve started producing a line of note cards! They’re currently available by visiting my Open Studio at the Bromo Seltzer Arts Tower (the first Saturday of every month), but I’ll also make them available online soon!

I’m pleased to announce the release of the book Labor Markets and Business Cycles, published by Princeton University Press, which features one of my photos on the cover.

This is long overdue, but I wanted to share a project to which I contributed. A fantastic group of graphic designers and illustrators who met on the HOW Magazine design forum decided to pool talents to create this cool collection of refrigerator magnets! My photograph “Ampersand” is one of the works featured. Not only do you get some swell magnets for your fridge, but also the satisfaction of contributing to my friend Mel’s fantastic Operation NICE. It’s a win-win!

I’ve teamed up with fellow Baltimore artists Jeff Caporizzo, Michelle Sanzi Kermes, and Annette Jones-Wilson to form the Charm City Art Club. Charm City Art Club is a small organization of dedicated and passionate Baltimore artists. Our goals are simple: art for art’s sake and advocacy for the arts. Our product is good art, and shared support, under the guiding principle that artists are a big part of a better Baltimore. We’re looking forward to helping to support and promote artists and the arts in Baltimore through various projects and efforts. Stay tuned!