BACKGROUND: I was on vacation for two weeks in the Canadian Rockies. I plan vacations in the northern regions of our great continent to escape the heat and humidity of DC. Being cool (as in temperature) is a real priority for me. I take weather very, VERY personally. Like the rain is happening TO ME. The humidity is all about ME. I can't really relax on vacation until it's a perfect sunny day, 78 degrees, light winds from the north east.
Photo #1: Icefields Parkway, Alberta, Canada
PHOTO #1: It's 78 degrees with a fabulous cold wind coming from the GLACIER across the road. I was so happy with myself and my family and our friends, I was overflowing. I snapped this pic and sent it to my brother and sister. They responded with adulation and enthusiasm, which I appreciated. But the main event was my abundant feelings of well being. A perfect mix of hiking, being with my kids and fresh air. While the feedback from the pic was nice, it wasn't as nice as where I was.
Photo #2: Glacier Lake National Park, Montana, USA
PHOTO #2: Isn't this beautiful? Aren't you the teeniest bit envious? Behind the camera though I was hot and sweaty and grumpy. There was a heat wave. My 78 degrees had turned to 93 degrees with a billion percent humidity and half a trillion other hikers on MY trail. I'm not sharing this to complain, the point is that I was actually feeling very cheated that my perfect vacation was being invaded by a heat wave, so I decided to get a cheap thrill by sending this photo to a bunch of people. They responded by saying how beautiful it was, and fabulous, and this sorta filled up my hot, humid and disappointed cup.
Photo #3: Waterton Lakes, Glacier National Park, Alberta, Canada
PHOTO #3: Our trip continued, and like all trips, some of it was fabulous and some of it was disappointing and some of it was annoying and some of it was glorious. I noticed the more content I was with my reality the less compelled I was to share it. I could just live it, contentedly. The more let down I was by my reality, the more I wanted positive feedback from people. So I snapped finely framed photos, editing out the parts that disappointed me. I sent this photo on the last day of our trip. This final stop on our two week sojourn was touristy and hot and I did not like it. Our motel was kinda grungy, smelled bad, and the 'view' was a joke. Dinner was a disappointment, the beer list was lacking, the ice cream joint was meh. Did I mention it was hot and HUMID. IN CANADA. I shot this on a morning stroll and sent it off looking for the feel good juice because I could crop out all the bitterness and wait for the oohs and ahhhs from the texts to lift my drooping (and hot) spirits.
FINAL THOUGHTS: Vacation photos are fun. I love sharing them, I love looking at other peoples. I'm inspired by where all my fun friends go, and I'm the teeniest bit jealous. And then, I remember that in every photo there are disappointing, grungy, beer list lacking, and humid parts edited out. Just like in each and every one of our photos!
*Originally published August 2015. I'm on my way to Park City, let's hope it's nice and cool! New content next week!