One night we slept in the apartment of a boy we’d never met. He had moved back to the states but left all of his things there. This made me feel like he was going to walk in at any minute and demand I put his journal down. This thought was the only thing that kept me from reading every single page. There were boxers on the floor, a beer bottle on the bathroom counter, and a creepy portrait of Jesus on the wall right as you walk in the apartment. “If Jesus looked like that, I don’t think I would be a Christian.”

In Seoul, we stayed in a hostel. 3 bunk beds. There were 5 of us and we thought it very unlikely a 6th person would join us. We were wrong. A nice woman from Japan was there to greet us. Well, sort of greet us-she didn’t speak English. At all. We didn’t speak Japanese. At all. This didn’t stop her from telling us all about her day. We stared as she made sounds we’d never heard. Then smiled and nodded our heads agreeingly like you do when you don’t understand someone. We never got her name, so we just called her “Japan”.  Japan was somewhere between 22 and 54 years old. I really couldn’t tell.

One night i woke to what i thought was someone speaking in tongues and I have never been more confused in my life. It took me a minute, but my brain cleared and I realized that we were not reliving the day of Pentecost. No, it was just Japan talking in her sleep.  What was she saying? Was it about us? Does she walk in her sleep too? What if she tries to get in my bed? Does she KILL in her sleep? Did you see that episode of CSI?   My neck was sweating. My heart was pounding. I lay wide awake on my left side with my right arm prepared to jab Japan in the eye if she came within 2 feet. I stayed in this position for what felt like forever. But sometime, somehow I finally fell asleep. When I woke the next morning I shot my eyes across the room to see her empty bed. Not sure if anyone else was awake, I said “WHAT HAPPENED LAST NIGHT?” Turns out, they too lied awake that night  listening to Japan and wondering if the Apostle Paul was in her bed. After much debating, we concluded that no, the Apostle Paul was not in Japan’s bed.

I once read a book that said “time waits for no one.” Okay, really i read it last week on a calendar in a Korean bookstore. It was cheesy and cliche and I liked it. I didn’t buy it. But I did think about it. “Time waits for no one”.  I wished I’d met you sooner. I wished you would have tried harder. And I wished we would’ve stood there longer. But I didn’t. You didn’t. We didn’t. And it was February 7th, 2010. And I was here and you were there.

We took a 4 hour bus ride from Incheon to Gwangju. The curtains were mint green and the seats were cherry red. I watched an Asian man fall asleep reading the newspaper. He was well dressed. They were all really well dressed. Men in suits. Women in heels. This made me want to start dressing like an adult. A real live adult!

(insert smooth transition here)

A lot happened over the past 17 days. I am still processing so much.  I am still taken by beautiful scenes and sights. I still stare at strangers. But now, when I get caught, I don’t look away. I look them in the eyes and smile-they almost always smile back.  I don’t really know what I mean by that. But I do know that we’re all just people here. I, of course, already knew this. But seeing the world-the one that exists outside of my own always puts things into a perfect perspective.

And I don’t want to hear techno for a long time.

If you are interested in more of my SoKo ramblings (and why wouldn’t you be?), click here.
saranghae.

I may not have been the person I promised 2011 that I would be. But this past year was so good to me. I spent my days traveling the world and taking its photograph. I met some strangers along the way who quickly turned into my very dear friends. I learned how to play chess. I laughed really loud. I beat Bobby in Words With Friends ( like 8 times, but who’s counting?). I went to Hawaii for the first time in March. Oh, and then I decided to move there in December. Did I not tell you I moved to Hawaii? No big deal.

As for 2012, I want to make Honolulu feel like home. Free sweet tea, my place- be there. I want to write more, hand written letters and fill the pages of my journal. I want to document everything. I want to remember these days. Because they are so good. And the ones that aren’t, the ones that are heavy and terrible, they are worth remembering also. Because it’s those days, who make me who I am:  A normal girl, average build, decent personality, incapable of playing sudoku or driving a stick shift but unwilling to accept anything less than an absolutely breathtaking 2012 (and so on and so on.)

Cheers!

Christina Heaston Photography is offering a Black Friday special. Book a photoshoot for more than 40% off the regular price. There are only 10 slots available. Photoshoots can be used for head shots, family portraits, boudoir, engagement shoots, or bridal session.

Normally $2,400, we are offering 3 brides full day wedding coverage for only $1900. That’s $500 off!

Sale ends Monday, November 28, 2011. While supplies last.

email christinaheaston@gmail.com or call 864.421.4936

I am excited to announce that I will be ending my 2011 with a few last minute adventures. In less than two weeks, I will be headed to the west coast!

Do you remember the Sometimes Sweet giveaway from a few months ago? Well, I’m finally headed back to California to shoot the winner, Hayley. (Check out her blog for some great ideas about fashion, music, travel, and life ). Then off to Arizona to visit my friend and the coolest mom I know, Danielle from Sometimes Sweet, and her precious family. While I am there, I will be offering a great deal to CA & AZ people. If you need Christmas cards, family portraits, anniversary portraits, head shots, engagement photos, or just some fun photos of you and your loved ones, please email me to set up a date. I’m so excited about this trip and hope to meet you and maybe snap your photo too!

I will be home for Thanksgiving, traveling between North and South Carolina. The holidays are just around the corner and this is the LAST week of 2011 that I will be shooting in the Carolinas, so email me ASAP for more info.

After that, I will be spending December in one of my favorite places in the whole world, Hawaii!

If you or any of your friends are interested in scheduling a shoot in the states above, please fill out the form on the contact page or email christinaheaston@gmail.com

Head over to Geneologie.com to request a catalog.

So, this one’s a little crooked, but we cut, folded, stamped, sewed, and stuffed these hand-made folders with info and a special discount to brides who book by October 1st:) And by we, I mean, every person in sight- I had my sisters folding, friends cutting, and my mom sewing these babies together!)

Even though he is entirely too old to do such a thing, this guy pulled an all-nighter with me. Stayed up printing, mounting, cutting, folding, coffee running- even sewing! Yes, he too, got stuck behind the sewing machine for a few hours. With no sleep, we were basically zombies the entire day… not the flesh-eating kind though.

Rachel and Jeff were saints. They tangled themselves in twine for a good hour or two until I was satisfied with the placement of the photos. They set the whole thing up themselves. I told them it was because it was very important that I erase every pencil mark off each piece of wood. But really, it was because I trust them more than I trust myself when it comes to wood and twine and straight lines and four inches and life in general, really.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by and said hello. It really was a pleasure meeting every single one of you, from the bride-to-be’s, to the other photographers, to the medic man who couldn’t have been less interested in a wedding show yet still spent the evening hanging out with us.

Thanks to Marc and Colleen of Weddding Festivals for such a great opportunity and a wonderful show! I look forward to the next one:)

Oh yeah, and Ruben is also a break dancer. No big deal.

We miss you Ruben!

Erin owns an awesome vintage shop, Viva La Vintage, in downtown Hampton. We had to keep checking her facebook status on the way to make sure she would even be there. Lucky for us, she was. I still can’t believe I didn’t take more photos of her shop! I was just too excited I guess:)

Erin is also a very talented musician. Listen to her music and visit the Viva La Vintage fb page