Wednesday, November 19, 2008

This is me 2

Okay, no more hiding behind old photos like I did last time -- here's what I look like now, at age 37:



I'm thinking this photo is a good metaphor for my life these days: I'm not sure there's a point to my efforts -- maybe it all just leads to sitting on top of a wall in the sunshine for a little while.



But why not? It's fun.

On the other hand, I feel like this is the one that really captures my life in Switzerland:



Looking through my recent photos, I noticed that -- despite my goal to try to dress better to fit in with all these snazzy Swiss people -- I still don't have any fashion sense:



And when I found this next one, it hit me that it's one of the only photos of me at home:



When I was living in my old house in Bordeaux, my excuse for not cleaning (see here) was that the house was in such a state of disrepair that it never really looked nice inside -- even when clean -- so why bother? But now that we've moved to a nice apartment in Zürich, I've discovered that I just have some sort of Midas touch for turning a dwelling into a total pig sty. Of course, I do have some help on this task:



You may also be wondering why my husband is never in any of these photos. Actually, he's in all of them, just on the other side of the camera. Here's what he looks like these days:



Actually, he doesn't look quite like that this week because I gave him a much better haircut since that photo was taken.

And now, if you'll indulge me, I'll throw in one old photo:



This is one of my favorite photos of myself with Nico as a baby. The lighting makes it look (to me) like a religious painting.

One time (a couple of years ago) I posted this photo to my blog with the caption "Madonna and Child" or something stupid like that. Then I woke up the next day -- wondering how I could ever have thought that was clever -- and deleted it in a fit of embarrassment. That incident was the inspiration for my post on booze. As I explained at the wedding in Brittany, the Internet provides whole new dimensions of ways to embarrass yourself while drinking. ;^)

Or maybe I don't even need the alcohol to be ridiculous on the Internet. Oh well, I've gotta be me!!! :D

16 comments:

Unknown said...

You and your family are gorgeous. Thanks for sharing the photos.

C. L. Hanson said...

Thanks O.G!!! :D

KC said...

I think you're beautiful! sorry I've been MIA - thanks for reading my manuscript, I'll get back to you soon.

C. L. Hanson said...

Thanks Kyla!!!

You're beautiful too -- I've seen your photos on your blog, and you clearly have a flair for fashion! :D

Varina said...

The Swiss really are depressingly snazzy dressers. I've consulted several North American and British au pairs and we agree that nothing is worse for one's self-esteem than morning pick-up at the enfantine, where one is surrounded by perfectly coiffed, thin, be-stilettoed women (I'm usually out of breath from having run there since lunch preparation took longer than expected and of course I run into that $#&*)^~ tree branch that destroys whatever good work may have previously been done to my hair only to realize I accidentally threw on the ugly shoes and still have traces of purple mascara from the previous night, but such is life, or maybe I'm just disorganized).

Also I have no idea why you would want to post old pictures, you look great!

Craig said...

Yeah, you all look so happy.

And you're right, a bright orange-red pulli with an amethyst jacket does clash a little. bit :)

Anonymous said...

I love that I can always count on seeing that wallet bulge in your pocket -- a little security in a frightening world. ;-) I think you look fab, and you are so photogenic!

Hey, that picture of Mr LFaB is from the zoo, right?

Have you guys had snow already??

- wry

C. L. Hanson said...

Thanks Sabayon!!!

Yeah, I hardly try to keep up with the Swiss on style, I'm just shooting for not embarrassing myself too badly... ;^)

Thanks Craig!!!

Yeah, I have no idea what I was thinking that day. Of course, looking back on it, I've also worn that jacket many times with a bright green shirt too, and I hate to imagine what that looked like...

Thanks Wry!!!

Actually, I'm not sure where that photo was taken, so if it looks like the zoo by your place, then that's probably what it is. ;^)

C. L. Hanson said...

p.s. Yes, we have had snow in Zurich already this year -- and we've had some fab snowball fights!!! :D

Jane Know said...

Thanks for sharing the pics. You and your family are beautiful!

http://richardbarron.net/ said...

Just keep flashing us that smile and you won't need to hide behind old photos - or anything else - at all.

-Richard

C. L. Hanson said...

Thanks Jane, Thanks Richard!!!

Unknown said...

Like you I learned the hard way that alcohol and the internet are only a good combination for porn. For everything else there's sobriety.

Great pix - so nice to see all of you as you are now. What a handsome family. What an amazing adventure you're on. So glad you're blogging because I learn a lot from you. Y'all are also a great reminder of how big the world is. Hawk reminds us to look at the world from a bigger perspective and you often do that as well.

Grazie!

C. L. Hanson said...

Thanks Tom!!!

Leah said...

I like to say: "Friends don't let friends drink and blog."

Beautiful family. :-)

C. L. Hanson said...

Thanks Leah!!! :D