No more Atlanta traffic, no more...yeah yeah yeah

So....me....my life....is CHANGING.

As of September 29th, the day I turn 28, I will be returning to a previous job that I held...with mixed feelings. I didn't love my previous job at American Homecare where I was a collector of money from insurance companies, but I did like the people and the company. It is also closer to home. This is advantageous for several reasons 1) 12 minutes away from the house as opposed to 55 minutes, 2) This means I can sleep an hour later which is GREAT!! 3) I can come home over my lunch break, 4) I can take Liam to school in the morning, which he is so stoked about, and 5) I will be working with my mother-in-law again which I really liked actually.

And all that means no more traffic...as pictured below.

I took these on my phone one dayon the commute home to show exactly what I would NOT be missing anymore. As you can somewhat see from the top left photo, traffic is backed up BOTH directions.

The bottom left photo shows the source of all evil on my ride home. The Wesley Chapel exit. One of the most poorly planned exits for an interstate. It comes less than a mile after I-285 merges onto I-20 so it causes great congestion from the people on I-20 trying to switch lanes before they miss their exit and the people coming off of I-285 who are trying NOT to get off on that exit. General yuckiness ensues. The bottom right is my usual look as I am sitting in the mess that results.

One more not so great photo for your perusing pleasure but with a much happier story.
This is David Jay (aka DJ by all of his friends, which I hope to be someday...geez I sound like a stalker) and I after the conclusion of the Free to Succeed tour in Atlanta on Monday night. I think this seminar may have been a turning point in my life as a photographer.

Let me explain for those of you who don't know who DJ is. He is an incredibly successful wedding photographer who never had any formal training in the field. Learned as he went...kind of like me. He has been touring with a very informative seminar Free to Succeed. Since it is now over, you won't be able to attend yourself but if you go here you can get the DVD which I highly reccomend if you are thinking about starting a photography business.

So investing the money to go to this seminar was totally worth it. I am glad I followed [b]ecker's advice and went. I am now armed with the information and confidence that I need to really start pushing my photography...finally. Considering I started shooting weddings when I was 18 (1998) and then just slipped out of it in the past 3 years or so (having a kid and getting married kind of does that to you) it's about flippin' time.

So I have a friend of mine working on a logo for me so that I can start branding myself and I have some friends lined up as guinea pigs so that I can refresh my portfolio and I am going to start arming my friends with information needed to start selling me. ;) I also started a facebook so I can start networking my photography a bit more. And I am getting in contact with some old photography friends so that I can start networking through them.

YAY! {{deep breath}} Here's hoping that this time next year I will be able to quit my day job and pioneer.