BEING THANKFUL

THANKSGIVING 2012

COUNTING MY BLESSINGS

THERE ARE MANY.

I really try and practice gratitude everyday. Not just for the big things in life, but for everything.

Sometimes I get sidetracked and caught up in distractions which keep me from reaching my goals.
I am a master of procrastination and self sabotage. I need to work on this more diligentally in the new year.

I NEED TO FOCUS.

I will get myself on a good path and really be making progress towards my goals and before I know it SELF DOUBT AND FEAR WILL START TO SHOW UP and sidetrack me and slow my progress.

I have really worked so hard at removing fear and the self doubt from my life.

Some days are better than others. I still have some work to do.

2012 HAS BEEN A REALLY CHALLENGING YEAR FOR ME.

The first three quarters of the year I was in a battle with myself which drove me away and depleted me of my creative energies.

I got out of rythm with my writing. I have only done half the amount of blog entries as last year. Without being to critical I believe my writitng were more from the heart and authentic last year.

This year they seemed forced and edited.

My drawings which I was also doing daily I got away from as well.

I split my focus and was drivin by fear most of the year.

I wasted hours and hours looking for survival jobs that I  had no interest in having. I would than get upset by not getting any of these jobs. I know CRAZY.

The lightbulb  went off at the end of September and i finally realized that the only way for me to live the life I want to live is to FOCUS ON WHAT I WANT.

ONLY WHAT I WANT.

I can no longer waste my time and energy on people and things that I do not want.

So what I am thankful for is THE LIGHTBULB FINALLY GOING OFF.

I need to rid myself of self doubt.

I AM A TALENTED PHOTOGRAPHER WHO HAS A GIFT TO SHARE.

BELIEVE
FAITH
HOPE
TRUST.

What are you thankful for in your life?

Remember to be thankful everyday...Every day is a gift and opportunity to start over.
IT IS NEVER TO LATE.

Wishing everyone a happy Thanksgiving.  SHINE YOUR LIGHT.

Peace

BEAUTY AFTER THE STORM

CAPTURING BEAUTY WHENEVER POSSIBLE.

I as a photographer and an adrenaline junky was right out there tracking, monotoring and recording the storm every step of the way.

For those of you who did not know already which storm I am talking about it was

HURRICANE SANDY.

I have been living here at the Jersey Shore for the past fifteen months photographing the ocean and the surrounding beach towns on a daily basis.

The amazing thing about shooting the beach and ocean daily is that evey single day it is different.

So when Sandy set her EYE on the Shore I was going to be out there capturing the beauty. I have said many times before there is beauty in everything if we just look for it.

I did not put myself in any unnecessary danger, but I did want to witness and feel the power and presence of Mother Nature at work.

To me it is fascinating that a storm could begin thousands of miles away and just continue to grow and build up the strength to wreak the havoc that it has along the Jersey Shore and NYC.

I am not here to tell you all what to believe in but the way the Universe works and does what it does is pretty AMAZING.

Right after the storm we as a community were out cleaning the beach and town, when one of the volunteers had asked me if I had noticed the ocean.

I said to him that I was out with my camera numerous times that whole day.

The Ocean this day reminded me of when I was in Thailand or in Africa specifically in Zanzibar.

The hurricane totally changed the colors of the ocean here even if it was just for the day.
IT WAS STUNNING.

Please enjoy some of what I have captured.

I also have an online gallery where the images will be uploaded and available for purchase by weeks end.

15% OF THE PROCEEDS WILL BE DONATED FOR HURRICANE RELIEF EFFORTS
THIS INCLUDES ALL PHOTO SALES FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR.

 PLEASE SHARE WITH FRIEND AND FAMILY.

The Holidays are coming and this is a great way to get a great gift for someone and help someone in need.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT.

The link to my online gallery is http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/joeburnsimages.html.

AFTER THE STORM-IN THE DARK

October 29, 2012

HURRICANE SANDY

The Jersey Shore was bracing for Hurricane Sandy to arrive.
Atlantic City was where the eye of the storm was headed. Which meant all of the Jersey Shore as well as NYC would be hard hit.

We are now 15 days after Huricane Sandy has arrived dealing with the AFTERMATH.

For me personally it was 12 days and counting with no power. Even though my place was spared the street was very hard hit with every house being flooded. My block was one of the hardest hit because we have the ocean in front of us and the lake to the side of us.

FINALLY DAY 13 POWER WAS RESTORED. THANK YOU.

It was inconvient yes. I was over it yes. But I am thankful my place was spared.

I really can not complain because others have lost so much. Some lost everything, including LIFE.
I am finally seeing two plus weeks after the hurricane the aftermath left by the storm.

DEVASTATING.

What has been really crazy about this tragedy is  being the subject of the news and what is going on in the world and being IN THE DARK & DISCONNECTED.......SO STRANGE.

Last week the towns people of Ocean Grove rallied and had a few hundred people out on the boardwalk cleaning up the beach and removing the debris from the the town.

Ocean Grove and Asbury Park were hit and suffered a lot of damage but in comparison to some town along the Shore we did really well......Some towns were competely destroyed.

I still have seen so little coverage from the storm.

People were calling,emailing and texting saying how horrible it was down here and really concerned.

I just was able to get back online and thank people for their concern. It was much appreciated.

I was totally in the dark with no phone for a number of those days as well as no power.

REALLY IN THE DARK.

I had a mandatory evacuation and went to stay with friends in Asbury Park.

We played board games,had drinks and dinner parties by candle light.
IT ACTUALLY WAS QUITE NICE TO BE DISCONNECTED AND GET BACK TO THE BASICS.

Since returning to my place I have been doing a lot of reading and playing solitare by flashlight.
The nights have been very long since  the time change. It is pitch black for 14 hours.  Makes for very long nights.

Thank God the days have not been to bad, where I can spend eight hours outside before bundlin myself up for the long cold nights ahead.

Throughout this experience I realized that as a society we are so spoiled and do not know ho to deal with being incovienced.

For me the whole experience was a great way to clense,purge and get back to the basics of what life used to be.

A local newspaper asked people what they learned from this experience....Many folks said who their friends were.

 SO DID I.  Those of you who took the time to think of me during this most difficult time.
Your calls and messages meant a great deal. THANK YOU.

My heart goes out to all of those who have suffered, who are suffering and those that were lost in this storm.

WE NEED TO REALIZE THAT MOTHER NATURE DOES WHAT SHE NEEDS TO DO IN ORDER TO KEEP THE WORLD IN CHECK.

It is never wise to tempt Mother Nature.

As tragic as this experience has been there has been much beauty as well.

LOOK FOR BEAUTY IT IS EVERYWHERE.

WISHING EVERYONE A SPEEDY RECOVERY FROM THE STORM.