The Biggest Small Town

I have never had a city that I called "home." Technically, I have lived in Rock Hill the longest. After 2 years in my house, I have lived here for a grand total of 7 years. But I graduated high school from Clover, got my accent from Gainesville, GA, was born in Simpsonville, and opened my first bank account in Inman. On top of that, I have worked in Charlotte for a year and a half.

So I don't have a hometown.

But everything that I imagine about hometowns is this. Smiling faces, running into a neighbor wherever you go, and feeling as if you know the entire city (whether you do or not). And, to me, this is Charlotte.

The writers of Sex and the City refer to New York City as the 5th lady. They had a love affair so deep with the city that SJP calls it her "boyfriend" in one of the episodes. And yet, Charlotte beat out New York as the best city to live in. And it's easy to see why.

In a city that is expected to exceed one million within 3 years, it is easy to find your home. There are meetups, running clubs, social clubs, churches, and other interest organizations, all dedicated to helping you find your way in the biggest small town ever. Not to mention, a quick search on facebook can find you at least 3 groups where you can scream, "I'm new to the city. Be my friend!"

But I seem to forget, and take for granted, the extrovert nature that consumes me. While it is easy to make that connection, it is also easy to have a hard time finding it. You want to go to a meetup, but they already know each other. I recently found a photography meetup... a cool way for me to get to try out the camera with a wide range of expertise before heading out to Africa... but I even found that I was sitting there going, "What if they're mean to me???"

But, here's what makes us better than New York. As transient as this city is, with as much to do as there is, with as many people as there are... it is still friendly. Striking up a conversation in the grocery store isn't unheard of. Going to church and asking for help isn't weird. And, although nothing comes CLOSE to the real Broadway, our city does a pretty kick-A job of forming great symphonies, getting in great musicals and plays, and even has a pretty great skyline... for a small town.


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Things to do in Charlotte to meet people:

• Join a meetup
• Go to CharlotteONE: (Christian)
• Join the Jewish Community Center (Jewish)
• Get involved with Sports Connection

Why I am the Way I am...

Yes, I too wish I could explain here all of the intricacies of "the Hutch". But, unfortunately, I can only scratch the surface.

Still, there are a few things you should know.

To start off, I get really, really really frustrated with my job sometimes. We have a new intern in the office today who is exploring the world of nonprofit. Well, as fun as it is, we have to do cold calling for the next couple of weeks. I hate cold calling. I'm pretty sure she hates cold calling. it is not a fun job.

But this is why it's not fun, and why I get frustrated with my job.

I go to work and I see this:

This is Leah. Leah is one of the kids in our summer camp. She is just about the most adorable child I have ever seen (other than my nephew, of course). And what you don't see in this picture are the 6 other children at the table, all of which held up their arms to hug me right before I took this picture.

But, see, I walk into this room and see all of these children and I want to cry they are so adorable. They are singing camp songs and dancing around. Showing pride for their "animal" (the kids are separated into teams and each team has an animal name). And then I walk back to my office for cold calling, where I hear this:

-Our money is already allocated

-Sorry, we only have a select few charities we help

-Fill out X, Y, and Z form, and maybe, possibly, we will consider helping you

-What can you do for us?

And, of course...

-No

Now, don't get me wrong, I love elements of my job. I love the relationship building. I love the feeling of accepting a check from someone who truly, really wants their excess money to go to help.

But that rejection, when you have to look at the child's face is really really tough. Knowing that there are charities out there with million dollar marketing budgets when we can't even get $10,000 for a bus to take our kids on field trips is tough, particularly when those charities are the ones "selected" by these companies as the only ones they'll help.

And here's the kicker. We are in the second largest financial city in the US, next to New York. We are the ONLY market in the US to see an increase in our real estate market. and yet we are ranked 27th out of 30 metro markets for charitable giving. We have less nonprofits than other cities, and yet our nonprofits (at least those that I have relationships with) are all reporting the same type of rejection.

So, I ask, beg, and plead with you... The next time you're quick to say "no" to a nonprofit, take a second to think about whether or not you can really help.

So, the camera is finally here and I spent all of my free time Friday and Saturday learning how to use it. I am not going pro at all yet, but I figure these could either be something to laugh at later. I try hard, ya know? These are just my favorites.

Pictures and Panic Attacks

About a month ago, I made an offhand statement to my friend, David Johnson, concerning buying a camera for my trip to Africa. I have a digital camera that my dad gave me, but since one of my responsibilities on the team to Africa is co-leader of photography and video, I felt that I needed a higher quality camera. Mine is great for nights out with friends, but I knew it couldn't handle safaris and capturing those split-second moments of joy in the orphanage.



So, I mentioned to David that I was looking into possibly, maybe, getting a new camera.

Tip 1: never mention to a photographer that you need a new camera.

Tip 2: never mention to a man that you need electronic equipment in general



David offered to sell me his. I was all over that, since it was the Canon 20D he used to shoot the book. But, after some talking, he (very patiently, I might add) explained to me that SLR's don't always come with the lens, and that the price he quoted me was body only (already out of my price range).



So, I told him to go with the other offer he had on it, and I would try and find another one. He suggested that at my price range, I try to find a used Canon Rebel. Little did he know, he was sending a mildly obsessive compulsive person out into the wild to find a professional grade camera (or, at least, what most people call the "bridge" camera from amateur to professional).

It has been about a month since that first conversation, and I have spent the past month researching, pricing out, making offers on, and finally purchasing different elements of the Canon Rebel.



Here is my quick lesson of things I have learned in the past month:





Camera basics 101: SLR stands for "Single Lens Reflex" and basically means the lens is removable. It is a professional camera, but there are different levels of "professional". DSLR is the digital version. There are about a bajillion and two different lenses, of which I am just now learning. My quick lens basics are that the "focal length" of a camera is basically how well it zooms... 35-55mm is standard for a Canon Rebel, and 75-300mm is the most common telephoto (not to be confused with a 35mm camera, which means film).



Canon Camera Basics:

A Rebel is basically the "intro" to professional photography. Still basic enough that a novice can use it, but has some advanced settings on it that a professional photographer could use as well (don't ask me to use those, yet!). The Canon Rebel has been around since the dawn of digital photography (and actually before, since it started as a 35mm). There are currently 3 versions that you can get in the store: XT (SRP: $550 w/lens), XTi (SRP: $750-ish w/lens), and XSi (SRP: $899-ish w/ lens). The XT is being phased out of stores since the addition of the XSi (the XTi and XSi are both 10.1 MP, the XT is 8), so it's getting harder to find new, but it's in Target and Wal-Mart now.



The next level are the "D's". Since these are all way out of my price range, I didn't do a ton of research, but basically there currently floating out there is 10D, 20D, 30D, 40D, and 5D. You can't get the 10D and 20D new anymore, but they are still out there floating around in used camera world. This is the first level of truly professional photography. Like I said, no clue about these cameras.



So, after all of my month of research, making different offers on cameras, a lot of stress, and crunching and re-crunching numbers, I finally bid on (and won!) a new camera on eBay. I settled on a Rebel XT with 3 lenses: the standard 35-55mm lens, the 75-300 telephoto, and a wide angle lens (I have no idea the specs on this lens until I actually have it in hand... the price was good enough with just the first two lenses that this lens was just a "bonus" in my eyes!) The camera is new, less than 100 shutter activations, and comes with a lot of little extras, including a tabletop tripod, camera, and memory.

My new "baby" will be mailed Monday, to arrive sometime this weekend. Plan on lots of extra posts of "creative" pictures once it arrives. I'm really excited to practice before I head out to Africa. I'm hoping to take a trip to Columbia at some point to practice some shots there, and of course expect some NoDa pictures as well. :-) If anyone wants me to come out and practice with them, let me know! I will have fun playing over the next month!