Cleveland – Page 2 – Shelley Shockley's Views from Collinwood

Looking for the light – Help-Portrait 2014

The smiles say it all. This is the light we seek to find this Saturday during the 3rd Annual Help-Portrait Cleveland event.

In three short days a few Cleveland area photographers will have the opportunity to look for the light as they participate in the 3rd Annual Help-Portrait Cleveland event.

This annual event is called Portraits of Hope and it is our desire to leave the approximately 20 families we will photograph with a sense of hope. A belief that despite their current situation things will soon turn around for them.

We are looking for that light or sparkle in the eyes of children and parents. The sparkle that says in this moment – Life is good. This is one of my favorite events of the year and I hope they can feel and experience the joy that we are attempting to share with them.

If you would like to share in this experience we will be at the Salvation Army of Greater Cleveland’s Harbor Light facility 1710 Prospect Ave. from 1 p.m. – 5 p.m.

Day 9 of 30 Days of Gratitude – Yay Browns!

I am grateful this week for the Cleveland Browns! I have been a lifelong fan and not since the 90’s have I been this geeked about my team! I have been disappointed but never to the point of giving up! Today without taking the field my Cleveland Browns are now in 1st place in the NFC North.

Gearing up for Portraits of Hope 2014

Day 6 in My 30 Days of Gratitude

I am grateful to have family and friends that join me annually in presenting this great event.

In one short month Cleveland’s Portraits of Hope 2014 will take place at the Salvation Army of Greater Cleveland’s Harbor Light facility. This is the third year we have joined forces with this wonderful organization to be a part of the international Help-Portrait movement.

Ladies on a mission — Grateful to these ladies for restoring my faith in the Help-Portrait Cleveland project. Seat (l-r) Stephanie Briggs and Angela Townsend. Standing (l-r) Bele’ Wondwossen, Keshia Johnson and Angela Tucker.

Photographers, graphic designers, make-up artists and other volunteers have given of their time, equipment and love to bring smiles to the faces of mothers and children in transition.

The bright smiles of youth were captured by Photographer Stephanie Briggs.

The mission of Help-Portrait is for photographers, make-up artists and others to skills and tools to give back to the community. Please join our efforts. If you are interested please leave your contact information in the comments section.

Volunteers Yalinda and Sharyn assess the day's activities. — Volunteers Yalinda and Sharyn assess the day’s activities.

The photos interspersed in this post are from previous events.

Working through Life’s Frustrations

Have you ever had a day when it seemed that everything you touched fell apart? I’m sure you have – well I’ve been having one of those days for that last two days!

Unwilling to let the chaos that has become my life take over I continue to push forward and try to make sense out of the stumbling blocks placed in front of me. Today was moving along smoothly when one obstacle after the other was thrown into my path, but I stood strong and said I would not let them defeat or define my day!

Affirmations like that don’t always work, but today I received the perfect gift to aid me in finding solace while cloaked in chaos. This wonderful tea set, came complete with tea and rock sugar.

A tea lovers delight — My new Tea Pot…friendships are wonderful!

This gift was as much a symbol of friendship as it was a sign to take my current work “tea pot” home for a good scrubbing. Now this doesn’t mean it never gets washed it just means that it has seen A Lot of black tea and it shows!

Tea Lab — James the Tea Technician prepares an afternoon beverage for yours truly.

The barriers and obstacles seeking to upend my spirits apparently weren’t aware of the team of supporters I have amassed, because not thirty minutes after receiving the wonderful gift shown above I received a call about a new shop aptly called “Tea Lab” where I can get all of the best tea ware along with delicious flavors.

So there you have it, the perfect way to work through life’s frustration – a nice cup of tea!

**Note this was written on Monday and as a sign of how frightful this week has been – I just got around to posting today!

Wednesdays @ The Westside Market – Seafood Edition

One of the things that makes the West Side Market such a great place is the variety of foods found under one roof. From fruits and vegetables to all varieties of meat and seafood.

Not only are the varieties vast, but they are unique too. As an example, today we are checking out Wolf Fish. You read that right Wolf! I had never heard of this variety until the spots of the fish caught my eye when passing the counter. I didn’t make a purchase that day, but in the future I’m sure to test it out, and when I do I’ll be sure to share it here with you.

Enjoy~