being…

So it is: the life we are given isn't short but we make it so; we're not ill provided but we are wasteful of life. Just as impressive and princely wealth is squandered in an instant when it passes into the hands of a poor manager, but wealth however modest grows through careful deployment if it is entrusted to a responsible guardian, just so our lifetime offers ample scope to the person who maps it out well.”

My favorite of Jane Austen’s works, often overlooked but a worthy read. Northanger Abbey gives us a story through Catherine Morland’s wide-eyed imagination, the gentle skewering of Gothic novels, and Henry Tilney’s witty charm, and it never gets old (at least not for me…).

My favorite thing about this book is Austen’s playful defense of fiction itself. It’s pure delight. “The person, be it gentleman or lady, who has not pleasure in a good novel, must be intolerably stupid.”

Anyone else a fan of this one, or is it still flying under the radar for you? If it is, I highly recommend.

From the moon to the mood of barebone limbs and tiny birds, nature is always an inspiration, and Hipstamatic (now 16 years old!) remains one of my favorite creative photography apps.

📷 iPhone 17 Pro

🛠️ Hipstamatic App (Franco Lens + Libros Film)

shot with iPhone 17 Pro Back triple (ISO 3200, 1/15, 25mm, f2.2) using Hipstamatic (Pedro V + Jardim PR)

Spinning trees whisper.

A vortex of fleeting time.

And the sky was made of amethyst…