Tag Archives: hobby

A few on my Wish List:-).

Yes, I’m an addict. I have an absolutely crazy addiction to books, book lists and book clubs too, if I didn’t feel so easily intimidated by them. I have lists of books on-line, on my phone and other various places. I can spend hours roaming around a bookstore searching the covers for those I’m drawn to, reading summaries, smelling the newness of them, I know, I know, sickness. In Middle/High School it was Sweet Valley High and V. C. Andrews, now anything is fair game. In recent years I’ve developed a fondness for local independent book stores which I seek when we travel to other cities and states. Here, in St. Petersburg, trips to Haslams are what I crave. Haslams was born in 1933 to John and Mary Haslam and is now Florida’s largest new and used bookstore, a landmark. If you live here and enjoy reading you should really make the trip. They are located at 2025 Central Avenue,St. Petersburg, FL 33713.

I also love Voltaire Books, an independent bookstore in Key West.  It’s where I found the book Dewey almost three years ago now.  Oh, how I cried.  Books to me are like little mini adventures, you know how I love an adventure.  Haven’t I mentioned I’m a dreamer?  Books allow me to escape to another place all in my head.  Hmm?? To see what my current reads are, all you have to do is look to the sidebar on the right:-).

And, If you’re interested in getting to know more about independent bookstores, a great source is Indiebound.

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It all began when I was in Middle School, my love of taking pictures.  Once in High School, I was taking photography classes, working in the darkroom, taking pictures for the school newspaper and yearbook.  My dad had the big SLR camera with all the different lenses and I used it more then he did, lol.  It’s just been something I’ve loved to do for as long as I can remember.

I didn’t begin to see it as a career until much later.  In fact it was only four years ago that I knew I wanted to make it more then a serious hobby.  Tanya Sharkey Photography was born on March 1st of 2008.

We opened a studio location on May 1st of 2009 in St. Petersburg, FL where we specialize in modern pet and children portraiture.  Yes, these are two challenging subjects, but I’m a high energy, whirlwind of a personality so it’s fitting.  I’ve also spent most of my working career either working with or volunteering with animals.  I was a Biology major and worked as an assistant to a veterinarian for several years as well as volunteered at a large cat sanctuary in Orlando where we would educate the public about the needs of these wild animals, etc.  So, it’s really a natural fit that my specialty is pet photography.  I love every minute of it!!

Photographs of my family, friends, pets, our travels and experiences together, have always been very important to me. I love to have them on display all over our home for us and others to enjoy always. I have over 12 scrapbooks as well. Preserving these memories for my clients is just as important and it feels so amazing when my clients light up at viewing the images. It’s a feel good all around!

I continue to photograph things for hobby as much as possible to keep my spirits fresh.  I love to photograph flowers. I also take pictures of kitties whenever I’m on vacation. I can’t help it, I’m a cat lady:-).

There are BIG plans for TSP in the coming years, I’m a dreamer you see. Some will pan out and be a huge success and others will sit out. Regardless of what happens, it will be challenging and fun along the way!

Please enjoy some images above from recent sessions.

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I recently spent some time with my closest girlfriend Dawn. It’s hard to believe we live under 300 miles away and we haven’t seen each other since Thanksgiving. Dawn is one of those people who is oozing with wisdom and knowledge, especially for only turning, well, early 30-something this month! I’ve been going through a serious transformation this year and really feel the need to simplify my life. One of the things I have been really interested in is learning how to make preserves and can them myself. Dawn showed me how and now I can’t wait to get started. I hope my kiddos find it as interesting as I do. I immediately turned to the web for help with tips and recipes. Quickly I found several resources for help including this great blog called Canning Across America and Fresh Preserving from the Ball company.

I was really happy to learn that this new venture of mine is very affordable! Yay! Most of my hobbies are pricier ones. Look see here for the basic supplies needed to can. Amazon even has a Canning Store now!! So of course, knowing me, this new passion will lead to learning more about gardening, then composting and so on and on and on…. I’m positive I’ll be sharing more about canning in the future! Let me know if you Can, what you Can or if you don’t Can and you have an interest in it, if this post gave you shove:-)!

…and now for the recipe from Paula Deen.