"Winter Ghosts" with Brogaard Photography (Hagerstown, Maryland)

Generally speaking, the meme to the right very accurately describes my preferred method of 'enjoying' the winter season. I grew up in a state with, ugh, 'All Four Seasons' *shudders* and I've definitely

​suffered enough snow to last a life time. All the dark, cold, dreariness of winter.. I would just stay home (my university attendance was quite abysmal, as was the average length of my various employments), drink deLICIOus winter beers, and eat pizza pretty much non-stop. I was quite chubbier then. 

​Fast forward to my first Christmas Bikini Bounce in LA, and my winters look much, much different! I of course still travel often though, and have had a number of 'Winter Close-Calls!', so in honor of the blizzards the rest of you poor bastards are currently suffering, I thought I'd share this gorgeous photo set, courtesy of Brogaard Photography, taken early (VERY early) one October morn' in the beautiful nowheres of Marlyand, when the temperatures dropped way too close to 0 for me to be happy..

This is about as happy as I can be anywhere below 75 degrees F

Click "Read More" below for the entire (Not Safe For Work) photo set, and don't forget to download This Months Wallpaper of choice (yay! options!) and be sure to check out the newest Available Print from this photo shoot!

It's not exactly a reassuring sign when, at roughly 6am in Hagerstown, Maryland (that's 6am their time aka 3am my LA time aka I've already been up for an hour before my usual bedtime .. #JETLAG), photographer Rob Brogaard informs me that the temperature dropped *a lot* the night before and 'I dunno, what do you think? Should we risk it?' in regards to our early morning shoot.

I've made it no secret - i HATE mornings and i HATE the cold. but goddammit, I'm a professional.

'Let's do it,' I said. "FOR THE ART!!" (I implied).

For. The. Art.

Click any pic for a larger view =)

My feet were soaked/frozen/like two stabby stones the moment I stepped out of the car. Then I took off my socks and shoes, along with all my other clothes. Oh the beauty, and oh the chill!, of the morning fog, so dense that sound is muffled, and the world becomes still and eery. I would focus on little things to keep my heart from falling into complete, cold, despair; a perfect flowering bud covered in dew, a sparkling, secret spider web lying in wait for breakfast (the beautiful brutality of nature), the silent flap of a dark, passing bird, a perfect, fallen leaf underfoot...

The sky was quite blindingly clear, but the chill of winter hung heavily. Snow was coming soon, and hasn't stopped since.

Each time a light or location adjustment was needed, I crouched, huddled inside the world's most *heavenly* cloak (provided by the photographer), shaking decently and clutching a thermos of hot water, taking small sips to bring the heat back slowly into my belly.. Once I had released a number of quiet whimpers like a small, wounded, animal, and a little of my finger dexterity had returned, it was back to posing, carefully placing my lead feet one ahead of the other into the ideal spot, doing my best to avoid heavily spiked plants and freezing, slippery, crunchy mud along the way.

And then, something truly amazing happened; The sun came out.

While the temperature still remained well into freezing, I basked in that sun like a lonely soul, finally meeting it's mate. Every ray on my skin I absorbed, thoroughly and hungrily, willing away the chill in my heart.. 

Have I mentioned how much I do NOT enjoy being cold??

As I looked out over 'my stage' in the growing, morning light, I observed the transition, from sky to sun to steam to fog to brush and to ground. And if it all felt a little Haunted, it was only fitting. This land was 'stage' to many a gruesome battle in the civil war too. This land used to belong to rich and varied native peoples, who were almost entirely, "righteously" eradicated. This land used to belong to no one. This same field sat open to the quiet of the sky, for hundreds of thousands of millions of years before little Jin N Tonic came to be. I thought of all the men who had walked this same field, in the same, freezing, morning fog and blinding sun, and how many of them walked this field to their death. I thought of the ground, full of secrets and rituals and burials from native peoples we don't even teach about in our schools. I thought of the soil, so fertile, soaked in the blood and bones of a thousand human beings. Ten thousand human beings. A hundred thousand human beings. Names and faces that existed for a blink of an eye before ending here. And as I stood there I thought of all the mornings and all the decisions and all the changes and trials and tears and triumphs that of my life that had led me to this very same field, with the sun steaming off my own bare skin, and inside I kind of went 'huh' and wondered what it all meant, and ignored the shit out of my throbbing feet.

We didn't see another (living) soul that morning, which is good, because technically all of this is quite incredibly illegal.

After hours of illegal, freezing, amazingness, we headed back to the studio for more shooting fun (those images for later!) but as soon as I got bundled and seated, I couldn't help it, I fell asleep immediately (haha) and Rob, who's a total friggen sweetheart, snagged this final photo.

​Awwwwww!! So snuggly!

As always - I love you!! Thanks for joining the fun! Wherever you are, I hope you're staying warm! Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get some more sunscreen before enjoying a fresh fruit salad on the beach in a bikini. 

PS No travel plans until the end of Feburary. Check the Tour Dates!

XoXo
JNT

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All images are ©Brogaard Photography 2015
Please feel free to share, but also please be respectful and be sure to credit the amazing artists who work so hard to make this all possible.

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