My L.L. Bean Dog

*Feel free to skip the writing and go right to the photos, I get it*

Full disclosure, Svein is not an L.L. Bean model but every time we get a new catalog, we'll leaf through it and say, "that could've been you, Svein. Too bad you missed the callback when you were a pup."  While being incredibly good-looking, and told that constantly, Svein is still the every-dog with his struggles and quirks. For instance, if I throw the ball for him in the snow, he is terrible at finding it even if he saw where it fell (top photo here was when he found the ball after a 10-minute search...). He also gets his lip caught on his teeth fairly often and looks like a complete doof. And, during the winter, he regularly immerses his head in piles of snow for unknown reasons (smells? Idk). His hobbies include coming up from behind people and jamming his head in between their legs in hopes of a chin scratch, looking hopeful whenever food is around, and deciding to roll onto his back, right to the middle of the bed every night, without fail (why should I have room for my whole body to fit on my bed? Who am I? The Queen of England??). That being said, Svein is also gentle with children, has been a great source of comfort through some rough times, and is the best running buddy. So L.L. Bean dog official or not, he's more than deserving of my obsession with him and worthy of the Instagram account I will inevitably create for his many fans. 

Winter Storm Svein

Winter Storm Svein

Spring Svein

Spring Svein

Casual Spring Snow Svein

Casual Spring Snow Svein

Lake Svein

Lake Svein

Snowshoe Buddy Svein

Snowshoe Buddy Svein

Beach Svein

Beach Svein

Rocky Maine Coast Svein

Rocky Maine Coast Svein

XC Ski Buddy Svein

XC Ski Buddy Svein

Maine Model Svein

Maine Model Svein

Fall Model Svein

Fall Model Svein

Puppy Svein (he still chooses to sit on my lap this way from time to time). Photo by J.H.

Puppy Svein (he still chooses to sit on my lap this way from time to time). Photo by J.H.

Ready?

Portland Head Light, Portland, Maine, USA(a.k.a. home)

Portland Head Light, Portland, Maine, USA(a.k.a. home)

I have tried and failed multiple times to keep a blog, much less one while I'm traveling. In the year that follows (and maybe for a while after) I will attempt to regularly update this photoblog in order to share what I'm experiencing as I travel. This will be no simple task for me, as I'd much rather be out soaking up whatever town or city I'm in and be so tuckered out by the end of the day that I simply wave off updating this with an "I'll do it tomorrow." But alas, I am traveling because my family opened the world to me and my wonderfully supportive friends have been encouraging me to share my photography and travels with a wider audience - it seems only right that this photoblog serve as a small token of my gratitude. And to anyone who happens upon the blog, I hope it functions as an engaging perspective from a twenty something year old traveler, complete with a sprinkling of compelling stories and a hint of humor (depending on how tired I am will determine how punchy these posts will be).

And while I tend to be a half glass full person anyway, for the next year I am taking a leaf out of one of the most optimistic and wise beyond her years characters, Pippi Longstocking's, book and using her words as my mantra, "Det har jag aldrig provat, så det klarar jag helt säkert!"* Ready? Here we go!

 

*I have never tried this, so I'm sure I can do it!