Time Off

Chapter two will start Monday January 7th. Have a grand New Years.

The end of chapter one (600 posts)

This blog is at the end of chapter one. This first chapter was about doing something creative five days a week and uploading it for the world to see. The second (hidden) goal of this blog was to document my thoughts and interests for two years. I started writing this blog about two weeks before the birth of my daughter. The premise of keeping a working portfolio for my daughter to look back upon sat well with me. I wanted something more than a handwritten journal but nothing with too much editing (besides grammar), I wanted to keep the work real. I will get the archives of the past two years printed in a book and save it for my daughter to read when she’s older. I wonder if the words “blog” and “upload” will still be in use when she reads this. 

This blog has been a complete success and a complete failure. The success part has been the marketing it has provided me with to sustain our business. Blogging is sort of a backdoor marketing plan. If you keep at it, it pays off better then spending money on advertising. Another triumph is achieving the goal of creating 600 new posts in two years. It just feels good to complete a goal. The final accomplishment is the documentation of two years of my life to hand down to my daughter. I’m sure she will find this blog to be odd and weird but hey, I’m Dad. 

The failure has been the online store. To my own confession I did not work the online store very well. One, I did not write or post many photos about it. Two, I did no other social networking type of marketing to grow the business. No matter how you slice it, the online store is a bust. 

To my delight the blog supported the greater of the two needs. There is more money to be made off of selling photography services than there is in just selling prints. Here is a tip to all you photogs out there; People pay for the service of what you do not see more than the product you would think should be seen. What I mean by that is everybody has a camera but not too many people kno whow to take a photograph. 

Chapter Two
There will be a slight change in what my goals are for this blog. The slight change will be the lack of goals. I will not force myself to post five times a week (but probably will). The photography focus will be on ambient art and the written topics will still be compositions, journals, rants, moments and photos of the week. I will start some new projects and relationships in 2008.

Thank you to all for hanging out with me and reading this blog… 

City Night Photography - (Project completed)

This is the last photo in the City Night series.


Camera: Nikon D70s
Exposure: 30 sec (30)
Aperture: f/22
Focal Length: 65 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV

No Resolutions

It’s the end of the year and time to think about New Year’s resolutions. I like resolutions, mini-goals not to be procrastinated about. I have a good track record for keeping New Year’s resolutions. I have lost weight, read more, written more, fixed problems, and maintained previous goals.

This year I have no resolution. I do not even have an interest in having a resolution. You think it would be a freeing idea not to place a burden on yourself, but it’s not. Just the opposite, I find it quite disconcerting that I have no interest in bettering myself in any way for the oncoming year. Does that worry you? Hopefully you like me the way I am (don’t answer that) keep the sham alive.

Please enjoy this lack of declaration...

Photo of the Year (Best of)

Reader’s favorite photo: I receive more e-mails and comments on this photo than any other photo all year.
My personal favorite: I can look into this photo all day.

Most proud of: This is what I love about photography, ambient, abstract and little bit of mystery.

Moment a Year in Review: 2007 (Best of)

See all Moments of 2007 here

Current Reading: 1st place Mother Teresa: Come be My Light 2nd place Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
Current Music: Magic by Bruce Springsteen
Mood: Out of focus but only on the left side????
Sounds: Wind and rain pounding on the window
Smells: Miso Soup
Sights: Front porch, white wine, Spanish guitar in my hands
Temperature: 76 degrees
Thoughts: Langue, motion and rhythm are essential life fundamentals.

Does birth soil equal entitlement?

I live in the northeast part of the United States. Being born in this part of the world has permitted me to have a blessed life. It can be well argued that my part of the world has the best schools, best healthcare, best job opportunities, even in the current global warming scenario it’s the safest place to live. I will not know poverty, hunger, hopelessness because of where I was born. If you hear me complaining about something it is probably about something that I feel entitled to. The majority of people who live in the northeast part of the United States suffer from soil entitlement rights. It’s not that we are greed or selfish, but we only know of the suffering from lack of entitlement. Hence, why we are blessed, due to the fact of the soil we were born upon. Don’t get me wrong we do have suffering. Suffering is a birth right to all. We have death, crime, disease and devastation but we do not have despair due to that fact of the soil we were born upon.

Human rights, what and odd phrasing of words. It is surprising to me that those words make up a movement of social importance. Human oxygen seems just as odd of a saying as human rights to me. You are born and you breathe. You are born and you have rights. Nonetheless human rights are determined by the soil that you are born on. Life in the United States will be easier than life in Africa. Social activists have created an industry out of getting us to notice the lack of human rights in the world. For the most part we do notice. We donate, we give, we pay attention and succumb to that awful feeling of “Thank God that’s not me”. We live with the soil of entitlement right that was given to us only due to the fact of where we were born.

Every generation sees the fall of man. Be it Noah to the Nazi or slavery to 9/11 there is real evil in the world. This evil continues to fall out between the legs of screaming women. Babies endowed with human rights.


I end this writing on the morning of Christmas Eve. It’s an odd time to post this, it’s an incomplete thought. Hopefully somebody reading this will complete it for me.

CHEE(RED)

This year we sent out Christmas cards without a family photo included. This is not good thing, especially due to the fact that we have a two-year old daughter and I am extremely good looking. (Oh yeah, my wife’s a looker too). We discovered that a Christmas card without a family photo included causes no one to have holiday cheer. To our bewilderment we sent out an environmentally conscious, socially responsible card embedded with the slogan CHEE(RED) on it. Cheer was not received. The sociably-conscious endeavor of the card was not received or understood either. We believe that most people were confused by the whole point of what the card truly meant. The word CHEERED has (RED) in parentheses making the word CHEER indecipherable to those not familiar with the RED campaign. Being a professional photographer and not having time to photograph my own family is only a forgivable act by other photographers. I sent no other photographers a Christmas card.

The moral of this story, take a family photo and save environmentally conscious, socially responsible efforts for your friends who vote democrat.

P.S. Peace on Earth…

Gratitude Journal

- Had a really good workout this morning.
- Recently discovered the work of Jonah Lehre
- Holiday party with friends today.
- A new outlook on an old problem.

Is Journalism Dead?

I have turned into a New York Times junkie. My daily devotional includes reading New York Times.com multiple times a day. Recently I was told that it's a liberal newspaper. My question is how can you tell if a media source is slanted left or right? Nearly all hardcore republicans that I know call Fox news a liberal news source and most democrats seem to think that it's a crazy fundamentalist right news source. Is journalism, in the truest sense of the word, dead?

Photo of the Week

Camera: Nikon D70
Exposure: 4 sec (4)
Aperture: f/22
Focal Length: 18 mm
ISO Speed: 400
Exposure Bias: 0 EV

I want to quit smoking but I won’t quit smoking.com

Continuing with my great marketing giveaway ideas, here is a gem of prosperity that I want to toss your way. Ponder this one. A website that is an AdSense advertising, profit-driven business, a website that sells nothing, generates nothing and educates no one and takes no effort on your part to run it. Think, Perez Hilton meets Fox news.

The name of the site: “I want to quit smoking but I won’t quit smoking”, the domain name being http://www.iwanttoquitsmokingbutiwontquitsmoking.com/. The premise of the site is about the joys, struggles, humor and excuses of people trying to stop smoking all the while having no will to actually stop smoking. Let me tell you the history of how this idea germinated in my head.

I hate cigarette smoke. Secondhand smoke is a toxic poison that smokers can dispel on the innocent non-smokers of society. I hate smoking in public, walking down the street or in restaurants where smoke wafts toward the innocents. I hate driving behind a smoker who exhales their toxic, cancer-causing, secondhand smoke to come out of their car window. The smoke is vacuum-sucked into the car behind them (usually me) and then blown through the car vent causing the non-smoker inside to stink of smoke for the rest of their day. Cigarette smoking must be stopped.

Oddly, I like smokers but hate the smoke. Love the sinner (smoker) hate the sin (toxic, cancer-causing, secondhand smoke). If you see a large group of friendly strangers standing outside a public office building, they are probably smokers. Smokers share with each other, “You need a light, extra cigarette for the go? No problem”. Smokers are a kind, sociable community. Smokers have a super hero ability to light a cigarette under any weather condition. Too bad they couldn’t harness their kindness towards others and their super hero abilities for good. As kismet will have it they will die earlier in life due to the toxic, cancer-causing nicotine they consume through their poor lungs. The good fortune for them is that they will not miss the good years. Death by cigarettes is usually a fourth quarter thing.

That’s the back story of how “I want to quit smoking but I won’t quit smoking.com” came into existence. Next, let’s make money off of this vexing bunch of people.

This is how the site will work. You will ask people to e-mail their smoking trials and tribulations to you. You will post them daily. No work on your part, that’s a creative perk I tossed in for you. The site will make money by having people click on the advertisings on the right and left sidebars. The beauty is on the right sidebar the advertising will be for quitting smoking. The patch, pill, hypnosis, gum, psychic drugs, books and other snake oils that society has suggested. On the left side bar there will advertisements for smoking products. Tobacco, pipes, lighters, roll your own cigs, cig cartoon merchandise and other sorted paraphernalia that smokers enjoy spending their money on.

There it is, a gem of an idea. The readers will write the site. The advertisers will pay you for bringing sheep to the slaughter. All you have to do is offer a prayer to the god of St. Nicotine for creating this toxic, cancer-causing product that sucks the Free Will out of its users.

You’re welcome.

Somebody should invent this.

Here is the idea, take it and run with it.

-The reverse car horn.

Car horn etiquette is at an all time low. All road rage starts with car horn abuse. Whatever happened to the soft beep, beep? “Hey, mister motorist I am behind you and wanted to alert you that I am patiently waiting for you to move your vehicle”. We live in a car driven society of “if you do not react on the road within a nano second you are subjected to the ear crushing, heart pounding, BEEEEEP,BEEEEEEP, BEEEEEP followed up by knowing that curse words are being tossed your way conjoined with hand jesters that just aren’t nice.”

At first it will increase road rage and random acts of violence towards fellow drivers. (This is not good but wait.) This is how the invention will work: The reverse car horn will generate calming, soothing, healing reverberation to our highways and byways. Picture this; you are driving your car and you are stopped at a red light. The light turns green but you do not go due to the fact that you are day dreaming, flipping radio stations, etc… The person behind you lays on their horn shortening your life expectancy by 3 to 7 years. You are awoken to the real world startled back into life and become angered at that driver behind you. You think to yourself “why couldn’t they just give me the gentle beep, beep and I would be on my way?”

Remembering that you just had the reverse car horn installed, you decide this is the time to use it. You flip open the newly installed reverse car horn head (think of Pez dispensers), and you blast Barry Manilow’s song, “Mandy”, at them. You do not drive away or move your car. Instead you watch and wait. You watch the driver behind you go from angry, irritated, road rage to bliss. At first angry, irritated, road rage will persist, maybe even to the point of inflamed violent behavior. Nevertheless, just wait, soon the Manilow will create a Fanilow out of that person transporting a tip-toeing dancing smile to their face. The random act of violence has been changed into a random act of kindness with a music soundtrack to go with it.

P.S. The reverse car horn will not be sold to people who drive mini-vans while smoking a cigarette, eating a pop tart, and talking on their cell phones all the while barely avoiding a catastrophe and almost wrecking into me. They deserve the BEEEEEP,BEEEEEEP, BEEEEEP…

Moment

Current Reading: Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller
Current Music: iPod on shuffle mod
Mood: Happy
Sounds: The heater running & vents blowing warm air
Smells: Miso soup
Temperature: 33 Degrees
Thoughts: Had to buy the Henry Miller book!!!!

Gratitude Journal

- Seeing my daughter on the Christmas train at our local mall.
- Sleep, I gotten more sleep last week than I had in the last 3yrs.
- Soups, my wife makes great soup.
- The letters “S” do to the fact that the three things that I am grateful for all start with the letter “S”.

Hi !!

Camera: Nikon D70s
Exposure: 0.001 sec (1/2000)
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV

Update

Over at Open Source Integral there is a nice discussion on a previous post of mine, Aesthetic Universe. Be sure to read through the comments for the good stuff, especially William Harryman comments.

Photo of the Week

Camera: Nikon D70s
Exposure: 8 sec (8)
Aperture: f/22
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 500
Exposure Bias: 0 EV

Henry Miller Tribute (of-sorts)

In my college days I read Henry Miller. Miller’s works influenced my life, songwriting, photography and compositional practice. Surprisingly to me I did not understand most of what Miller had written down on the page. I read most or not all of the pages that he had written. Still, understanding the narrative of his work eluded me. The pages became a score of music from his words, images, sounds and senses. Even though most of his thoughts were lost to me. The way he formed a sentence and bridged words into life became a nexus of ideas.

A couple of years ago I expatriated my collection of Miller books. It seems just; due to the fact that his works got booted across the pound a couple years before being published in the U.S. I haven’t even touched the books in 15 plus years but to move them from one home to the next. I miss them. I miss knowing that they are mine and that they are in my home. I miss the feeling and history I got from those pages.

Miller’s works were combination of a whore, monk and artist. The metamorphoses of his life seemed to garner a bridge to a madman or saint. Either way Miller’s works were inspirational with a key to life. Even if that key got you into the door at the fight club.

Vonnegut Tribute (of-sorts)

I just got into Vonnegut this year. His writing was introduced to me by a friend who is an atheist. I think Vonnegut would have liked that. I cannot believe it has taken 38 earth years for the writing of Vonnegut to get to me. I blame my parents, school systems, friends and myself. So it goes. Next, the tribute of sort, words that I have stolen from Vonnegut and re-stimulated.

Death, so I don’t have to see it? The it. I do not understand myself so well. This nation has been so good to me but so bad to others. It makes me sad. The it. Is global warming the rapture? Is it?

Winter Luminary

I can honestly say that I am looking forward to my night photography project coming to an end. The project has been good to me and the work has evolved into fulfillment.

Last night I stood outside La Roche collage photographing a winter luminary display. I have been waiting 2yrs for this shot to happen. The luminaries are only displayed for three weeks and I have to hope/wait for snow to be on the ground. Last night my wait came to fruition. Unfortunately I am not very happy with the shots. It seems that I will have to go back next week at dusk and try again. Hope for snow!!!



Camera: Nikon D70s
Exposure: 15 sec (15)
Aperture: f/22
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 200
Exposure Bias: 0 EV

Democracy Rant

Democracy: government by the people: rule of the majority: a government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free elections. The absence of hereditary or arbitrary class distinctions or privileges.

Civics: a social science dealing with the rights and duties of citizens.


We the people (the public forum) have become vulnerable to acting on what a democracy is by definition. It appears that we live in an era where action is generated more by fear, media and political perception than by civics. Friedman writes in today’s New York Times, “America will continue to export more fear than hope”. (See complete article here).

I find it funny that most people agree on solutions but dispute the cause. Yes, we’re addicted to oil and yes, clean energy is good. Not a difficult conversation to have. However, climate change or global warming causes countless discourse when the solution is already agreed upon. The media entertains us with the verdict then the trial follows. Politicians become late night televangelists prophesying tomorrow’s headlines. Fear is injected into people that mythically believe what were told. The cycle repeats.

Does America need a good uprising? Historically if you want to create social change you need a good uprising. See the 60’s for the civil liberties generation. Those people rose up and created change. Democracy is a conversation.

Photo of the Week

Camera: Nikon D70s
Exposure: 4 sec (4)
Aperture: f/18
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 200

No Short Cuts

“No short cuts in the practice.” That is how the conversation ended between Wilber and Kempton on IN. Lately I have been letting short cuts, sleeping in and life in general impede my practice. I have noticed and felt inner anger, doubt, questioning, less tolerances and less self- motivation. I have been dedicated at least eighty to ninety percent to my personal practice for the better part of the last five years and extremely committed towards the practice for the last two years.

For those new to this blog, my practice is: a balance of body mind and spirit in self, culture and nature. On a daily basis I practice meditation, yoga, diet, compassion and creative expression. This is why I am writing this post to shed light on my shadows by journaling.

Keeping true to the act of practice is all I want to achieve. I am not looking for total attainment of any one of my practices. The accomplishment I seek is to live a well life of compassion and service.

Placing aside my practices has brought me illness (inner & outer), inner being the worst. The writing of this understanding has been a cleansing confession of sort for me. I will regain my discipline. Reclaiming the inner and outer health that my practice gives me is a purist act of self compassion and service worth self-realization.

Moment

Current Reading: The Stuff of Thought by Steven Pinker
Current Music: In Rainbows by Radiohead
Mood: lethargic
Sounds: Silence
Smells: Coffee
Temperature: 32 degrees
Thoughts: Letting your daily practice slip by for a couple of days is not good for your health.