Word play.

doesn't tacking an 'extra' in front of ordinary just add to the ordinariness?

let's take a look at this.

extra |ˈekstrə|
adjective
added to an existing or usual amount or number : they offered him an extra thirty-five cents an hour.
adverb
1 [as submodifier ] to a greater extent than usual; especially : he is trying to be extra good.

ordinary |ˈôrdnˌerē|
adjective
1 with no special or distinctive features; normal : he sets out to depict ordinary people | it was just an ordinary evening. See note at normal .
• uninteresting; commonplace : ordinary items of everyday wear.

extraordinary |ikˈstrôrdnˌerē; ˌekstrəˈôrdn-|
adjective
very unusual or remarkable : the extraordinary plumage of the male | [with clause ] it is extraordinary that no consultation took place.
• unusually great : young children need extraordinary amounts of attention.
• [ attrib. ] (of a meeting) specially convened : an extraordinary session of the Congress.
• [ postpositive ] (of an official) additional; specially employed : his appointment as Ambassador Extraordinary in London.
noun (usu. extraordinaries)
an item in a company's accounts not arising from its normal activities. Compare with exceptional .

why do we allow a word that by definition should only emphasize how incredibly normal and un-extravagent something is, do just the opposite?

maybe i have too much time on my hands. idunno.

It's been a long time...

So as many of you may (or may not) know, I haven’t picked up my camera in over a year. I think I stopped shooting some time in the summer of ’07. I was burned out, unappreciated, undervalued, tired, pissed off, etc.. At the beginning of this month I decided it was time for me to pick up my camera again. This time I decided that I was going to change some things. Do it my way. To kick things off I decided to pick up where I left off.

That summer when I was getting irritated with the world a lovely person found me and wanted to shoot with me. As pretty as she was I didn’t really give a fuck. Certain things needed to be taken care of and if I got to her, I got to her. If not, fuck it. Well, I never got to her. I stopped shooting and became a workaholic. Then I wrecked my ride. Everything stopped. Yet the world kept moving. After searching for a car for months and not getting what I wanted, I found another Honda accord. Same white/tan colour scheme, slightly better rims, flashier trim, and a couple extras on the inside. But it was the same car. :) To kick things off to a grand start I decided to pick up where I left off.

Today I present to you… Maria. Say hi. She was the last girl I was supposed to shoot. And this is just a preview… Wait until you see the rest. And you will see her again later this summer. Hold on to your butts.

Now that I’ve done that, the line is moving. No more moaning and groaning that I’m not shooting. That shit is over. I’m back!

sunny days...

So today started pretty much like the Monday before it. I woke up around 7 just to be disappointed by the pouring rain outside my window. Not that I don't appreciate a good rainfall. It's just that I have to ride my bike to work in this shit. I start out dry, not long after stepping out of the door I get supper fucking soggy and incredibly cold within 5 minutes of being in it. Then I never seem to warm back up and my shoes stay squishy. Usually I sit behind my computer looking irritated and cold until it's time for me to pedal home, but today I decided to actually step out into the hall way and look out the window. Glad I did or I would've missed this. I haven't seen a rainbow in 5 years. This one was rather impressive too. I’m still cold and my shoes are a bit squishy but my mood has definitely improved. :)

hello yashi!

so earlier this week i decided to go for a ride around town and do some thrift shop pillaging. first i found a super clean white button up shirt. perfect fit too. i was impressed. only bad thing is... it's made in some other country and getting another on is probably gonna cost me a pretty penny. more on this when i find the company. i'm sure you'll want one. soon after i wandered about the streets and into the used bookstore. i think a copy of grey's anatomy is next on my list. continuing on my search for nothing in particular, i decided to hit another shop. i wandered about aimlessly, up and down the isles, in and out of the racks... then i decided to check out the cheap, donated, usually non-functioning electronics. its somewhat depressing. i decided to take a look at the camera bin. it was a bunch of point and shoots carelesy thrown into what appeared to be a small laundry bin. after a bit of rummaging, something caught my eye. a yashica t4. so what's the big deal? google that camera or check it out on ebay and you'll get it. considering it was only $8 i had to buy it. chances are most of the ones being sold online don't work so i figured it wouldn't hurt to take a chance on this. hell, i've spent more on a martini. this week i'll be riding about town taking some shots here and there. if it works, i'll have some cool shots just for you. :)

sigh...

As much as i hate my job..
.
It's all i've got.

the little things...

Tell me something. What are you doing to make a difference? Are you helping those in need? Are you out planting a tree? Are you standing for something? Ok, maybe you don’t have that kind of time. That’s cool. What about something small? You know like flashing a smile at somebody. And not because you want to talk to them. Sometimes the smallest things in life can make a big difference. Try it. Or if human interaction is too much for you, do what this person did. This shit made my day. Almost made almost getting hit just a few moments before not that big of a deal. I ended up having a better night and I was sure to pass it on to everyone that I interacted with that night. :)

Ride with me.

So for the past 11 months I’ve been on my bike. I didn’t decide to start riding for health reasons or environmental issues or anything like that. I fucked up, wrecked my ride and I’m pretty much stuck. Financial institutions can kiss my ass. Anyway, you can probably catch me pedaling along the main street(state/hollister) that goes through my town any given night (or day) of the week usually in between the hours of 4p.m. and 6a.m.

The sun and I chase eachother...

Gotta stop for fuel.

Usually I move a bit faster but I was tired.

Pushing...

Forward...

And sometimes the bike needs a lil' bit of fuel too. Who am I to tell it no?

Everything...

Including ourselves, is dependent upon something else. Nothing is able to maintain its' own permanent self-existence.

something to sit on...

Read. Interpret. Discus.

"No one's on earth alone..
Yet everyone's on their own.



Someday one day maybe
Somehow, not now.
And you will find what you lose when you have peace of mind.
Most start out with great ambition...
Years gone by..
Lose your time, lose your mind.
Drink that wine, drink that wine.."

Some blonde chick.

Who is this chick? This is Megan. How do I know her? Well, I could bore you with some long ass story about how we met in a dark place that reeked of chemicals… I could go on to tell you about how we used to kick it up on the Riviera late at night working on photos or smoking and enjoying the view of the ocean from the parking lot. Or I could tell you about the many nights spent with her and her awesome roommate that sometimes ended with me being a bit drunk and rolling around on the floor. But I won’t bore you with any of the fond memories that I have. That’s not why you come here. You come to look at pictures. So here ya go. And if ya want to see more, go check out her website. Do you dig it? Yeh, you do.

And this is Carl. Carl is rarely, if ever clean. This was a moment worth documenting. 

things could be..

Marvelous. A relatively happy sounding song, especially the techno dance mix that’s reminiscent of my high school days. Well, it’s happy sounding until you hear the lyrics… Then you realize that it’s kind of fucked up. Kind of like my life. Maybe it’s appropriate that this song is running around in my head even though I haven’t heard it since I was in high school.

^{“Oh you hope to fit, but you're fit to drop / So open up the window and jump into the blue / Things could be marvelous, things could be fabulous /
Oh do you need a push, I'll push you off / Open up the window and jump into the blue / Things could be marvelous soon / Oh you hate to hit till you hit the top / Open up the window and jump into the blue / Things could be marvelous, things could be fabulous soon / Oh well these are the days and this is the life / There'll always be something on your mind / You'll never quite find / Won't you ever make your mind up / Now you'll never be sure if this is the time / If this is the moment, the end of the line / You'll never decide / You used to know but now you've forgotten / The submarine got stuck to the bottom / These are the days so wake up ‘cause this is the time / And you know I'm right”}

I’m perplexed. I feel as if I’m being taunted by some unknown past defeat. Somehow i still haven't figured out how to pick myself up. But I don't know what defeated me or how I was defeated... I'm aware of it but just barely. It lurks at the edges of my subconscious. It’s holding me back. And until I figure out what it was/is, and how to defeat it, I’ll stay (t)here.

This is the moment. This is the time. I need to figure this out. I’m tired of being stuck to the bottom. It’s time for a new chapter. If I can turn the page then maybe… Things just might be marvelous.

Happy Halloween!

So yesterday as I was riding home I had the sudden urge to buy a pumpkin. I mean it is Halloween and I haven’t had one since I was in grade school so I decided to go for it. Luckily there was a mini pumpkin patch set up in the 7-eleven parking lot just right down the block from my pad. I wandered around for a bit then one jumped out at me. When I got home with it I wasn’t sure what to do with it. I just sat there and stared at it for a bit. About a half a bottle of wine later I decided that I should document this occasion.

:) with a wave of my majik wand... abracadabra! ^_^

Later that evening Kari came by with her own pumpkin. It was time for a massacre.. Just kidding. We brought them to life with wonderful faces and the let them feel the fire of life burn within them.

"hey! pay attention!" 

group shot.

the following shots are courtesy of Kari

happy halloween!

every now and then.

Yesterday I was hanging out by L&L Hawaiian BBQ enjoying my katsu chicken and found myself intrigued by the sky… I often find myself just watching the clouds. I get lost in them. I don’t imagine myself skipping around in them or anything. I just get kind of mesmerized. Sometimes I see structures and creatures but that’s probably more a result of my subconscious. As much as I enjoy watching them, I rarely take photos of them. Lately I’ve been playing around with my lil' digital point and shoot though. It feels appropriate to share. Here’s what I saw. Now get out of the house. Go to the nearest park, rooftop, balcony, or whatever and go do some cloud watching.

Last week.

Ok, so last week I managed to crawl out of my hole and interact with the world outside. As for what happened.. Well here are the pictures. You can name the characters and make your own story. You know, like those choose your own story books from scholastics. Have fun.

 fin