Tuesday, June 24, 2008

mekensy and sean's engagements







abercrombie and fitch models? no...but they should be. smokin' hot!

sweet lil' garden gnomes








this photo shoot's creativity was all over the place, thanks for being so great rikki and taylor!

note to self


your kids are listening.
i was singing "gouge away" by the Pixies when i woke up the other day and to satisfy what was swimming in my head i threw it on the stereo, it was a pleasant way to start the day. don't you just love that? it's like calming an itch, a refreshing jolt of needed caffeine...

but little did i know, my 4 year old would be singing "gouge away" all day long. cute little 4 year old in a minnie mouse voice "...gouge away!" i got one of those "nice, Dust" comments from my wife. (she loves me).
your kids are listening and taking notes, so be careful.

here's a link to the song if you're interested:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yxytSH_piRQ&feature=related


so, what have you been listening to lately?
for some reason i am really into muted scratchy diminished wailing guitar lately. ler lalonde during frizzle fry is a perfect example. i was a HUGE primus fan back in the day and it's been fun to step down memory lane and revisit old friends.
spegetti western is just lovely to hear.
http://www.last.fm/music/Primus/_/Spegetti+Western
i've also really been digging Dinosaur Jr. and the Pixies, and songs from Smashing Pumpkins like "zero", the guitar never sounded cooler, and of course good ol' Jimi...how i would've loved to see him live.

Friday, June 6, 2008

amy and randall engagements





launi and brad




amy's bridals




good books turned good movies

it's been a while since i've done some random rambling...i figured i'd share my two cents about two excellent books and movies. both of which i watched the movie first and felt compelled to read the books...neither left me disappointed on any level.


wow.
have you heard the story behind this book? the story of the author? In the 90's Jean-Do Bauby was a hot shot editor and journalist for France's Elle Magazine. At age 44 he suffered a massive stroke which threw him into a comma, and as he surfaced out of the comma he found himself in a new world...locked in his own body, completely conscious but unable to move, paralyzed from head to toe...a situation the medical world terms as "locked-in syndrome."
The diving bell we learn is his body, and the flight of his thoughts, his imagination, his consciousness, is the butterfly.
It is incredible to know that this entire memoir was dictated by him blinking his left eye. Someone would read each letter of the alphabet and he'd blink on the letter he wanted...letter by letter, word by word, sentence by sentence....blinking. can you imagine?!!
this book and story is worth every letter of ink that is printed. what an achievement. how humbling and touching.
the movie is also beautiful. shot on film and with no cgi, the layers of exposure and simple camera tricks are truly inspiring.
again, wow.

if you want to learn more, grab this url:
http://www.nytimes.com/books/97/06/15/reviews/970615.mallon.html



this story may be old news on blockbuster shelves, but it is one that made a strong impression on me and such a story i've wanted to ramble about for some time.
i love these kind of stories, stories that entertain on the surface and at the end give you a sucker punch with a deeper allegory. when last page is turned or credits have scrolled you are then left to put all the symbols and puzzle pieces together.
no country for old men. a rough and tough texas drug deal gone wrong with a psycho pathetic killer snuffing out anything in his path, and an old town sheriff that's just getting too old for the work....it is so much more than that. the author asks us questions of apocalyptic tale. How far can evil go? will evil truly prevail in our last days on earth? (survival of the fittest) is there no longer room for the old man that holds onto good values? are we all subject and victims to death and evil's fate?
it may not be the most uplifting story, but it is one that opens your eyes.
book and movie alike do an excellent job in telling the stories. both use their media to leave you with questions and reasons to ponder where we as a human race are at, and where we are going. it's got a good guy, a bad guy, and a guy in between, which one are you?