Wednesday, September 26, 2007

we're friends because it's vertically convienient



so, i'm sorry that i've been bad about the updates here but things have been a bit on the crazy side. school is exceptionally busy, but i'm so happy to be here and i can't wait until we get out of the basics and into the fun stuff! ...but even the basics are pretty fun. (c;

the cameras that we have (mamiya 645) are quite cool little (and by "little" i actually mean freaking-ginourmous) pieces of machinery. it has a removable back, enabling the camera to shoot with medium format film, digital and polaroid. for these first few weeks of school, we have been shooting on medium format chrome film. it's pretty cool because after it's processed, the "negatives" are actually not like your typical negative. first off, since it's medium format, the film strip is larger and the picture is actually a positive, or a transparency...so if you put it on a light box, you can actually see what the picture would look like as a print.

while this is really cool, and it's made me think about my shots a lot more (cuz I don't want to waste any film) i miss the ease of digital and i have random people asking to see my work but with the film, it's just more difficult. but this friday we get the digital back for the camera (woo!!!!!). i'll definitely be able to get a lot more shooting in and i'll be able to share stuff with everyone.

in the mean time....here's a pic of the new "toy".


here's a view with the back removed (that's the film back...the digital back is aprox. the same size)


i hope everyone is well, and i'll do my best to update more often. (c:

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

what's a rotary?

So, as you all know by now, the mom and I made it into MA by last Friday without any major snafoos. But to those of you interested in the details of the trip, well then….you get a blog. (c:

I thought it’d be cool to mark those “important” moments on the trip by taking note of the mileage on the odemeter (kind of like a stardate for you star trek geeks). And of course, “important” mostly means amusing or ridiculous or “look, we just passed into another state”. Also thrown in are some revelations/conundrums/general wonderment. Hope you’re not too confused.

Some of these may be a bit ambiguous, but I hope they’ll be at least mildly entertaining….

59600: We start the journey east on 76. Albeit, quite later than expected…but we’re girls, give us a break.

59684: Fields of yellow flowers as far as the eye can see.

59701: The road is quite ridiculous and we wonder where in the world our tax dollars are going.

59877: We spot an elderly lady totally jamming in her car. We make suggestions as to what it could be that she was getting into. Gangster rap, maybe.

59877: We finally see our tax dollars at work…on the other side of the highway.

59891: Port-a-potty in the middle of nowhere. When you gotta go, you gotta go.

59894: Potty break #1 (trust me…it was significant). Plus, a gigantic ice-cream cone. Heck yes.



And to make the stop even better…we spy a dead bird.



...it was no coincidence that I was wearing the fantastic shirt that whitney gifted to me as a going away present. seriously. best present. ever.



59895: We are mooned by a hitch-hiker. Well, technically we were plumber-cracked by said hiker…hey mister, most people just use their thumb.

59897: I begin work on my right arm. That is to say, I stop driving and start tanning on the other side. My left arm was getting a little red.

59898: Reposition of the butt-cheecks. That should be fairly self explanatory.

59899: Nebraska State Line.

59989: Hugegantic cross.



60077: Building in the middle of the freeway…that turned out to be a bridge.





60135: Crazy cool moon.



60235: Giant outlets. Need to plug something in?

REVELATION #1: Nebraska is not that bad…

60274: Iowa State Line.

60318: Modern Rest Area. As opposed to the Archaic Rest Area?

60368: Stuart the giant propeller. No kidding.

60385: De Soto, IA. Where John Wayne was born. Who knew?

60425: Des Moines…could be worse…could be Kansas.

60432: Creepy gigantic billboard: “JESUS the Adult Super Savior”
……okay…..awkward much?

60439: PT Cruiser starts riding us like a 2 bit whore. Seriously, jerk…get a better car if you’re going to be an ass.

REVELATION #3: Iowa is pretty…you just have to get away from Des Moines.

60453: Kellog?? Like the cereal?? Must know….need more crap in head…

REVELATION #4: Iowa = Land of “corn towers”…also known as “silos”…just don’t tell Steph it’ll just confuse her.

60487: Sign: “Belle Plain What Cheer Center” ….what????

CONUNDRUM #1: If Cowboys wear cowboy hats…what do tiger trainers wear?

REVELATION #4: Since tigers are mesmerized by shiny things, then Sigfried and Roy must have invented the bedazzler to make tiger training easier…Therefore…Elton John would make a great tiger trainer.

REVELATION #5: Iowa City: Where the old people gather (easy on the spices, Chuck)

60589: Illinois State Line

REVELATION #6: Hiding things in your shirt is a bad idea.

60757: Indiana State Line

REVELATION #7: Illinois is not impressive…and it stole my shoe.

60765: Child molester alert. Seriously, a freaking huge billboard with a picture of a sexual offender.

60862: One more for the po-po…another large billboard informing us of what a child molester looks like.

60862: Bright moon + low fog = beautiful.

60914: Ohio State Line

REVELATION #8/ CONUNDRUM #2: If there are so many trees in Ohio, thus extra oxygen…than why is everyone so slow?

61076: We realize that the lady at the Holiday Inn was lying when she said that Toledo was “right off the highway”…unless it moves at night.

61090: Holy Toledo! We’re in Cleveland!

61092: Holy Toledo!! We almost died just then!

REVELATION #9: The one on the right is the accelerator

61125: Old men. We make a stop in Akron, OH and stay with my grandpa and my uncle.

...they had cute kitties.



61132: Something’s afoot at the Circle K…and it ain’t speed.

61144: Stupid yellow jeep lady.

61148: Boycott the rest station!!! Semi’s are people too!!

61169: Stupid birds.

61191: Poor Bambi

61201: A clean rest area. What a concept.

61236: Pennsylvania State Line

61283: New York State Line

61313: Mom mistakes a curb for a driveway and blames Dunkirk.

61315: I pledge allegiance to the…mobile home?

61335: Apparently the world goes dark when you use your windshield wipers…or at least NY does.

61390: Niagra Falls: A good place to poop.



61398: We are flipped off by a jack-ass. Yep. We’re in NY.

61659: Amazingly large…and orange…moon.

CONUNDRUM #3: If Canada is ours to discover…then why do we need a passport?

61689: Need a vacation? Let’s go to Slingerland!!!

61720: Free highway!!!!!

61728: Awww, CRAP!!! It only lasted 8 miles.

61729: Massachusetts State Line

61748: Apparently MA is low in sodium…it’s MA light!

61755: “Now entering Blandford”…thanks for the warning.

61793: Massachusetts is nice and the toll booth guy is rad.

61844: Just realized that we’ve driven about 20 miles and didn’t record the journey’s end mileage…but don’t blame us, we were confused by the rotary.

We am here.



And just because I love you all…well, maybe it was because I was bored…but here are the new slogans for each state we drove thru. Minus Colorado…you all know Colorado.

Disclaimer: these are journey specific. Some of these are perfectly lovely states, I’m sure, but not all of them were for us.


Nebraska: Not as bad as Kansas.

Iowa: Silos. It’s where they go.

Illinois: Are you kidding me?

Indiana: Get your change out, girls.

Ohio: We’ve got oxygen…and we don’t believe in signs. Or driving well.

Pennsylvania: I hardly knew thee.

New York: Stop it with the tolls already!

Massachusetts: It’s about damn time.

Sunday, September 2, 2007

holy toledo...we're in cleveland.

hey everyone! i made it to Massachusetts safe and sound on friday. finally got connected to the internet today and thought i'd drop a note to let you all know i was here.

next blog will be a nice, detailed account of the crazy trip. (c:

love you and miss you all!!!