Da Goddess

On June 19, there was a blues festival out at the Cannery. Four great acts and it was only $5. Can you believe it?

I have some photos edited and here they are. A bit heavy on Curtis Salgado at the moment, but I’ll add more Janiva Magness, Eddy “The Chief” Clearwater, and finally some of Ironing Board Sam slowly but surely.

1) I now know where black lesbians gather on Tuesday nights in Las Vegas.

2) I discovered where to get free chicken and some asiany coleslaw stuff at 1am.

3) If I have someone with me who likes Patron, I know where to get a shot of it for $4.

4) I learned I really like shopping at Walmart in the middle of the night, walking out to the parking lot at 0500.

5) I have now decided that the fan I purchased at Walmart in the middle of the night sucks because I have to assemble it and I really don’t want to do that at 0550. Ain’t gonna happen.

And that’s pretty much it — the extent of my wisdom gleaned from wandering about Las Vegas in the wee hours.

Out at Red Rock Canyon, I saw two female Gambel’s quail with so many little chicks, I couldn’t count them all.

I also saw the light do amazing things as it wrapped around the hills.

Then, oh baby! I saw three gray foxes. One was a brave little one and tried to sneak up on me (from the front). It was very curious. I did that little mouth click thing you do to get dogs and cats to pay attention and it took a few steps toward me. Then the wind started blowing very hard and it scampered back a bit to take refuge behind some steps. It continued to look at me though.

Tiny little bat-like face. Tail wasn’t bushy so I’m thinking this was a juvenile. Characteristic black stripe down the tail.

Very cool.

The photos are horrible and I don’t even care.

It’s expected to reach 109 here today.

Wanna bake some cookies on the sidewalk with me?

When you are asked to go hang out and talk music all night with a professional musician, you should just say yes.

The alternative is having your hands full of dishes and watching a cat vomit all over your purse, cell phone, table, and camera.

Fun times.

I will have to remember this lesson.

Doing dishes and cleaning up cat puke…or talking with people who know a thing or three about one of your favorite things in the whole world. Seems like a no brainer, doesn’t it?

Would you believe that I couldn’t find something as simple as lemonade in the grocery store the other day? Yeah. Totally. Guess Memorial weekend was The Big Lemonade Weekend. It was really weird.

Today I discovered there’s a cherry tree out in the backyard. With cherries. Only problem is that I could reach just one cherry. And it was absolutely delicious! Just one branch with all the fruit; I can’t reach any of it. Sure, I could try to use a ladder, but, c’mon. You know me and my track record. Put me on a ladder and it’s basically ensuring disaster. So I stood below the tree, bare feet on very pointy rocks, and gazed upward, praying for the fruit to fall off and into my hands. Didn’t happen.

Tomorrow I will endeavor to find lemonade and a way in which to retrieve those cherries.

What’s out of your reach these days?

This is my session from last Monday. She’d called while I was out of town and we scheduled for the first full, non-recovery day after my trip. We knocked out about 75 shots in 30 minutes. Wonderful lady; funny, bright, and not at all stuffy. She wanted something a little less formal for an upcoming presentation she had to give. Needless to say, she brought the fun and I got the shots.

Almost 1,400 photos in about four or five hours. Smiles, laughter, cheers, a purple carpet… I couldn’t stop smiling. Even when it felt as though my heart were about to burst and the tears welled up in my eyes, I couldn’t get that smile off my face.

Joy Prom was the most amazing event you could ever imagine. Special needs teens and adults were the stars and we photographers were there to capture it all.

A lot of people might be surprised this the big event in Vegas, but I wasn’t. To be very honest, I’ve met some of the most sincere and kind people since moving here and this event is just one of the many extraordinary moments I’ve experienced because of the friends I’ve made.

If your city or town doesn’t have a Joy Prom of their own (Google “Joy Prom” and find out), it’s definitely something you should look into helping get started.

It took me hours after getting home last night to finally get up the energy to go wash all the dirt off me.

It wasn’t as if you could look at me and tell I’d had about four tons of dirt and sand and rocks blown at me, but running a finger across my skin would have been a very gritty experience.

The day started off clean enough. A trip over to Sunset Park to explore. Cool trees on the perimeter of the park, a manmade lake with ducks, geese, coots, etc, dogs running and barking, children laughing and scampering about. And my friend T and I with our cameras. We ended up photographing planes coming in to land at McCarran and then two sets of beautiful, happy kids feeding some relatively well-behaved geese. Oh, and we even found a friendly hummingbird along the way!

Afterward, we headed out to a dry lake bed (or is it dry lakebed?) to see what we could see. Well, there was a lot of cracked earth. It was beautiful. And there was a lot of wind. And bouncing and flying rocks. (I do believe I may have solved the mystery of Death Valley’s Racetrack.) Last time T was out there, he said there weren’t any rocks as were now suddenly in abundance. Once the winds picked up, it was apparent how they got there. The only bad part was getting pelted by some of the smaller rocks as the wind shot them our way. I guess we’re lucky we didn’t get hit by the bigger pieces. There were a few softball-sized and larger lava rocks that were skipping along the ground.

Anyhow, my dirt factor wasn’t helped at all by the fact that I was basically lolling about on the ground and climbing into small clumps of bushes for photos — both as subject and photographer. Oh, yeah. I was nude. Yep, you read that right. This fat old broad was the model for some nude portraits. It’s not the first time I’ve done this since I’ve been here or for this photographer. In fact, I dare say he’s the only photographer in the world who makes me comfortable enough to do this and who produces images I absolutely love. Seriously. I love what he creates. Some are straight out nudes. Others are wonderful abstracts. No matter, I trust him and his vision and therefore gladly model if he asks. It was just a little scratchier at this location than it was the last time we had a session. I didn’t care, though. We both saw the opportunity and damn the wind, rocks, and dirt! We shot.

So for all my rolling around and crawling through the grit and such, I found myself completely covered in dirt. I didn’t care. I didn’t care at 5pm. I didn’t care at 8pm. But by 2am I’d reached my dirrrrrrrrty girl limit. Getting into the shower, I noted the changing color of water as I started my rinse cycle. Once I got to the actual sudsing, I was shocked to see how much more dirt there was to be removed! Thankfully, the hot water held out and I eventually managed to find an acceptable level of cleanliness.

I only wish I’d thought to take notes after I got back from my trip to Valley of Fire. I still have socks that I fear will never be white again. I’ll have to tell you about that trip another time.

Big thanks go out to <3 Danny Gokey for including my post and photos on their site.

It’s always fun to share the excitement of a new discovery with others. It’s also particularly rewarding to have someone like what you’ve done.

If you haven’t already checked out Danny Gokey’s music, please do. I <3 Danny Gokey has a widget on their sidebar so you can have a listen.

Here’s the thing: I’m definitely not an American Idol fan. I don’t watch. Never have. I think I’ve seen all of one full episode. You need to know this because it plays a part in this story. Y’see, I had no idea Danny Gokey was on the show. All I knew was that I’d seen one of his videos on TV and had heard a couple songs on the radio. And I didn’t go to the whole ACM Vegas Weekend thingy on Fremont Street to see him in particular; I went to see Lady Antebellum, but that didn’t happen and it’s another story altogether. The point is, I did end up seeing Danny and I had a fantastic time.

Unfortunately, my friend Darryl and I weren’t as close to the stage as I’d have liked (I rarely have to stand that far away), and there were some very big heads between us and the stage. Regardless ( Soto, anyone?), I managed to get more shots than I thought I’d get. And here they are:

Again, I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun this was or how much I like many of Danny’s songs.

While I wish I could have held out long enough to see Lady Antebellum (my back was killing me, it was warm, I couldn’t breathe, and the crowd was too much), I’m exceedingly happy with how things turned out. My hope is that next time I’ll be standing at the stage getting paid to cover the event instead of standing back where I was and having to wait for someone’s gigantic, planet-sized cranium (“Well, that’s a huge noggin’. That’s a virtual planetoid. It has its own weather system!”) to move so I can shoot.

Bonus points to anyone who knows from whence the noggin’ quotes came.

I’m breathing better. Yay!

Got a new camera bag that will also hold my laptop. Now travel will require one less bag. And, I can actually fit my purse in one of the compartments. Color me thrilled. I probably should have spent the extra $40 on the bag that was slightly larger, but this one will help me to pack a bit lighter no matter how near or far I roam. Best part is that when I go hiking (yes, I’m slowly getting back into it), I have a bag that will sit where it’s supposed to: center of my back.

Roast beef is good.

Miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups rock. The minis have the absolute perfect chocolate to peanut butter ratio.

I entered a photo in my meetup group’s monthly challenge for the first time. I find out tomorrow if anyone liked it.

A friend of mine used me as a model for a shoot last week. He’s almost done with the photos and I’m actually very excited about seeing them.

Another friend needed a model for a class assignment this last Sunday (before my unfortunate food adventure). I was that model. I think I taught him more than anything else, which was cool, I guess. I’m a little curious to see how the images came out. He called to say one of the portraits turned out well and was considered the best for the whole class. That sort of scares me. I mean, if any image of me is the best anyone could turn in… no no no no no…I have to get over thinking like that. I know this. I just couldn’t resist the joke.

Today I did a shoot with my friend K. We used available light in her home and got some really beautiful images. Since she’s also a photographer, I was thrilled as she proclaimed her happiness with the photos. She’s very sweet and pretty and I knew we could accomplish what we set out to do. It was exceedingly gratifying to have the results equal the intent.

Breakfast With Scot is a lovely movie. I encourage everyone to see it. I’ve never been a Tom Cavanagh fan before, but this movie made me one. I’m not going to say anything else about the film other than: this is what love really is. Now go rent it.

Also saw The Answer Man. I quite liked that one, too. Jeff Daniels’ character is very familiar to me. That’s kind of like Buster.

A Serious Man was good. I rented it on Saturday without knowing it had been nominated for an Oscar. To be honest, I loved the opening.

The best happy thought I have for the day though is knowing I get to see the kids this weekend. I’m off to San Diego to dog sit for friends and that gives me the opportunity to spend time with the kids. I miss them so much! I’m feeling practically giddy knowing that it’s just a matter of hours…

And you? How have you been?

Apparently the people who catered last night’s opening reception for WPPI had the crazy idea that photographers have good eyesight. That’s the only explanation for the teeny tiny signs placed in front of the food they were serving. I didn’t see the sign that said “Ziti with Lobster“, all I saw was ziti looking yummy. I hadn’t eaten more than an apple and two bites of some cajun chicken earlier in the day, so I was starving.

My friend and I got in line for food, grabbed our little servings, and began to eat. There was something different about the pasta, but it wasn’t anything I could identify. It was good. I kept eating. K had the white version to my red and I asked how her’s was. “Pretty good, except the mushrooms. But I figured mushrooms were easier to avoid than lobster.” I was befuddled. And then it dawned on me. D’oh!

Guess who’s allergic to shellfish?

That would be me.

I was a little concerned, but then I figured that I wasn’t experiencing the reaction I normally have when I ingest something to which I’m allergic. Usually, my tongue starts tingling right away. Then I start feeling very congested and my breath becomes a bit ragged. I grabbed a few glasses of water and pounded those down. I also ate some turkey (good, good turkey). I was feeling okay and I thought maybe, just maybe, I’d outgrown this allergy.

An hour and a half later, it was apparent that I was quite wrong. My chest was getting tight, I started itching, things were feeling weird. I dug into my water supply and started downing as much as I could, figuring I’d dilute what I could.

Obviously, I didn’t die. I’m okay. I’m still a bit wheezy and a little itchy, but the reaction I had was nothing like I’ve had in the past (can you say fire department showing up at your little girl’s kindergarten picnic because there were tiny shrimp in the pancit? Yeah, that kind of fun) and for that I’m grateful.

I’m still a little irritated that the signs for the food weren’t bigger. Things like shellfish and peanut/peanut oil (not one of my allergies, but there are enough people…) …those are things that can take people down very quickly. They should be labeled very clearly. I go out of my way to ensure food (like eggrolls and fried won tons) at restaurants don’t contain shellfish. I don’t like to take chances with such things. I prefer to breathe. (Note: My biggest “I don’t want to die this way” is suffocation. I think it would be the most ghastly way to expire.) Breathing is good. Breath = life. Simple stuff. So I do hold a little ill will toward whoever made up those signs with the itty bitty print.

I stayed home from WPPI today. I slept quite poorly. Funny how that whole breathing thing gets in the way of sleep, huh? I missed out on a freebie class I wanted to attend, but am glad I recognized my limits and took care of myself. I’ve not died. I’ve eaten. I’ve been drinking lots of fluids. Took enough Benadryl to dry up the entire state. And, I’ve managed to sneak in a little sleep here and there. Buster’s checked in to ensure I’m still alive every now and again. So far, so good.

Now I must get back to work on an article I’ve been laboring over for a week. Perhaps the lack of oxygen at various times last night have cleared my mind enough for this thing to write itself. Sigh. Probably not, huh? Ah, well. If I’ve learned nothing else in the last 24 hours, it’s that photographers are NOT always the most observant people and that reading labels becomes even more important if you want to do more than just live a healthier life. No, you should do it because someone might be slippin’ you the ultimate mickey if you’re not careful.

Hai! This is PJ. PJ is minding the store while human mom in Phoenix, I don’t have oooopposable thumbs, but I do pretty well for a cat, Don’t you think?

I stealed her camera when she wasn’t looking and took a picture of myself. It looked like something from that stupid can I has Cheezburger website. Silly cats. Most of them can’t spell. Not me. I have superrerior cat spelling skillz.

And I’m a good model. Check me out. It’s just me and “The situation” hanging out. The situation being my amazing coat of fur. The longer and fluffier, the better. Dig me. I’m handsome.

As a special kitteh treat, you get to choose which saying you like best.

Choice Meow

Choice Mew

Please register your votes in the comments section. You see, I want to prove that a cat can get more comments than a human can. I want to prove it’s time for a really COOL cat to formally declare himself an official candidate for the office of presidency. It starts here though, people. You must love me. You must believe in me. You must vote! See, this first time around, I can’t lose. You gotta vote for one of those pictures. They’re both of me. No matter what, I win! This is how I intend to run my entire campaign. It’s a brilliant plan.

So whaddya waitin’ for? VOTE! Choice Meow or Choice Mew?

Chic. But dark. The drinks were carefully crafted. No mere pouring. Lemons were hand squeezed as needed. Zest was zested only when called for. Berries mulled by hand. Magic fairy dust was sprinkled in the air or over the counter. I think I saw Tinkerbell float by and giggle at the concoctions. Yes, they were infuse with magic! Ingredients were added slowly. Each drink was a work of art.

Did I mention it was dark? The new 50mm f1.8 lens made these photos possible.

If you come to visit me here in Vegas, I will take you to a fun little jam where all sorts of music is played. Then, we’ll walk across the street and you will be treated to the Cocktail Room, where I’ll buy you one of these drinks. You will then proclaim your love for the drink, the bartender, and finally…me. They’re really that good. With any luck, Cary and a special young lady will be working and you’ll be thanking your lucky stars you got to meet them.