Photo 365 - Day 264 (First Impressions)

Day 264 (March 24th, 2011)
Title: First Impressions

I'm currently working on a few projects, one if which is a little online photo contest with a theme of "First Impressions".  I was sitting around, trying to brainstorm which photos to submit (and what might make for a neat new photo) when I started writing; "always make a good first impression."  Basically, it was my version of "doodling" while trying to think of something.  After I finished a whole page with this (mind you, its a small page - I write really tiny), I looked at it and thought: "Oh, great.  The 'first impression' someone is going to get from this is that I'm a complete psychopath ala 'The Shining'".  Not quite the first impression that I try and go with (course, I'm not saying that's the wrong impression - it's just not the one I want to give first!)

Enjoy

Artist of the Day - Day 16 - Bob Ross

Bob Ross; Happy little painter. 

Bob Ross was happy.  His trees were happy.  His mountains were happy.  His ponds were happy.  His squirrels were frickin’ ecstatic!  I loved watching Bob Ross, because there could have been a nuclear war going on and he would have said: “Now, you want your mushroom cloud to just flow from the brush.  Just push that radiation out those bristles.  Now you’ve got a happy cloud.  Next we are going to make some happy fallout.” 

In 30 minutes Bob could paint you a masterpiece, convince you that YOU could paint it too, and still have time to remind you how happy he and everything else in the entire universe was.  All kidding aside, he really was a great artist and person.  I say he was great, not so much for his work specifically, but because he motivated so many people to just get out there and try painting (or any other art).  He was also a great humanitarian, he did not charge the PBS network one cent for any of his shows (he made his zillions on the videotapes and art supplies) and he also donated each painting he did on TV to a PBS station so they could sell it and raise funds.  Even today, if I see Joy of Painting on the TV Guide, I’ll flip over to it to see some happy trees. 

And remember: “We don't have mistakes here, we just have happy accidents, sniffing paint thinner.”  (slightly modified quote from Bob Ross).

 

Wikipedia
Bob Ross.com

Photo 365 - Day 126 (Hi Noon)

Day 126 (November 6th, 2010)
Title: Hi Noon

I love that San Francisco has a lot of clock-towers that still work (and have bells that chime) so you know when to get out there and get some grub! Lunch in the City is one of those crazy localized social rituals that is scary to watch but fun to be a part of.  First of all, you have to start the ritual at least two hours before lunch.  That's when one person sends a email/text to 3-4 people asking the "innocent" question of: "What do you guys want to do for lunch?"  Upon receiving this message, the receivers all groan because they know they are about to join the "Lunch In The City" ritual.  Immediately after receiving the communication, one of the receivers sends out a "I don't care, but not pizza [or any other specific cuisine]!" at the exact time that another receiver send "I'm feeling like pizza!" And the fun is just starting!

Moments later: "I don't mind pizza I guess, as long as its veggie only, without cheese and gluten free."


"Uhm, maybe something other than pizza.  How about Mexican?"


"Oh, I had Mexican last week.  Remember the re-fried beans?"


"NO MEXICAN!"


"Chinese?"


"Too much MSG!"


"Not at Mr. Lees!"


"On 5th?  That's too far!"


"No, that's not Mr. Lees, that Mr. Lu's"


"How about 'Lou's Italian'?"


"I thought we said no pizza?"


"They have lots of non-pizza things there!"


"At Mr. Lees? Its Chinese! They do have noodles!"


"Oh, I forgot that I brought soup today, sorry!"


"So, how about Pizza then?"




Ahh... good times.


Enjoy

Photo 365 - Day 91 (Blackbird)

Day 91 (October 2nd, 2010)
Title: Blackbird

With my birthday fast approaching (ahh!  35!), I am reminded of a gift I was given by my grandmother on my first birthday.  She gave me a large book of Mother Goose nursery rhymes.  It was a British edition and had crazy drawings and art, as well as some very confusing rhymes.  I remember a few of them (as I am sure many of you do), but one that always stuck in my head (both due to the lyrics and the art) was a poem called: "Sing a song of sixpence"

It goes:

Sing a song of sixpence,
A pocket full of rye
Four and twenty blackbirds
Baked in a pie.

When the pie was opened,
The birds began to sing
Was not a dainty dish
To set before the king?

The king was in his counting-house
Counting out his money,
The queen was in the parlor
Eating bread and honey.

The maid was in the garden
Hanging out the clothes,
When along came a blackbird
And pecked off her nose.

Clearly Ms. Goose was totally nuts.  Still, she lived in a shoe, so perhaps she just got high off the smell of the odor-eaters. 

Enjoy!

Photo 365 - Day 90 (The Power of Dance)

Day 90 (October 1st, 2010)
Title: The Power of Dance

First of all, I'm finally in October!  I'm catching up, slowly but surely! 

We were visiting San Francisco, like we are wont to do, and we decided to go see a movie at the Metreon (best IMAX theater in San Fran!).  While I was waiting for Theresa to arrive, I decided to go for a walk around the building (they have a nice park behind the theater).  While I was waiting, playing with my camera (as I am also wont to do), I noticed a man... "dancing".  Now, normally strange things in SF are a dime a dozen, and I usually give them no notice, but this was different.  First of, this man was DANCING!  Not your normal, I have a little groove in the booty needing to get out ala Ellen, but we are talking full on, I'm having a dance seizure style dance. 

He would do pop dance, shift to some sort of "injured flamingo", to self-waltz, to the Mashed-Potato, to some sort of line dancing and back again.  Arms would flail, he would drop, but pop right back up, you never know which direction his legs were going to go.  It was like watching a car crash, into a train, while getting hit with a meteorite - you just couldn't look away!  The really strange (ha) part was that he wouldn't dance outside of a 3 foot circle.  As soon as his groove got to the 3' boundary, he would (sometimes violently), jump back and dance the other way. 

Perhaps he was just a normal man, minding his own business and one day hes walking in the park and BAM! He's possessed by a mime, Jimmy Durante, the cast of Breaking 2: Electric Boogaloo, and Bob Ross (because he constantly had this strange "I could eat you, but I won't because the Happy Trees are telling me not too" smile on).  I would have called for help or an exorcist, but unfortunately my movie was starting. 

Enjoy!