A Pictures Worth photoblog

Force be with you

2008-12-07T20:22:08+11:00

Force be with you
He appeared in our lives – one day – and then was gone – one day. My son took this picture with his SQ907B EZ-Cam at the last possible moment before he moved out of this type of position. Many months later we downloaded the images from his camera and upon looking at this particular image my son says, “He is doing the force”. My son likes Star Wars. He does have a force; a force of immense creativity. The creativity flows from him in large waves of amazing realization. The type of outlet he chooses to use is marketable. He has many excuses; the world has not found him yet because he has to have everything just perfect. Can’t the force give him that? Can’t he use this force to his advantage, apparently not? He is a creative being, the output has happened, we’ve seen it – we’ve experienced it. He rode his bike into the party with a costume on and created a scene that many of the children will never forget. He has created images on paper that are worth looking at again and again. He single-handedly held us up with his force for months on end. Even in the food he created for us to eat. He appears as an artist and then – one day – he is gone. He appears as a musician and then – one day – he is gone. He appears as a performer – one day – he is gone. He appears over and over again – but he is always gone. But he will always be here as his force is strong – we can feel him around us, in the paintings we hang on our walls, in the sculpture we have sitting on our shelves, in the illustrations we have framed on our refrigerator, in the video images of his performances we look over again and again. He is here but he is gone.

New Life

2008-11-07T22:13:42+11:00

New Life
It was the beginning of a new life. I knew it was not going to be an easy start. I was looking forward to make my dreams come true. It was hard, and it is still hard, so hard that I just keep thinking; why am I doing this? What is the point of doing this? Why do I even bother to do this? So... this is me.. Living in the present dealing with reality. I grew up and I was raised in Colombia, a beautiful country, with awesome people, and a beautiful nature, blah blah, blah!. My parents got divorced when I was 12 years old, my mom, my sister and I traveled to U.S looking for a “better future“. I came to NYC when I was 13 years old, I had passed through hard times such as discrimination, learning a new language, being in a country where nobody was going to give you support and basically being alone in a huge country such as the U.S. Now I am 17 years old, I am in high school and I just noticed that being here makes me feel depressed. Everything is so fake, so plastic, so meaningless. Everybody living a daily routine. It is a basic daily system, you wake up, you go to school, you come back home, you sleep, you wake up, you go to school, blah blah blah!!!… there is not a difference between living in Colombia than living here! There is poverty here, poverty there, there is injustice here, there’s injustice there as well. Behind everything, my background, my fears, my sadness, the only things that make me strong and make me want to continue fighting for what I want are my dreams and hopes. I want to break the routine, break the rules, I want to be me, I want to give a different point of view, I want to convince people that there is more than just a written destiny. You are who you are, you write your own destiny, you follow your own path and make your own goals and dreams. I’ll have to say that art is my way of doing it. It inspires me, it lets me express without limits, it makes me put effort into what I want, it gives me a reason to have a different opinion about something that matters. Keep dreaming, not only because it is a way of setting things free but because it gives you courage to keep fighting for what you want. At the end nothing matters if you got what you wanted, what you were looking for!… “the end justifies the means“.

Small Moments

2008-11-07T22:05:27+11:00

Small Moments
This photograph always makes me wonder the number of small moments we might have missed in life in persuasion of a bigger picture. I shot this frame at Aksa beach, Mumbai, India. This beach has always been a personal favorite, the place where I have spent many soulful mornings and peaceful evenings. The wide expanse of the sea is very alluring, bringing out the child within you. During one of the visits, I caught upon this lovely couple. They looked like they were newly married; the lady was sporting the traditional symbols of a newly wed. Both of them were well dressed and did not give the feel that they had come down to visit the beach specifically. The lovely young lady was so thrilled at the sight of the water; she quickly dropped her sandals and sprinted towards the water not worried about ruining her beautiful sari traditional Indian attire). The young man however was so untouched by the sight that he just stood by the shore watching her frolic. She came back several times to convince him to come into the water but in vain. He just stood there looking all bored, his gestures made me realize that his reluctance was due to the expensive shoes he was wearing. He refused to take off the shoes just to enjoy the water. Her excitement of feeling the water and the constant turning back to request the bored husband to join in made me wonder whether we even realize that these small moments make such beautiful memories. Will he miss those moments of being with his wife enjoying what she enjoyed the most then? How many such moments in life are wasted in vain thinking, caring for things which are probably valuable but at the same time miss out on the priceless emotional moments?

My Girls

2008-10-19T19:27:47+11:00

My Girls
It was an awkward beginning...We met in 1997 in the musty old halls of Kings College Old Residence at The University of Western Ontario. Unfamiliar with our surroundings we quickly bonded over the fact that we were all away from home and on our own for the very first time. Looking for a friendly face to share the nervous feelings of our first year as freshman in University we stuck together like glue. Two of us were city girls and the other three were from little towns just outside of the city. Birthdays, road trips, holiday celebrations were shared and celebrated together especially when those special occasions were during exam periods or in the middle of a school week. My girls...we never missed each others big events throughout our entire university chapter of life.

Although we stayed in touch throughout those years,each one of us were heading towards different paths in education and soon after graduation we all differed in careers. One of us moved out to the States to pursue a business, another up to Ottawa to become a lawyer. Two of us immediately moved out of the city to pursue teaching careers while another moved back to her hometown to continue a post graduate certification. I too went my own way...deciding to work at the University for a few more years before moving to Australia for two years to continue a post graduate degree and ending up travelling g other 3 years teaching in Asia.

Time continued to pass us...our holidays, birthdays and other big events slowly dwindled from a phone call or card in the mail to a quick generic e-mail to all of us or a forward just to say 'hey'.

Then after a few 'I wonder how ______is doing' phone calls amongst a few of us made us all wonder what everyone was up to. A card was shortly recieved in the mail. It was an invitation to have a girls weekend up at a bed and breakfast in Orillia...just us girls...no significant others and certainly no worries about work. We all quickly RSVP'd and the reunion weekend soon approached. It had been almost a decade since we had all reunited together. One would think that it would have been awkward (and I must say it was for the first few minutes) but we slowly realized that nothing had changed except the paths we chose in life...we laughed and carried on as if there wasn't even a care in the world that weekend.

Our last day together was somber...the sun was just about to set and we were all sitting out on the dock just taking our last day in moment by moment...capturing every word spoken, holding on to every laugh we shared.

This picture was the last photo we took that evening...one that represents the unity of our friendship and how strong our bond is even after a decade. We have all been quite busy these last few years but the memories we shared that weekend have surely encouraged us to make an effort to make our reunions annual.

Precious

2008-01-11T14:31:01+11:00

Precious
This cat with the turquoise eyes belongs to my younger sister. In the early days of living with my family, she was dressed in doll clothes, placed in cabinets and drawers, and accidentally dropped more than once. Through it all, Precious endured patiently, and quickly became my sister's constant companion. As years passed, their adventures together gradually changed from playing dress-up to cozying up on the couch with a good book. Their care for each other is evident. When we return from vacation, Susan jumps out of the car at the bottom of the driveway and races to the top to find her favorite cat. When Susan enters the room, precious begins to purr loudly and lazily rolls over on her back to have her stomach scratched by her best friend. The gifts of dead mice and birds left on our back steps also indicate the affection Precious has for Susan. When we acquired an adorable new kitten a few years ago, Precious was instantly jealous, and even aggressive toward the new addition to the family. A test of her friendship with Susan, however, proved that she had nothing to worry about. After noticing that Precious had lost a significant amount of weight and had been particularly sluggish, Susan took her to the veterinarian's office. The doctor had some grave news: Precious had a form of diabetes that, without daily shots of insulin, could kill her. My squeamish sister rolled up her shirt sleeves and immediately agreed to learn how to shoot a needle into the scruff of Precious' neck. Since that time, she has faithfully given Precious a shot every morning and every evening. Precious has regained her weight and her energy, and still goes everywhere with Susan. Albert Schweitzer has said, "There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats." Susan has found this to be true. Not only is she a gifted pianist and guitarist, but she has Precious, the cat with the turquoise eyes.

Amanda

2007-11-04T13:06:53+11:00

Amanda
Hurricane on the Bayou quickly became my son's favorite IMAX film of all times for three reasons: 1) he loves nature, 2) music stirs his soul and there was plenty of it throughout the film, and 3) Amanda Shaw -- the darling girl who played fiddle and shared her love of Louisiana with viewers.

There was no knowing, when we saw the film, that we'd soon have the opportunity to meet Amanda. As soon as I discovered she'd be in town (at an event we'd already be attending), I put all my energy into giving my son the chance to meet this young lady. Once I told him she'd be in town, he stated over and over and over again how much he wanted to meet her. I didn't say a word. On pins and needles for weeks, he became more nervous the closer it got to the big day.

"Do you think I'll be able to say hello to her, Mom?" he asked repeatedly.

"Maybe," I said. "We'll have to see." He still had no clue what I'd been planning.

The day before the big event, my son searched for a little stuffed animal to give her. He chose an alligator. It made sense because she sang "The Gator Song" in the movie and well, my son had also made her a card in the shape of a gator. On the day of her performance, he asked to stop at the store so he could pick out flowers for her. My little boy was turning into a big time Romeo, it seemed. I reminded him that she was six years older and maybe we wouldn't get a chance to even talk to her, but he was undeterred. "If I could, I'd ask her to have dinner with us!" he declared. I had to smile at his gutsy first display of...not exactly manly, but definitely not boyish...ardor.

On stage, Amanda played her fiddle with energy and style. My son waited nervously for his chance to "maybe" meet her. A few minutes before the end of the set, the woman responsible for Amanda's appearance at this event came over and asked us to follow her, my son clueless. Suddenly, "THE AMANDA SHAW!!" as my boy called her, was in front of us. And before the entire thing was over, she'd hugged my kid several times, leaving him tongue-tied and grinning from ear to ear.

I know I won't always be able to give my son the special things he wants, but for once, I managed to make a dream come true for him. I look at this image and see how happy he was and am filled with a certain sort of motherly pride and dread. You see, I'm thrilled at seeing him realize dreams, but hate the thought of the disappointments that he'll inevitably encounter during his lifetime. I rationalize that this is the way life is and I can only encourage him to pursue his dreams regardless of the outcome, help him whenever possible, and pray that for the times he falls short of whatever his goal that he remembers his "Amanda" moment and keep on reaching for the stars.

My Home Town!

2007-05-06T19:55:28+11:00

My Home Town!
Sydney, Australia. My home town.

Many times I have flown into Sydney on a large plane and always, whether returning home from overseas or intrastate, I fall in love with my home town all over again.

Recently I had the opportunity to fly over Sydney in a small plane, taking off from Bankstown airport, heading over Hornsby to Palm Beach and Manly, over the Heads and the Harbour, before returning to Bankstown the same way. A wonderful and breathtaking 90 minutes!

Sydney - my home town!

Home

2007-04-09T22:56:34+11:00

Home

This picture was taken from my fire escape. It is one of the photos I took as a representation of home. This home being Sackville, New Brunswick, Canada where I go to university. It's the town my mom grew up in. Essentially, it's the town I grew up in, too. Though I wasn't born or raised in Sackville, I have spent the past four years here collecting enough knowledge to earn me a diploma.

As I'm about to graduate and move away from this great little town, I find the least significant things becoming important to remember. These are the stairs my roommates and I rush down each morning on our way to class. They're the stairs that used to be guarded by the building next door which burnt down in August. They're the stairs that are meant to save our lives in the case of a fire... yet they're made of wood. They're the stairs where I get to see the neighbors' grey cat sitting in the window. They're the stairs I can get the best view in the whole town from. They're probably even the highest stairs there is in Sackville.

Despite my BA, I learnt more about life in this small bubble of a town than anywhere before. Now seeing the world through an anthropologist's eye, I can tell you that there is a strong environmental influence on each and every one of us that I would not have recognized before. Sackville has taught us to smile and say hi to the stranger walking on the street. It has taught us to stop worrying about the paper that's due tomorrow and take in what's left of our time in the town and at the university. It has taught us that knowledge is indeed power, but personal relationships are what facilitate knowledge. It is the town where 2000 odd students grow each year.

Missouri Sunset

2007-04-04T22:25:10+11:00

Missouri Sunset

We cross the river several times a week, heading from Nebraska into Iowa and back again. It's a common drive for most of us in the area.

I always have my camera ready to snap some shots as we head back to Nebraska. It's often at sunset. I have hundreds of such shots -- spring, summer, autumn, and winter. I have a few early in the day, and some late at night. There is ice on the river in some, and the summer boats flying along the water in others.

Barge traffic stops about half a mile below this bridge, so there's never anything larger than a good sized personal boat out there. Sometimes there are even rafts.

This river has flooded the area far too many times, even after the dredging and other controls were put into place. It's not as wild as it was fifty years ago, but we still watch the waterline (quite high this year because a tributary is flooding just a few miles away) and make note of high and low levels.

But I watch for other things -- the clouds on the horizon, the setting sun and the occasional flights of birds drifting over the water in ways that are unchanged for several hundred years, despite what those of us on the land around the river have done.

In a picture like this, though, you can barely see the mark of man along the edges, blurred out by the coming of night. Instead, for a few brief moments heading over the river, you can imagine what it might have been like before the cities grew up along the river edges and the barges and steamboats plowed up and down stream, bringing more and more civilization to the area.

The land has changed. Even the river has changed... but the sun still sets over the edge of the water, and birds still float along the rising thermals to nest in the trees along the river's edge.

And crossing the bridge at sunset, for a brief fleeting moment, we can see the past.

One for the road

2007-03-27T22:22:23+11:00

One for the road

New Zealand has the reputation of being one of the most beautiful countries in the world. I'm one of the lucky 4 million or so who live here.

During January of this year, 2007, I spent a glorious three weeks on holiday, mostly down the South Island. I normally reside in the small city of New Plymouth, which is about halfway up the west coast of the North Island, however I really do love the south very much.

The most common and popular way to cross the Cook Strait, between the two main islands, is via one of a handful of ferries. These travel each way several times a day, weather permitting. One way takes about three hours, depending on the ferry, though it's not something many people would want to hurry! In fact, this would have to be one of my personal favourite experiences. On this last trip down I was treated to the most beautiful sunset journey through the Marlborough Sounds, though sadly I didn't have my camera handy. On the trip back I couldn't have wanted for a more glorious summers day, and this time I did have my camera.

Trust me when I tell you that the scenery is breathtaking! Sometimes passengers are also treated to an experience of dolphins swimming alongside the boat. (On occasion, however, due to bad weather, the passage can be a little unsettling, to say the least. This may result in the loss of all stomach content, and/or a lie-down all the way! It's a good job that the ferries supply 'sick bags'.)

Luckily for me, both the trip over, as well as the trip back were glorious. Not even a tipple of wine could unsettle me. Just a pity that the company in the photo weren't up to partying!

Big Bend

2007-03-26T22:22:23+11:00

Big Bend

Luna's Jacal on the Old Maverick Road, April 6, 2006.

In 1947, at the age of 108, Gilberto Luna drew his last breath within the walls of his own Big Bend penthouse suite, an aged but sturdy jacal (prounounced hah-KAHL) he built himself with mud adobe, stones, dried lechiguilla and creosote - materials that were close at hand. In the distance, a spectacular view of Santa Elena Canyon rises above the desert floor, made more beautiful with each sunrise and sunset.

Farming near Alamo Creek, Gilberto Luna raised melons and beans...and children; 38 in all, born by six different successive wives. He made peace with the raiding indians, and the bright full Comanche Moon in the autumn night sky was not feared by the Luna family.

Some would say Gilberto was impoverished, uneducated. Perhaps so in the measurements of modern-day existence, but I doubt Gilberto would agree. He awoke to nature's grandeur each day; his ability to survive and flourish a testament not only of tenacious human will over immense obstacles, but also a tribute to intelligence and a special communication with the land.

I am humbled by Gilbert Luna.

Doggy

2007-03-14T19:19:29+11:00

Doggy

Pain. Anguish. Sadness. This picture could describe all. Around the world millions of animals are being mistreated and abused for no such reason. Not only abused while undetected.

I snapped this shot in my school about 20 miles east of Kansas City, Kansas. We have two dogs in our school, this being one of them. However he may be a dog, but I feel we should not have dogs in our school. One reason I feel that way is when you are taking a test they bark at what looks like air, and when you laugh at them you get in trouble. Or they can be severely distracting.

Okay, back to animal abuse what my project is really about. If you have ever watched Animal Cops, Houston you know what I'm talking about. Some people treat their pets so badly that the POPO has to take them away.

I had two dogs that barked all the time at night, so the neighbors got mad. I mean wouldn't you get mad if you only got 5 hours of sleep every night. About a month after they started barking, the POPO show up at my doorstep. They took my dogs straight from my back yard. Now one was adopted from the humane society in Lawrence, KS.

My sister got a wiener dog and when it was a puppy little kids shot it with pellet guns. We took him to the vet and he surgically removed most of them, but he couldn't get some of them without hitting a vital organ. So now when you look at him from the top he has fat lumps in his ribs.

Thanks for listening to my essay and treat your pets with care or else watch for the POPO at your doorstep.

Macs

2007-03-13T19:19:29+11:00

Macs

To start off, Mac computers are freaking awesome. You can do so much with this computer. The brand new ones are the best so far.

Just on Wednesday, Apple posted a record-breaking $1 billion profit. Apple said it shipped 1.606,000 Macintosh computers and 21,066,000 iPods during this quarter.

These computers are really fast. I think if you compare it to something like a Dell, Mac would blow it away. I've been using these computers for about 7 years and I haven't really seen any problem with them.

A manufacturer of desktop and laptop computers and the industry's most fabled story. Founded in a garage by Steve Woznaik and Steve Jobs and guided by Mike Markkula, Apple blazed the trails for the personal computer industry. Apple was formed on April Fool's day in 1976.

In 1998, Apple introduced iMac, a low-priced Internet-ready Mac that was the first personal computer without a floppy disk. Self-contained in one unit like the original Mac, Apple sold 800,000 iMacs in a year, making it the fastest-selling computer in history.

Apple's turnaround was confirmed in the first years of the 21st century, as the company strode toward its 30th anniversary exuding an unprecedented degree of strength. At the heart of the company's surging growth was a digital music player branded as iPod. Introduced in late 2001, the device featured five gigabytes of storage, enabling the user to store approximately 1,000 songs on a player that was smaller than a deck of playing cards. Retailing for $399, the iPod represented another example of Apple's skill in designing an elegant and functional product, a product that became one of the most sought after consumer electronic items during the first half of the decade.

By the time video iPod arrived in stores, Apple derived roughly 35 percent of its revenue from iPods. Between 2001 and 2005, thanks primarily to the popularity of iPods, the company's sales nearly tripled, increasing from $3.5 billion to $13.9 billion. Apple controlled mare than 75 percent of the $2.5 billion digital audio player market in the United States.

Water Tower

2007-03-12T19:19:29+11:00

Water Tower

Every city has at least one water tower, but this one has two. In the town of Tonganoxie we have two water towers one of them is next to our new school. I think the water tower is cool cause I have never seen a water tower next to a school. Except for this one. In the picture it looks yellow and orange but it is really white. I dont know why we have two water towers but we do. This picture caught my attention cause the way the color is and how you look up at the top of the water tower, it looks like it is in the sky.

I've never seen a water tower standing on five legs and one leg in the middle of the all the other legs. I wonder if the water tower is full of water or if is just their to add pressure to the water in our school and the neighbor hood behind the water tower. I like this picuter cause their is alot of different styles of water towers. The other water tower is white and it has one big leg. Both of them have fences around the tower so nobody can mess with the them and or do anything to them. It was built during the summer of 2006.

This water tower is in the little town of Tonganoxie. At first there were only one but since we had a new school built they needed more water so they decided to build another on. This water tower is built behind the new middle school. The water tower is white with tan writing that says Tonganoxie and a picture of wheat.

Everyone really enjoys the new water tower. When they were building it, I thought to myself why are they making another water tower? Also it was an ugly tan color. But finally they painted it and it looked so much better! So now in little Tonganoxie we have two huge water towers!

Serious Talk

2007-03-11T19:19:29+11:00

Serious Talk

I chose this picture because it shows a serious talk. Kind of like a one on one talk about anything. The two people in this picture are focused on Mr. Egging on the left and Jake Willis on the right. It also is kind of funny that Jake Willis has an army sweatshirt on. The army to me are people that are very serious. It to me looks like Jake did something wrong or he jus needs some help on homework.

Army recruiter is what comes to my mind when I look at this picture. The war in Iraq and Iran is going on also. More and more soldiers are going to Iraq. The death toll of U.S. soldiers is going up also. So I want people to remember what the soldiers are doing in Iraq. I'm happy soldiers are defending our country and freedom. But some people don't like the soldiers in Iraq. Those people don't want the soldiers to die. Those soldiers put their life on the line for us.

There is a lot of controversy on the war on terror. It started when some terrorist hijacked three planes and crashed two into the world trade center. The world trade center after that was rubble with lots of dead bodies around it and under it. That area was a terrible disaster many families were mourning from their losses. It took a very long time to clean it all up and find the missing people in the rubble. This event was all over the news, everybody heard about the world trade center. They also made a memorial for the dead world trade center people who died. The other plane was gong towards the white house. So the people on the plane went against the terriost. The terriost failed from hitting the white house because the passengers rebelled. Then bush sent troops to attack the terriost in Iraq. The war has been going on since 2001.

Love in the burbs

2007-03-11T19:07:26+11:00

Love in the burbs

Love's heart,
a one-dimensional,
flat logo,
love in a hard place,
exposed to the unseeing public,
open, undemanding

no look at me,
but quietly always there.

Photographed in the suburbs, this graffiti gives me hope; that although surely unwanted and uncalled-for by the building owner; the deep red, roughly drawn heart shows passion where none should exist, on a retaining wall exposed to traffic.
I am going to drive past there often, to look and ponder who drew it, and for whom.
Perhaps for me?
Love in a hard place.

2 for 1

2007-03-07T21:10:59+11:00

2 for 1

My wife and I had been together for about 8 years married and 7 before that. She had always wanted children but I was reluctant. Like a lot of guys I felt like I had too many things I wanted to do for myself first. I told her that "as soon as we have kids, that's it, it's not about us anymore so forget any plans you had." I always thought that someday I would start my own business or invent something that would make me rich, and having kids around would put the brakes on that.

As it turned out what I mostly did with my time was spend it just goofing off doing stupid guy things that I did in college. So when I am now 35 and have a decent job I have the time and money to do whatever I want, when I want. Sounds like the good life, right? As The Trailer Park Boys say "Freedom 35!"

Most of my friends already had 5 year old or older children and my brother who is only 3 years older than I, has teenagers. So after enough coaxing I think I let go of my reservations and agreed to having a family. If we didn't start soon we would be getting into the high risk age group and although my wife is healthier than most, it was time.

So as you can see we got an instant family, boy and girl twins! They are about 4 months old in this pic, and although it was somewhat staged, it turned out perfectly.

Everyone talks about how busy we must be, but we see it like we don't know what it would be like to only have 1 at a time. It is a different life now that's for sure. I think much more about the future now instead of just living for the moment. I cringe when I think that I will be 50 when they are 12, but hopefully they will keep us young at heart as we watch them grow up. I know this picture will always bring a smile to my face on a lousy day.

Burmese Buddhist Nun

2007-03-01T21:32:33+11:00

Burmese Buddhist Nun

This photo was taken in the large marketplace in the city of Kengtung, which is the main administrative center for the Shan State in Myanmar (Burma). Far from the mass tourist routes, this was one of the most colorful and interesting markets that I had been to in many years.

We were one of only two foreign visitor groups that I saw in the two to three hours we spent their one morning in July 2005.

There were quite a few Buddhist nuns and monks with their traditional begging bowls in the market. Most were monks, and a few were nuns. And most of the nuns, all with shaven heads, were much older than this one, who appeared to be about 14 years old. But what caught my eye was that she seemed to be the most humble and innocent of the Buddhist monks and nuns that I saw. I was fortunate to have gotten this photo of her receiving an ear of steamed corn from one of the vendors. Mostly they would receive cash donations from the vendors and customers in the market.

I had left the market and was just getting back to our bus at the appointed meeting time when I encountered her again. She stood there in front of me with her begging bowl. I was glad because I had wanted to give her something, but had not had an opportunity to do so in the market. So I took out some money and put it in her bowl. The person I was with then turned to go to the bus, but I did not because I noticed that she was quietly chanting a Buddhist prayer for me in return for my gift.

While I cannot say that the rest of our trip went smoothly (the entire trip is blogged at: http://golden-triangle.blogspot.com), I can say that this was one of the most memorable and moving journeys that I have ever taken. And for me, this young Buddhist nun is a symbol of that experience.

Friends

2007-02-28T21:47:06+11:00

Friends

This is one of my friends, just acting like she always does. What makes this picture funny, in my opinion, is that she never reads a book. She would never read a book if she was even told to. She is more of a talker, you know, the kind that would rather talk to friends or watch a movie about the books.

By the way this girl's name is Grae by the way, just if you wanted to know. If you did not know who she was you would think that she is advertising for a reading report.

This was a coincidence finding her in the library because we wanted to find some people reading a book or something. At least she was holding one. That was the least she could do. Someone who was in the picture but did not stay in the picture was Tucker. He is the kind of sport guy. He will play every sport he possibly can. He is most likely, one of the most buff kids in the school. Kind of funny that we did not put his picture in this photo. He would have made is a lot better than just having one person in it.

Someone else's finger was over the lens and we had to take it out. When we took this picture, it was like another day in school. So much wildness and excitement. This is how it is most of the time. Except seeing Grae in the library. That was a surprise. We were all beginners taking pictures at the school, but at least we gave it some effort. You can tell this is a first picture by me. You will see many more in the future and they will continue to get better and better. By the time I get older my pictures will be protection.

Where life made sense

2007-02-27T21:57:07+11:00

Where life made sense

Nothing good, lasting, or worth it is easy or void of pain.

A great kiing offered two choices to those sentenced to death: noose or what was behind a big metal door. Almost everyone chose the noose. What was behind the door? Unknown? People were scared of the unknown and the things their mind put behind the door instead of risking the unknown.

Funny, freedom was behind the door.

It's truly their loss. I AM IN THE COMPANY OF GREAT MEN.

I used to give my shirt to a girl if she was cold and thought that was special. Everyone here has given me and ALL OF YOU their lives. We get nothing from this except shoddy pay and a few more medals. Ooooooh.

A bumpersticker reads "my kid fought in Iraq so yours can party in college." There are no kids here.

America throws celebrities in front of all of us and we worship them. Ben Stein touched on it in his final column that ended last month. Millions of dollars to memorize lines and look good on screen. Heralded for pretending to be this or that.

Now think about those that don't pretend. The nineteen year old sniper searching for the one responsible for killing marines. In the dirt, no trailer to retreat to. MRE's, no catered food. The ten that fell last week tht aren't coming back in the next damn movie. We don't forget celebrities names, but name one service member that has returned that left an arm, leg or sanity here.

Now is the part where I ask you to do something.

Next time you want to see a movie, take the money and make memory. Here are some popular movie types and ideas.

Romance - take the general plot, and the person you love and make your own movie, up on lovers lane, on a hike, drive, trip, make dinner

Action- take a class on rock climbing, paintball, dancing, exercise, race a car.

Sports- hell take your kids, your siblings kids, your kids kids, even big brothers big sisters, AND PLAY AGAIN

and you getting the idea

Go to the VA and take a service member out of the really long lines and out to lunch and get a real story. Or a nursing home. Then Pass the stories on.

"But I don't have (insert excuse here)." you say?

Incentives:

1. your kids, loved ones, friends would probably remember it and retell it more often than a movie plot.

2. Tom Cruise don't need the money. Elvis went to war. Name a celeb. now with the guts. Are you at a loss?? Me too.

3. You may meet some great people and talk.

4. DVDs last forever. The person you love doesn't.

About number 2. You may say well this person or that person visited a war zone or stood up for what they thought ws right.

I hope my emails convey that one can't know or think to know by visiting, reading or watching. Knowing is doing. Those who visit see service members pain, and get a candy coated tour of war, and they form opinons, that are like assholes, we all have em and they all stink.

Talk to those that do it and you get a different story. That get up every morning and grab a rifle and say "not today, no one dies today."

That don't need the fancy restaurants, the millions of dollars, the next catch phrase.

All he needs is coffee, some food that maybe tastes better than yesterday but probably doesn't, enough money for a magazine or haircut, and the greatest catch phrase ever...

I love you