11.30.2001

ARGH!!! Nooooo!    1:36:21 PM

11.26.2001

climbing on up Busy, busy, busy, and totally excited. Reams of photographic work for local non-profit environmental organizations (or so it seems, don't count your chickens....). Good news after a difficult week, can't believe ten days have passed since I last updated.    6:03:41 PM

11.16.2001

When Scrabble goes bad.    9:29:00 PM

While I am not officially unemployed, this funny flash movie resonated with me, and since I usually walk around a little each day I see a lot of people just sort of hanging out, usually at the cafe in Powell's, and sometimes I feel like one of them, and sometimes not. See, this running your own business thing is strange, in that there is no one checking in on you, and if you absolutely have to go buy some blueberry iced tea and a sundried tomato bagel with veggie cream cheese at the place up the street, then you can do that, after checking e-mail one last time.

I feel motivated with my business (like I really need to plug it one more time), but I think everyone around me is looking for a job, and it's a little unsettling that all these people way more talented than myself aren't working because they can't find a good job. I read in the local paper here that last year a nearby coffeehouse needed help, and they received 4 applications in three weeks, but last month they needed to hire again, and received over 150 applications. It's not just that all those really good jobs aren't available, it's that any job you're interested in has also caught the interest of at least 50 other people, and one of them is bound to be better qualified than you.     7:09:56 PM

11.14.2001

"regrettably it took us too long to hear [the critics'] message. Now we must change course to restore the faith of our donors and the trust of Americans and most importantly to devote 100 percent of our energy and resources to helping the victims of the terrorist attacks."

That's such a BS quote (from this article). From the outset, Charlene and I had talked a bit about the Red Cross and what exactly they planned to do with the money raised by them ($543 million) and donated from other organizations. We were concerned that this money would never really reach people who needed it. It turns out these concerns were justified, and the Red Cross had screwed up and only now are trying to appease their critics. Still, it will be months before this money will be doled out to the people who should get it. Furthermore, the process of actually getting this money is apparently burdensome and difficult. It should be noted that as of today, the Red Cross web site is also being used as a relief effort propaganda machine.

I'm all for the idea of an organization like the Red Cross, but it makes me incredibly angry that they took advantage of this situation, and my only real hope is that this is all straightened out very quickly so that this money can be given to the right people and the Red Cross can be out of the picture.    2:09:45 PM

11.10.2001

this slide intentionally projected upside down

Went to a photography swap meet, and bought one of these (for quite a bit less than the ebay price). "Better than a television," the guy said, and I'm inclined to agree, I get to see my slides on the little plastic screen, or projected on a wall as large as I want, it's all very exciting. These meets are fascinating because you see all of this obscure photography equipment of varying worth and quality. I got to play around with a Leica R4 with which I was totally unimpressed.

I've been busy building some web sites which should be up soon (yet again explaining my neglect of this site). Furthermore, I got to see firedancing last night which made me want to have a performable talent.    5:09:45 PM

Fugazi and football?    5:05:51 PM

11.9.2001

"The moral equation in Afghanistan is clear. Civilian casualties are certain. The outcome is uncertain."    4:35:38 PM

11.7.2001

Last night, I got the chance to see This Is What Democracy Looks Like, a film put together from footage taken by over 100 media activists at the Seattle protests in late november-early december of 1999. Whenever I see protest footage like this, whether it be on a pixelly little video screen on my computer or projected on a huge movie screen, my heart races, I get anxious and even a little fearful, but also incredibly proud of what these people are doing.

The fear and anxiousness comes from seeing what an unchecked police force will do to the protesting populace. Watching this movie confirmed all of my feelings. I saw police ripping off people's gas masks then spraying tear gas at them (for maximum effectiveness, of course), and read the words that shocked me then when I first heard them and now, that the mayor of the city banned gas masks and declared a "no protest zone" after the first day of protest.

One of the most moving images from the movie was when hundreds of people sat outside of the jail in solidarity with those who'd been arrested. They remain there, chanting and singing for hours, and suddenly the camera swings up from these people making all this noise, up to these nearly opaque windows high above them where you can see the outlines of those arrested who are leaning against this glass, waving their hands, and letting the people outside know that they're there.

The movie has interviews throughout of many different perspectives from the protest, from the Steel Workers Union, to people from the Direct Action Network, and it does an excellent job of presenting information in a compelling way that sticks with you and doesn't overwhelm. Highly recommended.    10:55:06 AM

11.2.2001

Interestingly enough, this picture was taken along side of a highway in NJ. I'd passed this amazing greenery so many times before I finally pulled over, dashed across the highway, and spent an hour roaming through this amazing, soft plant growth.

Camera nearly died a couple of days ago after getting thoroughly soaked by rain and by shooting too close to waterfalls. I think it's time to deal with this rainy Northwest weather in a more practical way than my half-assed attempts at shielding the camera from rain by holding it under my coat.

Lastly, this whole figuring-out-what-to-do-with-my-life thing isn't scary anymore. Still, it's easy to lose perspective and scrounge around for a way to get by, when the best thing to do is to put yourself in a position where you're doing the things you want to, and if you're passionate about it, a way will present itself to allow you to continue doing what you love.     1:58:27 PM