1.30.2009

art on report

The most recent artist to visit us here at WSU was a Seattle photographer named Chris Jordan. There is an entire show of his work in our museum right now, but as usual, I came to appreciate it a great deal more after hearing him speak about it. At first I thought he just did some work on the computer to achieve the mass amount of objects that can be seen in his Running the Numbers series. That's partially true, he does use the computer, but he also sets up piles of things (such as discarded cell phones) and photographs them over and over, then combines the images to create an unbelievable amount. His main agenda is to communicate the crazy, unimaginable amount of waste that we as Americans produce. Everything is based on statistics of course, but it definitely makes you think. As it so happens, he was a guest on the Colbert Report a couple years ago, and you can watch the clip here.

1.29.2009

D.O.E.


I recently came stumbled upon Department of Eagles, which I think you'll like for multiple reasons. For one thing, they have a bird species in their name. For another thing, they have that melancholy guitar sound you like down pat. Listen to them (and even download a few songs) here.

1.28.2009

Lovely, lovely vintage

What is it about vintage items that is so appealing? I suspect it has something to do with nostalgia for the simpler times we've left behind us - as misplaced as that may be.

I couldn't leave the little gift shoppe at Pike Place Market without this notecard.
.

1.27.2009

grain edit


Doing some research for an assignment I gave to my class, I came across this great site filled with tons and tons of great design (or at least I think most of it is nice). If you ever find yourself with a spare internet moment take a browse: grainedit.com.

Dungeness Spit

If you're looking for WALDO, you can see mostly the best photos from our little shoot here.
If that doesn't satisfy you, all the photos are up on Flickr.

I am also happy with a few of the other photos from the trip to Washington. On my birthday Alex, his parents and I hiked to the end of the Dungeness Spit. It was unbelievably beautiful albeit it foggy.
,






My only wildlife shot from the hike - a Bald Eagle.

.

1.26.2009

puppy hiccups

It's going to be a long long time before (and if) I ever have a baby....

Life with Waldo started Friday, and I knew I was in for some work, but it's one of those things that you don't fully grasp until you're in it. Sleepless nights, countless trips outside to use the bathroom, hours spent making sure he doesn't chew or swallow anything harmful, feeding schedules, lack of feeding schedule for me, and trying to shower and work anytime he decides to take a nap. Motherhood.
The good thing is that it's totally worth it, especially when his clumsiness cracks me up, he gets a spell of puppy hiccups, or he takes refuge in my arms when he's cold or tuckered out. I've had the usual doubts about taking on such a task, but I already now the benefits are going to greatly outweigh the struggles. For starters, he's great therapy for my commitment issues. For my whole life I've always been good at loyalty, but not permanency. For example, I was always the one borrowing horses, spending time with other people's dogs, working part time jobs, and never being able to commit to a serious relationship (this is getting kind of personal). Even grad school seemed like such a good idea because it was temporary. In part, having that kind of freedom has been great, and I have been able to do what I want when I want. So, whenever something enters the picture that seems a little too permanent I get extremely stressed out, I loose my appetite, and can't focus on much (wow, really spilling it out now). I've had that feeling a few times since the arrival of Waldo, but it's starting to subside now. I know that he will be around for a long long time, but during that long long time we will have some grand adventures together. And, his presence in my life certainly does not mean that I loose all my freedom, it just means I will be installing a little more structure and planning in my routine.

Plus, it's impossible not to love such a cute puppy.
Shauna, don't worry, by the time we get to your house in a week he will be a perfect gentleman:)
Claire, can't wait to see the results of the Waldo photo shoot!

1.20.2009

one for the books

There are many many reasons why this is a week of great caliber. I will name a few:

1. Today, America swore in Barack Obama as president of the United States. Monumental for so many different reasons. I feel so thankful to be present and aware during such an incredible moment in history.
2. Bon Iver officially released their new EP. Only 4 new songs, but I'll take what I can get.
3. The commencement of the Yogalates class I am taking. It doesn't get better than hybird excercise after a long day.
4. 6 out of 7 days this week we will be in the same state.
5. tomorrow IS YOUR BIRTHDAY! for that I am truly truly grateful. I don't know what I would have done in this world without you. You have lived a remarkable 25 so far, I can only imagine what's instore for the future. i love you very much.
6. A little puppy named Waldo will enter my life come Friday. It's the biggest committment I have ever taken on, and I couldn't be more excited.
7. A photo session involving you, your fancy camera, and the above mentioned puppy.

the Scarf to rival all other Scarves


Elise (my sister) has a penchant for knitting that I just wasn't born with. I don't know what it is about that craft that eludes me, but I am simply not good at it.
For my birthday Elise made me the most amazing scarf I've ever seen. It's like half throw/half scarf and plenty warm enough for sub zero temperatures.
In short, it deserves its own blog post. And who better to model it than a dog? Kinley is following in her sister's footsteps and it quickly becoming a pretty handy little model dog.
.


Thank you, Lisie-FistyBuns!

1.18.2009

wintery via WA

Seeing as though it is the middle of winter, I guess it's not too surprising that I too was planning on my own "wintery" post. Something we don't have much of in Colorado is fog, but up here it has become my constant companion. Minus the times it makes me feel a bit claustrophobic, I've really become a big fan of it's aesthetic capabilities. Frozen fog is especially exquisite.






Japanese Idol





HOLY CRAP, I am in love with this guy.
.

Wintery

I've been dying to break out the tilt shift, but have been so slammed with getting my new website up and the torpedo of school work this last week that I haven't gotten the chance. Yesterday I met my sister in Boulder and brought my camera (tilt shift and all) with me. I ended up not getting to use it in Boulder, but decided to take photos the whole drive home. It was a really gorgeous evening, decidedly wintery, but beautiful all the same. Most of these shots were taken out my car window, while I was driving and therefore not looking through the viewfinder at all. A few of them are taken while stopped at red lights. I didn't really edit them in Photoshop; they are mostly straight out of the camera.
,


All in all an interesting deviation from dog photos.

1.16.2009

anti-thesis

Despite my inconvenient and expensive mistake regarding my flight, and the record low temperatures in the mid-west, I'm still getting excited for my trip out to Plymouth, Minnesota in a couple of weeks. Mary (the Mary who provided Roux's latest head accessory) and a few others are taking part in the Art Shanty Projects. The main crew will be there a total of six weeks, but there are a others (like me) who will be joining them for short stints throughout the Project. When they have access to computers, and as long as they still have all of their fingers, they have been updating their blog. Their project revolves and aims to recreate parts of the story of Earnest Shakelton and his Antarctic expedition. It's a really lovely story about a bunch of stranded men who survived unimaginable conditions because they chose to remain positive, and filled their days with art, music, story telling, and icecapedes to name a few.
In the mean time, I spent yesterday working on this drawing for my aunt's birthday (I really hope she doesn't read this blog), instead of making important progress in the Thesis department. Somtimes it's nice to just sit and draw a couple of dogs, without having to worry about what it means.

1.15.2009

Rhino Duck

I had big plans to do a real post today, but I've run out of time. You can blame this rubber ducky, the result of a homework assignment in my 3D Modeling + Sculpture class. He may look simple, but don't be fooled. Turns out creating a duck in Rhino can take a good three hours out of your day, easy.
.

i hate money

I'm not in the best mood. I accidentally made a mistake on a flight I booked, and changing it cost a pretty penny....

But, there's no pick me up like a story about an elephant and a dog who are best friends:

Tara and Bella

1.13.2009

Tilt

I've been wanting a tilt shift lens for a good six months, which is about half of my entire photographic career, and therefore a significant amount of time.  I refrained from buying one for all that time because they are not cheap.  Inspirational, yes.  Inexpensive, not so much.  I did a google shopping search to find the cheapest of the non-cheap and then left that browser up on my computer for another two months before I finally pulled the trigger.  But the trigger has been pulled and I used the dogs' walk this morning as a chance to give it a test run.  I'm well aware of the fact that I probably haven't even begun to tap into the possibilities and that I don't really know what I'm doing with it yet, but I LOVE IT.  
.

I've also been thinking a lot lately about how much I love Table Mountain.  It's become a place that feels like my own sanctuary.  It's almost always deserted when I'm there (save the occasional Magpie or coyote), and it feels so liberating.  The dogs run like crazy, as much space as they want at their fingertips.  It's a really, really lucky thing to have it.  
.
A few favorites in b+w:


These are for Alex:
.



And this is for you, Lauren:
,

loot

One thing I have become very addicted to over the last two years is thrift and second hand shopping. I'm guessing half of my current wardrobe consists of items that were 2 dollars or less. It's fantastic. The other day I went to the weekly surplus sale on campus and walked away with three duck decoys, multiple orange lamps labeled "forrestry," and an unusual looking pine tree with a very long and very skinny trunk. I don't know exactly why I got them or what I will do with them, but am very excited about them nonetheless.
Today I taught my last first day of class at WSU. It's funny to think about how nervous I was last fall, compared to now. I still make silly mistakes and forget to say important things though. For instance, I'm pretty sure today I did not mention my name. Just a minor detail...