Blog Archives
Some travel advice
Should your travels take you to Alpine, Texas, this is my advice: book yourself into room 208 at the Holland Hotel. It’s got a balcony that overlooks the main drag and (AND!) the train depot. But it also has good balcony-related scenery, like this railing, which caught the early morning light in a very nice fashion.
If you don’t like sound of frequent train whistles, though, you might want to stay someplace else. (Like Denver.) There are a LOT of trains that go through Alpine.
The bartender at the Century Grill, conveniently located in the hotel lobby, makes a very nice dirty martini. Enough of those and the train whistles won’t be a problem.
And, if you head a couple of blocks down the street, stop in at the Saddle Club. When I was there, relaxing* on the open patio in back, a photographer was shooting various menu items. At one point, he brought me over a plate with chicken skewers on it, saying, “Would you like some chicken? I haven’t even touched it!” How could I say no to a deal like that!?
Alpine, Texas
photographed 8.18.2013
*Shiner Bock. It was VERY relaxing.
First Friday Art Trail
Sometimes you have to just suck it up and ASK.
The First Friday Art Trail here in Lubbock is sort of a big deal. And I’d been wanting to have some of my work shown on a First Friday.
So I overcame the tiny bit of shyness that I’ve not yet conquered and asked Larry Simmons, the proprietor of the Tornado Gallery, if I could have a spot at a First Friday. He said yes, and so I am very happy to announce that on August 2, I will be on the Trail.
Stop by, if you’re in town.
(And my deepest appreciation to Larry Simmons for giving me a spot. Not only is he a great guy, but he is my exact birthday twin; every year on our birthdays we agree that we just keep getting better and better.
The photo above is a detail of the windows on the north side of the gallery space.)
Just because it looks like graffiti
As a general rule, I would say that anytime you see something that looks like it’s graffiti, but that includes a Twitter hashtag and what looks like a copyright symbol, you may be dealing with something else entirely.
Like this, which is actually an advertisement for a place where you could play ping-pong by day and listen to live music by night.
I don’t know…something seems horribly wrong here.
Austin, Texas
photographed 5.11.2013
Still gone…still internet-less. Got a comment? Please leave it, and I will reply when I am back. That’ll be July 7, if you are keeping score at home.
Self-serve
This was an interesting place to visit – the Grand Central Market, the oldest and largest open air market in Los Angeles. You can shop at La Adelita Panaderia/Tortilleria, Kabab and More, Economy Meats, Grand Central Liquor Store, Win Produce, or Roast to Go – just to choose a few at random.
In addition to all the delicious food, there are some great neon signs.
Here’s where you can go for more information.
Grand Central Market
Los Angeles, California
photographed 4.17.2013
Four days in to my non-internet vacation. How much do you think I am hating it? I’ll be back on July 7, and look forward to reading all the comments you’ve left while I’ve been gone.
The light from the other side
By now, I am sure that everyone knows that I think alleys are just a great place to look for photographic opportunities.
When I was in Chicago, walking up (I think it was “up”) Michigan Avenue (unless it was another street), I saw this fantastic scene: an alley that was below street level, that curved away from me, but toward the light.
I wanted to follow it.
Chicago, Illinois
photographed 4.13.2013
One Day | One Image 