inspired once again...

i’ve been refuelled, so to speak…a spark of life has been reignited inside of me thanks to a sexy, adorable yet fierce little spitfire that is one of my wifey’s employees…we, all 3 of us, and let’s not forget the Samster as well, sharing an insane passion for photography…the same passion that, over 2 yrs ago, my then-only-friend-now-wife discovered in me with her own amazing energies on a mere across-Canada visit ;-)

For anonymity’s sake i’ll refer to the little spitfire as ‘muffin tops’ or MT ;-)

MT sent me a link on FB about an unknown, untapped street photographer and her story…so far. there is, it seems, far more to discover of this incredibly talented, now deceased, woman.

to Vivian Maier…had you still lived, i would have happily flown to Chicago just to shake your hand and give you an immense hug of gratitude and respect. your photography has left me breathless with a passion to relaunch my own photographic pursuits that have, sadly, been too long lacking. (below, Vivian herself)

it’s exactly her style of photography that i want to hone my skills at. her and many others…of course, there’s the well known (and one of wifey’s favs), Diane Arbus. add to this impressiveness the likes of Harry Callahan, Garry Winogrand, Helen Levitt and wifey's latest awareness to me, Lana Slezic (sorry, can no do the required symbols for true cultural name) . wow *sigh*

not that my wifey doesn’t instil passion in me…but that’s in a different category ;-)

we’ve both been so insanely busy with every day life and it’s turmoils and annoyances that we’ve nary had a moment to share our much loved photography jaunts…did i REALLY say nary? i am getting old.

but the every day hassles of dealing with difficult people, every-fucking-where, is tiring me out and sending me into the blue zone of depression. some days, not even my gorgeous wifey can drag me out of the pits.

so, when i saw the FB share from MT and i started watching the video, a new spark took hold. i’m now on a frenzied knowledge hunt to absorb and learn all my wee middle-aged brain can absorb about this photographer…and others who share the same passion for street photography. i, hoping to be a mere drop in this pool of incredible talent.

hey wifey, we’s has some exploring to do…strap it on, baby, and let’s go!

below, some of my fav shots from Vivian and Harry:

Vivian...

Harry Callahan...

the tears of men

when men cry, what does it mean?

for most men in the testosterone world, it shows weakness - the stupid adage that 'men shouldn't cry"...wtf is that all about? surprising at this next statement coming from me...but men are human, have emotions and weaknesses just like the mightier side of humanity, we amazing females ;-)

a few days have now passed since i originally wanted to write this blog and some of the raw emotions i felt that day have now passed but when i have a memory of the man i saw on the subway that day, i still feel a little tug at my heart

rocking out to my i-pod on the subway - this a necessity to drown out the irritating folk that are commonly found in a big city environment - i looked across from me. two dudes - each very different from the other - were seemingly enjoying a friendship banter. the one man was slight in body build and fairly well dressed in contrast to his much larger, hugely muscular buddy, more casually dressed in sports gear. my guess was they were both school staff, he a teacher, his friend a phys ed/football coach.

on a rare moment, i found the smaller dude kind of captivating as he appeared to be a gentle (rare), polite (even rarer), friendly person. his hands interested me as they reminded me of my dad's hands. not in the exact as my dad's but in the manner of their physical appearance. for some unknown odd reason, i found myself watching him. i couldn't hear what they were talking about but i knew it was of some intense subject due to their hand actions, nodding/shaking of heads. then i noticed...

his eyes were glossy, wet and red. he was quickly trying to wipe away tears falling from his eyes...

having seen that, this intense sadness washed over me without me knowing why...i just knew my heart hurt for whatever troubles he was clearly going through. i had this incredible urge to hug him because the pain that resonated from his eyes affected me immensely

every day i struggle to keep that humane side of me being witness to all the fucked up bullshit around me and i know this is a boring rendition of a minor event in every day life yet his immense sadness was a solid reminder for me to keep my compassion for humanity open

a sad yet simple reminder how others hurt just as much as i do

shit i hate...

this may be the start of a new extension of my blog..."shit i hate"

today, i have 2 for ya...

#1 picture this: i walk into our work washroom, about 10 cubicles to choose from...i always choose #2 cubicle if it's avail...and it was. so, i'm thinking, great, i can do my poop business before anyone might come in. not 2 freakin' seconds later, some twit comes in, interrupting the natural flow of the business which wouldn't haven't been so bad except the dooshbag (my version of this infamous name...don't argue with me) decides to park her ass into cubicle #....

3!!!!

W T F??? are you fucking serious...you have at LEAST 7 or 8 other cubicles to choose from but you just HAVE to use the one RIGHT beside me??? the picture: me, sitting on the toilet, pants around ankles, arms up in a WTF pose, mouthing those exact words...fuck, i hate that kind of shit

#2 how many of you were as put off by Brandy's fucked up behaviour on DWTS like me and wifey?? yeah, what a doosh she made of herself. totally relieved when she got her ass voted off...way to go american voters :-)

sitting on the subway home today, i happen to look over and see a replica of this singing self-absorbed diva...i had to control the urge to walk over and smack that same stupid look Brandy (and replica) has when she's pulling 'tude...sadly, can't find an image on it

ok, so that's a good start to 'shit i hate'

oh...there's a #3

#3 i hate when wifey and i are fighting :-(

"The Boy" knows how to cook!

wow...how forgetful am i??? oh my, he's now so insulted 'cause i didn't soon enough...anyhow...

Boy likes to cook a family meal on occasion to try out his culinary skills - Wifey and i certainly enjoy as he makes some amazing food

a few weeks ago, as he sometimes does, he randomly out of the blue asked if he could cook...We had Our taste buds enlightened with his own first-time success of right-from-scratch General Tso Chicken! *as my mouth involuntarily starts to drool*

so, huge kudos to Our Boy...below is a minimized version of the meal he cooked...

but i AM "nubby-nunu"

and You're Sobalactic noodle?? LOL

a fun-not-to-be-taken-serious spin on lesbian relationships - the first half of this vid is so similar to my wifey and i, We had a gut-wrenching laugh...