A Scene at the Airport

Anxiously waiting:  What if I don't make it on time?

Sleeping:  Wake me up when we board.

Walking hurriedly:  I hope my deodorant works this time.

Hope your day is going well.

One day at the Supermarket

Who needs water when one can have two of the most important liquid in life?  Alcoholic beverage and salad dressing while in the Philippines.  The Fundador is a brandy from Spain.  Filipinos consider it a special treat to drink this.  It is a gift you would give to your college professor so he will let you pass his class. I once gave one to my ROTC drill sergeant so he could recommend me for an honorable discharge.  He must have liked it.  The salad dressing is a cheap imitation of vinaigrette from Italy.  I don't know of anyone else who eats salad in the Philippines.  As far as I can remember, the dressing was a nondescript kind.

Hope your day is going well.

One of these Nights

The full moon is calling, the fever is high

And the wicked wind whispers and moans

You got your demons, you got your desires

Well, I got a few of my own

- Henley/Frey (One of these Nights, Eagles)

You know one of the hardest part of being alone occurs in the daytime.  I don't know why but it is when I feel the weight of being very alone and exposed.  A single day seems to last like a week.  The nighttime is different.  Maybe there is the darkness to hide me.   There are less distractions.  It is when I begin to be more creative.  What about you?  Or you a morning person?  Or are you a night owl?

Sardine Salad

This turned out okay.  Sweet Yellow Bell Peppers, Cherry Tomatoes and some unknown green vegetable dressed up with Ranch Dressing.  Dashed with my usual Tabasco sauce on the fish.  Some Red Hot Chili Pepper because I want it hot.  Beautiful.  Bon appetit.

A Happy Bear in Bern

Our tour director told us that the city of Bern got its name from the word Bear.  Apparently, there are only two bears in that city.  Maybe for the entire country of Switzerland.  If one is fortunate enough, the bears can be seen somewhere situated at the eastern edge of the old city of Bern.  I didn't have the patience to wait for the bears to come out - so I decided to take a picture of this one.  Hope you enjoy.

Eat Cheese instead of Beef

Earlier I cooked the marinated prime cut beef.  I used the same sauce on the meat and potatoes that I posted a few days ago, and added a bit of Olive oil.  Covered it for 20 minutes and it was all good.  Put it away for my next meal.  

The next day I had an idea of dressing up some slices of cabbage and topping them with the beef.  I wanted the beef to be warm so I microwave it.  But instead of 15 seconds, I didn't realize I entered 15 minutes.  The beef turned out to be the blackiest meat I have ever seen.  It felt like charcoal and probably tasted like one.  I needed my protein so I ended up topping the salad with Swiss Cheese.

So it’s back to healthy eats:  salad containing sweet bell peppers, tomato and cabbage. Mimi wanted her share as usual.  Surprisingly, Mimi liked the Bell Peppers.  I was worried that it might not go well with her but one internet source said it was okay for dogs so long as they eat it in moderation.  Of course Mimi does not know that she is a dog.

One Little Red Hut

Yes, there are people who lives in this hut.  Remember the woman who cooked fish for us?  This is where she and her family live.

Hope your day goes well.

The Last Remaining Cowboy in Chino

All the dairies in Chino, California are either moving out or selling their businesses.  There are just a handful of dairies left.  All of them have decided to leave.  The regulations in the South Coast area are burdening the dairy operators.  And the cost of real estate outweighs the cost of maintaining a dairy business so the owners are selling their lands, which are transformed into residential houses.

Dean is the last remaining cowboy in Chino.  He moves the cows from Chino to wherever destination they want him to go - usually in the Central Valley of California.  He's not sure what he'll do next when all the cows are gone.

Dean is a true cowboy.  Generally shy and quiet.  His tough face, sunburned from being in the sun all day, is complimented with his soft and humble personality.

I captured Dean's portrait back in 2011.  I was testing my 50mm Carl Zeiss Planar mounted on the Canon 60D.  Thanks to Kirk Tuck who was using that combination back then.  I followed his lead and was very impressed with the results.  I tried to edit the picture back then but was never satisfied.  Until now.  There are many images in my archive that are just waiting to be found.

Hope your day is going well.

Meat, potatoes, carrots, red peppers and unknown green vegetable

I ended up cooking this meal for two even though I would be the only one eating it.  (Rose is still abroad.)  Seems more economical that way.  I will save it my next meal.

Upon plating the meal, I added drops of Tabasco Sauce on the meat.  Just because I like my meat hot and spicy.  (I truly believe that it kills all the germs.)  I have sliced tomato on the side.  A glass of Sauvignon Blanc from Monterrey, California.  A collection of soft jazz produced specifically for listeners who are alone but not lonely - although I don’t think I fit the bill here but it makes for great listening while enjoying a meal.

The green vegetable provides  a nice photogenic addition to the meal.  Don’t know what the green vegetable is.  Found it in the fridge.  I think it was from Rose’s cousin.  She got quite a garden with all sorts of vegetables and fruit trees.  The green vegetable was bitter even after cooking.  Now I know that bitter herbs could be healthy to eat or they could be poisonous.  So if you don’t see my posts in the next few days, I am probably in the hospital recovering from getting my stomach pumped.

Have a nice day.

Social Media Dilemma

Being alone can sometimes make your mind work in a weird way.  There is no one who can be a sounding board to bounce off an idea.

The Art of Bowing

Sometimes I'll post a picture that I didn't take.  Such as this one.  Rose was toying with my new iPad pro when she took a picture of Mimi just when she had just awaken.  Mimi usually stretches when she gets up, and in this image she does a wonderful performance of bowing.  

Rose went back to the Philippines to celebrate her birthday with her brothers and sister.  I am glad for her.  But at the same time, I do miss her already.  I'm sure Mimi misses her as well.  Today is the second day of her absence.

One More Time for Elvis

And a-one for the honey.  Two for more shots.  Three to get giddy.  And go cat go.  Oh don't you ... step on my swede shoe blue.  You can do anything but just don't sworn my old shoe gem blues.

Forever Young

Maurice:  Save that spot for me, Jimmy.  I going to see if I can hook up with that red hair chic wearing a Prada.

Jimmy:  Make sure you show her your new dentures.  Works every time for me.

Why is the man holding his phone this way?

He is holding the phone with his right hand because:

a.      He got tired using his left arm from waiting so long.
b.      The reception is better if he holds the phone this way.
c.      He is actually scratching his left ear and he can't use his left hand because it is also itchy.
d.      All of the above.

Originally posted June 4, 21012

Woman Cooking

She was going to cook some fish for us.  Her husband had just caught some fish in the pond.  I don't remember what kind of fish they were.  They were definitely fresh.

The little hut where they live is in the middle of the pond.  Pretty cool.  This is how most people in that area cook their food.  They have a wooden stove, so yes they use wood to fire up the stove.  It would make lots of smoke.  I wished I would have captured the smoke earlier but when I grabbed the camera the smoke sort of dwindled.

Hope your day is going well.

The Cage

Captured in 2009 with my first DLSR.  It was a Canon Rebel XT.  In some countries it is called Canon 350D.  I was not even serious into photography yet.  Didn't know what I was thinking when I took this shot.  I was so inept in using the camera that when I took it out of the box I dropped it on our tiled floor.  It bounced a couple of times that I thought I ruined it.  I would end up using it for a couple of years.  I realized I loved the blur.  Later on I discovered the Lensbaby, which helped me composed with lots of blurs.

Mad Max Was Here

And maybe he is coming back.

Redemption Biker (ii)

He's the true Old Man Geezer.  Wit's solid as a rock.  Heart as soft as clay.  He'll watch your back no matter what it takes. He' a rock persona idol.  He's a Redemption Biker.  Taken in 2012 at the Chalk Walk Fest at Old Pasadena.  The dude was sitting next to his little daughter who was participating in a children's version of the chalk fest.

Waiting for September

I am tired of this heat wave.  Here in Southern California, it’s triple- digit temperature in the last few days lingering without an appearance of ending.  For you folks who read Centigrade, it means that we have been experiencing above 45s. The leaves on some of our trees have turned crunchy.  The budding apples have turned brown.  The mango fruits are done.  The roses and daisies are half dead.   It’s hot, hot hot and hot hot hot.  

And so in my fantasy world, I am dreaming of the end of Summer.  I welcome Fall and the cool breeze for the hot air it brings.  Yes, Fall.  Probably my favorite season.  The sweet melancholy that accompanies the change in weather.  And there is the change in color in the foliage.  Oh, I know it occurs only for a short period of time.  But that makes its beauty ephemeral, which makes one longs to see it again next year.  And the next.  And so on. 

A Momentary Lapse of Cognition

I'm not sure how I made this shot.  It was shot with the Panasonic DMC LX3 in 2010 while we stopped by for gasoline in one of the rural towns of Antique, Philippines.  I might have accidentally set the shutter speed on bulb and fired the flash.  I think the result is pretty cool.  Although I don't know how to duplicate it.  One of those happy accidents.

Hope your day is going well.

Fisherman and His Son

I don't know how many times I've edited this image in the past, and was not fully satisfied with the result.  Until now.  Taken in 2010 using the Panasonic DMC LX3.  It's really a nifty point and shoot.  The camera I used here fell on a raging river three days before I shot this, and it still worked.  The one neat thing about this camera is it is the same camera as the Leica D-LUX 4, which is made in the Panasonic factory in Japan but cost 3 times as much as the Panasonic.  Unbelievable but it's true.

The Beggar and the Tourists

This was actually a failed shot that I have tried to edit several times and just gave up. And then I had an idea.  Instead of embellishing the image with fancy editing, I did the most abnormal thing.  I took away some pixels. That is I rendered the image as high contrast to enhance the shadows and give the people that silhouette look.  It's very much an overdose of a cliche style in street photography.  Almost all street photos look like this - and that is why it is very hard to identify the photographer.  I must confess I don't care so much for this style.  Oh well.  At least for this image, I'm making an exception.

Hope your day is going well.

The Tourist and the Caveman

Man sitting:  Ah, ya ain't scaring me, bud.

Caveman:  I could give you a nice close shave if ye want.

Some Feet A'walking on the Street of Belagio

The tourists seem to be walking away from something.  The Pigeons appear to be headed where the tourists came from.  A fine sunny day in Northern Italy.  I think this was somewhere in the Province of Como.  I'm just going to say it's in Belagio just because it was one of the two tourist traps I can remember while being there.  The other place was Lago Maggiore.