Be patient with the commercial at the beginning of this video; the song is absolutely worth it. As one of the later entries for The A.V. Club’s Undercover series, The Swell Season covers Neutral Milk’s “Two-Headed Boy.” Absolutely delightful.
These two old glass bottles were found underneath my house. The bottle on the left is mid-century Clorox bleach bottle, and the other is an after shave bottle presumably from the same era.
Last night was my last class meeting for the summer session of my MBA program. I was fortunate enough to be exempt from the final exam, so for the next two weeks I have no classes to attend and plenty of time to shoot some pictures before the fall semester starts up. I still have to work, but a scaled back daily schedule that doesn’t include homework will be quite nice. So that’s a full year under my belt, and a bit less than two remaining. May 2012 is the target, and it’s near-tangibly closer.
On a related note, I spoke with the business IT professor last night about her potentially sponsoring an independent study I have in mind. I’m hoping to do some research into IT companies that have achieved stability and financial success without the use of venture funding, inspired largely by the “Bootstrapped, Profitable, & Proud” series from 37signals (yeah, I did just recently mention that – but this has been simmering in my mind for a few months). If I can put together a solid proposal (and the professor seemed mostly convinced already), I’ll be able to take – for credit – what amounts to a customized course that supports my desired career path. Sweet!
So this is one of my first two test shots of the new PX 70 film from The Impossible Project. What better way to test out some new film than a picture of my lovely wife
Technically, this is a color film. But as you can see it’s fairly de-saturated. It’s also a little splotchy, and this is after two days of resting. It’s supposed to improve with time, and this image has, but it’s clear this is both experimental and their first commercial release of the film. I have 21 shots left (between the current pack and the two unused packs), and I’m hoping to take advantage of tomorrow’s ample sunlight to get some better shots. The color is supposed to be better in such conditions.
Regardless, I love that The Impossible Project was successful in producing this new stock, and I can’t wait to see what improvements they make in the future.
I say it’s a subconscious constraint because nobody ever really enforces this. I’m sure I could head out to Scott’s Addition to shoot some old commercial buildings with my buddies and just pick a meeting point and time where we rejoin after burning through a few rolls of film (or space on a memory card). But when I’m with other folks I feel pressure to stick with the group, and that’s because recreational photography with friends is a social activity. I don’t just get together with Dave or Jake to take pictures. I get together with them to hang out because I don’t get to see them that often. This social aspect, of course, means that I take any opportunity I can to take pictures with my friends. But when I really want to get out and turn ideas in my head into negatives/positives/JPGs, I’d rather be on my own.
I’m trying to eat better, really, I am. I relapse a few times a day, of course. But I’m making some effort rather than no effort.
A difficult part for me is that I’m not really a salad guy. Sure, I love plenty of vegetables, but most of them are not in typical salads and most of them are cooked – at least when I eat them. Standard salad veggies, on the other hand, are not my cup of tea: most lettuces, tomatoes, onions, or peppers.
I’ve know for quite some time that I can whip up a spinach salad, however. And I like spinach! I can mix in fresh herbs, carrots, and some other great stuff. Lest we forget, I can also judiciously apply kosher salt and freshly-ground black pepper or grains of paradise (a fantastic mild spice). But that would still leave me with a dry salad, because I just can’t stand most salad dressings. Ranch? Anything with vinegar? Yuck.
So I’m working slowly…very slowly…trying to develop my own salad dressing that involves lemon juice as a substitute for vinegar. Nothing remotely close to success so far, but I’m plugging away. Something with peanuts perhaps? Maybe I need some coconut water to mix with that and a little fresh ground ginger. A lime instead of a lemon, and some toasted sesame oil, and I may be on to something. Then it’s a matter of proportions.
