The Art of Photographing Art

Had he not moved into the wall space it would not have been the same.

It would have been just a wall with words.

It's the same with people isn't. People walk into our lives,

and we'll never be the same because they did. 

I say this with a smile,

and a heart full of gratitude

for each and every person

who has and who will walk into my life.

One Love. One Peace. Always and all ways.

NYE in NYC Bucket list...

The Sands

Emerils

Manhattan

The Rainbow Room

Rockafeller Center Iceskating with all the lights and the big Christmas Tree

Photographing the city all day, all the Christmas Decorations, all the people

Dinner in some ridiculously fabulous restaurant...undecided at present.

NYE concert Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings Time Square

Midnight in Times Square watching the ball drop live

Post Midnight craziness

Boston

Salem

New England Coast

Barnacles

North Hampton

Philadelphia , dancing all night long.

NYC again in a hotel voted the SEXIEST in NEW YORK ...  and it is.

Ice skating in Bryant Park where Serendipity was filmed.

Central Park

Hell's Kitchen

Chinatown

Little Italy
Grand Central Station

Riding the Subway

Restaurants to die for.....we'll see as we go, suggestions welcome.
Babbo [Mario Batali's restaurant]
The Met

The Roman & Greek sculpture hall at the met, after dark for the cool lighting

MOMA, Modern Mueseum of Art
Brooklyn Bridge at night

Brooklyn food tour with  Sue, Robert and Seth

Katz's Deli for a pastrami on rye for sure!

The Bethlehem, PA tour with a real live local [ha!]

 McGrady's

A quick trip up to the pocono mountains on one of the down days........

A prairie girl like me needs to get elevated and the Empire State Building is so over rated.

I think it's a damn fine Bucket List.

: )

One Love. One Peace. Always and all ways.

New York Day One

(Sept, 2007 this blog was previously recorded)

I recognized her immediately. I didn't have to wait for her down at baggage.
My plane was a little late getting to the gate.
We sat on the runway for close to a half hour before taxi'ing in.
A few phone calls back and forth in the meantime.
I'm headed for baggage.......walking thru JFK, my eyes sweeping the airport for people and shops.
As lost as I am in what's around me, there she is!
This tiny little thing. Wrap my arms around her, I did.

I've done this more than a few times. Meet people from online in real time.
I don't care what you say, it's always a little surreal at first, nerve wracking...not so much.
The conversation is light and easy.
It takes a little bit to find the natural rhythm but you do, most of the time.
I can't begin to tell you how delighted I was to be standing in the same space as this angel.
DELIGHTED. Yeh, I had to say it twice.

Now that I am subway savvy, I can say this with some confidence....
If I lived in NYC I'd wouldn't waste my time owning a car. I'm serious.
I couldn't believe how quickly and easily we could get from one side of NYC to another.

I've been on the road since five a.m. between the humidity and the heat,
AND yes the hot flashes I'm about wilted.
Ya gotta know I'm starving.
We decided to drop bags at her place and go find something to eat.
This girl has great taste in restaurants. Seriously.

She takes me to the Saigon Grill.


Some of you have read about this already on Simona's page, for those of you who haven't let me recap.
What you need to know is KATHLEEN DOES NOT DO SPICY. Not at all.
I don't care keep ya habanero to ya self.
I figure soup is a safe way to start.
I watch Miss Thang put some red stuff in hers.....PASS.



Let me ask you this....how can you go wrong with wonton soup?
Easy choice right? I sure as hell thought so.
Kathleen didn't notice the red floating oil in her bowl.

I know what you're thinking. That should have been my first clue. My mouth was on FIRE.
I have this conversation with all of you hot spice lovers. But I'll ask the question again.
What's the point if your mouth is burning up so badly from the heat you can't even taste the food.
Cos that's what it's like for me.
So no, I don't get it.
Other than y'all r masochists.



I look over at the neighboring table.
"Waiter, is what they're having spicy?" "No" he says. I'll have that, thank you very much.

Had I known Chilean Sea Bass was on the list, (endangered) I still would have ordered it.
So shoot me I'm not a purist.
IT WAS THE BEST EFFING SEA BASS I HAVE EVER EATEN.
Melted like butter in my mouth. INCREDIBLE. I want more.



Now babygrl orders Okra. OKRA?

You've got to be kidding. She wasn't. She loves it. I mean she really loves the stuff. Go figure.

Dinner was great. We eat. We giggle. She tells stories. I ask more questions. You could spend weeks with her 24/7 and still sit there fascinated by every word she speaks. This tiny little babygrl.....who watches more than she talks........in five words will say something more important than the greatest philosphers can say in paragraphs....so pay attention. She is always telling you something, much like the universe, she taps on your shoulder...PAY ATTENTION. If you miss it........you miss out on so very very much. LISTEN to her when she speaks. Something else I noticed.......she watches to see if you do.

Speaking of paying attention........I can't help but notice a few things myself.
The girl and I head to time square. We waste no time exploring the city together hand in hand.



Virgin records she takes me to.


Simona mentioned on her blog....I drank a lot of water at dinner. I did. I love water. And walking a girl works up quite a thirst. She also works up the need to pee and by the time we get to this place I can't hold it. Ladies room is taken. We wait. We look at the men's room door. Uh huh. I"m goin in. Listen, I've given birth in front of people I don't know. I can't be embarrassed. Not easily anyway. The men's room is interesting to say the least. Simona photographs her feet. I photograph walls and what's behind me.

Have a look. And yes I'm on the toilet while shooting. ha.



Now what I was noticing earlier. Our sweet Simona has I don't want to say a dark side......but....note the books she pulls out to show me...




(she tryin to tell me something?)
















Now whoever wrote this book had the right idea.




Now the NYC you think I saw, was quite different than what you are picturing in your heads. Not what you'd expect. It was interesting to say the least.










I absolutely loved the juxtaposition of these signs....




Ha! Funny shit. .....so I'm goofin y'all. Cracked us up photographing it all just to get a few laffs out of the rest of you. I'll show you the real New York.







Okay here's a taste of what I saw that night.
I think we ran the streets well into midnight or something like that....
IT WAS FANTASTIC!






so sleeping on the subway is not uncommon. i mean this girl was out.




Toilet paper? I knew I was gonna like New York. I just knew it.












Okay I friggin love the M & M guys.












who needs a freakin tour bus when I have the best tour guide in the city.







I think this is her giving me the "are you thru taking pictures yet kinda look."

I have soooooooooooooooooo
much more to show you.
trust me the pics get better.
YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN YET.

New York, Day Two, Lunch with Farrah

I wanted just once to take you all thru an entire day of our wanderings.
The things I photograph walking down the street, what grabs my attention,
what I do with the images when I sit down and play with them.......ha no not every thing does,
grab my attention that is. C'mon now, I'm not that bad.
Contrary to popular belief I am selective in what I photograph.
Not everything is a picture to me, or one I want to take.



Let the day begin.........

We're going call this waking up on the RIGHT side of the bed.......grin!

it went from this

to what is below.

kinda cool huh?

They do ride horses in NYC. I love horses.
I mean I freakin LOVE horses...
here's what I did with these images....

We were waiting for the call. Her call. Let me say I was a little distracted when she did.

We meet our girl at Russo's. A place with a bartender that makes the best espresso martini's.

I mean the BEST!

It's probably a good thing, in hindsight,
saying no to a second martini, before walking Broadway.
We opted for a daylight tour of the MOMA,
Modern Museum of art.
Turns out it was closed and while you might that would have lured us back
to the bar with the good martini's we got sucked into the MOMA gift store.
Yes let's stay sober but dent our wallets. Uh uh.



Thinking about le denting of le wallet,
I have my personal assistant take notes on the things
I did not buy but would off their website when I got home. (as if)

.yeh well........let's keep walkin, cos that's what we did.

yes I stop and photograph people's food. people i don't know.

He spoke to me. I missed the shot when they were nose to nose. THIS is his father, he says.
He thought I was making fun of him I assured him I was not and even offered....
"Hey you know, your wood is just like your father's." (stole that line from Missy, Hannah's mom)
fock she cracks me up. And the girls. well I think they were waiting for me to get my ass kicked. ha.

Simona bella teaches me about shooting buildings.
How to see things in layers, old with the new.

Bless the girl who waits patiently for us to get our click on.
Smart girl keeps walking and we run to catch up. ha.

there does come the time to say goodbye to miss farrah.....
not before indulging in another martini, yanno one for the road n wot not.
A grand time was had by all.

Doesn't mean we quit walking the city. Other than coming in or out of the city we walk,
and we walk and we walk. This trip across town did require a hop on the subway.....

I know it's fake. I still get creeped out.
Listen, I don't watch the old Godzilla movies for the same reason.
Gives me nightmares every time. and guess what. I had em that night.
remembering miss farrah does not think kangaroos are cute, i'll keep this one small.




Miss Simona much to my delight loves all things soft and cuddly.
Toys r Us was a treasure trove for babygrl.
c'mon c'mon.......keep up....ya feet can't be hurtin yet.

One of the coolest things was meeting Simona's friend from Romania.
They both were journalists over there. I got to sit and listen to stories from another life.....we sat and visited, had some great calimari, and of course i hijack customers food for my photographs.

we finish off with a little show in the square which was actually round. Music.
Sword swallowing. yanno, stuff like that. Simona was gracious enough to let me video the music with her camera but for some reason my pc isn't letting me play it so i can upload it to YouTube. You know I have so many stories, but after going thru over 300 pictures at the very least for this posting, editing n all that .........
the pictures are just going to have to say what I haven't in text.



was a great great great day in NYC. All I gotta say bout that.



<oh hey can't let ya go without a panty shot.






whaaaaaaaaaaaaat u thought we'd be wearing em? bah ha ha ha.



(Sept 2007 this blog has been prerecorded)

yes I have at least two more blog posts coming.
: )