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Of Men and Wisteria

A few of us were to get together at Art maven Joe Cardella’s home this weekend. Many have been through the mill as it were, in recent months, so Joe invited the lot of a group of artists and critical thinkers over for a pleasant Sunday afternoon, under the great awning of Wisteria which are in bloom here right now, in Ventura California. I would be away shooting on location, so scooted by to get a photo of the flowers and dose of time with an inspiring friend. Today started in unique fashion. My friend and former editor Drew Kampion

Independence Day was Born on the Fourth of July

Not vice versa. This is why we consider the Declaration of Independence to be the blueprint for Liberty. It covers the underpinnings necessary for the pursuit of happiness. It is the God given and legal architecture of these united States, with which what I term “The Suck” (which applies to those who endeavor to control and suppress independence) battles, in ever more brazen fashion, these recent decades. Below is some beautiful verse written by my friend and colleague, photojournalist and soldier Jon Louis Blackburn. He is a proud Scot in heritage and tone, and a perfect example of what America

Memorial Day Is….

A culture which does not connect accurately, reverentially or beautifully with it’s past, is akin to a rudderless boat: doomed to be at the whim of waves and weather. So today is Memorial Day. So what? Why should you or I care? Only because to not do so, is to engage in our personal demise and that of our families, and in turn, our Nation. Wiki does a great job with relating the History of Memorial Day. In the course of my work, on a somewhat regular basis, I get the opportunity to serve the various Military Communities which heed

One Intransigent Eve

The image above was posted onto my Facebook page and a conversation ensued as a result, about helmet usage in water Photography and Cinematography. My esteemed friend and colleague, Steve Fitzpatrick weighed in. Steve had his noggin crushed in a PWC accident by an untrained operator at Tres Palmas in Puerto Rico. He wound up with a Traumatic Brain Injury, as a result. No, if he had been wearing a helmet he still would have acquired TBI. The cure, what really gives us safe passage (this was discussed in thread) is operating utilizing your ability as a human being.

Being Clear

I ran into a friend the other day, who brought up an interesting point about some of my work. In essence, this is what he said. “Do you realize that you often leave it to us, to figure out what you are trying to communicate? That can be really frustrating, as so many of us are busy with other things, and we want to get it. But there is no time to track through all the links and study it all out. You may want to consider just telling us the answer.” It really is a good point that he

K38 Rescue: Precept and Example

I sent Shawn Alladio a note yesterday afternoon. Here it is. At least TRY to have a good time tonight, will ya? This is important. Here is her response. Shut up! LOL That pretty much sums up what many of us feel, who are on the back end of rendering service, when accolades come our way. Shawn was headed to an awards ceremony. I knew about it. Barely. It is not what we talk about. But a friend had reminded me, and I knew that Dr Andrea Neal, was down to see her in the midst of what

Living Bali

Contained within the concept of life, if one examines the word itself, the thing (noun) is not really what one may assume. A look at the origins of the word, takes you back to a Germanic root, which actually means leave, or more to the point: to remain. Taken yet to a more finite point of purpose in definition, to live, is to OCCUPY, a space, time and place. In living, we fill a space with our heart, mind and spirit. Here is the story of the Bali Nine. A group of individuals cut off by country, and set adrift

Catalysts

catalyst |ˈkatl-ist| noun a substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change. • figurative a person or thing that precipitates an event : the governor’s speech acted as a catalyst for debate. ORIGIN early 20th cent.: from catalysis , on the pattern of analyst. As I stood next to a wheelchair with reclining back, which was now the principal means of conveyance for Mamie Cohen, I sort of found myself laughing a bit inside. Today, (Monday) is her Birthday. She is 89 years old and lives at Samarkand in Santa

Art Show: Ventura

Last night was intriguing. It followed on the heels of a busy day. Robb Havassy rang me on my cel phone as I drove down Ventura Avenue, car loaded with stuff to be part of our joint installation at Michele Chapin’s, Stoneworks Gallery space. “What are you doing?” he asked. “Oh just driving down the Avenue. You?” “Just getting to your gal’s place. The boys from Surf Aid (Randall and Dr Dave) are meeting me there to pick up our stuff for the Benefit tonight. Go there.” “Okay see ya in five.” And on a beautiful Friday afternoon I meandered

World Oceans Day

This is another in the blog series on California. Ch 3. Today is a movement generated day called World Oceans Day. You can read about it’s History here. More years ago then I care to admit to, I had a couple custom board shaping appointments with two men. One board was for Tom Pratte. The other was for Reed Wolpert. As we chatted together in two separate shaping sessions, both men told me about a concern that they had. They each saw California as being engaged in a very dangerous trend. It was the walling off of the Coastline by

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