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Focus and Awareness

In a culture that is enamored with here and now, and proximity of the rapid flow of daily events, we have unwittingly engaged what I think to be a somewhat innocently architected, lack of focus. Sort of like  a baby in a crib so taken by a hanging mobile that he has forgotten his bottle was in his little hand. We see and read through  newish info age pipelines, of internet, and other rapid response media sources, aimed at prurient human interests, things that seem to take our eye off the ball so to speak, as a culture. I have

Light Monger

I have always been a light monger. To me it was apparent, that I would always want to walk in light, be led by it, emanate it. So it comes as a bit confusing, and stark, when something as overcast as anger, gets stirred into the brightness. But seeing the thick black thread of darkness swirl  around in that light, like chocolate syrup into fresh white milk, is just the way of the world. You have to add a disproportionate amount of dark to convert light in the realm of the visible spectrum of color. So light makes sense, in

Hybrid Vigor

n. Increased vigor or other superior qualities arising from the crossbreeding of genetically different plants or animals. Also called heterosis. Typically the term is reserved for describing the increased performance of a species. But in Ventura California we have been seeing our fair share of the above described noun more in the form of a verb. Verbs denote action. When a person and in turn a community, becomes insular, the processes of growth cease. Of course growth has many forms. But the one we all ought to be after, is sustainable personal and community growth. This sort provides a stable

Small Town, Big World

I get a global look at things through my photography business, which has web strands anchored to many countries. I see something first hand, that many do not have the personal luxury of acquiring: a broad economic  and cultural perspective. This country is in the single greatest period of change and challenge since the Great Depression. So what to do, as assets dwindle and fiscal potential narrows? For the answer,  look to the past. About a year ago, a group of people met in my little town. There were a series of meetings actually. No official city committee was involved.

Collateral Damage

    I was 23 years old and saying a tearful goodbye to my wife of one month in LAX departures. As I slunk back in my seat moments later, and heard the soft thunk of the cabin door closing, I noticed Shaun Tomson sitting a few seats away. Dane Kealoha was nearby, and behind him I saw Mark Richards. We were all headed for Hawaii and what would be my first travel leg of the then IPS world tour.    The next ten years or so of my life consisted of moments like that: traveling alone, or with some

Wonder

It has been a very busy year. So busy in fact, that I have needed to learn how to recharge my creative battery while on the fly. Fashion, Video projects, TV projects, motion pictures, my penchant for documenting beautiful things, travel, new tech, literary projects, commercial imaging, social projects, community, and hopefully some of me for my wonderful girlfriend and family. All of these things have beat a tempo never experienced in the realm of my career as an image maker. It comes at a time when the economy is without a doubt at one if its worst places in

Bali Journal 5: Sacrosanct

Just because something is sacred does not mean that it is exempt from entropy and the physical laws of change. In fact, being sacred may mean that every force in this world is immediately set in motion with the express purpose of subverting that consecrated thing. It is the world’s way. Sacred refers to being set apart for a specific purpose. The dictionary defines it as the state of being connected to God. The word is derived from the Latin word sacrare, which is a verb. That means it denotes action, motion, interaction, etc. But if a thing is truly

Project Cupcake

What started out as a Facebook discussion on my friend West Cooke’s mad cooking skills, and his hidden away restaurant, Cooke’s Smokehouse (A couple blocks away from the location of one of my old surf shops) got a little out of hand. Funny what can inspire us to create something special. It is remarkable what can arise in both cause and affect via inspiration. A few of us had been joking around online. Kat Merrick, Jim Scolari, Jim Rice, West, the usual multifaceted blend of community that is the town we all refer to fondly as Ventucky, our land of

Flaming Arrow

In my travels and also in my work here in the US, I often have projects and events thrown at me, or that I simply stumble across. Some I embrace, some I do not. Behind each of these somewhere is a person holding a bow. They have started a fire. They do this with a flaming arrow. I have a friend here who works for the Ventura Visitors Bureau. Her name is Kathleen Fitzgerald. Her bedroom name (the name we all use for her in private) is Firestarter. What she does is identify the need, come up with a potential

Categories

Focus and Awareness

In a culture that is enamored with here and now, and proximity of the rapid flow of daily events, we have unwittingly engaged what I think to be a somewhat innocently architected, lack of focus. Sort of like  a baby

Light Monger

I have always been a light monger. To me it was apparent, that I would always want to walk in light, be led by it, emanate it. So it comes as a bit confusing, and stark, when something as overcast

Hybrid Vigor

n. Increased vigor or other superior qualities arising from the crossbreeding of genetically different plants or animals. Also called heterosis. Typically the term is reserved for describing the increased performance of a species. But in Ventura California we have been

Small Town, Big World

I get a global look at things through my photography business, which has web strands anchored to many countries. I see something first hand, that many do not have the personal luxury of acquiring: a broad economic  and cultural perspective.

Collateral Damage

    I was 23 years old and saying a tearful goodbye to my wife of one month in LAX departures. As I slunk back in my seat moments later, and heard the soft thunk of the cabin door closing,

Wonder

It has been a very busy year. So busy in fact, that I have needed to learn how to recharge my creative battery while on the fly. Fashion, Video projects, TV projects, motion pictures, my penchant for documenting beautiful things,

Bali Journal 5: Sacrosanct

Just because something is sacred does not mean that it is exempt from entropy and the physical laws of change. In fact, being sacred may mean that every force in this world is immediately set in motion with the express

Project Cupcake

What started out as a Facebook discussion on my friend West Cooke’s mad cooking skills, and his hidden away restaurant, Cooke’s Smokehouse (A couple blocks away from the location of one of my old surf shops) got a little out

Flaming Arrow

In my travels and also in my work here in the US, I often have projects and events thrown at me, or that I simply stumble across. Some I embrace, some I do not. Behind each of these somewhere is