Project Unbreakable

Like everyone else in the country, I am truly shocked & horrified at yet another senseless shooting this past Friday at an elementary school in Newton, CT. You will eventually hear my own thoughts on this but at the moment, I'm still trying to process & articulate what I want to say.

In the meantime I'm bringing you something constructive. Bringing to light another tragedy that is equally horrific to those involved & how they've chosen to deal with the situation.

Its called "Project Unbreakable". Giving you the short version, its a campaign addressing & combating sexual violence & assault.

Below is a YouTube video from the founder.



As a photographer, I'm impressed with its simplicity. No elaborate concepts, no fancy illustrative reenactment of the violence. Just the victim & a placard w/ the words the perpetrator used in quotes. The very definition of the K.I.S.S. Principle (keep it simple, stupid).

Its revolting to read what the perpetrator says. Its even revolting to read what people have said who are SUPPOSED TO BE supporting the victim, people like family & law enforcement.

Its nice knowing a project that starts as simple as helping a friend can completely take on a life of its own in a good way.


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Moving on...
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As a photographer, its an extra special treat working w/ people on an unintentionally long-term basis. You're blessed with being a part of the big moments in their lives. See them find love (& sometimes heartbreak), get hitched, start a family, sometimes even seeing those family members grow up & having them in front of my camera.

Ceri is one of those people.

This was taken back in 2008 for my never-ending Abandonment Project. The locations may change but my interest in the visual contrast between the "dirty, blah" environment (something most people overlook) juxtaposed against the "pretty" model hasn't.



Feel free to comment away if you so desire.

One Dimensional Lazio

Its nice to know that the more things change, the more they remain the same.

Republican candidate for governor, Rick Lazio, is choosing the much bellyhooed construction of an Islamic Community near Ground Zero:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/23/nyregion/23lazio.html?pagewanted=2&hp

...a centerpiece of his gubernatorial campaign. So much for having actual ideas. So much his previously much belly-hooed pet-issue of "reforming Albany dysfunction."

I remember back during his 2000 US Senate race against Hillary Clinton where his entire platform was, "Vote for me. I'm a true New Yorker". He lost that race by 12% points & those were during relatively good economic times.

I guess I shouldn't be surprised that he's still one-dimensionally bankrupt of ideas. If this is the absolute best he or the State Republican Party can do, they deserve to be crushed by 25+ points, like they are behind now.


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In other news...
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This is here is Rika participating in my Abandonment Adventure project.



Feel free to comment on any of this if you so desire.

Madden Hotel Sale

I'm conflicted.

A part of me wants to unleash my scorn at Jack Diamond (the Glens Falls mayor), the Post-Star, and the city system of Glens Falls for their collusionary eminent domain tactics in closing the Madden Hotel. It was clear from the start that no matter who owned it, nor how much they compiled w/ the city's request to get it in code compliance, the city was going to force a closure. The city was bound & determined to get their way, kicking out even legitimate residents like the Open Door food kitchen. I guess they are collateral damage in this tiff.

The city has spent so much tax payer dollars cracking down on the property & its residents, one has to wonder if those expenses could not have been spent more wisely. Like fixing the drainage system by Kensington Elementary School that floods everytime there's a minor rain or snowstorm.

Then there are days like today when I walk to my local library. My route takes me past the hotel. It doesn't matter what time of day it is, there is ALWAYS riff-raff in front of that place clogging the sidewalk. Furthermore, they act like I'm burdening them when I politely say "excuse me" because I'd like to pass through.

I'm not delusional in thinking that the Madden's closure will actually solve the problems of finding a place in the city for affordable housing. But if its closure (& hopefully its demolition) addresses trying to get rid of the riff-raff that's CONSTANTLY there, all I can say is good riddance.

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This here is Danielle.

The antcedote behind this image is that the day prior it was an unseasonably humid 80 degrees. The day this was shot it was a frigid 50 degrees. It didn't help matters that a downpour earlier that day forced me to cancel a shoot w/ her roommate. Well, that & any sort of inclement weather turns drivers into complete (expletive deleted) morons one of which nearly sideswiped her while yacking on their cell phone.

Anyway, Danielle was participating in my ongoing Abandonment Adventure series. The one people sometime refer to as "Urbexing" or "Urban Exploration." I like the visual contrast between the "dirty, blah" environment juxtaposed against the "pretty, clean" model.



Feel free & comment away if you so choose.

Enjoy.

Whole Lotta Nothing

I had a blog planned out but I just don't feel like posting it anymore.

It ran something along the lines of ass-hat says something questionable; I challenge said notion & ask for a clarification; ass-hate opens mouth & proves they're an ass-hat (as opposed to keeping it shut & giving himself reasonable doubt).

Whatever. The schmuck isn't worth the effort.

Stuff really hasn't changed much or has been said better elsewhere.

1. The idiots in the NYS legislature still haven't reached a budget as I write this. Depsite this being, 2 months overdue if not more. God forbid they do their one constitutional duties. I'm not sure which is worse, them taking off 2 months last year because they cannot act like adults & getting paid for it or pretending to act like adults, still getting nothing done, & STILL get paid for it.

Its a shame because the Governor is the only one TRYING to get something done & is actually in tune w/ the economic reality we're in because the voters don't like him & is on the way out anyway. While the rest are to busy trying to get reelected.

If we the voters are to stupid to keep these guys in office, sometimes I think its the government we deserve.

2. I've kinda gotten into World Cup fever. Its definately not a sport that Americans are accustomed to watching (constant scoring, breaks in the action). Not to mention, most (timed) regulation games revolve around the 60 minute timeframe plus halftime, soccer (at least at that level) revolve around the 90 minute games plus halftime. But once you get passed that, its sorta like hockey in the sense that its the scoring chances & the near misses that make exciting. That & the inevitable controversies but I'm not going to get into that.

3. Its been pretty hot lately. I wish I could be sympathetic but I've lived (& worked) in a tropical juggle for a year & a half. There was literally zero difference between the sun & the shade.

Don't like the heat? Do something about it. No sense whining about it because doing so isn't going to make it any cooler. Or one could think of it this way, would you rather it be blistering hot or blistering cold? Me, I'd rather have it blistering hot because at least I can operate outside my house doing (I dunno) taking a drive w/ the windows rolled down (the original air conditioner), take a swim in any of the natural swimming spots here in the beautiful Adirondacks, hover around the air-conditioner, cool off w/ the hose.

Just have to keep things in perspective.

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In other news...
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This here is Rika participating in my Abandonment project. People sometimes refer to stuff like this as "urbexing" or "urban decay" or "urban exploration".

Anyway, this is her outfits but playing around w/ one of my fabric thingies that I always seem to have. I just kinda ran w/ it at that moment.



Feel free & comment away if you so choose.

Baseball Hall of Fame

This weekend, my brother & I took my baseball-loving father to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown as a belated Father's Day present.

As a fan myself, the biggest question I had going in was how they were going to address the performance enhancing issue. I soon got my answer because of how we choose to tour the museum (visiting the most recent stuff to the least recent). Maybe I should say that I got my answer by what they weren't showing.

On the contrary, they acknowledge the steroid issue by having a big exhibit of Hank Aaron, the former holder of the all-time home run record & generally agreed upon nonsteroid user. They acknowledge the various records (most home runs, most doubles, most games played, etc) & those that hold it. But other than that, no artifacts of tainted players. No special no-hitter balls, no bats, no uniform items, etc.

Conclusion: Steroid users have no place in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

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In other news...
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This here is my dear friend, Melanie, who is participating in my never-ending abandonment project (sometimes commonly referred to as "urbexing" or "urban decay"). Locations like these, I've learned to use them as much as you freakin' can because they WILL NOT be there indefinitely.



Feel free & comment away about any part of this blog if you wish.

Falling Apart

I'm remembering a conversation I had w/ a friend while out in Boston. We were walking from the friend's apartment to her local hangout. She had mentioned that she always liked going from her apartment to the hangout because everything aesthetically got nicer the closer we got there, brightening her spirits. When she returned home, it got more "depressing" because the aesthetic went from nice to scummier.

For clarification purpose, it wasn't anything remotely like crack neighborhood scummy. More like blue collar respectable.

This is an interesting contrast w/ me because I find the grime consistantly more interesting. The polished finish is what's meant to be seen. Its a boring mask that's trying to pull the wool over my eyes. May also be my mentality where I associate a mask w/ a "perception spin".

I dunno.

Anyway, people scratch their heads "why (I) enjoy tramping around in disgusting, abandoned buildings." Its because I get to find macbre stuff like this.



While we're on the topic of dilapidated man-made structures, History Channel has this pretty decent program, entitled "Life after People." It doesn't go into detail about HOW man has passed on, just for whatever reason he has, almost like we've just up & left. Its focus is illustrating what would happen to the things we leave behind & what Mother Nature would do to it. In other cases, how animals would use said structures or whatever. They often use known instances as a reference to compare & contrast it.

The program is half way decent. I just hate it when the History Channel pretends that BS pseudoscience (like aliens, Nostradamus, the Mayan 2012, or the Bermuda Triangle) should be taken seriously. The all WWII, all the time gets ridiculously annoying as well.