CA Wildfires, like the End of the World...

In LA, if it ain't the recession, unemployment, flash floods or unpredictable earthquakes -- it's forest fires. Dry weather + insane heat = Crazy nature.

I shot this stuff at a distance, and even I can feel it...

It's like a nuke went off in the distance...

Go Cart, Go Home...

You see a shopping cart on the side of the road. You could ignore it, sure that's the easy thing to do. Or maybe, just maybe, you're crazy enough to walk it all the way back to the store from which it came...

This Bed Bath and Beyond cart was calling for its brethren...

... So 8 long blocks later, it was finally home. Only to be snatched
by a guy 5 seconds later.

Sometimes you don't have to go out of your way to do the right thing... ;)

Building a Bookshelf: Right on Target...

I will never be a master-craftsman. But that doesn't mean I can't be a master-crapsman. Lend me two screwdrivers and a hammer, and here's what happens:

Typical bookshelf in the "Before" stage

Looks like all the pieces are still there, that's a good start

Key to success: lay it all out, and make sure you have EVERYTHING for reals

Follow the instructions, or else you might accidentally make a table

Standing up on its own. Always a good sign towards the end

Ta-Da! A bookshelf that's ready for use. And I used every single
part... I think. ;)

Las Vegas Weekend: Girls, Gambling, and... Guns?

Sometimes the best way to see a town you've been to a million times is to take someone that hasn't been there in ages. That was exactly the case this past weekend.

Destination: Las Vegas
Mission: As much fun as legally possible

I've gotten so used to doing what the locals do that I kinda forgot what it's like to just walk around the Strip like a regular 'ol tourist. Recapturing some of that magic did my soul some good, and did I mention that I had an awesome time?

Anyway, the pics below were taken during the Las Vegas Star Trek Convention, where the combination of costumed fans, massive amounts of booze and gambling surprisingly lead to mild mischief for all, and made being a Trekkie that much crazier.

Besides cruising the Strip, there was even a stop at The Gun Store. Let's just say that even a pacifist would be hard-pressed to deny the fact that shooting full-automatic machine guns is kinda frak'n awesome...




And for a little extra bonus video, click here

New Zealand, July 2009: Only Go In Winter If Necessary...

Hey peeps!

Finally got off my ass and started looking at the latest trip photos. God, it seemed this NZ trip was such a blur. Then again, when you've been on the road for 3 weeks out of each month, everything seems to whiz right by.

I've been to New Zealand about 5 times, so if it seems like there aren't as many photos, well, that's because I've shot the crap out of the country the last couple times, so I only took photos of places that I'd never been to on this trip. It's also only the 2nd time that I've been down there during winter, and believe me, you do not want to go in winter. Yeah, sure the air fair is cheaper, but you also have to deal with cold wind, cold rain, and people that suffer from extreme bouts of seasonal moodiness. I mean, you'd think they thought the Earth was about to end since the gray skies look like a good day in Seattle. Man, they are so fickle.

In 20 years time, I've seen the city-folk gradually become more urban and closed off: they seem more guarded and stodgy ever since the increase in immigrant population in the early part of this century. Where once it was mostly whites and Maoris, now there's Indians, Iranians, Armenians, and host of other "ians" that now fill the populace at large. With so many new attitudes and ways of thinking, the Kiwis are trying to adapt, yet, they like to live at a slow pace in a supersonic world. Some things will never change.

Of course, when you meet people in the country and farther away from the city, they are still fairly pleasant, and love a bit of a chat when they can. Something about being in the Southern Hemisphere makes it appear that they are so far removed from the rest of the world that it's nice to find people that winter during, well, winter. That's one aspect of Kiwi life that I hope never changes. The last of the innocence of kindness that is slowly siphoned off from the rest of the world, but still preserved in a place where you'd least expect it.

Anyhow, here's the shots I took on this latest trip. Hope you like them... ;)