i took that picture today in the driveway of my santa barbara office. i got inspired by holly. she is doing a photographic series on chairs and will be posting teasers on her website. i can hardly wait to see them.
i managed to say rabbit rabbit first thing this morning. did you?
invitation to stomp
i took that picture yesterday in the back alley of my office right after i did the chair. i love stormy skies, especially when there's just enough sun to make pictures crisp.
that's my boss being way out of character. i took that picture by surprise and that's how he tried to ruin the shot.
i was telling a friend about when i first started working for llh, i was deathly afraid of him. i'm five feet tall and he's six four. i remember the first time he came to my cubicle to help me with my project, he took a chair on the opposite side of my desk. he towered over me even when seated. so, he got off the chair, push it aside, and kneeled on the floor.
we had a great eye to eye meeting. it took the fear permanently off the nervous rookie.
the clouds are very dramatic today. i took this picture around ten while i was on the 101 south (east) bound.
101 at chapala
attn nyc mikey: recognize that monstrous building?
that's looking north toward the santa ynez mountains. the clouds billow over them hills all year long. they only make it past the range during stormy weather. most other times, they dissipate right at the ridge line.
here's a poor but clearer shot of the santa ynez taken around 8:15 this morning.
view from laguna street
the low fog you see in the distance is pretty neat to watch. it rises visibly right out of the hill side. it's the best part about stormy days in santa barbara.
i am so sick. friday i caught some sort of cough inducing voice altering virus on my drive back from sb. ever since sunday i've been coughing up little balls of phlegm and i sound like darth vader, both of which make my phone conversations fairly amusing.
but boy, do i feel like crap. i'm achy all over. i have to turn my whole head to look at things. why? because moving my eyeballs alone makes my whole body jolt in pain. it's insane!
anyway, the fog horns have been going off like crazy. i took this picture at around 8:30 this morning.
summer preview
today i've decided to post pictures i took last week. i failed to use my camera the last four times i was in santa barbara so i made a point of taking as many pictures as i could this time. still i didn't take enough for a photo essay.
i'll begin with the drive down.
racing the union pacific in salinas
and winning
stormy sky just north of paso robles
i spent the week sleeping at a motel. g got a new roommate so i can't barge in and sleep on the living room floor anymore.
traveler's motel on upper state
the face that says it all
tutoring center next door to the motel
i spent the week working full time. the sick thing was: i couldn't be happier! i guess i have san francisco to thank for that.
roach at hvs
yes, it's where i work.
seen during one of my daily walks
these were taken on various breaks i took during work. schmeebot takes full advantage of reflective surfaces.
see me levitate
me+erkan at the saint vincent depaul society
me+erkan on haley
this next set shows a few of the areas i frequent when i'm in sb. i'm posting them mostly to show you the dramatic skies.
looking north from olive street
corner of olive+cota
haley+salsipuedes
quinientos heading toward salinas
milpas just past the roundabout
my drive back to sf was horrible. it came down in sheets from sb to santa maria. the fastest wiper speed couldn't keep the windshield clear. traffic came to a complete stop repeatedly. it was possibly the heaviest rain storm i've ever experienced on the road.
15 mph on us 101 north
that was a moment of clarity near los alamos. isn't it amazing? wish you could see the lush green fields in the distance. i took my sweet time watching the lights change while everyone sped past me. that little bit of sunset made the entire dreary coughy six hour drive bearable.
dlx entrance, market street, sf
taken on saturday 12mar05
notable news:
1. holly's infinitely more tasteful b+w chair series is in full swing, y'all!
get inspired for your own chair series today.
2. dylan of orange bindings fame is having another art show. word is:
it's the best one yet. weather permits, i will be there to light the barrel
at ten pm sharp. see you there!
i spend about a third of my waking hours at the post office these days. i was going to camp there this week in hopes of facilitating the arrival of a certain pink book i preordered back in november. i would still be a very sad camper at this moment.
anyway, isn't that the best cat picture ever? makes me want to shout at everyone on the street, "tiger is missing!"
yes, by now you should be well aware that i have a thing for lost pet flyers. i have been coercing friends to take pictures of flyers seen in their neighborhood. this was brought on by various reports of sightings which i wish i could see. for instance, maura saw one in goleta which offers a $5,000 reward for a lost cat. and just yesterday, g spotted laminated flyers posted on salinas street. makes my heart melt.
oh, and holly, too. said she saw several on her walk to and from work. i wonder if lost pet flyers in salt lake city show the animals sitting on chairs.
so, dear readers, please allow me to split infinitive and shamelessly beg you to take pictures of the lost pet flyers in your neighborhood and share them with me. if you have a blog, post your finds there and i will become your instant fan. if not, send it to me and i would be honored to wave it around on schmeebot. please?
i'll boast this next bit for your motivation. this lpf appeared in front of g's house last week. she immediately ran out and bought a digital camera so she could share this super duper unique flyer with schmeebot readers!
g says: share a lost pet flyer today!
* ok, i lied. i am always begging for postcards.
the shameless beggar thanks you
838 anza street 301
san francisco ca 94118
these are some things on my mind on this wonderful monday:
1. i am addicted to kiddie flavored teas and malto meal.
2. i got a f$@#%! parking ticket on friday.
3. i need to get my parking permit renewed or i will be paying $35 every
two hours.
4. i wear wrist warmers to bed.
5. i saw the incredibles saturday and really enjoyed seeing the modern
houses. e mode is a great character.
6. i am tired of hearing the wind howling through the window panes.
7. i am ready to leave this city for some camping!
it's raining lots and lots today. i sit at my desk and glance nervously at the windows; i suspect that they'll get blown out by the pounding wind any minute now.
the last glance made me do a double take.
see that black mark in the middle of the window? remember, i'm on the fourth story of this apartment buildinig, the top floor.
can you see it? a slug! it's like a scene out of the fear factor. it made me spring a few steps back away from the window. hahahahaha. how in the world did it get there? did it slime all the way up from the street? it's leaving a long old trail on the glass and it's totally creeping me out!
now i can't stop glancing at it. it's squirming ever so slowly up the sky. it recoils every time a rain drop hits it on the head. urgh! i wish a bald eagle would swoop down through the deluge and eat it already! i would hate to have that slimy mass to come flying in when the window breaks!
monday i got my crown permanently installed. i pranced around the apartment declaring to jg, "i'm a princess, i'm a princess!"
it's been a long drawn out drama. some weeks ago one of my fillings popped out while i was flossing my teeth. the next day i went to see a highly recommended dentist down in union square. finding his office was enitrely another drama. anyway, up on the 16th floor, the good doctor gave me a temporary filling and proposed that i get a post+crown job. said he'd be happy to do it for a small fee.
would you like to break it down to 3 or 4 less shocking payments?
for those familiar with my "for a small fee" quips, now you know exactly how much that amount is. anyway, i took that business card and cautiously backed all the way out of the building.
i decided to see my old family dentist in san jose, doctor nguyen. oh... doctor nguyen, sigh... i used to have such a crush on him. he always listens patiently to my nervous broken vietnamese. and he always puts the blue bib on me himself. i just realized that i have never seen his entire face. what can i say? the man can even make a face mask look sexy.
what was i talking about? oh, right, tooth. doctor nguyen ran through all the crown options for me, one of which was gold. i spontaneously let out a yeah, curled my right hand into a fist, and pumped it in the air. i just think it would rock if i had a gold tooth. doctor nguyen was very concerned by my reaction.
i'm sad to report that i went ahead with a standard porcelain crown. it matches the rest of my lousy teeth perfectly. my tongue can't leave it alone though. it's like a kid with a new toy. i'm just glad to be able to chew normally again. for a fee that's half of the one from the union square boutique.
instead of showing you my shiny new crown, why don't i show you a snazzy lost pet ad shared with me by the lovely maura?
