Giving Up Would Be Too Easy

So a few months ago I was approached about taking a group photo of a Troop who served in the Korean War. I'll admit...I was nervous.

I got an awesome quote from a friend of mine who works at a local print shop (back in january) to do the printing. There wasn't much to do till the day comes soooooo....... So finally the day comes...I switch my days off of work to make things possible (props to NPD). I wake up at 10 am...stir around...make plans to run out to my parents place to pick up my tripod...I touch base with J. Parr after his Seattle trip and tell him about my plans for the day...he graciously offers his tripod, essentially saving me a trip to the country, AWESOME. So I stop by his home and chat for a minute. I head back to my apt and get online...pay some bills...listen to Elliot Smith nonstop, make a sandwich...(notice how the time flies)...I look at my watch and it's 430! i have to be there taking the photos in one hour...I get up from the desk, shower, shave and shine my shoes, load the car with my gear and i'm on the road by 445. I talk to my mom while in transit...she's worried for me and hopes all goes well. I tell her to chill, everything will be fine...nothing to sweat. I get there...set up...chit chat...nerves....have a shot of whiskey...
SNAP SNAP SNAP!!!!! all the pics are done! and I'm out.




I stop on the way home for some sushi to go and finally settle to watch a television show called Wonder Showzen with Brant. From there I start to edit the photos...i have to pic 2 out of 17. one of the men...and one of their respective wives. I panic and call my friend who works at the printshop 3 or 4 times asking questions about uploading the photos to them at work... they assure me it's fine... sent!

So I wake up and get ready for work...print up some more resume's, print up a sales receipt.
My friend said he would call when he got to work at 10am ....no call at 1010, so i leave in a dash because i said i would have them delivered by 11am. I stop for gas when he calls..."hey Ry, can you ummmmm resend those files?"

HOLY SHIT!!!

I'm almost out of gas...Late... hungry...nervous....now I'm scared. I say sure... so i turn around and haul ass home. get on the computer and the cd burning program won't open!!!!!...I want to throw the laptop through the wall but I stay calm. I call my friend back and clarify some specifics and he says " oh it's cool, that'll work, i'll start printing now". I almost die, it's 1045.
I leave my house again....stop for gas....go get the prints..... and hit 281 towards downtown to deliver them at La Quinta. I get stuck behind an damn Concrete TRUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm not religous...but I look up and ask "dude, are you kidding me?" well, Buddha answered and the truck moved out of the way. I get there at 11:10. people are waiting for me in the forum.."The photographers here, THE PHOTOGRAPHER IS HERE!!!!" I rush to the room where everyone is and there they are...waiting for me a total of 61 War Veterans...waiting on ME! I pull out the photos and receive a bit of praise...they really really liked them. Some said it was the best group photo they have ever taken....I was really glad to hear that. PHEW!!!!!!!!!!!!

I establish the order... shake the hands ....get my check and I'm out the door.
It was fun being around them for the short time I had...you could really sense the respect they had for each other...I hope my generation is like that towards each other after 50 more years. We'll just have to see about that one.

Uncle me and Gunnar checking out Gigposters. he really likes Seripops work...4 years old with some wild taste...

It starts at 7:30 am. "Uncle Ryan!".....

"what"
"why are you sleeping"
"(sigh)"
"uncle Ryan"
"yeah?"
"you were snoring"

"(sigh)"
Christoph inspecting the new Juxtapoz cover.......

I don't care, sometimes! really I don't. If you want to see the best video ever made...click THIS . This is the best music video ever. If you are familiar with Ghost World then you know exactly what I'm talking about. THE ENERGY! I haven't seen anyone with energy in years come to think of it. We are all a bunch of lazy asses. Even the strippers here are lazy. They get on stage...and this is what looks like is going through there heads..." here's my boobies...move my hips...ouch my shoes hurt...look, here is my pooper...and this is my special no no place...move my hips...here's my boobies again"...F@*$#>NG DANCE GIRL...grab the pole for christ's sake, and eat some carbs...I can see your ribs. SO annoying. whatever. enjoy the video.

ps. thanks Ravi for the link!

Uncle me and Rachel. she's hilarious.

i just finished some dishes...i'm sitting in the office and i heard a car coming down my street...but it didn't sound like a regular car...it sounded like an air plane 5 inches off the ground. I've never heard anything so loud. Hella early.

Hello all my chillin's and villains..... nothing big as of recent. It is warm today and I consumed some Haagan Daaz Mango ice cream goodness.

it is the NPD'S birthday!

Last weekend I went and saw The Dave Chappelle's block party....it's the best thing since honey on bread!
spy cam watchout!And Nugz got a haircut with some boots trimmed on his feet. straight co-chillin'.

here and there stuff....
Someone straight up worked this Sonic Menu over. This did not hamper me from ordering a banana (hand motion a la eddie izzard) split and tator tots. I quickly ate then went home and fell asleep.



















I wonder what it's like to live in this building? I guess I'll soon enough know! HOLLA!!!!!!!!!

Herwicks has most of my money...art store fun with Me-chelle... Thanks for cutting the paper wrong. it makes finding frames a game...I love those games. This is the tidy little art corner in my room.

Black Flag made some damn good music.

if you haven't done so already...please follow me and read The Bro Report (in my links). I yanked this from him today. He had a write up on Morrissey. Super good.

"Perhaps I'm unique because people are so dull. I'm not very good at being dull."

"I always thought my genitals were the result of some crude practical joke."

"I once bought a Manchester United hat, which I think was 12 shillings, and somebody ran up behind me and pulled it off and just ran ahead. I thought, 'It's a very cruel world, I'm not prepared for this'. And I decided to get my revenge on society."

"It's just the whole point about romance and love songs; people seem to want to make things difficult for themselves. I don't want to sit here for hours and hours talking about W H Auden when we just want to exchange underwear or something."

"Life would be so colourful if only I had a drink problem."

“I lie a lot - it's really useful...”

“Whenever I go past Mcdonalds I get very, very angry. “

“I've never been cruel unnecessarily.”

"I don't feel anti-American, just reasonably intelligent."

God Bless him.
Honestly.

As of recent my response to many thing has become gradually more and more aggressive. This frightens me. My blood pressure rises, I turn even more red, light headed.

I am practicing ANAPANASATI when I have an episode. It helps me a great deal. Actually it's amazing how quickly it helps. So my suggestion to anyone who feels like they are going to "hulk-out"...take a deep breath and fucking chill before you pass out. - taking my own advise these days is good.

studies show!

Color
Positives
Negatives
Gray
+Elegance, humility, respect, reverence, stability, subtlety, timelessness, wisdom
-nachronism, boredom, decay, decrepitude, dullness, dust, pollution, urban sprawl
Red
+Passion, strength, energy, fire, love, sex, excitement, speed, heat, leadership, masculinity, power
-Danger, fire, gaudiness, blood, war, anger, revolution, radicalism, aggression, stop
Blue
+Seas, skies, peace, unity, harmony, tranquility, calmness, coolness, confidence, water, ice, loyalty, conservatism, dependability, cleanliness, technology, winter
-Depression, coldness, idealism, obscenity, ice, tackiness, winter
Green
+Nature, spring, fertility, youth, environment, wealth, money (US), good luck, vigor, generosity, go, grass
-Aggression, inexperience, envy, misfortune, jealousy, money, illness, greed
Yellow
+Sunlight, joy, happiness, optimism, idealism, wealth (gold), summer, hope, air
-Cowardice, illness (quarantine), hazards, dishonesty, avarice, sissification, weakness
Purple
+Sensuality, spirituality, creativity, wealth, royalty, nobility, ceremony, mystery, wisdom, enlightenment
-Arrogance, flamboyance, gaudiness, mourning, profanity, exaggeration, confusion
Orange
+Buddhism, energy, balance, heat, fire, enthusiasm, flamboyance, playfulness
-Aggression, arrogance, flamboyance, gaudiness, overemotion, warning, danger, fire
White
+Reverence, purity, snow, peace, innocence, cleanliness, simplicity, security, humility, marriage, sterility, winter
-Coldness, sterility, clinicism, surrender, cowardice, fearfulness, winter, unimaginative
Black
+Modernity, power, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, style
-Evil, death, fear, anonymity, anger, sadness, remorse, mourning, unhappiness, mystery
Brown
+Calm, depth, natural organisms, nature, richness, rusticism, stability, tradition
-Anachronism, boorishness, dirt, dullness, filth, heaviness, poverty, roughness