day 51 : so very toasty

day 51: It is hot today in Palm Springs. Very very hot. So hot that a half hour in the yard can take all of the energy out of people and dogs alike. At least there is an air conditioned house to flop down in to recover.

day 50 : on the road again

day 50: Today we drove out to meet the family in Palm Springs. It is unseasonably hot out here. Currently at 11:30 at night it's 95 degrees. We are going to melt tomorrow.

day 49 : sweet ride

Day 49: After work today we went roaming the neighborhood looking for things to photograph. This car seemed like it was waiting for someone to come along and take its picture.

day 48 : falafel night

day 48: I have class on Thursday nights which means I run out of the office as soon as the clock hits 6, jump in my car, battle the Santa Monica traffic, and pull into the school parking lot just in time to grab a falafel and make it to class. The funny thing is, I've come to really like falafel night. The place has weird hand painted signs and a funky mural on the inside.... but it's quite tasty and quick. I think I'll still go there even after I finish my class.

day 47 : sunset billboard

day 47: Despite my best efforts, I have yet to have a lunch hour with enough spare time to take a decent photo. Instead I rushed outside after work to catch the last remaining scrap of daylight.

day 46 : wii night!

day 46: Meredith came over tonight for dinner and some wii. I like this action shot... furiously fanning a sail boat by waving the remote up and down. Wii makes everyone look super cool.

day 45 : streetscape reflection

day 45: Tonight we headed down to the Santa Monica promenade. We did some window shopping and I tried an experiment in long exposure night shots. I took this one through a window and I like the way the interior and exterior are overlayed because of the reflections.

day 44 : mini golf

day 44: Allison and Mark were nice enough to split the difference and drive up to Anaheim to meet Ben and I today for some mini-golf and hangin' out. It's always fabulous to see them and we had so much fun, even if I do stink at mini-golf!

day 43 (part 2) : swing!

I couldn't resist posting the flower photo to show off my gumpaste skills, but I also couldn't live with posting what was admittedly not my best photo of the day. This is my official best photo of the day. Ben and I took a walk and stopped in a park to swing. Here he is catching some air on the dismount.

day 43 : crazy gumpaste skills

day 43: Today in my cake class I learned how to make gumpaste roses. Each rose took me almost a half hour to make but I think that for a first attempt they turned out quite well. Anyone want a treat?

day 42 : the end is near

day 42: We got some rain in LA today. Not just rain, rain that made the sky turn black and the end of the world seem imminent. Particularly while driving down Olympic towards the looming towers of Century City.

day 41 : mangled streetlamp

day 41: While driving today I noticed a pole along the side of the road that had been severed in half and was dangling by its wires. I kept thinking about how creepy it was hanging like that... and whether or not the light would be on at night. The answer is yes. And it is decidedly more eerie to see when it is emitting its sickly yellow glow over the sidewalk.

day 40 : dog mecca

day 40: Today we took Rita to the mecca for dogs... the pet store. It is her favorite outing for two reasons: not only does she get to ride in the car but everyone who works at the store gives her treats and scratches her ears. Now if only we could find a store that gave out free food and massages for people.

day 39 : self portrait

day 39: Ben reminded me that one of the "rules" for the photo-a-day project was to take at least one photo of myself every month. The reason I hadn't taken any so far is that I can't help making stupid faces when I take pictures of myself (see above). I decided to combine my self portraiture with a photoshop experiment in digital cross processing. Kind of a "hip and funky" thing that the "cool kids" (i.e. my favorite photographers) are doing these days. It's just a first attempt but I think I get the concept at least. Now I'm going to climb in a hole and die of embarrassment at having posted this photo.

day 38 : pinkberry crosswalk

day 38: It's been a while since Ben and I had any pinkberry so we took our favorite walk this evening and headed over for some tasty frozen yogurt. I took this photo along the way.

day 37 : home at last!

day 37: It has been a fun and exciting weekend, but after a 4 hour plane ride and a rather unpleasant encounter with an LA cab driver I can safely say it's good to be home.

day 36 : congrats andrew and megan

day 36: Yesterday was Andrew and Megan's wedding. It was a beautiful (but chilly) day and the bridal party went on the roof of one of the hotels to take some photos. Here is one of my favorites.

day 35 : rehearsal day

day 35: Tomorrow one of Ben's good friends from high school is getting married and he's in the wedding party. Here is a shot from their rehearsal this evening.

day 34 : leaving on a jet plane...

day 34: Ben and I were all set to hop a plane to Kansas City this afternoon, but every flight out of our terminal was delayed and the airport was packed. It's strange how people just resort to sitting on the floor in those situations.

day 33 : big truck

day 33: I don't know why but I love the sky in this photo.

day 32 : painting with light (aka creepy ben)

day 32: If you looked at my blog earlier tonight you may have seen a different photo. This one was taken later and too cool not to put up so I had to do a switch. Painting with light, see video clip here. Disclaimer: very fun and addictive. Only watch if you have lots of time to waste!

day 31 : new lens, hoorah!

day 31: Today I got a new lens for my camera and I love it!! It is very quick and goes all the way to f2.8 so I can now take much better shots at dusk and at night. We tested it out at the grove.

day 30 : man-hunt

day 30: You really haven't seen quality entertainment until you watch five grown men on an easter egg hunt. The photos I took during this new family tradition are hilarious, but really work better as a series than as a single photo. I'm trying out a new picasa slideshow feature below... let me know what you think!

day 29 : big bro's in town

day 29: My brother is in town visiting for Easter weekend so we went down to meet up with him for dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in Encinitas. This one was taken during out wait in the parking lot.

day 28 : haunted house

day 28: I am working on the remodel of an existing house that I am convinced is haunted. It is full of dead bees and smells like mildew. Here is a shot from the interior of what will someday be the "screening room". You couldn't pay me to live in this house.

day 27 : jump!

day 27: I read somewhere that making people jump was a good trick for taking portraits. I don't think that this is what they meant when they said it, but I like this one anyways.

day 26 : easter means what?

day 26: Ben and I went to CVS today to pick up some batteries and picture hanging wire, and were confronted with a massive easter display. Now it may just be me, but I find something very disturbing about an easter shot glass hanging next to bagged cotton candy and a "Dora the explorer" easter pail. What's next?

day 25 : in memoriam

day 25: In loving memory of little grandpa.

day 24 : santa monica airport

day 24: We had so much fun watching airplanes yesterday that we decided to go over to the Santa Monica airport to take photos today. I took this one while Ben was watching a helicopter landing.

day 23 : surreal beach

day 23: There is an abandoned strip of beach in Los Angeles south of Playa del Rey and north of Manhattan Beach. There are nicer beaches to either side of it which ensures long stretches of unpopulated sand. My favorite part of this particular beach is that it is directly below the outbound flight path of LAX which makes it an excellent site for plane spotting.