Wednesday, January 27, 2010

post 698. train-ing days.

decided i would take a "world tour of the eastern half of the united states" this year, meandering to sarasota for shear madness via chicago, new orleans, and my sister's place in crestview.

the first trip, on a 19-hour trip from nyc to chicago, was in coach. there's something a touch rugged about being able to sling a couple bags in the overhead compartment and folding yourself into an acceptable sleeping position after reading some jack kerouac. 

i, however, am not that tough. the crippling positions i found myself in after watching support your local sheriff on my laptop seemed as comical as they were ineffectual. it takes practice, i imagine, and i'll no doubt do it again. why? well, nothing in the world sounds better to me than the words "snack car."

but mulling over the second leg of my trip, from chicago to new orleans, i saw that the low-end "room" was only a couple bucks more, and snatched it up. much more comfortable, of course, since you have an actual bed. and while it's probably infinitely better to have a traveling companion, being able to sit and look out the window in what was the closest thing i've been to a fort in a long time was pretty awesome.

couple other things. indiana and mississippi? fabulous places to look at in the early morning light; everything was a picture i wanted to take.

the other? when in the dining car, try to avoid talking to big belt-buckled fellas claiming to be 17-year veterans of the bull-riding circuit who knew the famous new orleanian mobster carlos marcello (my dining companion mispronounced the name "marcellus," no doubt mixing the real gangster with ving rhames' character in pulp fiction), as well as admitting to being privy to the true horror of mr. marcellus' genius: plotting the murder of jfk.

here's a little travel tip, from my week and a half traveling by train and greyhound bus (much less cheery than the train): if you were worried that you almost lost your ring, and tell me your frettiness stems from the ring's being worth $800 (as one gentleman did at the mobile, alabama bus station), or tell me you were once as big as elvis in the bull-riding circuit, i (or any sensible person, for that matter) probably won't believe you; if you're that rich and / or famous, why are you slumming with us on the trains and buses?

Friday, January 15, 2010

post 697. three dollars a yard.

ashleigh likes getting her picture taken. and since i know nothing about my camera, it's nice to have someone to figure it all out with. after having lunch the other day, we hit a fabric store for some cloth, and she bought some stuff for three dollars a yard, with the idea of using it in some future photo shoot.


which was last night. she stopped by for a few hours, and i learned a very valuable lesson: sometimes, things don't work. i didn't get the lighting right, and of COURSE i don't read instruction manuals to find out how to properly set the fancy camera to adjust for it. oh well. still a fun time.


it did give me a chance to play around with photoshop; i'm not a big fan (read: too lazy) of manipulating images, but i found out about actions, and have been excited to try them out.


Monday, January 11, 2010

Saturday, January 09, 2010

Friday, January 08, 2010

post 694. second grade.

who would've known that i'd be co-best man at scott n's wedding, and perform the wedding service for eric? oh. and for the record, reena, i'm sorry i spelled your name wrong.