first up

1948 chevy special deluxe

quick post, since it's late, and i'm crazy.

first shot from sunday's super cruise. lots of cars, but not enough of these. or would that be too boring? well, i did shoot a variety of classic cars. skipped the newer stuff. and what's with the datsuns at the front?? going to put the v dubs up there next year??

got there just before the sun got over the horizon. had scoped out parking last year, and found a good spot. walked over to where the duke's club always parks. thinking someone works in one of the businesses over there, or at least has a buddy that does.

this one was parked at such a good angle to catch the sun when it did start peeking over the buildings.

glad i got it here, because i saw him driving away not to much later.

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side note, since it's funny and has bugged me all day: was running late this morning, because the clock in our room is running slow...stopped for a quick breakfast after driving out of my way to avoid a friggin sig alert this morning.

after getting my food, i noticed on the receipt that the lady at the register, who can't be much younger than i, had given me a senior discount. i'm not there yet. i appreciate the sixty something cent discount, but seriously?

reality bites

this show is coming up in february. hillco's supercruise, for people that need a car show fix just before the big game on superbowl sunday. usually, there is an interesting assortment of cars that show up—classic cars, hot rods, muscle cars, semi-trucks...—cruising through, screaming past, or just parking throughout the industrial complex.

my better half has gone with me two out of three years that i have gone. he takes off, and shoots what he wants, and i go my way. he usually takes an assortment of lenses to experiment with, and runs into and talks to way more people than i ever do.

i'm not sure if he saw this one or not, but i'm thinking he wouldn't have passed up a shiny black car like this. had to get down low, to try and avoid the majority of lens flares, for a change.

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for the past couple of years, there have been little red bumps randomly popping up on my skin.

first one showed up on my leg. doctor said maybe it's just an infected hair follicle, from shaving. it's not very big, maybe an eighth of an inch in diameter, it bothers me more than the scar on my knee from a childhood bike crash (don't pedal without hands on the handlebars while riding over gravel covered pavement).

while it's not red anymore, i prefer not to wear shorts unless it's insanely hot outside because of it.

then another showed up on my thigh a few months later. doc said the same thing, but i don't shave my legs that far up, so nah.

i did get a really nasty sunburn on my legs one fourth of july, not so long ago...i thought hmmm, too much sun, growing little moles, since they weren't going away, sun damage.

then, the other day, while playing with the baby niece on the floor, i felt a sharp sting on my finger. didn't see anything, but fairly quickly there was a little blister there, and it itched like crazy and hurt like a son of a bitch if you touched it.

when i was a kid, growing up back east, i was a mosquito magnet. every summer, i'd get plenty of bug bites, and my mom would practically be painting me pink with calamine lotion. she always said it was because i was so sweet...but that's what mothers are supposed to say.

anyway, i didn't see any spider or mosquito, or other bug, and the kid seemed unaffected.

so, here's my thinking: it's either the zuni fetish doll from the film, "trilogy of terror" or the troll from "cat's eye." they both carry little swords or sharp pointed sticks, and both move hella quick, so it's no wonder i didn't spot it.

zuni doll from "trilogy of terror"troll from "cat's eye"well, maybe it's not one of them, but i'm also guessing there's a family of spiders, or mites or fleas from the neighbor's cats, roaming the house. some critter with strangley poisonous, infectious spit.

those poor, little flea bag cats, that are left outside to freeze in the winter, and cook in the summer. the ones the crazy cat lady comes around to feed everyday—yet when you confront her, with the food falling from her hand to the plate on the ground, she screeches that she isn't feeding them...she doesn't even live near here—maybe the bugs are so cold or hot, they jump off the cats, and crawl under the door and into the house.

fuck the neighbors. they gave us roaches when they moved in too.

i prefer to think it's the doll. i gotta find a gold chain.

connect the dots

thinking of going to the imperials show at hawaiian gardens on sunday. high hopes for an eclectic selection of cars to shoot. charging my batteries, cleaning the sensors, polishing the lenses. trying to get into a better frame of mind, than i've been recently.

new locations have promise for seeing things a new way. shooting cars differently, even if the angles are the same. always looking for the shots that make me happy; the designer in me looks for a pleasing composition and balance, or purposeful imbalance. my hobby keeps me happy, and helps keep me agile in my day job.

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found this at the hillco show from last superbowl sunday; it's their annual thang before the game. i think this was the third year i've been, but got there earlier than the previous years. saw lots more cars, some park and stay, others, just doing a quick stop and continuing on to wherever they are going to see the game.

blah blah blah. i've seen this truck a few times before, this show and elsewhere. i like the pinstriping on this truck. the rest of it, not so much. i like the truck in this picture; i like the composition of it better, with the car behind it, in another. should have took a couple other angles of them until i got what i wanted in one shot.

there seems to be some faint, green on green bubbley airbrushing on the top of the cab. little glitter, subtle shadows.

old geez

old car. i like these from the back end. and sometimes the big ass headlights.

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i may not have made it to a car show today, but i kinda have. at least a half dozen very nice cars have passed through the intersection so far. didn't see them uptown earlier, so i have no idea where they are going, but at least i get to see them for a moment.

on the fence

i'm inundated at work. i used to go home at the end of the day happy to have the bestest job. they treat me well, get me whatever i need. graphic designers have the bestest jobs. get to be creative all day.

but, too many weeks in a row, of too much to do and not enough time, juggling deadlines and reprioritizing constantly, and i'm quickly burning out. i get home and just want to sleep, but find it hard to stop my wheels spinning in my head.

still another month before i get a vacation. actually scheduled one mid-year, so i don't get forced to take time off at the end of the year again, for having too much vacation time saved up. that and mid-year anniversary trip.

so, i'm hoping my better half isn't working this weekend, so we can run away and hide in a hotel somewhere or other.

that or i need to buy a lottery ticket and win, before i start hating what i do. and i really like what i do. so that would suck.

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found this chevy early, before too many cars and people got in the way. i kind of like the fence and electrical tower behind it.

haven't decided if the paint makes or breaks the car. it is a little dinged up, so a crappy paint job isn't going to hurt it. maybe it's just primer, and they'll put something shiny over it later.

some thing

found this thing parked between two semi-trucks. just random. so i randomly shot a picture of it. no hood ornament, so otherwise, i don't know why i did.

i do like the sunrise light.

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just back from a weekend in san diego. probably will be down there a few more times this year.

sunday morning, we hopped the little red train down to barrio logan to get some breakfast at the market. was fun watching my better half ordering from the lady at the register, who didn't seem to speak english.

his mom was born in and grew up in new mexico, of mexican parents, but refused to teach his sister and him to speak spanish—figured they were in america, they should speak english. still, he knew enough words to get the order right. i took years of spanish in school, was married to a mexican, and still can't speak it at all, so good for him.

after we ate, we walked around chicano park a bit. never went there when it hasn't been full of cars. mostly empty, with some sketchy people hanging around the edges and under the overpass. they must move them out of there at car show time.

fifty

ok, mustangs really aren't my thing. probably because my sister had a boyfriend with one back in the day. and i didn't like him much, but what does a kid know? 

i usually don't give them much more than a glance at shows, this one included.

i had walked past these and was happily shooting some old pos truck, covered with rust, when some guy walked up and asked if i had shot his car yet. i asked which one, and he pointed over at the 'stang, or should i say 'stangs. both of these are his.

told him i hadn't shot them, probably wouldn't because they just aren't my thing, aren't old enough.

he argued that i probably had seen this, and probably wouldn't very often. his point was that there is a fifty year difference between these two models, and they are both his. the story was that he'd bought the '65 when he got married in '65, and had bought this stinking new mustang this year for their golden anniversary.

it is a big, beefy model. i'm sure it purrs when he drives it. i had a rental mustang a couple of years ago, and i couldn't stand it, but maybe this is a little better.

so i took a few shots. not bothering to post the new model by itself, cuz, you can just go see one of those at any ford dealer today.

happy anniversary, btw. i forgot to tell the guy.

pomp and circumstance

we went out to hillco's annual super cruise yesterday. good way to ignore the stupid bowl. and my deadlines.

got there early, shot a lot of cars before it got too crowded, left before noon. made someone happy with my parking space.

i think i made a full circuit at least three times. cars kept moving, more kept driving in.

saw this guy with a pompador at least eight inches or more high. happened to have my macro out and got this shot after he'd already passed by. i get it, and it was impressive, but do i really need to reiterate my thoughts correlating size and compensation? no.

found this chevy in between the buildings. love the backdrop of the building exterior and brickwork. happy that no one walked through the shot.

actually, people were being polite, and either going around or waiting for me to finish whatever i was doing. nice.

it was a good day.

taken to trask

i was searching through old files today. got a request to use some pictures for a car show flyer and t-shirt. so that's kind of fun, right? will be interesting to see what they do with them. trusting them not to eff them up. trying hard to not tell them i'll set it up myself. you know what i mean...ever seen really, really badly laid out shirts? so cross your fingers.

anyway, i found this shot of ernie's chevy. it's for sale. maybe it's sold already. saw him with it at pomona last month. chatted a bit, but then totally forgot to shoot a picture of it. so, sorry about that.

this was from march at the garden grove elks club. he was trying to run that show at least once a month. wonder if it's still going?

red couch

found this truck sitting between the buildings at the hillco super cruise back in february. the texture contrasts were pretty interesting. i liked the brilliant green of the truck next that ratty red car seat.

and look, an american flag. just in time for memorial day weekend. i have four days off and nothing planned. pretty much staying home and off the freeway...unless i go to a car show, of course.

ps: to the douche that keeps posting ads for his own crap in comments on old posts: FU!