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evil mistress

saw this great bike the other day at the imperials show. might have belonged to one of the vendors, but so what. it was named the evil mistress.

lots of great details, with skulls and bones hidden here and there. airbrushed women in dia de los muertos face paint and fancy ostrich skin seat. a gun and an oversize bullet there too.  i'll have to add a few detail shots when i have time. totally forgot, and i'm sitting at my desk typing before i'm on the clock at six. enjoying the air conditioning, ya know?


stumbled down the hall in the dark this morning, just before four, to take a shower. it was warm last night, so i was just wearing my underwear. figured my mother-in-law was asleep, so she wouldn't notice as i walked past her door, and i know my better half wouldn't have minded, had he been awake...he'd have been up...  anyway covered my boobs with my hands, just on the off chance she woke up.

in the bathroom, shut the door, turn on the light, start the shower. have seat on the porcelain throne, cuz, ya know, my eyes are floatin'. on the floor in front of me, is a foot bath and a scale, both leaning up against the wall. my tired eyes see a momentary movement, something dark. not getting the total heebie jeebies, i figured it was just another cockroach, courtesy of our neighbors, but a mighty big one.

in a split second the damn thing ran toward me, along the baseboard, and literally ran over my foot, and behind the toilet. i made a stifled squeal, because, ick, and also i didn't want to wake everyone up. 

but then the thing, ran out, and across to the towel cabinet, and back along the tub. 

it wasn't a cockroach. it was a fricking big brown mouse. not a rat, didn't have the creepy tail. but still. 

so i'm sitting there with my feet up, watching this thing do a few circuits around the room, before disappearing under the sink cabinet. finally put my feet down, wiped (yes, let's not forget to do that) and flushed, then out, closed the door. standing in my panties, topless, tapping my better half on the butt. he rolls over and says hi. 

told him there's a mouse in the bathroom, be the man. 

while he's waking up, i went back, peeked in the door. didn't see it, so jumped into the shower--i gotta go to work, and i've only so much time to get ready.

better half shows up with a broom and a dust pan. i guess his intent was to crush and carry.  he poked all the corners, then looked where i'd last seen it.

there's a one-inch gap, with a void to under the cabinet, hidden behind the shower curtain. ya, that's where it went. no idea if it was still under there, or if it leads to a space between us and the neighbors', but that would explain one way for the roaches to get in. 

anyway, that's my morning so far... 

waiting

...waiting on the world to change.

my turn to sit my watch at the hospital. better half gone home to take a break and eat i suppose. 

really i have nuthin' to say, much less think. things are looking up, but we're all very sleep deprived. 

had this bike mostly ready, so since i took five minutes to check my email earlier, thought i'd put it out there. i don't think it's one of my best, but it appealed to my mood just now. 

congrats to my son, he's a shiny new uncle as of yesterday. 

bummed

harley davidson softail

not really in a mood to do anything today. heard some stupid crap news yesterday about my younger brother. and it's fucked, and not fair. and i want to smash things. he was already dealing with a health issue, and now it's double fucked and i want to scream, and cry.

i sat for a long time this morning. doing nothing. finally decided i'd go uptown to find a couple of xmas gifts for people i know will get me something, no matter how much i tell them not to get me anything. found one item, that will undoubtedly be tossed aside the next day. looked around. thought about lunch, but nothing around was tempting me.

so i stomped home. sat a bit longer. then decided i would drive out to the con stilo toy drive in montebello, to see what might be there. then would think about lunch after.

i went through the motions, but wasn't really feeling it, but did shoot most of the cars there.

this bike was sitting behind the mayor's car. couldn't get a decent angle on the car, so shot the bike instead. pretty sure it was the owner who watched what i was doing, then asked about it. introduced himself, shook my hand. gave him the cliff notes explanation and a card.

sorry it's a bit funky colored, but i was shooting into the sun, and the sensor misbehaved a little. i banged on the pixels a little, which are a little better, but i'm just gonna let them slide this time.

it's a harley, dahlink

harley davidson

away from home tonight, so i'll just put this one up.

took several angles of this bike, which are all just fine, but i thought this angle was just more interesting. not an extraordinary bike, but it was clean, and sitting off mostly by itself momentarily. not long after, the owner moved it in with the crowd of cars, where i never would have bothered shooting it then.


been busy as usual at work. i've been trying to squeeze in a walk before work, or climbing nine flights of stairs if i can. my legs hurt from sitting all day; i should get out for an afternoon walk like i used to, just block out some time on the work calendar and go.

really need to try an experiment and go cold turkey on the coke and/or pepsi. i like my caffiene bubbly and on ice, but it comes with a lot of sugar, which my body is apparently just converting into ass, boobs and belly. i could say i let myself go, out of some bizarre curiosity to see what i'd look like "with a little meat on my bones," same way i'd just see how long my hair would grow, but that would just be an excuse.

better half isn't complaining, but i'd like to be able to bust a lot of my old clothes out of storage, if i lost a few inches.

i spent a good part of a year working in what we called the dungeon, at a previous employer. was a huge project, with multiple companies working together, day and night. they kept a steady supply of snacks and soda, to keep the captives, er, employees, happy and working.

i used to joke, that i could just sit and mainline/iv drip the coke twenty-four/seven. was easier then; i was only a hundred pounds and burned those junk food calories without even trying.

i will miss it. i will be tempted every day, and it's just so easy to get my hands on the stuff.

gonna change to water. but it has to be ice water, to top off the ice water in my veins.

says the girl who chugged a coke whilest typing this missive...

engraved hog

harley davidson deluxe

i watched the owner move this bike forward, out of the shade. thought he was going to take off. no, he moved it for another photographer. then he left it there. had to shoot it, sun hit the engraved chrome just so.


finally got my car back from the shop. glad their insurance covered it; was quite expensive for just a couple of crunches in a fender.

i guess while taking the door apart, they had to unplug the battery, so now there are things that don't quite work right. the radio didn't come on...had to punch in a code. the alarm seems a bit whack, so i need to look up how to reset that. and the check engine light is on, so i am assuming the sensor needs to reset. the shop is closed on weekends, so i can't call and ask them, but the timing makes sense, and it seems to be running fine.

they gave me a hundai sonata as a rental car to drive all week. who's the genius that designed the car with the emergency brake positioned down by your left ankle? not only is it uncomfortable to rest your foot down there, or stretch, i kept thinking if there was an accident, i'd get hobbled or amputated instantly. really stupid. other than that, the car wasn't that bad.

didn't like that all the doors unlock when you turn it off. made me paranoid at the gas station that someone could jump in and snag my purse. i read the news too much.

end rental car review...

waiting is the hardest part

harley davidson softail

harley harley harley. not sure why i shot this bike versus any of the other bikes at legg lake last month. maybe i just liked the rolled up serapes, with it's colors.


both my brothers live in florida. hurricane matthew is barreling toward one of them now. the other is further south, and out of town for work; his wife is staying with her dad, but she says so far, nothing happening where she is staying.

i think my brother who is in the direct path, is far enough inland, he'll be ok. he moved there from cali only a few months ago, so this is his first time dealing with real weather since we were kids in virginia.

his house came with window coverings just for the purpose of protection from hurricanes, but they weren't marked which went with which window. should have just nailed up some boards.

pretty sure he is shitting bricks about now. his wife would take an earthquake over this any day.

being overly dramatic last night, he said he was exhausted, but ready to face the storm like lieutenant dan tied to the mast in forrest gump.

Update

on 2016-10-08 05:24 by kathy

p.s.  hurricane missed both brothers' houses, just got a lot of wind and rain. they lucked out this time.

still not home

harley davidson

i hear my mother-in-law closely avoided a trip to the emergency room, having borderline pneumonia. she seems to be responding to the same type of meds my doctor gave me, so i'm hoping to go home tomorrow. i'm a little tired and dizzy, but i'm on the mend.

ventura nationals was today. i've never been, but i'm seeing some remarkable pics other photographers are putting up.

again, an old pic, from a whittier uptown show a year or two back. a harley is a harley, but some catch my eye more than others.

i want to ride my...

harley davidson

so, i've been busy doing stuff i'm not allowed to talk about, so i won't talk about it. i've been away from my computer and/or too tired to turn the damn thing on all week.

saw this bike at the viejitos show. one of the few i saw that morning before i bailed. only one i shot.

liked the paint and pinstripes. not a girly girl, so i won't call it pink; more of a mauvey marooney color.

now i think i'll work on another picture until it gets late, which is going to happen quickly...time flies when i'm having fun...then gotta get some sleep.

better leather

harley davidson heritage softail

ahem. let's get to last week's whirlwind through the whittier uptown carshow. i've got several to prepare for those few people who asked me to post pictures of their cars.

as i mentioned before, i only had six hours out there, and i still didn't get around to everything. had to get to the train station, and i've been gone most of the week.

it seemed mostly organized this year, though i don't remember checking what time they started rolling the cars in from staging. i was busy, going from flower to flower to flower...i mean car to car to car, trying to shoot as many as i could in my short amount of time.

was out there at five-thirtyish a.m. where were you?

found this motorcycle down in the rick's parking lot, the owner nearby keeping an eye on his bike. he offered to move it, nah, i'd find it later for other shots. this is how i found it, so leave it be.

there was so much detail on this bike, that it seems to be less about the harley itself—which is pretty nice, shiny and pinstriped—and more about the leather.

everything decorated in an aztec theme, with the usual characters and patterns you'd expect. skillfully done and fitted, i asked the owner about it. 

he said he'd save himself a buttload (he didn't exactly use that word, my edit) of cash by taking it down to mexico himself versus paying a guy here, to basically do the same thing.

he had to point out that there was a little felix the cat medal/figure on the side. probably thought i'd appreciate that since i was wearing my felix the cat chevrolet shirt. if he hadn't mentioned it, i wouldn't have noticed it, it was low, on the side next to the wall, and there was so much other detail to look at.

anyway, really nice work here.

l-e-d, you and me

harley davidson heritage softail

haven't decided if these lights on bikes add or subtract from the overall look of the bike. this one is already blinged out with etched chrome and airbrushing.

i shot it earlier, just after we arrived. the owners moved out of the shot then. i like those shots, with the clouds in the sky, from a low angle.

i found it again, just before i packed up my gear, in the evening, sun setting, sky colors changing. mostly it was the sky i wanted. i guess the red glow is ok. 

i guess the owner was too tired by then to move his chair this time, as well as there being other bikes in the same space. also, there were more people crowded around to look at the bikes this late, making it more difficult to find a good angle to shoot my longer exposures, and not get them smearing through the shots.