High School Raslin

SWAC

I covered the SWAC championships the other day. It was the first time I had shot something real in a long while and I totally botched it up. There were photos there, I just couldn't seem to make any sophisticated images. I stood there taking in the uniqueness of the event, the odd weather, and the people, while feeling lost photographically. I come off the Lifestyle beat in January and I welcome the change so I don't feel like a bumbling idiot whenever I shoot something with that moves.

Ha Ha

(Michelle last week shooting a fashion show)
You rock my little Gluten free vanilla almond cake with chocolate ganache!

Where da gold at

I'm so thankful for my bizarro family. I showed them the leprecahun in Mobile newscast while home for Thanksgiving. They are all from Mobile, so it was especially touching. The best part was my family's ensuing conversation about how crackheads get blamed for everything. That and getting grandma to talk briefly about why she dumped home run king 'Hammerin Hank' before he made it big. Besides the fact that he played too much baseball, and some other minor reasons, she added, "I got tired of him pulling my long hair telling me I'm pretty." 

Anyways, that's her, resting after dinner.

furry

Kristina Howard rests after competing with her team in the annual gurney derby at UAB.

Ernestine

My eldest aunt died this morning. I'm kind of upset for my mom who lost her sister-in-law last week, now her sister. Mom was just saying how good she looked and that she had a couple of months. Ernestine died of cancer and told no one even though everyone knew, she was fiesty like that. My grandmother died the same way and I'm really scared for what lies ahead for my mother and for me. My mother is the strongest person I know and it just hurts to watch her watch her strength, her family, the most important thing to her, slip away. I always liked Ernestine, she had this great deep voice and she was crazy, in a good way, like me. I haven't seen her in awhile. I wish I had taken at least one picture of her.

po'trait

fashion

Now that we're athletes...

Alright, so Sam and I ran 2 miles for the first time today. I know, not much to 99% of people out there, but a big deal for us. We a) didn't think we could do it b)didn't quit. So we rock for today.
and done. Now back to being photojournalists.

Distractions

while shooting injured soldiers in another pool.

Lima Foxtrot

Kevin served in Iraq 1.0 and came home on leave where he was shot in a random shooting. He's blind now and was swimming in a pool waiting on scuba lessons at a camp for injured soldiers- more later.

Congrats on the new gig Elissa!!!

photo column

We are really hitting a nice groove with our photo columns. Linda's column (when she posts it) this week is one of our best yet. Hopefully, we can start seeing images/stories like that take over the norm so we can start challenging readers with people and stories that they are not used to seeing but should be seeing whether they like it or not. Check out Michelle's last column and the negative comments for it. All 4 of you have seen this already, so here's the color version. Also, here's the commercial for the My Buddy doll that Mr. Burts is holding. I didn't realize those things are like 20 years old and still creepy looking. (Although the way he interacts with the doll makes the doll not so bad.)

I'm cranky

It's been a rough week for me this week partly because I've had to drive to UA two days in a row to for an assignment, a bad one at that. While there, I got stuck in a parking deck that only takes $3 in exact change. Don't get me started...

Cooling off

Gip's Place

I finally found this little tin shack of a juke joint I've been looking for not far from Bham. It's called Gip's Place, as it should be called because it is in his backyard. Mr. Gip is around 75 and sits by the stage with his wife as various blues musicians transport patrons to another era. I arrived late with non-photo friends and took a few pictures. I'm going back soon, so I'll post better pictures later. Anyways, here's a glimpse.

Family

I could've been Hank Aaron's granddaughter. My grandmother dated him in Mobile when they were in high school and she broke up with up because all he did was hit bottle tops and balls in the school yard. She thought he was crazy because all he did was play baseball. She is coming for her annual visit next week, so I'll record her version of the story and post it. This is her last year around this time at a gas station. I don't do a good job of documenting my own family, so this is just a reminder to myself to do it more often.

Insert obligatory “Barack” pun here

Went from shooting rednecks to see Barack speak at the Sheraton last night. It was interesting, he seemed like the popular high school senior running for SGA president.



What I found most interesting was the proliferation of camera phones

and the audacity of hope. It applies to so many things in life. I hate that as we grow older we lose the ability to hope and that loss keeps us from being good to other people, doing the right thing, and living life to the fullest.

2007 Redneck Games

I needed to escape Bham for a bit, so I went to East Dublin, Ga., for
one of the most surreal experiences of my life. The 2007 Redneck
Games was a blast. I met some of the nicest people and it was great
to hang out photogs Bob Croslin, Chip Litherland, Rob Mattson, Sol
Neelman, and Elissa Eubanks as we sweated our butts off.


I took some polaroids. Check them out here.
(Use the space bar and arrow
keys to navigate) More to come.

Vulcan

Shot fireworks for fun while hanging out with friends. I'm disappointed I didn't shoot anything interesting, just the standard.

Life

Last week I found my 1st gray hair (it's actually my 3rd, but I was in serious denial about the other 2) and I became an aunt to 2 little boys. My brother and his wife had my parents' 1st grandchild and my best friend from high school had her 3rd.