(Some) People Speak

I haven't posted in a while, an unfortunate by-product of starting a PhD. Alas, I did write a blog post for takepart.com. It's a response to a Howard Zinn film project speaker tour event, starring Lupe Fiasco, no less. You can read it here. Comments are encouraged.

Namaste

Until We Meet...

Sheets of lightning
they blanket the sky
Do you see them too
casting shadows
on the wall. it's writing,
a perilous sigh.
What watery death it portends.

But, an eye for an eye,
the storm's only grace,
a chance to save face.

The cool wind blows
Do you feel it too

The horizon disappears,
the clouds cover the corners.
Is it too late for fasting and fears
Where is that heavenly wisdom,
bid an earthly welcome

Time to build a tent
the lights go out
Do you have the time,
two in the dark, express all you mean

Sleet Sleet Sleet
Sleep, Sleep, Sleep,
until we meet

Sprouts

Squaring Off

Hands On

Trinity (Term)

SWales

It's a Blog!

This month three years and sixty blog posts ago, jeremyandhiscamera (.blogspot.com) started. Here is a rundown of the three most significant changes that took place during its terrible twos:

1a. Tragically, the laptop that nurtured and mothered this blog to life, receiving the digital semen from my Canon Digital Rebel, as it were, is now on life support. Having drowned in a bath of drinking water, it now rests comfortably and humanely against the radiator. In the words of every college sports fan to their favorite superstar upper-classman, "One More Year... One More Year..."

1b. On another down beat, my camera has also suffered a few bits of wear and tear, which I have neglected to fix. Every photo now comes with dust and scratches; one especially annoying black streak in the corner that I feel compelled to remove from all publicly released photos.

2. More excitingly, my camera has taken a trans-Atlantic flight to the old country, spending the last seven months away from the Los Angeles sun. Stop overs in various continental locations have provided some of the best and most enjoyable photographic experiences yet.

3. A minor format and design change at the brink of the new year brought with it more photos in less space, and a little bit of photographic/design sex appeal, now that the blog is coming of age.

There will be more of the same and, hopefully, some new things in the coming year. There will, inevitably, be a shift in location this fall (possibly) to even colder and gloomier conditions. Most importantly, the name of the blog is officially changing to Jeremy and his Camera. Please enjoy.


*the painting marking this anniversary is from Wayne Thiebaud—a beloved painter of beloved food.

A Dollar Short

It's very late, but I'm posting a favorite films of 2008. There are only five because, frankly, I did not see a lot of movies I loved.

1. Gomorrah

2. Wall-E

3. The Dark Knight

4. The Class

5. Man On Wire

Some decent movies that I wouldn't want to rank or include in a "top" list: I've Loved You So Long, The Changeling, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Vicky Christina Barcelona, The Edge of Heaven.

Here are some movies I wish I would have seen: Ballast, Young@Heart, Waltz With Bashir, Taxi to the Dark Side.

Here's a list of notable films I didn't see that are meant to be good: Milk, Rachel Getting Married, In Bruges, The Reader, Revolutionary Road, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Doubt, The Wrestler, Frozen River.

Currency Exchange

S/Know

Turn the Other Cheek

turn that other cheek, figurative and sweet
then shoot 'em in the back, knock 'em off his feet

sheath that sword of truth, dull and rusted
then bury a bullet in the brain, it can't be trusted

watch those guardians descend  unseen
then rain down rockets red, all the good you mean

say a prayer for a piece, heavenly and rich
then clamor for a curse, go to hell you bitch

know the end is near, final and complete
then jump-start judgment with all you meet

What's That You Say?

Listen to the melting pot mouthpiece
above the frozen waves
Watch the tower of talk
brush ashore a knave

Observe the fragile dollar
atop that sandy bank
Blurred beneath the noise
foaming white and rank

Silence all the subtleties
of treasures young in fold
Flock to that false fire
burning all but gold