what's up?

lost my nerve

here’s another shot of el abuelo’s plymouth from a couple of summers ago. i just liked the picture and the location.

hotter than hell, and on my way to a heat stroke about this time.

i rather prefer his pontiac, but it wasn’t at vail hq that day. maybe he’ll bring it to chicano park day this year. really hoping to go, but i don’t know. not as healthy or up to going out anymore. better half is suggesting that we try another show before then; in between rainstorms on weekends…we’ll see.

been busy. lots going on.

better half has been talking about retiring for a few months.

made a decision a couple of thursdays ago, and told the bosses the next day he was done, and that was it. something about he couldn’t sell his company stock if he was employed, so he took care of that part of the equation.

he still gets up way too early, then spends each morning before the sun comes up, sitting in the jacuzzi, watching the stars, surprisingly not missing the job at all. lol.

now the pressure for me to retire, but i hadn’t thought about it, and i’m not old enough or ready, i guess.

he’s been keeping himself busy with a long list of things he hasn’t been able to do because work always took up so much of his time.

i think the same day he was busy deciding to retire, i went to the dentist. i mentioned a tooth that was bothering me, and the next monday, i was getting a root canal.

never had one before, and had always heard horror stories. for me, it seemed like a more intense cavity filling. took about an hour, a lot of steps, too many shots in the cheek nerves and gums, but otherwise was pretty easy. i guess i complained early enough, it wasn’t infected or whatever makes it worse.

they had a neat little machine that featured an attachment that fit over the drilled out top of the tooth and basically did a little pressure car wash in the empty root space. cleaning and disinfectant.

so i lost my nerve, and i’m ok with it.

now if i can just convince myself to go to a car show and remember how to take a decent picture.

into the frying pan

better half and i spent last week in san diego.

busted our asses at work, for the weeks leading up to time off, lots of overtime and stress. it’s almost like we shouldn’t bother taking any time off, as we’ve already made up the week and then some by the time we go. same when we come back. we’re both getting burned out, and were so ready for time away.

should change our titles to design jugglers.

anyway, our mini vacation really started about six in the morning on a saturday, with chicano park day. first in-person show in a couple of years. heard they might limit the number of cars to something ridiculous like one-hundred and fifty. by the time we left around eleven, there was at least twice that, a hot sun, and thousands of people.

didn’t even get to shoot the cars up by the majestics’ house…just too many people. walking in front of the camera, almost knocking over our tripods, bumping into the lens…and it got so hot out. day before, and the days after…all ten degrees cooler. figures.

the illegales car club includes the car above. i’ve been acquanted with the owner for several years now, and i found him later in the day, over in the grass field surrounded by cars, and chatting with some people, as usual. i butted in to say hello.

known as el abuelo, he had two of his cars there that morning. i think he said he arrived at four a.m., and always seems to get spots by the freeway on-ramp.

here’s another shot of it from a different angle. the sun was coming up, and there is some lens flare, that sort of bugs me here.

feeling generous, so here are some other random pictures i shot until i find some time to work up some other cars to share, starting with the few people that did chat with me, or my better half.

the street was full, the lawn around the playground was full; the grass near the basketball courts, had very few cars, which was odd. i know there were plenty of cars driving round trying to get in, but either didn’t have registration or just showed up too late. just weird. all the space available is usually just crammed with cars and bikes.

also, for chuckleberries, i found us in the crowd of the headline pic in this article, better half talking with someone about his lens collection, in front of the chevy truck, in the sea of people.

pizza

uptown whittier, just ordered pizza. so i have a few minutes to spare.

went out to the fundraiser for brother richard this past weekend. i’m sure i’d seen him around, but probably never spoke to him. he had a lot of friends, judging by the number of cars and groups of people attending.

weather was perfect for mid-morning. should have gone earlier, but things had need of doing first. still wrestling with the new camera and lens settings.

shot this car as i was heading back around to my car. better half was waiting at home—had to make a storage unit run—did i mention we are moving? his mother is gone and i get my condo back soon, so nothing holding us here. going to be closer to my mom now, where i am living ninety-nine percent of the time now anyway.

on-screen, full-size, this car glows. seems pretty sharp where i wanted it focused, but the lens does start fuzzing out towards the edges. need to find it’s sweet spot.

pizza ready. walking back.

h20

bored yet? another from last week. owner gave me a bottle water, when i really needed it. thank you. was overheating about then.

charging batteries for tomorrow. was reminded about the fleetlines show in garden grove, but had to tell them the dia de los muertos is just up the street first.

quiet

currently sitting on my bed at my mom’s house. same bed i used to sleep in at my grandmother’s when i was ever so small. seemed much bigger then.

worked a little bit late today. grabbed some dinner and took it back to my condo, where i ate in silence, amongst my kid’s piles of junk. i’ve given her a deadline to move it out. she hasn’t said much to me since then.

thought about going for a walk, but i’m so very tired. so back here at mom’s, and she is off at church. sings in the choir. gives her something to do.

but the house is so quiet without my dad shuffling around, though i hear every creak. said hello to his box of ashes, which isn’t the same. one of these days i’ll have a good cry, but the slow tears work just as good.

today was back to gloomy, sprinkly weather. i like that just fine.

have to take some pictures tomorrow for work. i don’t have time for it, but will do it anyway. it’s payday, so i won’t stress about it too much.

————

thought this plymouth turned out ok. should have rubbed out those bullet hole stickers…they are so stupid…but i sort of didn’t care to take the minute to do that. this club has cars painted with the brightest colors of the rainbow; maybe it’s a requirement to join?

father's day

old plymouth from the uptown show. i like that even though i walked up there relatively late, around six-thirty, the street was still pretty empty. i've shot this car several times over the years, but this is probably my favorite picture of it so far.

a relation of the owner inquired about some editing on it, and inserting parents into the shot...sure i can do that, for a price...but they never got back to me, so i'll leave it be.

hey dad, probably won't make down to your house today. restaurants are busy anyway. we can go out tomorrow, mkay?

another perfectly, cold june gloom day. i really should go out to one of the parks around here, for any one of the many car club barbeques happening, but judging by the last holiday park show i went to, finding parking and dealing with the crowds, make it so much less fun. unless you're there first thing at dawn. which it isn't now...well into the afternoon, so there you go. i'll stay put. better half has marketing and probably heading to the office to work stuff, so here i am again.

i will just sit here, play with pictures, and watch as numerous people park illegally in the street, and walk up to the neighbor's door. usually towards evening. they don't stay long, so nothing nefarious is going on.

money is exchanged and they return with bags/boxes of something or other. we suspect it is some type of unregulated food prep for restaurants, cuz they're always cooking in the kitchen with the windows open. this being father's day, i expect quite a number of pit stops to happen.

we don't really talk to them, as they've been assholes since they moved in over a year ago. really surprised the old curmudgeonly neighbor hasn't call the health inspector on them yet.

used to be a drug dealer living in the house next door, and long after they were busted, strange people continued coming around, but i don't think this is the same thing.

we do like to make up stories about what might be in the plain brown bags though. i'll go with homemade playdough today, in hot pink and neon green. buyers will go home and open the bag, stick their faces in the top and take a big whiff, sending them back to their childhoods.

just close your eyes and open a can of playdough...sniff it...it totally works, assuming you played with the stuff as a kid.

but that homemade shit, probably not the same...might not take you back that far...and who wants to be a teenager again? ick, no.

distract me

my brother is being rolled into surgery right now, two-thousand miles away. giving birth to a large kidney stone or something. usually these things pass, painfully, on their own. but this time, it’s too big, and just blocking the waterworks.

his wife and kids are in town (fortunately/for a change), and with him at the hospital.

she reports that the drugs must be pretty good; pre-op he said, “they need to operate to remove the stone, or it will continue to rub on my uterus.”

so, i’m going about my typical day, but my head isn’t in it. guess i will be like this until i hear he’s out and ok.

chicano park. i heard the owner of this car telling someone else that this was a pretty rare car. it was also very popular, so i really had to wait it out to get my shots.

follow up: bro is out of surgery, stone free, but totally stoned. can't wait to hear what he said while still under the influence...

hoodies

a few hood ornaments from last weekend. quick and dirty, and straight from the camera. i should take more hoodies, like i used to. maybe i should just shoot something totally different. i need a change in attitude, maybe a change in subject matter. just don't see a vacation anytime soon.

have been otherwise busy and melting at home today. skipped mooneyes, though i was up at six-thirty this morning. took a walk around the block and through uptown, just to stretch my legs, but have otherwise been holed up in the house all day.

heard about a death in the family today. never met her, had alzheimers, went peacefully. still sucks, even when the closest people were expecting it, they were not prepared.

saw there were a couple of other tempting evening shows, but since i said i was only going to do one show a weekend, figured i'd go tomorrow. but now it's getting late, and it's still warm outside, and i just don't know. i gotta find the sunscreen. my arms are getting all freckly from the sun and all that vitamin d.

on the other hand, if roll-in isn't until eight in the morning, is it even worth getting there before the sun comes up? especially for shows that aren't out in the open; there's always that chance that the people at the gate just won't let me in. i'll pay the entry fee, just let me in early. i guess i could always look for some club that knows me, and try to bum a ride in their car, through the gate.

i don't have time to deal with that right now. either i shoot very early, before the heat, and before i have to be home to help with my better half's mom, or very late in the afternoon. if i can't get in, i'll just go home, and watch cars drive past the house or something. maybe i should set up my tripod at the stop sign and wait for the cars to drive through uptown.

sfv

1938 plymouth

almost didn't get up for the oldies' show today. knew the heat there can be brutal. after a half an hour of inner arguments, i got my sorry ass out of bed and got ready to go.

out the door a little after five, and with a forty-five minute drive ahead of me, knew i'd lost the sunrise, at least the full dark to that sun peeking over the horizon.

got there early enough anyway, to catch some of the golden hour. almost didn't get in the gate. usually, no problem, no question, pay my way in, and get to work.

this year, i'd arrived just as the gates opened for clubs, and no one at the gate recognized me. they seemed confused as to how to handle a photographer that didn't work for a magazine, simply wanted to shoot for the love of the cars. i guess the main confusion was in my wording of, "can i come in now," implying that i wanted in for free. nope, fully prepared/expecting to pay, just let me in before the sun gets too high.

in the end, after the question getting passed through about three people, the guy one called, "grampa" let me in for ten, though i would've paid the thirteen advertised. so thanks to all of those people that figured it all out, and helped me get in.

probably the closest i've come to being turned away at a show. i would have just stayed out on the street for a little while, shooting the cars passing by, as they waited in line at the gate, since that was where i was parked, first on the curb. certainly would have left a hell of a lot sooner, because it really did get to warm to be in the sun for long periods of time.

at least there were shady areas, with cool breezes, for a change from the normal weather there. and with the fire in santa clarita, a few miles away, the breeze blew away that smell of burnt wood and ash within the first hour.

blah blah blah.

ok, this was the second year in a row, out of about five years that i'd been there, and it was slow to fill up. first couple of years, it was packed, with cars lined down the street and around the block. i dont' know why many of the shows lately are so lightly attended that early, unless you consider the partying the night before.

well, i just go with it, and the cars that are there get all my love, with room to move around.

this plymouth was being polished when i walked by the second time, and i momentarily waited for him to take a break from the job. i think he said it belonged to his uncle or cousin, who also owned another car that was later parked in front of it. told him i'd come back later when he was done.

i did, but i like this earlier shot better than the later ones. there was space around it to get a decent shot, and no people.

the kid was interested in seeing what i shot, but i explained that it was multiple exposures, so he wouldn't really be that impressed by one frame. told him i'd post it, so here you go.

i like the playing cards that were blowing randomly down the street. guessing from the newer, fancier cars around the corner with the mirrors and fuzzy material under their vehicles. one did have a pack of card strewn about on the blanket.

goldie lox

1940 plymouth

at my parents' house. they're outta town at a mini family reunion. all my dad's sibs in one place, probably for the last time...it's a good thing. my brothers are there too, maybe to keep the peace, i don't know.

they're all getting old, and don't travel well. at least i know how my old people grumbled as i dropped them off at the airport. my mom would have preferred not going, or maybe a roadtrip, but then my dad would have fallen asleep at the wheel, and taken them both out. i'd really prefer to take his keys away now, even for local trips, but we'd have to pry the keys from his fingers.

mostly, he's fine. it's keeping him away from costco that'd be preferrable just now. no two people need that much food on hand that often, especially stuff that is sold in twenty-four packs and ripe right now. mostly i think he forgets that he already went shopping.

back to my point, i'm here, watching the house, feeding a turtle that is apparently not hungry and sleeping somewhere in the backyard, and an ancient bird who hates everyone that isn't my mom. it's also sort of creepy being alone in this house i grew up in. i just don't live here anymore, so i am not used to the sounds it makes. and there has been someone calling and not leaving messages all day, who also hung up on me when i did answer. probably just a telemarketer, because they're a-holes that way.

i also half expect my kid to sneak in and scare the shit out of me, since he also has a key. he used to do that to my mom, until i pointed out that he was going to literally give her a heart attack. he felt bad and stopped doing that at least. i'm tired, but don't want to turn the light off...little kid in an old bod.

there are several beds to choose from, one that's too hard, one that's too soft, and a couple that fred flintstone would have been happy to sleep on, until i bought them thick foam mattress pads to ease guests' suffering, most often that being me.

anyway, one more day and they'll be home. i'll probably miss ruby's season opener car show tomorrow, but my better half may go just to send me pics of what i'm missing. it's raining here right now, and probably tomorrow, so maybe the show will start next week, if the clouds head to whittier...

such a busy month ahead for me, i will just have to endure it, and fit in a couple of weekend shows as i can.

i've seen this plymouth before, in previous years at chicano park. people mostly shoot it from the other side, and from the front. i got that shot too. but i am hoping to see things a little different, so here's a shot from the back. i need to post some cars from other areas of the show, than just by a mural wall. the cars are interesting on their own, without the added prop of the art. that is, unless it's more about the location and the car is incidental to the scene...

now i'm just rambling, and i should get some sleep. i'm sufficiently tired enough to not give a rat's ass if the bogey man showed up.