new header

thanks justine for the awesome new header! hopefully my blog will live up to its awesomenesss!

street photographer

this video has captivated me. Vivian Maier's work is exceptional, yet she never showed them to anyone and many were never even developed. why did she take the pictures she did? what would her life had been like if she lived in our age of digital cameras and blogs? i'm very intrigued about how we process and show ourselves through the internet. we are so open, myself included, with our thoughts and feelings and dreams and pictures, but only a few years ago that kind of transparency was not even possible much less acted upon. i identify with her in part because she lived and worked with a family that wasn't her own. now we'll never know her motives or how she took the haunting images of street life in chicago. but i like to think that her camera was her connection to the people she photographed. that while she lived alone her camera gave her access and helped her have a place in her community.

oakland adventures

chopbar might be our new favorite restaurant. it was delicious. we so enjoyed celebrating with our friends. it was a wonderful weekend.

The Palace of Fine Arts Unveiled

they've finally finished remodeling and the palace of fine arts looks better than ever. its one of my favorite parts of living here. it was built for the worlds fair in 1915 but has experienced many changes since then. it marked the entrance to the first american exhibition of the famous european impressionist paintings. we are privileged to live so close and see it every day. we love wandering around the newly opened grounds.this was an interesting medium for film because there were lots of bright spots as well as shadow. there's so much to learn.

La Marzoco

La Marzoco espresso machines are amazing, the pinnacle of espresso machines in cafes, if a cafe has one its normally a sign of greatness. they put on a geek fest of coffee accouterments this week including pretty much every stellar roaster/cafe in the bay area and every way of brewing coffee possible, including a bike powered espresso machine. i pulled shots for HI-Q coffee and got way too caffeinated, it was a dream. i think i might have talked a bit too much but i really enjoyed connecting with people who share the same passions and drive.

we also ate lunch at Gather, which was in the same building as the conference. perfection in a pizza, its true, crispy and chewy, eggs, bacon and carmelized onion. it was brilliant and i throughly enjoyed the whole experience.

blue bottle coffee

as monday was mlk day, reader's cafe was closed so we went on a field trip , blue bottle coffee gave us a tour of their facilities and conducted a cupping with our crew. it was wonderful. the roastery is so full of light and space, its beautifully designed in oakland's warehouse district. i loved trying the different coffees they offer since we only sell one espresso and one house. maybe we'll branch out now that we've tried some of the other amazing options. this kicked off what i am now referring to as "coffee week". more updates to come.

film favorites

these are some of my favorites from the last roll, while i opened the camera too early, hence the light leak, i really love the lighting and angles and feel like i'm learning alot about seeing and more about how the camera sees what i see, the surprise aspect is nerve racking and the best part. i think the last one is my favorite, i want to go back and experiment with different lenses and shutter speeds. the exploratorium is awesome.

pork chops with butternut squash, escarole and walnuts

this is my new favorite recipe. it has pork chops which jacob loves, butternut squash which is my favorite and a bit of crunchiness with the walnuts. i was a bit concerned with the escarole but its bitterness is perfectly complemented by the other flavors, i'm betting you could use spinach as well. the one skillet plan makes it very easy, but i made some couscous as well for a little extra heft. thank you sunset magazine!

readers cafe

honestly readers cafe might be my favorite job so far. i mean how could it not be. books, blue bottle coffee and great coworkers. not to mention awesome lighting to experiment with my film camera. its an amazing combination.

sunday farmers market

the fort mason farmer's market

i love my standby produce this winter, butternut squash, not to mention learning about new fruits and the beauty of organic garlic, while the last photo could use some improvement, i love our double reflection and jacob's hat. i made this salad with sprouts from the farmer's market, it was delicious. what a wonderful sunday.

wintertime

the colors in this photo are perfect. it epitomizes winter in sf for me. i took this on our way home from the airport and while the mixture of bart, muni and then marin transit were grueling, this photo was worth it. i can feel the crispness in the air.

lovely light

i love the light in these photos. i live in the most beautiful place in the world and want to capture it as much as possible. this was in the evening as the sun set and everything glowed.

resolutions in action

though we didn't really make resolutions this year i declared that we would clean out the parts of our apartment that people don't see when they come to parties, which is when we normally clean. therefore today we tackled two drawers, our pantry, a towel cabinet that now has no towels in it and duh duh duh the closet. it was daunting to be sure but necessary. and we are a cleaning team when we get going. i don't have before pictures because i'm embarrassed, just know it was bad. i mean how can someone with 20+ pair of shoes think she's a minimalist? apparently that is what the floor and back corners of the closet are for, to help me live in denial. so atleast i have now confronted these issues, thrown some things out and been reunited with others that i forgot i owned. we celebrated with burritos and a movie. the fighter is amazing.

my father's kitchen

after running errands on tuesday jacob and i tried a vietnamese place i've been wanting to try for awhile. we had their pho, but the best part was the vietnamese ice coffee that is made with blue bottle. it has a special drip filter and sweetened condensed milk is the main ingredient. amazing. the best part is that its run by a father daughter team, i love restaurants with history.

unfortunately i only thought i had my camera with me. i'll get better at this hopefully.

christmas

my first roll...

the colors are so rich in these film pictures, i am very pleased with my results so far but there is so much i need to learn. the bottom one encapsulates reason number 152,000 why i love that man. you'll probably be seeing him alot in these photos.

snap away

since last year at this time my camera and computer stopped talking there has been a dismal lack of pictures but i am back in business baby. with a digital camera and two film cameras you are probably going to be sick at the amount of pictures i put up. but hopefully not. here goes.

i can't wait to get this year started. i am taking a photography class that starts in a couple of weeks and we have a lot to look forward to. but i'm also trying to be content and relax in this time that's a bit slower, aka january the month i hate. i'm learning again that not every month or minute must be full to the brim of excitement and adventure. sometimes i'm supposed to wait and rest and i realized that the past six months, have been one of the first times that i've not wanted to be somewhere else or doing something else. i've really enjoyed my job, where i've lived and overall what i've been doing. its kinda caught me by surprise and i like it. knowing me it won't last long, but i like being content and hopefully i'll take that attitude with me whatever i end up doing next.