At this moment...
12.31.07
Top 10 Albums for 2007
10. S/T – The Good, The Bad, & The Queen (Because Paul Simonon is playing bass again.)
9. The Boy Who Couldn’t Stop Dreaming – Club 8 (Because I wasn’t expecting an album by them.)
8. From Here We Go Sublime – The Field (Because I can get lost to the beats when I’m out running.)
7. Prinzhorn Dance School – Prinzhorn Dance School (Because they are probably the first band to ever ask in a song, “Do you know your butcher?”)
6. White Chalk – PJ Harvey (Because it’s haunting.)
5. Pocket Symphony – Air (Because it makes me want to go to Japan.)
4. Boxer – The National (Because it is heartbreakingly sinister, just like the suburbs.)
3. Sky Blue Sky – Wilco (Because Nels Cline plays some amazing guitar solos.)
2. Migration – Sambassadeur (Because it’s a pop masterpiece.)
1. Sound of Silver – LCD Soundsystem (Because I’m an aging hipster. Plus I can’t get Someone Great out of my head.)
I’m happy that 2007 is over. I initially wrote that 2007 was a disappointment of a year. But really, it was simply lackluster. Or maybe it was a year of learning. I made quite a few foolish mistakes in 2007, but I’d like to think I learned quite a bit from those mistakes. And notice that I call them mistakes, not regrets. Or maybe they were just foolish decisions? Either way, those things are behind me.
However, it wasn’t just a year riddled with foolish decisions. I bought a kick ass dslr and took some pretty okay photos. My favorite moment was starting the Chicago marathon with my brother, and my second favorite moment was seeing my family at the end of the marathon.
I do wish I had been able to spend way more time in Maine.
And while the majority of the world is waking with a hangover, I’ll be out running. Simply put, I feel most like me when I’m running, and I can’t think of a better way to start off a new year. If anybody wants to join me for a run, send me an email or give me a call.
12.30.07
This has been one seriously lazy day. I blame all the wine that I managed to drink last night. Too much wine.
Weird that I have to work tomorrow.
Song(s):
Oh Quiet Night - Will Stratton
Going to Where the Tea Trees Are - Peter von Poehl
Listening to:
Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen - Gustav Mahler
12.29.07
My new camera...
Originally released in 1976, the Canon af35m was the world's first Lens-Shutter 35mm autofocus camera at the time. It used a triangulation system with a near-infrared emitting diode (IRED).
The active AF system had the IRED emit a near-infrared beam so its reflection was received by a pin photo diode.
When the shutter button is pressed halfway, the IRED emits a near-infrared beam on the subject. The beam reflected by the subject was received by the pin photo diode. A triangulation was thereby created in the same way as with an optical coincidence rangefinder. The lens draw is adjusted automatically to match the subject distance for focusing. The near-infrared beam also enabled focusing under low-light conditions, making the camera a hit product. The name "Autoboy" became synonymous with AF compact cameras.
Hopefully the camera works. I dropped a roll of Ilford black and white in. The only concern I have is whether or not the film is advancing. It sounds like it is, but who knows. Oh, and it's a really loud camera.
12.28.07
I don't know why, but I keep thinking about the minor characters that pass in and out of our lives. Besides being minor characters, what other function, if any, do they fill? I'm not really concerned with grocery clerks or gas station attendants. Sure, they have a function too, but really, I'm more interested in those that play bit parts, the ones that come into our lives for a brief period of time and then disappear. Is it that they leave a subtle mark? Can a minor character make a major impact? I'm thinking yes. And we're all someone else's minor character.
I just don't like ghosts.
Listening to:
Sound of Light - Nordic Light Hotel - The Field
12.26.07
Tonight I reached a new high score on Bejeweled: 19,795. Quite a sense of accomplishment. I also ran four miles in under 32 minutes.
Song(s):
Be Good or Be Gone - Fionn Regan
I Said Goodbye to Me - Harry Nilsson
Goodbye to Song - Kim Hiorthøy
Goodbaby Goodbye - Bridget St John
Goodbye, Again Or - Peter Bjorn and John
Goodbye - Asobi Seksu
12.24.07
Nothing says Christmas Eve like me and my zoo bird mask (actually, I took it a few days ago)...
An ominous marshmallow snowman stands guard over his gingerbread house...
12.23.07
More lists...
Top 10 songs from Scandinavian bands (2007):
10. Black Winged Bird - Nina Persson
9. Take Me to the Ballroom - Moonbabies
8. People Living - Susanna
7. Your Arms Around Me - Jens Lekman
6. Hard Days 1.2.3.4 - Lonely, Dear
5. Clever Girls Like Clever Boys Much More Than Clever Boys Like Clever Girls - Pele Carlberg
4. Lost - The Mary Onettes
3. Englabörn / Angelic Children - Ragnhildur Gísladóttir & Stomu Yamash´ta
2. Jesus Walk With Me - Club 8
1. Subtle Changes - Sambassadeur (In higndsight this should probably be in the Top 10 overall songs of 2007, probably #2.)
Top 10 cover songs (2007):
10. These Days - Jackson Browne via St. Vincent
9. All My Friends - LCD Soundsystem via John Cale
8. That’s Us / Wild Combination - Arthur Russel via Joel Gibb
7. Head Over Heels - Tears for Fears via Samamidon
6. Then He Kissed Me - The Crystals via Asobi Seksu
5. Billie Jean - Michael Jackson via The Patriotic Sunday
4. China Girl - David Bowie via Anna Ternheim
3. Borderline - The Chopin Sisters
2. Fourth Time Around - Bob Dylan via To La Tengo
1. Super Trooper - Abba via Camera Obscura
At around 1pm I decided to go for a run. Earlier I walked over to the grocery store, and figured that it was cold, but not too cold to run. As I started my run a blast of wind nearly knocked me over. Undeterred I pressed onward. About a block or so into my run I saw someone riding a bicycle and his face was bright red. I turned around and got a face mask from my apartment. Coldest run of the season.
12.22.07
Top 10 songs of 2007:
10. Since I Still Tell You My Every Day - The Innocence Mission
9. Lay Your Head Down - Keren Ann
8. Once Upon a Time - Air
7. Silently - Blonde Redhead
6. Ballad of the Dumb Angel - The Loose Salute
5. That’s Us / Wild Combination - Joel Gibb
4. Fake Empire - The National
3. All My Stars Aligned - St. Vincent
2. Isn't Life Strange? - The Clientele
1. Someone Great - LCD Soundsystem
Listening to:
Happy Holidays 2007 mix CD from kk.com.
It's pretty damn great.
12.18.07
I always forget what day it is.
Now, I know this makes me sound crazy, but tonight I learned more about lighting with flash than I ever have in class. Maybe that's not that crazy. What probably comes across as crazy is how I use Enid, from Ghost World, as my model. The goal of the exercise was to learn how to balance ambient light with flash.
All shots were taken with my Canon 100 mm macro lens. The top left was off camera flash, shot through a white umbrella placed off to the left. The top right shot was taken using 100% ambient light, no flash. The bottom left was a taken with a flash off to the left using a 1/200 second shutter speed (this didn't allow for any ambient light). The bottom right shot was taken with an off camera flash about three feet away from Enid using a 1/200 second shutter speed metered at f2.8.
The following three photos demonstrate things a bit further...
This was the first in a series of about 15 shots taken with increasingly longer shutter speeds. This was taken at f/8 with a 1/200 of a second shutter speed (also off camera flash shot through a white umbrella off to the left). Once again, only the flash gets picked up.
This is the last of the shots that combines ambient lighting with flash. This was taken at f/8 with a much longer shutter speed of 5.2 seconds.
This shot is purely ambient lighting, no flash. I metered this one to see how accurate my meter really reads. This was taken at f/8 with an 8 second shutter speed.
And speaking of ambient lighting...
Jason and Mikey discussing the harmonies to a new Zerostars song. Which reminds me, we have an acoustic show on January 3, 2008 at Uncommon Ground in Chicago. Details on our website.
Can someone explain why the Village of Arlington Heights found it necessary to plow the snowless parking lot across the street from my apartment at 3:30 am today? I woke to the most horrible scrapping and buzzing sound that I've ever heard in my life. I'm able to sleep through the trains that pass through town at night, but this noise was just enormous and obnoxious. When I left for work I tried to figure out what they actually did, but still can't quite comprehend the need to plow snowless streets.
12.15.07
Against my doctor's orders, and probably against my better judgment, I decided that I really needed to go for a run, so I went out and ran three miles. Lately things seem to be more stressful than usual. Running is the one thing that seems to keep stress in check. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, "I'm a runner." Not running isn't an option for me, it's something that I need to keep my sanity. And how did my run go? Pretty damn great considering I haven't been out in over three weeks. Just before Thanksgiving I screwed-up a toe. A week later I saw the doctor and was told to stay off it until the end of December. He reiterated to me on Thursday (he just happened to be in my photography class) that I should wait and not run even if it was starting to feel better. But I didn't listen.
A week and a half ago I ordered some new running shoes. After the Newtons I switched back to Asics, but they felt clunky and heavy. Just before heading out to Maine for Thanksgiving I decided to give my Karhu shoes a second chance. Even though they were still too small, they felt like the perfect middle ground between the Newton and Asics. Karhu shoes are handmade in Finland, and the quality is outstanding. Like European cars being designed for the driver to feel the road, Karhu shoes make you feel the pavement beneath your feet. They have just the right amount of cushioning, but they don't feel squishy, or over designed. While not as expensive as the Newtons, they're slightly more expensive than a pair of Asics Gel Keyanos. Plus, they make you look fast since they're red. Great running shoe, and highly recommended.
12.13.07
Tonight was my last night of photography class. Here are a few of my classmates...
Song
Rollerdisco - Black Moth Super Rainbow
12.12.07
This not running is really annoying. However, I might be tempted to go for a quick two mile run tomorrow. We shall see.
Song
Put a Penny in the Slot - Fionn Regan
12.11.07
Going back in time... From Saturday night... Wishing I had a sugar cookie because they were really delicious. I'm using these photos, along with the icing of the cookie photos for my final photography project.
Listening to:
Fur and Gold - Bat for Lashes
12.09.07
Baking Christmas cookies with KK (and CL helped too)...
In between baking cookies and icing them, KK managed to make a truly delicious salad for dinner...
12.08.07
12.06.07
The other day someone asked me a question, but it was the wrong question.
Given the choice between fancy hot chocolate and Nestle pre-package hot chocolate mix that you add to hot water, I'd choose the Nestle version. Or at least I would go that route tonight.
It's snowing again.
Song(s)
Fox in the Snow - Belle and Sebastian
12.05.07
KK was a good sport by helping me out with my photography assignment for the week. I'm learning quite a bit, especially when I come back and analyze the shots that I took. I will say that it's a lot harder to light a person than I really thought it to be. When class ends in two weeks I need to come up with weekly assignments for myself. Here are my favorite photos from tonight.
12.04.07
Point of clarification: Last month I posted a photo and above the photo I wrote, “Today we took a ride on a tug boat.” It seems that a few people believed that we really did take a ride on a tug boat. Sadly, we didn't.
This not being able to run is killing me. I could really use a run. And it's snowing outside, and I love running in the snow. So instead I'll watch it snow.
Song(s):
You Are the Space Invader (An Optimo Espacio Mix) - Prinzhorn Dance School
Sun Against My Eyes - Colleen
Glory Verse - Maps
Shout it Out - Moonbabies
12.03.07
Song(s):
Someone Great - LCD Soundsystem
Hard Days 1.2.3.4 - Lonely, Dear
Ballad of the Dumb Angel - The Loose Salute
Since I Still Tell You My Everyday - The Innocence Mission