The Thing I Love To Do

Photography has always and most likely always will be the one thing that I truly love to do. I have been taking pictures for quite a while and still to this day I can not figure out what I like taking pictures of more.

I have taken pictures of scenery..

That picture was just a complete split second decision that I made before going and taking pictures of my friend Stosh Lindsey surfing, but I thought it would make a cool postcard 😛

Ive taken Black&White pictures..

This picture I took at the OVS play this year and in it are Jack Beverly and Carolita Landers.

I’ve taken pictures of surfing..

This was such a nice day, my friend Kai Lowe was out busting out some big airs and well I was lucky enough to be able to capture them.

and pictures of many other things but I don’t think I will ever want to settle for taking pictures of just one thing. I think the great thing about being a photographer is that you can show the world what YOU see through the viewfinder of your camera and allow them to see that not everyone sees the world in the same way.

Which one of the pictures above did you like?
and if you didn’t like any of them, feel free to NOT comment something rude about them :]

My Best Friend Kira

Kira is not a person, Kira is my dog but she is the best friend anyone could ever ask for. She is as loyal as they come and she more loving than most people could ever be.

Kira is a Blue Heeler which is an australian cattle dog. She is the big mama in our home, taking care of two other dogs and a beautiful cat she definitely keeps them all in check.

She has fun, and is fun and she has been there for me for almost 8 years. I love her like family, we treat her like family and well at the end of the day she is without a doubt a member of our family.

She smiles like a human, she is a happy dog, but once I leave she becomes super sad.. To me she is a human and I love her!

Family.

Group Hug.
Family is one of the most important things in someone’s life. They are the people that support, surprise and sometimes sadden someone. Family is the people we treasure throughout our lives whatever happens. They are the friends we never forget.

This October my big sister will be moving out to California to reunite with our family and once again become part of the unit. The 2-year separation has now finished and my best friend is returning home.

I can say whatever the distance and whatever the situation the love of family will never change. This is because family are ultimately our best friends.

Rose

All you need to know is that I’m in love with the British television show Doctor Who.

Rose

I lost you, Rose

Separated by space and time

Cut off, forever

From me

From you

I was going to tell you

I burned up a sun

Just to say goodbye

Circling a supernova

One last gap

One last chance

Before the final Close

Still just an image

We can never touch

You cried

You said you loved me

I was going to tell you

But the bridge collapsed

Leaving me in the TARDIS

And you, in Bad Wolf Bay

I’ll say it now, Rose

My Rose,

I’ll say it now…

Down

“I don’t know where I’m at
I’m standing at the back
And I’m tired of waiting
Waiting here in line, hoping that I’ll find what I’ve been chasing.

I shot for the sky
I’m stuck on the ground
So why do I try, I know I’m gonna to fall down
I thought I could fly, so why did I drown?
Never know why it’s coming down, down, down.

Not ready to let go
Cause then I’d never know
What I could be missing
But I’m missing way too much
So when do I give up what I’ve been wishing for…”

-Jason Walker, “Down.”

Every year at Ojai Valley School we have a show at the end of the year called the Festival of Talent, which is exactly what it sounds like.  Last year we had a particularly beautiful performance by two fellow OVS bloggers, theotherblackgirl and rangerthecat; however, the former graduated.

They sang “Down” by Jason Walker, a song from the hit TV show “The Vampire Diaries.”  The show is based off a book series of the same name, written by Lisa Jane (Ljane) Smith.  But I’m getting off topic.

They did an amazing job at the show, a duet that left everyone speechless.

I apologize for the shaking and coughing.  It was freezing, I had no tripod and clearly, I was coughing.

You can compare it to the original:

So what’s this song really about?

Well, I don’t think I know.  I’m kind of super lame about the “interpreting the artistic and hidden meaning of stuff.”  So I couldn’t tell you what the artist meant or even what the general public thinks.

But I can tell you what it means to me.

It’s about someone who can’t find love.  This person has been standing around, waiting, hoping, wishing for the right person to come around.  It sounds like perfect love entered his/her life once, but it failed.  The singer is stuck on said love and is unwilling to forget it, for fear of it coming back and not being there to reciprocate.  Or maybe he/she is afraid that love was so perfect there will never be anything else like it.  Either way, this person is going down because of the loss.  He/she is confused why it felt like they could “fly” when they were in love, only to realize they were “stuck on the ground” and then they “drowned.”

It is entirely possible I missed the point completely.  But that’s what it says to me.

Sound familiar?

The Sound.

The sound is deep.
It resonates throughout the room,
The chamber of my heart,
And the corners of my fingers.
The sound is gorgeous.
Irresistible.
It sends shivers down my spine,
Raises my skin,
Flutters my heart.
How I long for it to be closer.
Not across a world
Or a room
But behind me.
Heat seeping to my shirt,
A breath behind my ear,
A whisper.
A whisper of anything:
Everything.
Just to hear that deep sound.
Just to send shiver to my spine,
Send bumps to my skin,
Send flutters to my heart,
Send a longing directly through me.

Your sound is deep.
It resonates throughout the room,
And throughout the chamber of my heart.

Season of Love

My entry for the 2012 Ojai Valley School Love Poetry Contest:

Love has its seasons 

Ever shifting, ever reeling seasons

The fierce flames of summer,

Perish in bleak midwinter

The struggling buds of spring,

Wither and droop in autumn

 

Like summer, love is hot

Burning, consuming,

Outshining all other emotions

It warms and electrifies,

Turning laughter to joy

 

But like winter, it can turn bitter

Love is like snow

Beautiful, exquisite,

But brings frostbite to flesh

Freezing and failing,

When harsh winter winds blow

 

Even so, love is like spring

Despite bitter winter, it grows again and again,

Blossoming, fruitful,

It comes anew, fresh and inspired

Innocent in its soft whimsical hope

 

And like autumn, it wilts

Turning those vivid hot colors,

To dying gray and sallow brown

The limp, shriveled feelings,

Crumble and skitter away

 

My love for you, has seen all these seasons

It flamed bright in summer

It departed in snow

It waxed strong in spring

Wasted away in the fall

 

But through each of its seasons,

My affection grew wiser,

I know now I’ll never,

Forget or forsake you

 

Your curling dark hair,

And deep, laughing eyes

That easy-calm smile,

And your dusky bronze skin

 

Through spring and through winter

I only wish that you knew, 

Through the summer and fall

All seasons, I love you.


Gay Rights

Who the hell do you think you are to deny an innocent American citizen their rights?

Obviously you think you are doing the “right” thing, the “better” thing.

You are not.

The only difference between LGBT and heterosexuals is who they are attracted to, oh and that LGBT on average have a higher IQ and are much less likely to commit a felony.

So why are LGBT people looked down upon so much in our country? It really baffles me that so many people could have a hatred towards people who are just attracted to the same sex as themselves, I really cannot understand.

Homophobia is one thing. I for one do not have it but one cannot be fully criticized simply for their irrational feelings. That being said, even if there are many homophobes, that is no reason for LGBT to be denied the rights that heterosexual people have.

We have come a long way in our country in respect to the rights of minorities. African Americans and women received the right to vote and discrimination laws swept the country.

Yet, we are still living in the distant past when it comes to our county’s feelings regarding homosexuality. We need to grow up.

I was recently reading a story about the suicide rates among teens in an area of Minnesota who have been taunted for being gay and lesbian.

Throughout the country we see an absurdly high suicide rate among young LGBT people. This is unacceptable and it needs to stop.

No one, and especially young people, should be teased for their sexuality. I don’t care what your beliefs are regarding homosexuality, no one deserves to be teased and bullied and pushed to the point of having suicidal tendencies.

It makes me sick to hear that so many kids across our supposedly accepting country are facing the horrors of being bullied for their sexuality. It appalls me that more has not been done to cease this unacceptable behavior.

I want to see a country where people are not frowned upon for what attracts them, where we can accept people who are living their lives and not trying to harm anyone around them. I want us to move forward and banish our misconceptions about homosexuality to the pages of history where I am sure we will be mocked for the injustices we have committed.

Interracial marriage

1 in 12, 8.4% of marriages are interracial in the United States, an all-time high. Compared to 1980, interracial marriage has increased more than 5 %!

Studies show that Hispanics and Asians are the most common to marry different races. Also, interestingly, Asian women have double the rate of Asian men marrying a different race, 36% to 17%. Additionally, black men were nearly three times more likely to marry a different race than black women, which is 24% to 9%.

In the United States, Hawaii was found to have the most interracial marriages for its population. Almost half of the population who married from 2008-2010 was interracial. On the other hand, the state that has the lowest rate of interracial marriage is Vermont, which has only 4%.

Despite of the growth in interracial marriage, the Southern States like Kentucky, Alabama and Mississippi still think that interracial marriage should be illegal. I think this is sad, because the people there are still not willing to accept different races and I don’t think it’s right.

However, this article made me happy because the fact suggests that the relationship between different races has greatly improved.

Also, the more races mixed, the healthier and prettier the baby is!

Setting Out Goals For Yourself, and keeping them.

Tonight I watched a video report on a soldier named Daniel Rodriguez who is a decorated hero from the United States Military. The reason this video was so attention grabbing was not because he was in the military, but because of the ability for him to make a promise to himself and do what so many people can’t do, keep it.

He and a friend of his made promises to themselves as well as to each other that once they were out of the military they would chase after their dreams and do anything that had to be done to achieve them.

A sad turn of events occurred and Daniel’s friend was killed while being ambushed by enemy forces on active duty. A lot of the time a loss like this can affect people and their ability to push through, but Daniel refused to let his dreams and talent as a football player go to waste.

When Daniel got out of the military he immediately went into training to become a football player.

This is a very mature and beautiful thing to see in life, especially because it isn’t something you see too often. I wish to be as dedicated and as committed to achieving my dreams. Daniel is now an inspiration to me that will hopefully drive me towards what I seek in my life.

Fantastic.