Spring Books

Oscar!

I love the Academy Awards.

Actually, I just love movies.

And since I'm a poor graduate student that rarely enjoys the theater experience, watching the Oscars is like watching one long movie trailer (I may love watching trailers even more than movies themselves!). Every year, anticipation builds for those 5-10 frequently nominated movies that, most likely, I have not seen, but that I have already placed in my Netflix queue - Slumdog Millionaire, the Wrestler, the Reader, Milk...

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of my Oscar experience is that I always have favorites to win, even though I have not seen the movies! I suppose I need someone to root for to intensify my Oscar experience. So, I cheered for Danny Boyle and Slumdog Millionaire as they captured the nod for Director and Picture, and I was disappointed as Mickey Rourke took a backseat to Sean Penn. Granted, I always enjoy Penn, but there's something endearing about Rourke.

After the Oscars, I was captivated as Barbara Walters interviewed him on her special program. He's a man who's wrestled (no-pun intended) with the extremes of life, and although sorrow is permanently embedded on his face, he seems to be discovering some tranquility and peace.

Mickey Rourke overturns my paradigm of Christianity. When I think of the Gospel and of the incarnated Christ, I think, "This is a man who Jesus would eat with." He is not the type to be found idyllically singing the latest contemporary worship song in church on Sunday morning, and he is not the type to hide his self-righteousness under the guise of altruism. Mickey Rourke is far from being the pretentious Pharisee; rather, he is the epitome of the tax collector and sinner. He seems to live in the presence of existential suffering and concrete regret, yet he also seems to have an abiding hope that he too may be called a beloved child of the Holy Father.

I wish I new Mickey Rourke; I think my life would be better for it.

Rourke and I probably will not cross paths, but at least I still have a part of him waiting for me in my Netflix queue.

shave and a haircut, six bits

some days you got it. some days you don't.

Coffee

Ashley had the day off yesterday, so we decided to take advantage of one of Seattle's premier attractions - the local coffee shop. Sure, a Starbucks can be found on every street, but Seattle natives know that the best coffee and best ambiance are only found in the quaint little local shops hidden all over the city. I have a few that have become favorites, but just when I think I've discovered all the good ones, someone enlightens us to another. Last week, Ashley's college roommate and husband gave us a gift certificate to a place they found while visiting Seattle and Mars Hill (she came out to interview for school and received her acceptance letter a few days ago!!). So, with a day off, a gift certificate and a camera in tow, we set out for a rare dining experience - and I think we've both concluded that this should be a more frequent event.

oh yeah...I'd love some feedback!!

Since I'm new to this photography thing, I'd love feedback on which pictures you like or don't like.
I understand they're not your typical photographs, so it's pretty easy to not like them.

Whenever I look at pictures, I tend to gravitate towards the ones that you can't quite tell what's going on.
Like #5 for example. Everyone that's given me feedback so far has not liked it, but I absolutely love it.
I love that the train is blurred into a line of color that separates the light and dark - it provides a contrast that I find visually appealing. I also love the way the train appears out of nowhere.It's almost an abstract scene, but yet you still know what's going on in the picture.

oh, I'm so tempted to use this picture to "get all philosophical up in here"

Foggy Day in Seattle

I woke up early this morning (well, earlier than usual), and had Ashley drop me off by school. I planned on reading for awhile, but I was too fascinated by a thick fog that settled over the Sound.

...and since I had my new camera with me, I thought I'd snap a few shots. I ended up taking over 300. Thank goodness for digital - that would have cost me a fortune in film.

Here's a few of my favorites..
#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

#7

#8

#9

#10

#11

#12

#13

#14

#15