Day 30 of the 30 Day Challenge: Self portrait

What I have learned throughout this challenge is too lengthy and boring for this caption.

But I will share what I posted yesterday on my Facebook wall with you all: By the time you get to my age, if you haven't developed hobbies or bad habits, you haven't lived at all. 

Cheers to all who stopped by and made me smile with their comments and attention. It was far more than I could have expected. May you live and prosper in both your hobbies and bad habits....and may you continue sharing them with me via this very cool medium of Flickr.

So, what's next? 

Can you hear me exhaling, what a relief the challenge is over!

I set up the picture and my daughter said, "why don't you try different gestures with your hands." And I thought to myself, "oh, no you didn't."  So here I am trying to explain to my soon to be 16 year old how I learned to flick the finger in second grade using a pencil interwoven in my fingers.

Ahhh, precious childhood moments shared with offspring.

Day 29 of the 30 Day Challenge: B&W

"He sometimes ran a purple ribbon through his typewriter and gushed where he should have dammed." -T.E. Kalem

Well. Sure. Today is a good day for taking pictures with my son and selecting and editing with my daughter while we wait for my oldest daughter to come out of Physical Education class. Then we will go to my mother's house to celebrate my birthday. 

Today is a good day to be born, as were three good friends of mine. My BFF turned out to really be my BFFL (pronounced 'buffel,' according to my baby girl) as I have known her for three decades and well, I think she is now more like my sister. Talking of which, her sister's birthday is today as well. Must be something in the air, water or some geographical phenomena that all the June 29 birthday people I have ever met I have become friends with. Ah, well. That is my story for the day. Have fun, peeps!

I have had a most wonderful day.

Day 28 of the 30 Day Challenge: Flowers (pottery)

The plan was to buy the perfect bloom to photograph for today's challenge, but as I looked around, I realized I am surrounded by flowers and flower motifs throughout the house. And this is what I found, sitting on my dining room table all along, just patiently waiting for me to notice.

The name for this type of pottery is Talavera, but as in everything, there are many variations out there. I cannot afford the high end versions much the same way that I cannot afford Wedgewood nor any other kind of brand name earthenware or porcelain. At $25 to $50 USD a plate, even these colorful plates become cost prohibitive once you start calculating an entire set for 30 people.  But from time to time, I spoil myself a little and pick up inexpensive pieces from here and there.

The green lidded pot at the top is probably from the 1960s or earlier, it is something my mom found for me at a garage sale. The other two pieces are inexpensive vases (with tops) that were mass produced, but they retain that gorgeous cobalt hue that I love in dinner ware. The little brass tray with green inserts and the tiny incense holder are probably Indian. The silver tray must be about half a century old or more, it belonged to my grandmother.

I am really inspired now, I will miss doing the challenge once it ends.  That much I have learned.

Day 26 of the 30 Day Challenge: Closeup

And soft.....
Almost didn't make this Sunday's challenge, but I did! 

This is a closeup of a fabric and feather flower that my 15 year old daughter wore on her hair on the day of her confirmation. They asked her to wear 'white' and she translated it to mean 'something white' therefore choosing a tailored black dress with a white shawl  and flower on her long tresses.

Had anyone at the church protested, I would have been ready to support my daughter's individuality tooth and nail. Everything was fine. And she looked incredibly beautiful as a young adult asserting herself through her own definition of style.

Day 25 of the 30 Day Challenge: Pink

I once read that Ann Richards kept her house decor in rather muted tones. But about her clothes she said "I wear the colors around here."

While my house may not be a shrine to minimalism nor to the mod whites of the 60s or the pale shabby chic of the 90s, it remains rather muted when compared to some of my clothes. Hard pressed to find something pink in my house, for I am not a girly girl of the bubble gum palette nor do I subscribe to much Hello Kitty wares, I headed to my closet where I had recently bough this incredibly comfortable linen shirt in a most glorious 'rosa Mexicano' (bright pink) hue. 

Behind this image, you really can't tell, is the door that leads to my tiny home office. I am still in the process of summer cleaning and had placed a mirror in the next room but facing my door. As I came out one day, around 4 pm, in the mirror I saw the light hit my pink blouse and knew this was going to be my challenge picture. 

I must have taken about 20 pictures before I got a quasi-decent focus. Honestly, I think I need glasses, but that's another story. Ultimately it ended up taking me those 20 seconds that my camera allows for selfies to get this one done.

I applied a mask to the vertical center with the gradient tool in PS and a lens blur on the sides. Whatever, as long as it qualifies with the pink challenge.

And that's my story.  Happy pink day :)

Day 24 of the 30 Day Challenge: Animal

(I could so rule animal farm)

Six pounds of unadulterated leadership ability.
Vote for me and I will make all your wildest dreams come true.

(bites her lip a she squints looking toward the future)



[[RIP, my darling doggie. Sniff, sniff....we miss you, I miss you, my perfect little lap dog.
Roma, Birth date unknown, August 6, 2010 (adopted) - April 23, 2012]]

Day 23 of the 30 Day Challenge: Sunflare

A little sundrama for you........

A little sundrama for you......it was all there waiting for me.

The sun was so bright today that I didn't really see what I was shooting. I saw the clouds on the lower right hand side, but thought the image would be totally devoid of texture on the top left. To my surprise, there it was, the cloud dragon from my childhood peeking from behind the sun.

No textures were used, only lessening the exposure a bit and even with that, the cloud on the right was totally fried. But I was happy, at least I got something for today.

Day 21 of the 30 Day Challenge: Faceless self portrait (lucha libre)

Required childhood reading...so that explains quite a bit, huh?  As far back as I can remember, while reading I always wanted to know references without the need to look up sources.  And while I never had to read this this particular genre nor about this topic, I still wanted to know where it came from.


Well, as far as iconography goes, Mexican wrestling of the middle part of last century is a fast riser among the cultural studies set. Oh, you still haven't heard of Blue Demon?  Or El Blue, as he is affectionately referred to in the strangely mythical world of lucha libre (free wrestling)?  Your loss, for him and his brood are hilarious characters defending the truth (while spandex clad), defeating the bad guys, and well, ending up with the girl at the end of the story.  I just wish El Blue had been more attractive to appeal to my teenage whims. And no, sorry, this is not your average wrestling memorabilia. This is commodification of a cultural symbol that represents the fight of good vs. evil, of poor vs. affluence, of David vs. Goliath, with serious roots at its foundation given the numbers of fans it has accumulated across the spectrum. Unlike the over-testosteroned, muscled he-men of the World Wresting Federation and other USA leagues in the 80s, the masked men in Mexico were smallish, real and usually oppressed people overcoming tremendous obstacles in their lives. Perhaps the only parallels with their US counterparts was their love of tights and liberal use of oil on their bodies.  Who knows?

In the above picture, the book in my hands is titled 'Mondo lucha a go-go: The bizarre & honorable world of wild Mexican wrestling' by Dan Madigan and its purpose is to survey the wacky world of lucha libre from its heyday in Mexico and its continuous appeal to audiences in North America and beyond.  It was given to me to write a review that never materialized, but I kept the book nonetheless. My picture has a large almost ominous overlay to the right hand side: that is the face of the heroic and ubiquitous Blue Demon, a major force to contend with in the lucha libre genre of yesteryear. However, my point here is that the image was obtained from a UK store selling its wares online. Interesting, huh?  Of course that is where it gets very entertaining for me, for I study culture, not necessarily lucha libre per se, and as a cultural studies person, well, I have to delve into everything I possibly can as nothing is truly exempt from becoming part of the habitus of a people.

So who cares about lucha libre? Well, who cares about NASCAR, or raeggeton, or photoshopping, or about any other element that defines a people? Those who practice and live and are socialized into a culture that adopts these normative concepts as part of its very fabric happen to know its significance for it is that very fabric that becomes representative of a people.

So, while I may not be a huge fan of lucha libre (don't tell that to my husband, though, he's a fan of El Blue), I can attest to the power of representation when visiting Rome last July. In the corner markets, where they sell magazines and other wares to tourists and locals alike, were hanging Mexican lucha libre masks. "Hey," said my kid, "isn't that Blue Demon's?" while pointing at a mask. "Cool," I thought as I turned to him with a smile on my face upon recognizing the source of his reference. 

Day 20 of the 30 Day Challenge: Bokeh

Water, anyone?

In posting this image in Flickr, someone went to ask if I could pour some malt into the glass, then gave me a name I did not recognize:  Lagavulin.  Seriously, is that something you drink out of your own volition? It sounded to me as some sort of poison sold by snake oil salesmen of the past.  Hey, whatever works, huh?

However you slice it, here is my bokeh shot. It is far more prosaic than what it looks like. Actually, I was going to wash dishes, glasses, a colander, you get the picture...and the light struck my hands as if a heavenly ray had directed it to my sink where I could simply point and shoot my assignment for this day's challenge.  And well, I did.

It is always nice when the planets align for you, isn't it?  Okay, the sun, the sink...

Day 16 of the 30 Day Challenge: Long exposure (longish)

Longish exposure? Okay, sure.
Give me two ghosts,
one candle in front of a crooked mirror,
an iTouch attempting to steal the show,
a flying bamboo dragon hanging for dear life from a chandelier,
make sure it's midnight and the lights are all out.
To frame it a bit, add a gor-jusss texture (quoting someone).
Of course, also throw in a hand hitting the tripod accidentally....and what do you get?

Fun!

This has been the most fun I have had shooting a picture in ages.

If anyone is interested in texture overlays for Photoshop or Gimp (free program), click on my Flickr links on the sidebar or on the highlighted linked text here in this post. I make most of the textures I use and have made them free to anyone who may want to play with them.  

Doing this was FUN! I highly recommend it.....:)

Day 14 of the 30 Day Challenge: Eyes (Look at me)

Look at me....
Yes, I know it is just one eye, but it drew me in sufficiently.  I love that kid.

Day 11 of the 30 Day Challenge: Blue

I kid you not, this is the way we bowl during Neon Bowling Nights! No blue filters or texture overlays were added to make this blue, what you see is what you get at this place. The only thing I sought to do was to add a little grungy frame to add to the feel of the location itself. Not sure if it was successful, but I can live with it as is.

And so, the bowling alley turns neon blue and we all begin to glow as the music grows louder and louder and louder.

Day 9 of the 30 Day Challenge: Someone you love

You talkin' to me?

At times, I get the feeling men can't hear very well :)

 

Ah, but love grows exponentially giving us the ability to love many people over the span of our lifetimes. If we are lucky, that love is reciprocated. Now whether they listen to us or just pretend to hear us, that is a different story.

Day 8 of the 30 Day Challenge: A Bad Habit

Ajjjjj........

I do chase my kids around out of habit....obviously, not really a bad habit for me, but a terrible one for them.  Consequently, they never pose for me.  Just as well, I hate contrived images....unless of course, the people choose to pose for me. Seriously, I do love this picture. And I know why.

Day 6 of the 30 Day Challenge: Something from a low angle

30 year old dusty wrought iron chandelier from flea market in south Texas. The sucker is heavy, I know this because I installed it myself.

Day 4 of the 30 Day Challenge: Something green

Extend your legs.........

When spooning around gets sexy. Oh yeah, baby! I picked up these glorious ladle spoons at a local Indian bazaar. They are just equally gorgeous in person. ;)

Day 3 of the 30 Day Challenge: Clouds...well really a bronze hand.

"The wind and clouds, now here, now there,
Hold no such strange dominion
As woman's cold, perverted will,
And soon estranged opinion." -John Clare

Hell hath no fury like John Clare (1793-1864) when scorned. Sure, blame all the evils of the world on women, why not?

Anyway, that was my picture of the day. I do love the bronze hand, though. It is at once creepy and elegant in its metallic slenderness. To augment the creepy factor, let me say that I have two similar hands now, just in different sizes. Take that, John Clare. ;)

Day 1 of the 30 Day Challenge: Self portrait

Retrospective posts......

Day 1: Self portrait

It is visually official in my own blog. I am a dork.

30 Day Challenge

Very well, then, here is the 30 Day Challenge that I ran into and would like to try out.

I suppose I come to the challenge a bit late, so what I will do is post the what should have been the first four or so images at the tail end of my list.  Oh, my reference point was Kimberly June's Human Behavior blog, May 29th entry.

Fair enough, I think.