Inspiration

I finally got around to scanning some pages from my inspiration book. I've started keeping it at work, but have been wanting to draw ideas from it at home as well.

Here's a peak at some of it:

CapHill [ ] Party -day 2-

So I'm a day late on this, which really only means that I partied too hard last night to give a shit to sit down and write about the night I had.

Got to block party around 7pm to start my shift at the B-Bam booth. Earlier that day I had thrown a pancakes & mimosas fund raising event at my place. Worked the booth, sold some stuff, had a friend sneak me some beers. Though I didn't get to see Gossip (supposedly they've dropped the "The" from their name), I did get to hear them. They sounded great--and I bet their stage presence was amazing considering all the experience and fame they've had in the UK.

However, I have to say, I wasn't too excited about them playing block party. I remember seeing them in the parking lot of Lifelong AIDS Alliance back in the day for free.
At the end of the day, it's cool to see how huge they've become.

Once I carted everything back to the store, a group of us went and got beer and went up to B-Bam to watch Sonic Youth. A-MA-ZING.
We had a good view of them from upstairs and could hear them fine. Somehow my buddy got beer on the ceiling while trying to shotgun a beer. There was also a trip to Dick's at some point. But that's when things got a little hazy.

CapHill [ ] Party -day 1-

It begins like this...
Worked at B-Bam until 6pm--first beginning at the store and then setting up our booth. We are the most ghetto booth there. Everyone else has canopies. All we've got are 2 tables and some legless mannequins.

After roasting in the sun for too long, I went home to...clean. Broke two glasses while washing the dishes.

Starfucker.
Very awesome show. Unfortunately the crowd was annoying not just because it was mostly teenage hetero couples, but because their mosh etiquette sucked. It's an pop-electro dance band. There's no need to be slamming people up against the steel barricades.

I left towards the end to catch a bit of Built to Spill.Last time I saw them was maybe 2 years ago at the Showbox. I mean, they're great and remind me of the good in my teen years. But they can get a little jam-bandy in concert. However, this show was cool because the setlist was decided on by the fans prior to the block party. The part of their show I caught, I thoroughly enjoyed.

On a final note, I'm not that into The Dutchess and the Duke. I've tried, but they're just too folksy in that indie-cool kind of way that it makes me want to barf a little.

RIP, Little Buddy

I'm watching my parent's dog this week. Took her swimming at the park, and instead my cell phone dove in head first. Suicide attempt? Well, it succeeded.

I am lost without a cell phone. When did it get to this point?

Such Good News

I found out this morning that I will NOT be losing my job at the end of August.

See, my position is funded by a county grant, which was suddenly yanked. But after some meetings, and my bosses fighting tooth & nail for us, we got the funding back. That having been said, I can now go about my business a little less stressed out.

On a completely different note, here's a video of one of my favorite boxers, Nicolino "El Intocable" Locche. Sooo good.

Fruit Salad

After boxing class this morning, I came home and whipped up this fruit salad that has become my new favorite thing to eat in the summer.


Ingredients:
* 1 nectarine
* 1 peach
* 3 chopped mint leaves
* A handful of chopped walnuts
* 2 teaspoons of honey

All of the ingredients are from the Capitol Hill farmers market, except for the chopped walnuts.

Summer Cold Shower

Tonight's boxing class was fun. But I really need to work on my endurance, which sucks right now. I figure I do well with in incentives, so once I complete a month of classes, I will splurge on some boxing shoes and new workout shorts.

Yet, the highlight from tonight would probably have to be the cold shower I took after class. AMAZING.

I tried a new recipe tonight. It wasn't super complex, but ever since I bought a bunch of kale at the farmer's market I've wanted to do something with it. So, here's a photo of what I did:


Ingredients:
*Handful of kale
*2 tablespoons of olive oil
*1.5 teaspoons of crushed garlic
*A drizzle of clementine juice

I also put a bit of salt in there, which I could've done without. I'm not a big fan of salt. I also wouldn't repeat the clementine juice bit. The kale was already pretty tangy on it's own.

Delicious!

What my delicious is all about:

(from wordle)

An Update

I haven't written in a while and that's mostly because my computer was stolen and partly because I've been hard at work looking for a job. I've been wanting to make updates to my website of new work I've done. Of course, since my computer was stolen, so were my entire web files. It'll be easy to re-download/upload/whatever, but it'll take time, which I don't currently have. So, I'll post some of my latest work on here...

First, I did a shoot for Neumos, which included Moe Bar and the Fish & Fry. Here are some selected images:

And below is a little update on posters I've made recently. The first is my little nod to Vaughan Oliver, one of my favorite graphic designers. He does a ton of work for 4AD, coincidentally my favorite label. The second is a poster for Seattle's first ever Britney Night (Slave), which draws on the Brady Bunch squares.

81st Academy Awards: My Thoughts

I like to think that what I have to say on a given issue should be of great concern to those around me, which is why I have compiled the following list.

81st Oscar Cheers and Jeers!

Cheers: To putting the band up ON the stage.
Jeers: To not muting audience applause while playing the "In Memoriam" montage. As EW once said, that's life's final and cruelest popularity contest.

Cheers: Whoever styled Tilda Swinton
Jeers: Mikey Rourke remembering his dog by sticking it on a necklace. It just looked cheap. Like one of those bottle-cap necklaces.


Cheers: To changing the format of introducing the nominees for best lead/supporting actor/actress.
Jeers: To Jerry Lewis for keeping his cool. I wanted bitterness, not pleasantries!

All in all the 81st Oscars was really good. Definitely better than last year, but still nowhere close to the 79th Academy Awards. Ahh, Pilobolus... how I miss you.

High School Dayz

My directorial debut. 15 years old.

Adorable

This was my valentines date. He bought me chocolates.

SUCH a heart breaker.

Magical Night

Tonight was actually magical. And I will explain why.

1. I saw Slumdog Millionaire and cried. That is now the 4th movie that has made me cry (accompanied by Avalon, Philadelphia, and The Notebook). That last one is particularly embarrassing.

2. Mullets intrigue men with strange beards. They will offer you shots of Tequila, and it will be free. Magical.

3. My friend, who is 10+ years my senior, gave me her Cocteau Twins t-shirt from when she was in high school. I mean!

4. Said friend is letting me burn her 4AD collection.

5. Tonight, I get to sleep in the fairy room. For reals.


One hell of a magical night.

Time Waster

I've already put about 3 hours into editing the shots from Saturday's photoshoot and I've realized they're way over exposed. Luckily I saved the raw files so it'll be easy to reverse. It's just a bummer.

I got tattooed today by Curtis over at Anchor Tattoo. It was quick and didn't hurt. It's weird how I've always figured I'd get tattooed eventually. I'm surprised it wasn't until now. In a way I am glad seeing as how I really, really wanted patrick swayze tattooed on my arm. Lord alive, thank god I didn't get that done.
Here, this is what it would've been (sans speech bubble):

Anyway. Once I take off the wrap I'll get a shot of it. It's about my Abuela.

Fuck yes!

I'm going to NEW YORK!!! This will be my first time EVER. Last July, my bff moved there to teach for two years and I'm going to be staying with him at his place in the Bronx. I feel like my dream of reenacting The Warriors might finally come true!

Other than that I spent way too much money on some new bras today (a third of what I paid for my plane ticket). But it's really time I start investing in my looks. Seriously.

Temp

I'm temping at NBBJ. They're awesome and also where my dad works. I get to compile all of their software licenses and organize/update them throughout the firm. It'll only last about two weeks.
Still looking for longterm work. It's pretty lousy since most folks are only hiring contractors right now.

People are really annoying me right now. Luckily no one I actually know. Just people in passing. Annoying.

Art Walk was rescheduled to today, which I will be going to with Anna. An old college friend is showing some of his stuff at some studio downtown. Haven't seen him in a while.

This is so forced. I don't even know why I keep writing.

A New Year...

It's 2009. I've started it off by filing for unemployment, buying more camera gear, and updating my website.

Tobi made a good point yesterday; I need to get working on some different projects. I could've just left my website as is, but I decided to change the albums to flash and clean it up a bit. The html was really messy. Check it out: www.sachamaxim.com

I applied for a job recently at a local AIDS organization. I was narrowed down as one of their final two candidates, but I called it off. I'm tired of working jobs that aren't taking me in the direction I want to be headed. I'd really like to break into some design or photography related job, even if it's super low entry-level. Even an internship. I'm just through treading water at this moment.

I realize now is no time to be picky about work. But said position wanted a 2 year commitment, which I really couldn't get down with.

For now, I'm going to make some biz cards. Send my portfolio to some local magazines/newspapers. Hit up art walk this Thursday for inspiration. I feel good about not rushing into a job that I may not particularly like. Hopefully within a months time everything will get sorted out.

Oh, I also got everything I asked for xmas. Minus the ceramic crinkle cups. But seeing as how I won't be moving out anytime soon, that's not a huge deal for me.

Ho Ho Ho

Though there will most definitely be a drop in the number of gifts under the family's economical 4-foot Christmas tree, I have still managed to rack up an impressive wish list.

At the top of my list is a subscription to Readymade Magazine. What is an artist without her muse? The best part of all is that they are currently offering a 2-for-1 special on subscriptions.

The second item I am coveting this year is the Bvlgari Eau Parfumée au Thé Blanc Shampoo & Conditioner. After staying at the Ritz Carlton for a work related trip, I crapped my pants for the amazing fusion of this white scent.

As I plan to be moving--soon--I have been keeping my eyes peeled for interesting housewares. Among them are these amazing Ceramic Crinkle Cups by Rob Brandt. I'm also crossing my fingers for a couch from Area 51 to drop out of the sky. But I think I have better chances with the crinkle cups.

On the more practical side, I'd really love a light meter. There are some really crazy ones out there that do more tricks than a...
No, the one I'm interested in is any standard light-reader that can give me a good read on the lighting of my subject.

So Much

A lot has happened lately. Went and saw The Breeders on Nov. 11th and smuggled in my camera and got great shots.


I did a photoshoot yesterday for Tobi's new line: www.therogueandthedandy.com

But the only thing I really want to write about right now is how annoyed I am at flickr because whenever I upload my photos onto there, they get a little desaturated. I mean, why? I don't get it.

Transparency Photo Project

I've had this idea in my head for the last couple of weeks on doing a photo series on transparency. It mostly came to me in the work that I do at Multifaith Works. We're constantly discussing how we (staff) can be more transparent in the work that we do. Namely, being open about what we have experienced in our lives that have led us to where we currently are.

The way that I would like to see this played out is to have a diverse pool of models (which will probably end up being friends and family members I've suckered into posing for me) willing to expose an intimate element of who they are.

They would be shot individually and backlit with one of my softboxes. Their frontside would then be lit by an image (representative of their willingness to be transparent) projected onto them.

I have all the necessary tools so far except maybe a projector. However, I know of where I could borrow one. I also need to order the power cords from Bogen over on the east coast. That has turned into a real pain in the ass. They're the only US distributor/manufacturer(?) of Elinchrome products, so I have to go through them to order my missing parts.

Anyway. I'm excited about this. I've thought about it long enough that I feel that it's something I really want to accomplish. We'll see how it all plays out...