We stopped by the visitor's center, and I just put it out there bluntly to this group of elderly staff that I wanted to explore and photograph the abandoned sites around the sea and where the best spots where. They were very helpful and this one woman suggested Bombay Beach. It rang a bell in my mind, I had heard of it before and that was where we decided to head.
Arriving there, we explored a little then finally parked at the beach. There are still people living there, a mixture of abandoned houses next to those that were occupied. It was an interesting feeling being there, like walking around in only a half decayed town. But we had success, and I went on my photo frenzy. Might I also mention, thank God for Gorillapods, love it. We'd found the place I was going to shoot at, and surprisingly but then not so much, we saw another group that was doing what looked like a fashion shoot too.
Very good day, long drive out there, but it was worth it.
Salton Sea Scope Out
Disneyland in the Rain
I love the rain and when the occasion finally arose, I decided to go to Disneyland. It was exhilarating to me and not only that, the rain covered streets glowed with reflected lights. So beautiful, oh and did I mention it was raining? hehe. I got to put my new Canon point and shoot I got for Christmas to the test, and it did just fine. I was like a kid in a candy store, rain + camera + Disneyland = very very happy me :)
Here are some pictures I took...
CSULB Gallery: Monica Guerra
Due to the busy holiday season last month and finals, I was too lazy to post this post. Yet I must because when I went to the opening reception on December 12th, I was impressed with the work and presentation at the Dr. Maxine Merlino Gallery (the show I was in most anticipation to see).
Upon arriving at the gallery, I was presented with a slice of delicious wedding cake and Martinelli's apple cider in a champagne glass. The artist, Monica Guerra, Metals B.F.A., did a wedding theme (there's something about weddings I love), and the centerpiece was a masterpiece in my opinion. It was a wedding gown made entirely of lace that had been caste then made with metal. I just have one question...can I wear it?
Don't be shy...click on the picture to get a better look ;)
Beautiful Nebula
Just got my computer fixed and found a new beautiful wallpaper for my computer of the Orion Nebula taken by the Hubble Telescope. Thought I'd share. From spacewallpapers.net.
Cirque Berzerk
Cirque Berzerk is in town at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. So I'm kicking off my new year with this post-rave, post-gothic show that LA Times quoth, "The sort of spectacle Tim Burton would dream up if he quit film and joined the circus." I've never been to the circus before, but I'm stoked for this one, where you can come early to eat food, stay late to hang out with the cast, and the suggested attire is circus fabulous! Oooo I can't wait to take pictures, because it looks amazing! hehehe. Check it out here.
All I Want for Christmas
Movie: Sucker Punch
I saw a giant poster for this movie as I was leaving the theater after seeing Tron Legacy and wanted to know more. Frankly, I don't think I'll be disappointed. Sucker Punch is scheduled to come out early next year, and I hope, will kick ass, in a totally girly cutesy don't mess with me way of course. The movie has a got a big name to back it up - Zack Snyder who did 300, and Watchmen, directs the film. 
Not only that, it's very deliciously steampunk (Oooooo I'm getting tingles) and I love the aesthetic and artwork already posted for this movie. I have hopes that this movie will also be very visually pleasing (like the Warrior's Way).
Anyways, here's the synopsis from IMDb:
An action fantasy set in the vivid imagination of a young girl whose dream world provides the ultimate escape from her darker reality. Unrestrained by the boundaries of time and place, she is free to go where her mind takes her, and her incredible adventures blur the lines between what's real and what is imaginary. She has been locked away against her will, but Babydoll (Emily Browning) has not lost her will to survive. Determined to fight for her freedom, she urges four other young girls -- the outspoken Rocket (Jena Malone), the street-smart Blondie (Vanessa Hudgens), the fiercely loyal Amber (Jamie Chung) and the reluctant Sweet Pea (Abbie Cornish) -- to band together and try to escape their terrible fate at the hands of their captors, Blue (Oscar Isaac), Madam Gorski (Carla Gugino) and the High Roller (Jon Hamm). Led by Babydoll, the girls engage in fantastical warfare against everything from samurais to serpents, with a virtual arsenal at their disposal. Together, they must decide what they are willing to sacrifice in order to stay alive. But with the help of a Wise Man (Scott Glenn), their unbelievable journey -- if they succeed -- will set them free. Written by Warner Bros. Pictures.
Visit the movie page for trailers and cool shite here.
Poetry: Invictus
Just read a great poem the other day and I thought I'd share it with you.
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
Poetry Class Final: Book
Such a busy time finals are! Well I'm back and just before Christmas too. Not really any x-mas special this year, but I will be sharing my final project for my poetry class - a book we had to make. There are many crazy and crafty ways to make a book, but for something where I would put my poetry I wanted to keep it simple.
I used a black textured cover and off white, parchment style paper with an old looking, imperfect typewriter font that I felt gave my poems "texture." My friend helped me find the fonts at FontRiver. This site has been around for years and I've used it in high school as well, it's addicting looking for fonts. Anyways, download them for free here and if you use a PC, you find the "fonts" folder in Windows and just place your fonts there and they should show up in Microsoft Word. Easy, eh?
The two fonts I used are Underwood, and Telegraphem for headings and such. To make the book, my friend and me got a bone folder, and awl, some spray adhesive, and nice papers. Some other things that come in handy are and exacto knife, Alvin cutting mat, t-square ruler, and metal ruler preferably.
From there I began crafting, the page size is 7" x 5.5." For the document, my friend helped me create it in Microsoft Word. I would prefer to use Adobe InDesign since you can have an easy book setup to create your book, but it was not available to us at the time. The new Word worked surprisingly well in my opinion.
Anyways, we used the 12 page book template and set up our page sizes and margins we desired from there. Printing was simple, you set it up to be manually printed double sided, let everything print, then stick all the pages back into the printer the exact same way it came out. In other words, you don't have to change anything.
After that, I cut down my page sizes, and used the handy bone folder to fold everything in half, then the awl to poke 3 holes in the spine, then I just winged the saddle stitch through my first booklet and the second, then through the inside cover. I then glued that to the outside, nicer, textured paper. For the title I would have like to have hammered the letters in and made the title indented, but being out of money for this, I embossed it instead (which is pretty much the opposite of indenting something haha). Oh, and I have a thing for vellum, I love using it in projects, so I decided to incorporate it in my book as the title page for each poem.
So with this book finished and even though the measuring was a little off, I'm still proud of my beautiful book and plan to make more in the future, probably with a section of my pictures.
TV: The Walking Dead
AMC has a fantastic new show that premiered on Halloween this year called The Walking Dead, based off a comic book series by the same name. The first night the show had 8 million viewers and is on for another season. Whooo! Thank God, because this show, after only seeing 3 episodes, is amazing! Not only is it suspenseful and intense (I almost couldn't take it at some points), it's realistic and graphic, the zombies look spectacular, and the plot line is engaging.
Not only that, the main character, Rick, played by Andrew Lincoln, is really fuckin sexy. He wakes up in a hospital after being shot and in a coma for who knows how long. The hospital had been overrun, and Rick starts finding dead people everywhere, an empty city, and finds out that he's up against Walkers, otherwise known as zombies.
I was also in Hot Topic the other day and spotted some cool Walking Dead shirts I was really excited for, I'll have to get mine soon perhaps...So I highly recommend it, since we're also going through a zombie craze currently, and hope you enjoy it. :)
