Your Standard Travel Blog Post, I

I've been traveling for quite some time now, and I never really thought about writing down my accounts.  I mean, I have seen lots of things.  Granted, I never left the continental United States (except to go to Canada once to snowboard), but I have been to over 30 states, and after a while, the experiences overlap each other, and it's hard to discern what's what.  So, why not write it down, for you to enjoy and for me to remember? 

Every year it's a new state.  It became my mothers goal to reach all 50 (God only knows when she got that idea.  I got dragged into this, whether I wanted to or no), and I can safely say that we're doing well as of now.  I'm currently in Tennessee, in the "business center" of a Wingate Hotel, typing furiously as I try to escape from my family and myself.  Kind of 'safety in writing' I suppose.  (To me, my writing has drastically improved over the past few months, but that's neither here nor there with this post.)  It's only day 3 of this vacation, and I'm already having a hard time remembering everything that we did.  Some God-awfully early flight from LaGuardia, followed by some Southern Estates, a tour of Jack Daniels, a severe traffic jam, and some nice touristy attractions round out this handful of days.  But that's not what really stands out to me.  It's the quiet moments that I really remember, and it was one of those moments 2 nights ago that made me want to write this.  I had just done a few laps in the pool, and laid on a chaise lounge to dry off before I went inside.  There was one star out (or maybe it was a planet...) and I just kinda stared at it for a while, thinking back on everything I've seen.  It really reminded me of a moment I had back in Las Vegas (which was... I don't know how many years ago) where I was swimming all by myself, and I can remember looking over at the strip and seeing the light from the Luxor Casino sending a beam into space.  Thinking back on it now, it kind of depresses me.  I'm not sure why, but it does.  There was countless other memories going through my head, all of which I wanted to write down, all of which have now slipped from my mind. 

I'm not sure of the direction I'm trying to take this post, but I just wanted to kind of nail home an idea to myself: the world is huge.  No matter how much you see, there's always more out there.  Whenever I'm with my family on vacation and I catch myself groaning at walking an extra half mile to go see another lookout, I say to myself in the back of my head "do it, 'cause you'll regret it if you don't."  And then I usually find myself walking that extra distance, even though I know it's something I've already seen.  However, whatever view I take in, I know I'll take that moment with me forever, even if I forget it over the next week or two.  It's the little things that always count, and it's always the little things I try to capture.  So, wherever you go, whenever you go, and with whomever go with, always go a little further, and delve a little deeper.  Because it's those experiences that you'll remember the most.  Trust me. 

Today, I went to Rock City, Incline Railway, Point Park Battlefield and Ruby Falls, 3 of which are semi-cheesy local tourist attractions.  Ruby Falls was an underground waterfall, surrounded by limestone caves, most of which are now destroyed because of tourists greedily running their hands along every surface they could touch.  Every crystal clear pool was filled with pocket change and random little scraps of garbage, and just the sight of it made me sick.  I've seen some amazing caves across the states (not going to get into naming them, but I've seen at least 10), and none of them came close to the disgrace I saw at Ruby.  However, I took the experience with a reverence, because I knew being there was special, both to my mother and to me.  It's hard to try to organize everybody to get together for two weeks and fly off to some state (minus my father.  He stays home nowadays) and see whatever we can.  And today, when we were all fighting, hundreds of feet below the surface of the earth, this waterfall in the middle of nowhere kind of silenced us, and we just stood there smiling at the sight of it.  We walked around the back of it, and this intense wind just blew your hair back and the water from the falls created a mist around everything.  I remember staring up at it, and saying to myself  "damn."  That was it.  No other words really did it justice.  And as everyone was getting ready to leave, I went back behind the falls, one more time, because I knew it would be special.  When I was back there, the lights started to dim, and the group started to leave.  I looked up one more time and took a picture, running to catch up and not be left behind.  I took with me the one thing I always want to take when I go to other places.  That one special memory, that I'll have for years to come.  And it was totally worth it. 

That's what everybody should do.  Next time you're out, make yourself see that one extra thing, push farther, explore more.  It's those things that will make you realize how big this planet is, and it's those experiences that will shape you into the person you'll be in the future.  You can thank me later.

The Fourth

The Fourth, a photo by sir jeenyus on Flickr.

This is a quite recent photo. I don't know why, my I've been slacking a lot lately, and neglecting to bring my camera with me wherever I go. Granted, I have about 6 rolls of film to develop, but that's a whole other story in its own. Digital has just been a little lackluster to me lately, but this past 4th of July weekend provided an excellent opportunity to just hold down the shutter and fire and whatever my heart contented. Spruceton is the name of the place; a quiet country road in the Catskill Mountains of New York. I've been going there for as long as I can remember. My mom's dad bought the house back in the 50s or something, and it's been in my family since then. It's our tradition to go up there for the 4th, and every year we fulfill that to the best of our abilities. I can go on and on about the place, and I will, in another post. This weekend was great though. Good people and good times. This photo was taken on the night of July 3rd, and rainy and cold day, which actually turned out to be an eventful day. A break in the rain provided the perfect opportunity to muddy up the quads, and after a fireworks craptacular, a small, smoky, wet bonfire was had. This shot was taken on bulb, so I don't know how long the exposure was, although it was around 5 or 6 seconds. I love the shadow (that's either my friend Mike or my sister's boyfriend Jim) of the person, illuminated by the sparklers glow. There's just something so American about this photo, and it really captures the essence of the weekends we spend up there. Happy 4th of July, America.

Evening on the Lake

Evening on the Lake, a photo by sir jeenyus on Flickr.

I never liked the words "fine art photography," but if I had to use them, this is one of the first photos that comes to mind. To some, photography is a form of art. True, I do like the creativity that is involved with the process, but most of the time, when i see these "fine art" shots, it's usually some HDR garbage of some random brick wall or car or something; things that I do NOT associate with being artistic. Of course, art is in the eye of the beholder, but some people can really stretch it. I'm all about capturing moments or feelings, and if the shots come out "fine art" like, well, I guess that's just a side product of the environment. I actually went to great lengths to get this photo, and it really paid off. This is from last summer, and the Seattle/Washington trip. We rented a cabin in the woods of Glacier National Park, next to a kitschy camp ground, filled with motor homes and general stores and all that stuff. As touristy as it was, it really was an escape. At sundown, everything got quiet, and nature just sort of took over. Our cabin was located right next to Lake McDonald, and our "front yard" was actual a river that was an outlet. I swam in it with my sister, and because this is a glacial lake, the water was crystal clear and freezing. Afterwards, I'd go for a walk by myself along the shore, skipping rocks and just coping with difficult feelings. I saw these boats pulled up on the dock, and decided I wanted to capture it, just as i saw it. About 30 shots later, I took the one that I knew was perfect. Edited as little as possible, just to remove marks on the sensor and what not, this shot really remains true to what I saw there on this beautiful lake in Glacier National Park.

Blizzard

Blizzard, a photo by sir jeenyus on Flickr.

Fisheye fun! This was just a few days after I put my hands on the Lomo for the first time. Massive amounts of snow this winter, and I took every advantage I could (and was willing too). After some cheese and cocktails at my aunt's house (who conveniently lives across the street from me), I decided to forge through the storm to my doorstep. However, along the way, I stopped to take this photo. I had noticed the light fading fast outside the windows, and the image of this shot coming back from the lab just struck my mind. I immediately left (after goodbyes, of course) and readied the flash on my camera. I checked for traffic like, 6 times in each direction, cause the wind was howling, and I couldn't hear anything. Pointing the little device at myself in the middle of a snowstorm, in the middle of the street, any passerby would easily have thought i was crazy. The result was so worth it, though.

Metro, Washington DC

Metro, Washington DC, a photo by sir jeenyus on Flickr.

I took this shot last year when i went to DC with my mom. It's amazing how much can change and how tables can turn in less than a year. The May of 2010 was when I blew opportunity number one (of many), a decision that you'll hear about later on, and a decision that pretty much ruined my life. That weekend spent there was just... great. It could have been better, but I got things back on track (somewhat) with a girl I was in love with more than anything in the world. But like I said, that's another story. While in DC, I spent time at museums, parks, etc. You know, the whole "DC tourism" thing. This was on my last day there, when it was rather hot out. It was the last train ride back to Greenbelt, towards our hotel. I just wanted to get a motion blur of the train, but when i zoomed in, this gem stood out, The passengers on the other side of the platform were perfectly silhouetted from the moving train, giving the illusion of people dancing on the Metro. I revisited DC again this May, and boy, things were different. My feelings were a complete 180 of the last time, and I was (and still am, partially) heartbroken. I tried recreating this shot, with a bigger and fancier camera, but to no avail. I guess it goes to show that some things just happen, and when you try to improve upon them, there's a 50% chance it will either go good or bad. Somewhat of a life lesson learned. Note to self: hang on to the good things. You'll regret it if you don't.

In The Face

In The Face, a photo by sir jeenyus on Flickr.

This shot is from my first roll of black and white, ever. It was expired by many years, and every (perfect) imperfection shows itself on the slide. The roll of film was from when my sister had just started shooting photos. With her first camera, a Canon Eos Rebel 2000 (which i religiously use), she bought a slew of film before we went to Yosemite National Park, in the summer of 2004. She must have only shot a few rolls, because over 6 years later, there were still 2 rolls left, which i hungrily (and carefully) devoured. I had also had a shot like this is mind, and once the setting was found, BOOM. Carefully planned and executed, this shot came out perfect.

My friend Danny, the model< is by far my favorite model ever. His facial expressions are always spot on to what I need, and he's never afraid or embarrassed to pose exactly how I need him.

73/365

73/365, a photo by sir jeenyus on Flickr.

Another shot from Project 365. This is from last summer, when I went to Seattle, Washington and the neighboring areas. I can't recollect which states i went to in particular, or if I went to any others at all. This is Mount Rainier, I don't now how many miles away from Seattle. You can see this dormant volcano from the top of the Seattle Space Needle, way off in the distance, with clouds and haze surrounding it. Seattle is such a nice city; friendly, clean... Everything thing you want New York to be, but isn't. And once you meander outside the city limits, you are encompassed by nature in it's rawest form; large pine forests, majestic mountains, views of the bay.... everything you want to see. The air out there is sweet, lightly pine scented, but it's always present, and it's just lovely. Mt. Rainier National Park itself is also a gorgeous place to behold, and the views that it presents to the human eye are truly the works of a much Greater Power.