My Dad has always been a bit of a loner. He was adopted into a small family with one non-biological sibling. They were not close. His brother and adopted parents died decades ago. So he became an orphan, again. When I was a teenager, we lost my brother to leukemia. We were very close. It […]
People
Letting the Days Go By
In the past, I’ve written about how challenging Minnesotan winters can be. And that was without the added obstacle of a pandemic, when it was still safe to gather indoors with friends and family. Now that we’re into our third pandemic winter, I know I took past indoor winter hangouts for granted. Or just anti-social […]
Come Wind, Come Weather
Last week I agreed to take some headshots for a friend. Outdoors, of course. A surprise Smarch blizzard led us to reschedule our original date. We met up last Saturday instead. All of the snow melted but the winds were WILD. At times it was difficult to communicate with the 40mph winds whipping by. Rather […]
Under the Bridge Residency
Music has always been a huge part of my life. When I was a small child I would dance around the living room as my Dad’s reel to reel player. He played everything from Elton John to the William Tell Overture. In my early teens, I started attending live music shows with my friends. And […]
Signed, Sealed, Delivered
These days I’m spreading myself a bit thin. I have a full-time day job and have taken on a part-time teaching job at night. It has been an interesting learning experience for me but means I have less time available for photography clients. Thankfully, the timing worked out such that I was able to photograph […]
Here We Goat Again
Happy Vernal Equinox! We celebrated Spring a little early. Technically it was St. Patrick’s Day but that doesn’t mean a whole lot to us. We were just excited to hang out on a friend’s goat farm and use his sauna. That was a fantastic way to spend a sunny Sunday afternoon. It will be even […]
Feeling Minnesota
Minnesota apologists will claim this is just a normal winter, like the kind we had when we were kids. But no. This extreme weather has all been occurring in a more condensed window. As a friend put it, “it’s like we get all of winter’s greatest hits in one week.†Extreme cold, ice storms, two […]
The Soap Factory, Late-Stage Capitalism and a Sheriff’s Sale
More grim news for the local Twin Cities art scene. This time it’s my beloved Soap Factory on the chopping block. This space has been important to me over the last 20+ years. In the 90s my first visits involved the minimal 4th of July events. I recall local video artists projecting their works and […]
Cruising Altitude and Attitude
Last weekend CNN aired Anthony Bourdain’s final Parts Unknown episode. I’m all kinds of sad about his death. And recently binge watched more episodes I hadn’t seen before from other seasons. They’re all wonderful and bittersweet. In October I enjoyed another remarkable solo trip. To Ireland and Italy. It’s interesting and frustrating how I’m treated […]
Eliminating the Unnecessary
Travel is important to me. Especially as a Minnesotan. The ability to take a break from the long dark winters, or at least to plan a trip (hypothetical or a trip that will be realized) is critical. This past winter went on for a long long stretch and I couldn’t help myself. I snapped up […]