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FTP support to be disabled

I must say, although I have not blogged in quite a while, (due to the busy nature of real life) I am somewhat disappointed with the decision of Blogger to discontinue FTP support.

That being said, I will see what needs to be done to continue my blog, while redirecting all my links to whereever it may land....

Sea Rats Look Nice Sometimes.....

Zuma Beach - Malibu, California - August 19, 2008

If you follow my blog, you would have read about the great sushi restaurant Zuma Sushi in my post here. (Again.... yummy stuff. If you are a fan of sushi and you are in Malibu, you MUST go there.)

So, to fill in the background for the story presented there, as we discovered we were starving and we began traveling back south to find a restaurant, I was griping under my breath about not getting ANY sunset shots - which was the complete purpose of my going out that night. So my boss, who was driving, called me something along the lines of a whiner, and whipped into the Zuma Beach entrance.

We pull upto the gate - YEAH A FREAKIN GATE - and there is a guy there ready to take our money. *** Okay... an aside here. We are driving along a public beach in one of the most taxed states in the Union and they want us to pay to enter into a beach and park in a tiny parking lot? Not only that... but it was seven bucks. Aside over. *** We ask the nice attendant if we could just go in for about 10 minutes and take some pics. Promptly we are told that the regulations are that each driver must pay the fee in order to park and that he is not responsible if we decide to drive through, not pay and we get a ticket from the roaming beach cops.

So we drive through.

I'm trying to direct my boss where to park and he keeps passing inlets into the parking lot. So we all tell him where to turn on the next inlet. It was actually quite entertaining. Imagine a bunch of geeks in a car, trying to side-seat/back-seat drive while another geek is driving (fast mind you) and not really wanting to listen to anyone.

So we park... quite roughly.

And we all jump out, me with my gear, my boss and another cohort with their gear, and our fourth in his work business clothes - and we run (kind of... we ARE geeks trying to wear casual clothes) to the beach, taking up positions to catch the sun before it goes down.

I manage to get some nice sunset shots and as the sun continued to lower behind the land jut up the coast, I saw these sea rats (seagulls for you laymen) running with the tide, picking up whatever sea rats pick up. I snapped off a bundle of shots, while my injured foot is killing me (another story) and my sandals are filling up with sand. (Yeah... I should have taken them off.)

Above is the result... and SEE, searats can actually appear to be quite pretty when set in the right lighting with the right scenery.

The Calming Effect of the Sun....

Near the Cheesecake Factory - Marina Del Rey, California - August 20, 2008

You ever had that bloated feeling? Ever feel like you've eaten so much that you would explode? Has there been a time in your life where you swore you would never eat again? If you need to have one of these life-changing experiences, and I'm no saying change for the better either, then go have a meal at the Cheesecake factory.

This was the second meal I had had there during my trip to Santa Monica and I had a plan in mind: I will eat light and not feel like a beached whale after I had finished my meal. It was an admirable goal... after all, I am filled with enormous amounts of WILL POWER!

So, 1 avocado eggroll, 1 sweet corn "something", 1 spring roll, 1 buffalo chicken stuffer, and 3 corn chips with artichoke dip on them later I received my meal: the thai chicken pasta with peanut sauce. Of course I had to order something to drink besides the 5 glasses of water I consumed during the night... the tropical smoothie was my choice.

30 minutes later I remember that I wore my cargo shorts, and I was now filling them. Normally, I have to wear a belt to keep them up. Glutton is a word that comes to mind. A collegue across the table then said, "Okay gents, what's for desert!" I almost vurped.

During this period of increasing pain, I saw this palm across the small boat inlet near the restaurant and thought, "Would that make a good picture? Ow.... ow......... ow.... Do I have to move to take that picture? Ow.... ow..... ow......"

Well, above is the result - I hope it is okay.

Want to see the new Kia?

2009 Kia Soul - 3rd Street Promenade - Santa Monica, California - August 19, 2008

This past week, I was staying at the Double Tree Inn on 4th Street in Santa Monica, just over the freeway. Considering our office is located on the opposite side of the Promenade, it was some good morning exercise to walk from the hotel, carrying my backpack with my laptop and work items AND my camera gear. (I try not to go anywhere without it when I'm in Santa Monica.)

After eating breakfast at the diner at 3rd and Broadway, (eggs, hash browns, (yum), chicken sausge (not so yum... more bleh)) my boss and I trekked up 3rd street towards the office. I can't quite remember if we planned to stop at the Coffee Bean or not, but in any case we were walking on the right road.

As we walked along, we noticed people with HDV cameras filming and doing sound checks along the block. Having a few friends in the filming industry I figured they were either a) filming a commercial or b) site scouting - either one would be fun to see. At first, I thought about snapping a few photos of the crew, but then I saw this car at the end of the block.... bonus score.

So, we turned the corner and headed west toward the office and I starting undoing my equipment and switched to my Sigma 24mm f/2.8 lens for a close-up shot. The lighting wasn't great as it was early morning and it was a little hazy - or smoggy... not sure which really. Above is the resulting picture... the only one I was able to get off before being tapped on the shoulder and asked to leave the area.

Anyhow, here we have it - the 2009 Kia Soul!

A Tale of Two Restaurants...

Zuma Sushi - Malibu, California - August 19, 2008

So we were driving up the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway), pretty much just gathering in the scenery, (I, of course was looking for something to photograph - but at 60 mph, it was a little difficult) and shortly after sunset, we discovered we were starving. We passed a Mexican restaurant and turned around, only to be honked at.... now why would that happen? Nevermind that our driver had just come to a semi-complete stop to make a left-hand turn on a pretty busy highway. California drivers.... so impatient.

We walked up to the elevated patio (partial outdoor dining) and went to the only open door we noticed. Inside we were greeted by a very attractive blonde hostess who seated us right outside the entry and a table big enough for four hungry men. I have to say that although she was quite attractive, my wife and I would agree that there would be "no friction" - she was a little on the thin side, but not Keira Knightley thin. After the menus were brought, I was the only one excited about being there, since the menus were all over the sushi thing. Woot! Hadn't had sushi in L.A. yet, and I was hoping it was as good as the Taka House in San Diego.

The guys called the hostess over and asked if there was anything besides sushi and she indicated that the restaurant next door (which supposedly was owned by the same people) served Mexican food. BUT, they might not be happy about us sitting over on this side of the patio.... some ancient medieval war which has yet to be resolved. So our hostess went over and offered happy time with the next door cooks and brought over some menus. (Now... keep in mind, she doesn't work at that restaurant and she's just saved them a table and the trouble of having to bring us menus.)

Coral Beach Cantina - Malibu, California - August 19, 2008 (BAD Service)

I order my sushi and my mouth is already starting to water. Spicy tuna and spicy yellowtail rolls were the ticket for me that evening! The guys were still waiting on someone to come over and take their order. When my food arrived, I was happy to see a nice pile of wasabi, which I promptly started adding to my dish of soy sauce.

The sushi was FANTASTIC, although I believe the rice was slightly soft for my taste in sushi. But, overall, I'd have to say this was the best sushi I've ever had - including the Taka House, which was my favorite until now. I savored every bite and finally finished my meal, the guys STILL not having their order taken.

Needless to say, my boss called the hostess over and had her take the menus back to the oblivious people at Coral Beach Cantina in Malibu. I have no clue how the food was, considering nobody in our party was ever spoken to, served, or spit on for that matter. My advice... NEVER go there.... horrible service. (They knew we were there, as the guys has menus and placemats for that restaurant on the table and they served people next to us.)

Conclusion:

Zuma Sushi - Good - Thumb up

Coral Beach Cantina - Bad - Thumb down

Kevin - Stone Artist

Venice Beach, California - August 21, 2008
This is Kevin the Artist. He is an all-around genuine guy who is passionate about the piece of art he constructs four times each week. As my boss and I were strolling along the beach, taking pictures of various things, we happened upon what is termed the "Gilligan" boat - it's a beached boat with graffiti all over it.

As we headed toward the ocean, we noticed a couple rows of rock statues silhouetted in the descending sunlight. Of course, we had to go check it out and as we got closer we heard this voice call out from behind one of the statues on the end, "Photos are free, but I do accept donations!" He also gave us a heads up that the rocks were balanced and would fall on us if we bumped into them - be careful.

I introduced myself and the artist gave me his name, Kevin. He proceeded to tell me the story behind the statues: "These statues are the angels representing 89 lost souls on Venice Beach. Those souls were lost to senseless acts: drugs, drive-by's, violence.... Back in the day, we would gather here and have bonfires, hang out and just have a good time."

Here is what the statues looked like approaching into the sun.

Kevin had worked in the oil fields in Texas and Louisiana and now lives in Englewood, California. I didn't ask what he was doing now, but I'm sure that one of those things is keeping in shape - the guy was ripped. We talked for quite some time about how Venice has gone from a beautiful place into what it is today. He did say that it has improved and the community is trying to clean it up, but that it was nothing like it used to be.Kevin lamented that the police knock down his work every night so that people do not injure themselves on it, so he travels back to Venice and rebuilds it four times each week. Dedication at its best.

This picture gives an idea on what the piece looks like near completion.

I really enjoyed speaking with Kevin and hearing his story on this work. If any of you readers are ever in Venice Beach, ask where the Gilligan boat is (It's just NW of the grafitti wall) and walk toward the water. You'll come upon a ridge of rocks about 70 yards from the waterline at 5pm. Hopefully you can meet Kevin and give him my best.

You can see more pictures of Kevin's work at my website under the "People" category.