Teens

Andy, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Andy is the teen son of one of my co-workers. His mother has an incredible heart. She cares for the world literally and figuratively. The night before this image was taken one of her dogs died. She was wounded and was kind of low-key. That was not a surprise. The surprise for me was to see her revel in the joy of her son. We were just loosening up a bit here, but it might be one of my favorite photos for 2009. Next year even better photos to come.

All Smiles

All Smiles, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Families are strange configurations. We strive to be part of one and simultaneously seek to divide and separate out. We laugh with our families and then we laugh at them. We complain that they are too little of this and too much of that. We praise their great work/family ethic and then whine about the way they choose to live out their lives. We include and exclude. We talk behind their backs and will not share our feelings to their faces. We all belong to one and we have all some if not all of the acts listed above.

Families are everything and nothing. They are the beginning and end of many people's problems. They are our alpha and our omegas. Families make you laugh and they also make you cry. We live in them even when we do not want to. We die as part of one even when we are not wanted. We sacrifice for families, too.

It is Thanksgiving 2009. I am a natural born US citizen. I have lived under the tutelage of what we think of as "Our Greatest Generation" . They survived World War II, the Korean Conflict, the Cuban Missle Crisis and the the Bay of Pigs, the Vietnam War, The Gulf War, the invasions of Grenada and some have lived long enough to experience both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They have seen facism, totaltarianism, communism, socialsim, and fundamentalism, and extreme idealism as motivations for war.

Families and war have these unquantifiable abstract associations. I still do not comprehend what makes people kill each other for an idea and I do not comprehend family systems at all.

Ruler or Lawyer

SOP, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Sometimes at the most innocuous moments, life will toss you a bone of wisdom. Today was one of those days, as I soaked in the warm soapy water of my morning shower. Lawyer vs Ruler.

We have laws that we like to think of as fair and impartial. We have rules that we also like to think of as objective. Neither is really true. Here is the pearl: There are laws of physics and gravity and mathematics. And there are human laws based on the Old English interpretation of Judaic-Christian principles. We presume to think that everyone should abide by these principles. If human laws were as specific and certain as gravity and inertia, perhaps we would not need prisons and corrections people. But they are not certain. And they certainly are not impartial or objective. New evidence is "unearthed" daily about convictions by the Law users that were based on rumor, suspicion, falsehoods and innuendo. We had lawyers arguing the admissability of evidence and we still manage to unjustly convicted and execute a number of innocent people.

We have rules, too! These rules are based on our Constitution and the Judaeo-Christian ethics. The rules are based on the laws that the lawyers and legal beagles think we should all be following. Only problem is that our laws are always subject to interpretation. We have judges and appelate courts and supreme courts that all look at interpretations of the law.

So are we overrun with Rulers or Lawyers? I purport that our problems arise because we don't recognize laws and that we put too much faith in rulers. Do you understand the difference?

Time

Primary Color, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Catch the light
From dusk to dawn
From morn to night
Simply catch the light

Take a breath
Breathe a moment
Each one unique
Each one special.

Smell the peonies
Roses and thistle
Hear the faint buzz of the bees
The wind as it whistles

The leaves as they scritch
across the now slippery streets
Wet with welcome rain

Feel the earth as it
starts it beautiful descent
into a well-deserved rest.

Once in a Blue Moon

Once in a Blue Moon, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

I have been giving long and serious thought to the arguments about HEALTHCARE reform. I have read some of the arguments from the conservative (what is in a name) and the non-reformists perspectives. I have also read arguments of those who are in favor of this reform and the liberals (again just a name).

Here is what I am taking from all this. Many people are fearful of GOVERNMENT intervention into an already failing system. Healthcare is about having healthy citizenry. We need a healthy citizenry so that we can have a productive and enjoyable life and productive social environment.

One large question looms. Why do we fear government involvement? Have we truly forgotten that WE are the government. WE chose the elected officials. We have a right to use monies that WE have collected for the collective good.

We the people elected to bail out banks, credit card companies, and automobile companies. We the people choose to work daily, pay our taxes and produce so that some can have MORE. WE choose to have police departments, National Guard and an active military rather than mob rule. We choose to have public schools (and private) so that we have standards for learning and excellence. We choose to pave roads, provide sanitation services, and have agencies that oversee our food, our infrastructure and our lives.

If we do not trust the government, we in reality are simply saying that we do not trust ourselves. That we are not capable of compromise, self-regulation and meeting the needs of our families and our society. Corporations do not have souls. Corporations do not have neighbors. Capitalism is no more an ideal than democracy. Each man (women and some minorities were excluded) had a vote and all did not take advantage of that system.

Women, minorities, and non-citizens have had to go with the flow. It is only less that 1/2 century that African-Americans have begun to be fully participative individuals within our system. That time the majority was wrong. Women were deprived of the right to participate. That time the minority was wrong. We encamped Asians, but not Germans (why did we let this happen?) We enslaved generations of Africans for cheap labor (WE know this was a rationalization). We herded Native-Americans into reservations (majority was wrong).

We performed experiments on unwitting people. We provided unsafe drugs to people and had thalidomide problems. We are purposefully fed misinformation because the motive is not progress but to maintain the status quo.

Each time in our history that we have had opportunity to make the right moral decisions we have come to this same crossroad. This time, WE the PEOPLE should exercise the freedoms others have fought to gain for us and DO what is in our common good. If we do not, we have no one to blame but ourselves.

I do not have the answer to this problem or many of the problems that plague us as an aging, diverse and influential culture; but WE do.

We have to start honest dialogues. Start talking with each other and stop talking about each other. WE have to stop pretending that someone else is doing this to US.

Waiting

Waiting, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

...for the end of the world. What should do in the mean time. The Mayan calendar predicts this. We should prepare somehow? We should probably all quit our jobs and spend time with our loved ones. We should end air travel and simply go back to horse and buggy. We should all gather around the campfires and tell wild stories of our exploits and deeds.

The world may end in 2012. In the meantime, we will still have hunger, pain, dysphoria and new strains of flu to confront. Of course, we will also still have love, children, joy to make the transitions easier.

What might we do to fulfill this prophesy? I do not know. Perhaps none of us do. Perhaps it simply is. What messages have we been given to heed? What warning signs? Does global warming count? Does MAND (Mutually Assured Nuclear Destruction) count?

I will leave here soon to shower and report to work. Today is a court day. I have to tell a judge new to this case that a mother has not completed nor adequately participated in her case plan, and now we are considering transferring custody of her daughter to some one else. It will be an emotional day. It will suck the energy right out of me. It will injure my immortal soul. It will forever change me.

These two eyes will be watching me. Waiting to see how I cope with this. Will I bring it home? Will I be aware of how it is affecting my relationships with those close to me? Will I embrace that fateful day in 2012 when the world comes to an end?

Calla in the Rain

Calla in the Rain, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Evveryday we have choices. We can choose to enter the senseless and nonproductive bickering about Republican vs Democratic politics. We can choose to ignore our changing and challenging environments. We can choose to spend our dollars on education or protection or assimilation or any number of other choices. But that is part of the point. We do have choices. In many places on the planet we call Earth there are not choices available. Someone tells the many HOW, WHEN, WHY and IF something is to be done. Someone decides everything and there is often little public discourse. There is minimal participation by the masses in the daily decisions. The newspapers and media are controlled by those who have the power. The police are puppets for the powerful. The banking system is flawed and unfair.

What will we choose here that will continue to separate us from the places we purport to despise? Each choice will take us closer or move us farther away, but it is our choice. Each and every individual has a choice. What you choose in the short term may not be in your long term best interests. Simple!

Rust

Rust, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Summer is winding on. We have had the beauty of a brilliant spring, the not-quite-so-hot, but very dry summer. We have had a couple of terrific storms, some occasional rain and some beautiful skies at sunset.

Our little corner of the world has visited the North Shore of Lake Superior; Dallas, TX; Lincoln, NE; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Hayward, WI; Detroit Lakes, MN; and a few shorter trips to the regular environs here around Minneapolis-St. Paul.

We will have seen almost all the family members that still count. Zoos, baseball and softball games. We have had a bonfire or two here with the visiting teens and pre-teens. We have had a basketball game or two, taken quite a few bike rides, visited DQ on a hot night; long for a fire on cooler nights, sweated when we chose not to use the air and pulled covers up to our chins on nights when the temperature seemed more like April or October rather than June or July.

We have frequented a couple of new local restaurants; Smash Burger (yuck); and the new deli (TU here). Marcus tried some new foods (salads and greens); and he spent a week being a vegetarian (don't know why, but he's a kid). Angel has a boyfriend (strong grip-plays football) and we are almost done with her braces.

Mary worked hard this summer. Struggling with a neck strain/back injury that plagued her most of the summer. I fought with the battle of bulge for the first real time in my life. It is harder to get on that tiny seat on my bike, but it is still just as fun. Wind in my face, sounds of birds and the slight hum of rubber tires on the blacktop.

Marcus took golf lessons through First Tee and loved it. He and Mary played a couple of 9 hole games. Angel fell really hard for softball and played on a championship team. She missed the final game though because of family vacation. Still, nothing like being a winner.

August is rust. Rust is tarnish. Tarnish is a covering. That covering starts to change things. What more changes might we see this year? Sometime in August the politcians are going to either make some decisions or continue with the nonsensical partisan ideologies about healthcare and economic recovery. They should have to shed the donkey and the elephant at the lawmaker's front steps and do simply what is right. Some of the best educated but little-boy-frightened-at-first-day-of-school people I have ever seen.

America is rusty herself. We can polish her up or let her decline. We have to decide. The status quo is no longer an option.

And my photography skills are a bit more polished. Trying hard to avoid rust and complacency. Where do we all go next?

Some Things

, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

...are just beautiful. Sometimes the beauty is too much to absorb in one setting. I saw these flowers on the way back from taking/making other photos. I stopped, enjoyed the fresh breeze in my face and walked around. The lighting was direct and overhead, the breeze was too stiff for macros and the flowers would not stay still. I just enjoyed looking at these. I snapped off a few frames for posterity sake. I maxed DOF and steadied myself as best I could. I exposed in bursts of bracketed fives. This is the result. I am pleased. I hope you enjoy this serendipitous moment. You probably have some things too that you could share. This is but one of mine.

Walk About

My daughter was sleeping. My wife and son had left for Vikings training camp in Mankato. My studio partner asked to borrow a lens for a wedding she is shooting today. I dropped off the lens and started meandering. Something I have not done in considerable time. The studio is in St. Paul near the Farmer's Market. On my way in I saw these beautiful flowers. I stopped and clicked off a quick burst on my camera. Someone noticed me there and stopped to talk with me. I think I found the interruption somewhat annoying, but I tried to be gracious. That is not always easy for me during a meander. I dropped off the lenses and started on my way home. I stopped by the little shop that sells second store furnishings. Thinking about a new clothing rack for the studio. Something a bit more steady that what we currently have. The rep noticed me and asked if I had seen what I was looking for. I mentioned photography and he immediately let me know they have autopoles. Just what we need. Stick that in my memory for the next time I have a few extra dollars.

Next stop Theodore Wirth. But before I get there I see the sunflowers in the community garden. Click, click. Beautiful light again here. Too breezy though.

Basics

Basics, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

I just saw a WalMart commercial on TV. WalMart saves you money by not paying enough to the vendors that provide the goods to you. We get caught in the trap of getting a deal, but we forget about the vendor who might be our neighbor. Each one of us that is so eager to save a few pennies might want to think about how this affects your neighbor and your neighborhood.

Feelings

4449, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

We have all understood that Justice Sotomayor should not introduce feelings into any argument in which law prevails. She may not have feelings about civil rights. She should not have feelings about women's issues. She should have a blind eye towards justice and precedents because the law is all about objectivity, until we start the discussion about abortion. Her opinion about this topic is paramount. We need to know which way she might be leaning and I suppose the best way to ferret this information out of her is to explore her feelings on the topic. Sordid awful feelings. What makes abortion so very different? We did not talk about capital punishment yet. We did not talk about health care. Just the A bomb. OK

Fairy Tales

, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Sometimes when life is kicking your teeth in and you feel that you can't trust anyone, you just have to take a leap of faith. Do what you want; laugh at the folly of struggle. I have been listening to the confirmation hearings for Sonia Sotomayor. I am appalled at the rancor and vituperative nature of the questions and accusations. Pomposity and arrogance abound here. There are those who would actually postulate that The Supreme Court of the United States of America merely applies the law that Congress writes. That the law is immutable. If so immutable, why do we now have the abolition of slavery, women as whole citizens, abortion rights, civil rights and voting rights that were previously prohibited.

Sonia Sotomayor is a product of her history, culture and socioeconomic status. We all are. To pretend otherwise is foolishness. Each and everyone of our justices applies the law based on education, experiences, political beliefs, social awareness and a combination of other factors.

If the law were so objective, there would be little need to squabble about one's personal philosophy. If the law were totally objective, we could simply review rulings made and opinions offered by justices. If the law were not red nor blue, we could simply apply an objective test. But corrections have been made. The lower courts are not always affirmed in opinions and rulings. The court system is about fallible people making decisions about other fallible people.

Dream Sonia Sotomayor that your fairy tale can come true. It can happen to you. Stay young at heart. Know that there are those of us who acknowledge the challenge of impartiality and justice in an unjust and very partial world.

Copper Tones

Copper Tones, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Sunday afternoon. I am at the U11 baseball championship game at the park. Thankfully it is not swelteringly hot. We have a gentle cooling breeze. The boys have already given up because they were thumped in the first two innings and are down more that 12 points already. My cell phone buzzes in my pocket. A referral for a few portrait shots. Birthday coming up and wants to have some decent photos. I agree to meet her following my lunch break the following day. We crank out a handful of these cool images and this is what is I think one of the best. Always fun to work with fun people.

Opportunity

Opportunity, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Opportunity presents itself to us all the time. Sometimes we acknowledge this; most times we do not even see it. It however exists all around us. Each of us has opportunities to make the world a better place. We can choose to be kind or evil. We can choose to acknowledge our own blessings and assist others or we can be prigs about our righteousness. How do you want to be remembered? As one who took took took and ignored those in need when there was more than enough to go around. Or do you want to be remembered as one who accepts that he is his siblings' keeper.

Since we can't take it with us and the warehouse has plenty, couldn't we all afford to be more generous? Couldn't we let those who serves us have a taste without the fear that it would all be lost?

Cogs in the Machine

Cogs, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Some people complain about sunny days. It's just too bright for them. Some complain about the rain even when they are farmers and the soil needs moisture. Some complain about having too much work. Others complain that it is too dry when they are busy scheduling tennis and golf matches. But there are some who can simply appreciate the good things that happen in life. They take joy in the special moments. These are the kind of people I like to be around. They would be happy pigs in a pen with ample mud, or apples patiently waiting on a tree. They do not expect miracles and experience the everyday, the mundane as special. What can you do to magnify the moment?

Fence

Fence, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Fences are made to keep somethings in - dogs, construction materials and such. They are also made to keep somethings out - people, thieves, peeking eyes and so on. Every once in a while though, a fence can serve a glorious purpose. This fence was the backdrop and cage for girls softball recently. I loved the soft evening light and the abstract creation of the bats, the batting gloves and the chainlink. I am printing this one large as a memory of the marvelous carefree days of youth. We adults build fences to keep ourselves from life. How are your fences making your life difficult?

Sin Sombra

Sin Sombra, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Sin sombra means "shadowless" in Spanish. I originally created this piece with a small shadow hanging over the window. Sometime later I learned that the transparency that we hoped for in the new administration will have lots of places for shadows. It seems that there have been such detestable atrocities at the behest of the US military and intelligence organizations that the expected transparency is becoming opaque. Opaque can be shadowless, though. Darkness can certainly be shadowless since one needs some light to create shadows. If we are to become something other than a shadow of our former selves, we have to be willing to look in all the dark and creepy places where we have tolerated evil; contemplated marginal morality, and turned our heads in the interest of a "post 9-11" world security structure. If we simply become what we have detested all along, all the shadows will be free to roam the earth. That would be Hell instead of Heaven. I'm just saying...!

Spring

Untitled, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Arrives here in the northern latitudes. We get beautiful days and cool evenings. We have almost no bugs yet. Life is good. This is an example of a flower from a natural light/available light workshop I organized this most recent month. Flowers make such great subjects because they don't usually move. Color is almost always an issue too. This time was late afternoon (golden hourish) and slightly overcast. Couldn't really ask for more.

People Get Angry

Mamiya M645 1000s, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

My wife is angry with me...she knows why, but is not ready to talk with me. My son is angry because I turned off the TV while he was doing his math homework last night (he is struggling a bit with word problems). My daughter is angry with me. She could have a couple of reasons. I caught her whispering on her cell phone long after lights out last night and told her it stays upstairs for the rest of the week. Or she could be upset that I stopped for coffee this morning and chose not to buy her a smoothie just before I drop her off at school. Little did it matter that we were just leaving her early (really early morning orthodontics appointment in which I am told she should use the rubber bands. Nor did she have any of her own recently earned money from shoveling snow and doing laundry ( 1 load). Of all the nerve. How could I deny her this smoothie.

Work sucks. I am tired. Perhaps I should get angry with myself and stop trying so hard to do everything for everyone.

!

!, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

Tragedy. In light of Black History Month I wanted us all to see what challenges to our existence there are. This young man in Nigerian by culture and parentage, but he was born here in the US. We need to give our children love and support. We need to give them hope. We need to be their refuge in their struggle. We too often fail because we want to mimic and be like the mainstream society. We can't. We must create and re-create our own history; our own culture and traditions.

Still Life

Still Life, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

2nd sick day this week...sniffly, sneezy, kind of want to sleep all day sick. But I had time to think about the state of the world and the state of life as we know it.

I have had time to think about the bonuses that the CEOs paid themselves. I have had time to think about bailouts and executive salaries. I have had time to laugh about the music and the football game and so much stuff.

Living the Dream

Living the Dream, originally uploaded by lucienphoto.

I almost left without the family. Even though I had already told them that this MLK day was a very special one to me and that it was part of an ultra historic week for me. They wanted to hang out, watch TV and play video games. Even after we got there the magnitude of the moment continued to elude them. This was the culmination of the dream. The talent was only mediocre. I had attended better organized events. The mood in the salon though was electric. People of all income strata, ethnic groups and political ideologies waiting for the birth of this new era of hope.

Here are the faces of the new era. Faces and neighborhoods no longer divided along racial lines. A new place in which we practice loving our neighbors as ourselves. A time when we can truly believe that all men and women are brothers and sisters. Adelante.

This is one man's perspective on the best three days of 2009. Day one is MLK Day; Day two is the inauguration of Barak Obama; Day three is my 52nd birthday.