Jaded, Yet Hopeful

Let me preface this entry by saying: I am a jaded person when it comes to politics. I have never been a "true believer" and I have never been very active in the party politics of my nation--largely because I am not a fan of either party. However, I am a very politically-aware person; by nature of my lifelong interest in government, social justice, and international affairs, I have followed politics closely since I was a small child. Perhaps it's that lifelong interest in the affairs of state that has made me jaded.

I know that there is no politician who is not tainted in some way by some compromise. Too often, it seems like our "leaders" are corrupt and completely disconnected from the real world of "everyday people." I know from my own life--growing up working class in America--that this is a nation full of people who work very hard for very little. I also know, from many years living and traveling in other nations, that we are uniquely privileged in many ways, even in our despairing moments. We are also supposed to be responsible for our government, by virtue of its own declarations, and, when our government makes decisions that ruin the lives of people on the other side of the world and in our own country, we are responsible for that, too.

The last eight years have been nightmarish, not only for Americans, but for the world. I was very jaded going into this election season, fearful that we would not have any new options. However, as it grows closer and closer to our election day, I am increasingly impressed with Barack Obama, and I want to encourage you to vote for him on November 4th. He gave a speech today that I think is truly important--and remember, I am jaded! I am not a person who is normally moved by either politicians nor nationalism. This speech, however, is saying something important. We do not need to continue to evoke fear and hatred in our country and around the world any more. And I believe, by selecting Barack Obama as our president, Americans may begin to show the world that we are not all war mongerers, haters, or morons. We aim for a better life for ourselves and our world.

Do I think Barack Obama will solve all our problems? Of course not. But will his election restore our good name around the world and change the discourse of our country away from hate and toward reconciliation? I believe so. If you have a vote in the USA, please consider casting it for Barack Obama.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Obama's speech. I hope you will vote for Barack Obama next Tuesday.

“In one week, you can put an end to the politics that would divide a nation just to win an election; that tries to pit region against region, city against town, Republican against Democrat; that asks us to fear at a time when we need hope."

“In one week, at this defining moment in history, you can give this country the change we need...[A]s I’ve said from the day we began this journey all those months ago, the change we need isn’t just about new programs and policies. It’s about a new politics – a politics that calls on our better angels instead of encouraging our worst instincts; one that reminds us of the obligations we have to ourselves and one another.”

“[W]hat we have lost in these last eight years cannot be measured by lost wages or bigger trade deficits alone. What has also been lost is the idea that in this American story, each of us has a role to play. Each of us has a responsibility to work hard and look after ourselves and our families, and each of us has a responsibility to our fellow citizens. That’s what’s been lost these last eight years – our sense of common purpose; of higher purpose. And that’s what we need to restore right now.”


Obama on the Wall (2008)
Camera: Olympus e-300
Location: Denton, Texas, USA

Alternative Giving Spotlight: Heifer International

One of the things I like to do on my blog from time to time is spotlight organizations and businesses who are making a difference in our world. One of the charities that I really admire and love to support is Heifer International. Founded in the 1940s with the goal of "teaching a man to fish," Heifer International provides livestock, bees, trees, and training to impoverished people around the world. They are given animals appropriate to their environment and cultures, taught how to care for them, and pass on the benefits of the next generation of animals to their neighbors.

One of the really cool things about Heifer International is that they encourage alternative gifting, which means that you can buy a share in an animal in the name os someone you love and give that to them as a gift! If you're inclined toward that kind of thing, Heifer is the charity for you! I recently donated a hive of honeybees to a family in the name of my mother, and gave other special people shares of a dairy goat for a child and a knitting box (that is, two llamas and two sheep) for a family. What a great way to celebrate the holiday season, by helping other people sustain their livelihoods and support their communities!


Photo from Heifer International

My 2009 Calendars!

For the past couple of years, I've been selling calendars of my photographs, and this year is no exception! It's an economical way to buy some of my prints, and you can enjoy them throughout the year! Here are the calendars that I have for sale for 2009. You may click on the images to go straight to the purchase site. Click on the months below the main image of each calendar's page to see all of the months!

New for 2009!

Vernacular American Roadsigns: Analog Photos by Futurowoman


Instant Gratification: My New-for-2009 Polaroid Calendar!


Last Year's Calendars--Now for 2009!

Looking at you! Big-Eyed Doll Polaroids


Keeping it Real! My 2008 Polaroid calendar--for 2009!


Thank you for looking!

My Dogs and Our New Chair

My dogs are two of my favorite photographic subjects. My whippet, Laika, is a beautiful model; she is sculptured, elegant, and gorgeous. My terrier, Orson, is cuddly, adorable, and spunky. They are both photogenic in their own ways, and, while my love for them prejudices me to think their photos are always fabulous, I do really love to share my photos of them.

This past week, I was lucky enough to get two photos of them that seem to go together perfectly, even though I took them a week or so apart. Last week, I shot this photo of Laika on our new living room chair, a beautiful chive green anson chair from Room and Board. I love its low light and subtle textures.


Laika on the New Chair (2008)

Today, however, I shot this photo of Orson on the new chair. A rainy day light made his portrait eerily similar to the one I took of Laika.


Orson on a Rainy Day (2008)

Yes, my dogs get on the furniture, even if it's new. :)
Both photos:
Camera: Polaroid Sx-70
Film: Polaroid Artistic TZ

My Grandmother's Polaroid Camera

In 2005, my mother gave me my grandmother's old Polaroid 104 camera. She had found it when they were moving  things out of my grandparents' home (after they both passed away), and wondered if I could use it. It was in great condition, with the exception of the battery contacts. They were dead due to having been stored with a battery in them. All of this time, I have wanted to shoot the camera, but never got around to having it fixed.

Well, the other day, my dear friend fixed it for me, replacing the old battery set up with a new one! The camera works! I initiated it yesterday, in honor of World Toy Camera Day! Although the Polaroid 104 wasn't considered a "toy" when it was sold between 1965 and 1967, it does have a plastic lens, making it a super-fun plasticcam worthy of "toycam" status in my book! 

This is one of my favorite photos from yesterday's first day using this awesome camera, which comes complete with my grandmother's name in DYMOTAPE on it! I'm so excited to keep this special family camera in action!



Antenae (2008)
Camera: Polaroid 104
Film: Polaroid UV-ID
Location: Denton, Texas, USA

The SX-70 as presented by the Eames'

Everyone who knows about my photography knows that my Polaroid Sx-70 has become one of my prized possessions. The experience of shooting with that camera is really an adventure, and I've been lucky to shoot a lot of the beautiful, peerless Time-Zero film through mine. I wanted to share this film I found with you; it's the film Polaroid created in the early 1970s to introduce the SX-70 to the world. Made by the mighty Eames', it is a lovely introduction, as well as unintentional elegy, to the wonderful world of the Sx-70.

the traveling polaroid camera project!

I was very lucky to sign up for the Polaroid Traveling Camera Project  at Flickr. The purpose of this project is to send a camera all over the USA to various Polaroid artists, have them shoot a photo of themselves, and then send it to the next person.  This is my self portrait, shot yesterday morning using the traveling camera--a Polaroid OneStep--and 600 film. 

I rarely shoot self portraits, but I do think this one is vernacular-tastic, so here it is! LOL

PS. I'm having a sale at my Etsy shop for everyone reading this blog! Just mention "blogspot" with any purchase at checkout, and I'll send you a surprise 4x6" print!

Featured Company Making A Difference: Dr. Bronner's

One of the things I have wanted to do with this blog is mention, from time to time, little things we can all do to make an environmental and political difference. Today I'd like to feature a company whose products I've been using since I was a child, Dr. Bronner's Soaps. As you may or may not know, Dr. Bronner's is that soap, the one with the dramatic spiritual manifestos all over the labels! But behind the ALL-ONE philosophy lay a strong commitment to organic, fair trade practices and the promotion of peace through economic investment and consumer awareness.

My parents opened a health food store in 1975, and from the beginning, Dr. Bronner's natural Castile soaps were a staple product in the beauty section. I grew up using the liquid peppermint Castile soaps, although my adult favorite has been the almond version. Over the years, Dr. Bronner's has expanded its product line (I still need to try the body balms!), but it's also expanded its activism. I would like to introduce you to something I really admire about this company. They are fully committed to fair trade practices, and are currently blending Fair Trade olive oils from Palestinian farmers in the West Bank with Arab and Jewish farmers' olive oils produced in Israel. What a beautiful statement, as well as financial boon for these farmers! You can read more about this venture here, and watch a short film about the process embedded below.



If you've never tried Dr. Bronner's products, I urge you to do so! They are organic certified, Fair Trade certified, opposed to animal testing, and manufactured using 100 per cent recycled/recyclable packaging!

The Stash is Dwindling

Although my refrigerator is still chock full of various Polaroid films, there is only one pack of my favorite film of all time, Time-Zero, left in the door. Add to that the three shots in my camera currently, and I am down to 13 shots. It's stressful, but I'm trying not to worry too much about it. I have plans for the three shots in my camera, and the final pack will be shot later this year, when the glorious light of winter hits us here in the rather southern land of Tejas. That pack will be very expired looking, judging from the other packs from that lot, but that's ok. I've factored that into my plans ;)

Yesterday, I shot three photos from the pack in my camera. Although it's expired, it's in remarkably new condition, because I've carefully stored it since it was fresh. The flowers I had hoped to shoot in Time-Zero for these images aren't available at this time of year, but I am very pleased with the photos I took nevertheless. Last night, my dear friend told me, "That's what I love about photography; when you get something completely different from what you expected." I think he's right!

This one makes me happy, these creamy roses in my favorite vase (more on the vase below):



Peaceful

And this one, a 1976 Bicentenial Ball Jar filled with unique purple thistles! I found this jar on the sink in the back of my mother's shop, from which she is currently in the midst of retiring, and my husband spent hours cleaning off dried up plant roots and water deposits so that I could sell it in our vintage stuff etsy shop.  However, now that it's all clean, I've decided to keep it--at least for the time being--and use it as a rustic container for flowers! 



Ball Jar with Thistles

And finally, this photograph, which features my favorite vase. I bought this vase back in 1998 from my favorite family of potters in Jerusalem, the Karakashian family. It's been my favorite home for flowers ever since, and is a beautiful handmade piece. The lighting of this photo is dark, but I think the underexposure allows for some interesting Time-Zero emulsion impact to come through as a consequence. By the way, if you are ever in Jerusalem, you absolutely must visit Stepan Karakashian and his family in their shop on the Via Dolorosa. Their pottery is gorgeous, their manner elegant, and their place in the history of the Old City is priceless. 



Ten Years On

All photos 2008
Camera: Polaroid SX-70
Film: Polaroid Time-Zero
signed prints @ my etsy shop

hello! is it really september already?

Oh my, I have been so neglectful of my blog as of late! The primary reason has been that my summer has been so very busy! Trips to Colorado (for work), Minnesota (work and play), and California (play and work) kept me very busy! And now the new university term has begun. In case you don't know, I'm a professor at the University of North Texas, so my schedule gets really busy in September. To top it off, I've fallen a bit behind in some writing duties, so I'm still playing a bit of catchup!

However, I've been finding a bit of time here and there to play with my batches of Polaroid Artistic TZ film! I wanted to post this particular photo today to encourage everyone out there to consider replacing your loud and polluting gas and electric lawn mowers with an awesome push mower! My husband and I got this gorgeous retro-and-wonderful, truly analog push mower some months ago, and our lawn looks great! Just think: you'll get some exercise, won't pollute, and have some mulch at the end of your lawn mowing session! It's getting easier and easier to be green, and small steps really add up!


The Lawnmower Polaroid, 2008
Camera: Polaroid SX-70
Film: Polaroid Artistic TZ Film
signed prints in my Etsy shop

Enjoy the final days of summer, everyone!