Baby, it's cold outside

The fact is that people in Southern California are total weaklings when it comes to cold weather.

When I lived in England, I would walk from the train station to my school (about a mile) every morning in frosty weather, skidding around on mulchy leaves and potentially getting drenched by a soccer mom's Land Rover after a badly timed puddle splash. All of this in a thin button down shirt and my blazer. More than once I ended up on my ass having slid on black ice somewhere on the paving - one time in particular coming to memory because my walkman fell out of my pocket and busted into about 4 different pieces which flew all over the street.

Now, that obviously still isn't anywhere near as bad as being in Cleveland or somewhere similarly freezing. I had a 2 hour layover in Cleveland during January several years ago and recall everything being covered in at least a foot of snow.

In Los Angeles, people are liable to freak out about the weather when it ducks below 60 degrees but even at 40 degrees outside, it's quite likely you will spot one sorry person wearing flip flops. I will admit that I have somewhat become a person that doesn't know how to handle the cold weather on account of having left all of my big fuzzy sweaters in England after I moved. My limited amounts of cold weather clothing have been leaving me somewhat stumped over the last few days as we've hit temperatures of freezing.

Yesterday, I was standing outside with some co-workers complaining about having a cold neck. It then occurred to me that I am an idiot. I KNIT! Why on earth would I not have anything around to wrap myself in?! It seems that I am extremely good at knitting for others and assuming that living in Los Angeles means that I will never really have a need for big warm wooly accessories to heat up my freezing bones. So, last night I whipped up a rather simplistic cowl to throw around my neck. It's now my mission to make 3 or 4 more in different colors over the next 2 weeks so that I can wear them before the weather warms up again!

Fire season once again

Until I moved up to Los Angeles nearly a decade ago, I didn't really understand that there was such thing as a "fire season" in Southern Cali. I remember searching for renter's insurance circa 2002 and scoffing at the fact we couldn't get it in the area we were living in as it's a brush fire zone. It wasn't until the Barham/Griffith Park fires in 2007 that it became a reality to me as I watched it unfold in close-up. I never thought I would be one to chase down a brush fire with my camera in hand, looking to document the sheer awe that it inspires, but if I were able to do it safely, I realize that I would.

Once again, this year in California, there are several fires burning right now. Smog and ash, mixed with record temperatures, are all making the L.A. basin look like (what some of us have started referring to as) the "armpit of hell". I snapped a quick shot outside my building on the way into work @ 8:30 this morning and you can see how that nickname makes sense, despite being several miles away from the nearest fire.Here's hoping everybody stays safe.

Barham/Griffith Park Fires

I have truly concluded that I am dedicated to my art. The recent fires destroying acres upon acres in the Griffith park area has been devastating to those that love that part of Los Angeles. As a photographer though, it wouldn't be right for me not to bust out the camera and document these events.

Barham Fire (3/30/07)

Dedication is....sneaking out of work to go home and get your camera, driving and taking pictures out of the car window at every stop sign, sneaking onto other companies' balconies at work to get a view from above....





Griffith Park Fire (5/8/07)

Dedication is....leaving the house at midnight on a Tuesday and driving around to get as close to Griffith Park as possible for a good vantage point, stopping your car in a red zone while in your PJs trying to keep the camera steady on the hood of the car....

(Note that the white lines in this picture are actually helicopters. The first two are a little fuzzy due to having to turn off the flash on the camera because of the street lights dulling the colors from the fire.)