Jess and Tucker (#865) 05-18-15
Jess and Tucker had the audacity to sip cups of Java in front of MY coffee shop. So I did my thing, and they were happy to be photographed.
Jess (Jessica) graduated from local Booker High School, the one partially devoted to visual and performing arts. Since 2009 she has performed with the Modern Ethos dance troupe. http://movingethos.org/index.html
The group will be performing in Sarasota this July. The venue will be the tiny Urbanite theater, which will be modified to seat 35 (thirty five!) for the performances. Jess agrees that dancers not colliding will be a challenge. I immediately bought a ticket for the first performance.
Tucker owns her own landscaping business. I was intrigued by the intricate tattoo on her left arm. She got it in New Zealand for the equivalent of $300. It is art of the Mauri, the indigenous people of new Zealand. Each line represents an event in Tucker's life.
Bob
Mike (#864) 05-17-15
Mike was sitting with a young lady who shook her head “no.” Mike shook his head “yes” at that, I guess she was really having a bad day. But Mike was not, and was glad to participate. Both of them are musicians in a band called 'Pleasures.' She is a guitar player and vocalist, Mike plays drums. When I showed him my Photostream, he pointed to Greg (yesterday's stranger) and said that Greg was in the same band. Quite a coincidence as these were on different days.
Mike was born in Sarasota and graduated from Sarasota High School. After getting a degree in Music, he taught for two years at SHS and one year at Booker High. But teaching was not for Mike, so he quit to join this band. They are arranging their second tour, 5,000 miles in a month. Their first tour was over 8,000 miles. It was modestly successful, they came home with a little money after expenses. The financial uncertainty doesn't seem to bother him.
I told him about a book that I just read – it seems germane: The Crossroads of Should and Must.” Should is what other people and society suggest you do, vs must, what your heart says to do.
Bob
Greg (#863) 05-15-15
Greg is originally from Philadelphia, he rolled his eyes as he said it. "Oh, you don't like Philadelphia?" "It's OK." (eyes rolling again). He moved here many years ago and graduated from Sarasota High School.
He is now a musician that travels a lot, with a group. Gigs seem better out of town.
"Do you play the piano?"
"A little."
"Well, what do you play in the group?"
"Well, I like Synthesizer and stuff." (Greg tends toward the taciturn).
"Oh, you play a computer."
"No, Synthesizers were around in the 70s."
Bob
Polo (#862) 05-14-05
Actually, his name is Hipolito (ee POE lee toe). Polo was in an alleyway, on his haunches, photographing. He was right in front of a bicycle that was standing in front of some complex plumbing, probably sewer pipes. I asked what he saw to photograph. Polo stood and showed me the LCD and pointed out the lines formed by the elements, how the lines formed a rough circle, and how that circle would hold the viewers eyes.
Polo has a degree in fine arts. He is from Puerto Rico, having moved to Florida 1 ½ years ago. He is working on his English. The camera was a Canon 7D and he asked me to clone out the amateurish “EOS” in the strap. The kit lens is OK, but he cannot afford pro lenses at the moment, lenses that would be necessary to photograph weddings and other money making projects.
For the time being, he works at the Yellowfin boat building facility. www.yellowfin.com The job is problematic in that he has difficulty with fumes involved in production. Polo pulled out his phone and showed me showed me images of him at the factory. He wears a hazmat-like suit with a mask. But he has to shave very closely so that the mask can form a tight fit. Even with that, fumes get in and effect his breathing.
Bob
No Photo :-( (#861) 14-05-15
I recently had an interview (my first) for a local website. Yippee!
http://www.sarasotaday.com/blog_view.cfm?BlogID=1612
Bob