Chasing Dreams

So NASA's space Shuttles have these fantastic tiles designed to withstand the tremendous heat of reentry but what about me and my precious emotions? Ok this is what I mean. I work in one of the most inhospitable environments known to man, otherwise called the airport. Now don't get me wrong, the job is not horrible... all the time. But something happens to people when they get in an airport. I think the fear and anxiety of air travel for some is redirected and expressed in ways that don't always make sense. Unless you're a psychologist you don't see the connection and think that these passengers are either crazy, sadistic or just plain stupid. But if you look closer you'll see most of them or just scared little kids that want to go on vacation but don't want to fly so they arrive late or fuss and obsess about minor things. Now of course you DO have your share of obnoxious assholes that try to get over and don't care who they run over. My coworker h...

So I was planning to go to South Africa with some buddies of mine to see the World Cup but as it turns out there was no credible way for us to get back in time for me to get to work. So it was either I pack enough stuff to just start a new life in Jo'burg or go somewhere else. We chose Italy. Now I'm no novice to travel but I don't really do the trains in Europe unless it's taking me from an airport to my affordable hotel. So when my buddy Steve mentioned "training it" to several cities I was intrigued. I was even more intrigued when he mentioned NOT booking a hotel ahead of time. I think he said something like "we'll figure it out when we get there". WHAT THE?!?! Ok... I've been known to hop on the last flight to Vegas with another buddy, eat, drink, gamble, look for women and a good party then head back to the airport for a first flight back to NY. No hotel, no room but THAT'S in a place where they speak English. This whole ...

Ya know sometimes life feels like a crap-shoot. You plan and plan and fate gives you a hand you didn’t plan for. I like to think that is what makes this existence interesting but sometimes it can take a toll on your soul. I mean here I am struggling to make my dream a reality 3 years after walking away from a great career and comfortable life. Now don’t misunderstand, my life now is still great. Next month I plan to spend a week in Johannesburg experiencing one of the greatest sporting events on this planet, The World Cup but the goal of me leaving advertising was to make it as an artist and it still feels out of reach. The time I SHOULD be spending to make it happen is spent working to pay the bills. I won’t let this blog post spiral into a rant about how hard my life is. Too many people don’t have jobs and will never experience the things I have been fortunate enough to call memories. It’s just sometimes the weight of your dreams can feel like a burden. I guess that’s why so many...

Life is truly fascinating. I mean everything is relative or gray , perception is the only thing that is black and white. I look at myself, through the judgmental black and white lens of impatience and wonder why it is that I am not the successful sought after photographer/writer I set out to be when I left advertising. I look and judge comparing this venture to previous leaps in my life that were more successful. So as I was researching some trivia one day I had an epiphany, standing in the middle of Times Square in NYC with yellow cabs, delivery trucks and bicycle messengers whizzing by. It may appear as if I’m standing still and not moving but all I have to do is look up at any building and notice the clouds moving behind them, except the clouds are not really moving it’s the earth rotating, it’s me moving on this spinning rock from morning to noon to night. What’s even more fascinating is the fact that although we appear to be rotating just a bit faster than a snail's pac...

Ok so I haven’t blogged in a while but it’s certainly not for lack of subject matter. We are living in the truly historic times; times that our grandchildren will ask us with wonder what it was like to be alive then. After stepping back from the brink of what appeared to be economic oblivion on a global scale, America is remaking herself… she is engaged in the most epic make-over which started with the election of Barack Obama and was punctuated with the passage of the health-care bill, both monumental historic events. Blogging about the fantastic meal I had at Dinosaur BBQ in Harlem a couple of days ago just seems too trivial for these times. I mean President Obama is signing nuclear disarmament treaties, Supreme Court Justice Stevens is stepping down and the Stock market is moving into really strong territory again but all I can think about is that brisket, chicken and ribs that was smoked to perfection before being slow cooked and anointed with a savory thick sauce that was the ver...

Well it’s Sunday and looking back on my week and I realize that I have a pretty amazing life. Now I know that may sound a bit arrogant but it’s true. Last Sunday my family took my mom out for mothers day, I had a hearty meal and decided to walk home from the restaurant which was a little over 4 miles… did it in an hour and half. Tuesday I flew to Spain, business class which is the only way to fly…lol, to chill with a friend and help her move some stuff back to the US. Saw the new X-Men movie in one of the only English theaters in Madrid. Thursday got a bottle of desert wine on the way back from one of the friendly flight attendants. Friday watched the new Star Trek movie in Queens NY. Saturday met Cedric the Entertainer and Kareem Abdul Jabar (man he’s tall) And today, Sunday escorted and made small talk with the revered Arch-Bishop Desmond Tutu and his wife, who blessed me twice. I’m not a fan by nature, I treat celebrities like regular people and don’t get all crazy but it...

So I was talking to a friend of mine the other day about me NOT being a morning person, despite having this crazy job that demands I be at work by 5 AM. What the hell… is this the bloody Army where we do more before 9Am than most people do all day…LOL. Working for the airline industry is a little whacky but perfect for a man like me that needs to have the work thang wrapped up early enough so he can devote the rest of the day to more important pursuits like photography and writing. Anyway my friend was amazed that I had acclimated to the morning so easily and it made me think. Was I always a morning person trapped in late night body? Truth be told I’m at my best at 9PM, ironically that's when I have to start winding down in order to be any good for work the next day. It didn’t make any sense to me. People don’t just switch bio-rhythms like that. So my geek side really put some thought into it and came up with an interesting theory. Stay with me on this, it’s gonna get a little qu...