a little sunshine

1937 chevy

so i've spent a lovely week hanging out at a courthouse, doing my civic duty. don't know how that happened, as they usually look for the most ignorant jurors possible. they didn't even ask me any questions, and i had no other excuses to be unable to serve.

love how all the jurors of a certain ethnic group, with only one exception, pulled the i don't speak english very well or acted like they completely didn't speak english at all. i call bullshit, but i guess if i was the one sitting next to the lawyer at the table, i wouldn't want them on the jury either.

i won't bore you with details, but it was an interesting experience. i got to use my best assortment of bitch faces sitting in the jury box, glaring at both lawyers, and so they could not guess which way i might be leaning for or against the defendant.

freaking freezing in the courtroom and deliberation room. was great if i had climbed the stairs or had a hot flash. otherwise, had to remember to bring a sweater.

back to work and a more normal schedule to whine about, and freeways to sit in a slow roll upon, and think up topics i might posit here.

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caught this pistoleros car at the viejitos summer show in anaheim a couple of weeks back. its not finished, and i am making the assumption that they will eventually paint this car. but even if they decide they like the primer look, though i cannot understand it, you can see the beautiful lines of the car. the small details you'll never find on today's cars.

i liked how they dropped it to the ground under this tree, perhaps in anticipation of shade later when the sun got to doing it's thing in the sky, but at this time of morning, there's just that kiss of sun on the back end, through the trees out of the frame.

maybe that isn't something that you get worked up over, and sometimes random shadows on cars bug the hell out of me, but here i like it, and that it is hitting the skirt that doesn't match the rest of it. stupid, but that's how it was, and i liked it at the time.

karma

1951 chevy deluxe

my better half says i'm a lucky person. well, he says he's the lucky one, but as far as randomly finding money, i'm that person.

there's nothing to finding spare change. stupid people toss pennies and dimes for whatever reason. i have no idea if that's true. mostly its just the young morons that don't think coins are worth anything or worth carrying, and toss them at each other, at passing cars, or just drop them. i pick them up and throw them in my bear bank. individually, they're not much, but get enough, thar be dollars for the taking.

i only pick them up if they're heads up. that's just a stupid superstition, but its what i do. some people think spirits put coins in their path. messages from beyond, from dead relatives.

mostly, i think my better half refers to the times he's seen me find presidents. the flicker of paper from the corner of my eye, he equates it to how i sometimes find random car shows when we're on a vacation or road trip.

there was the time near uci years ago, grabbing lunch at ino, and picking up about forty, or was it sixty bucks, just absently blowing across the lot. i was so sure there was a string and a camera involved, that they'd be snatched away by some college student as i bent to pick them up. but no. they were mine now, and i bought him lunch with it.

there are other instances he's seen me randomly find cash, but i can't remember specifics. i'm sure he remembers; he remembers everything.

farther back, i remember finding a small purse full of dollars and change at a gemco...does anyone even remember gemco? must have been about twenty bucks in that one, which is a lot when you're in sixth grade.

i guess it was my turn to give back in san fernando. 

i remember i had pulled some cash from my purse and moved it to the upper pocked of my camera bag, with the intention of buying some cold water when i got back up to the snack bar. at some point, i pulled my white balance thingy out of my bag, from that same pocket, then putting it back.

not long after, a woman approached with a girl in tow, and asked if i'd dropped any money, five dollars maybe? maybe out of my pocket? since i hadn't been carrying any money in my pocket and wasn't thinking about the cash in the bag, i said no. she said you sure? didn't think so, so i told her, finders keepers, and went on shooting.

as i listened to the girl asking if she could get ice cream, it suddenly hit me what probably happened, and it was more than just five bucks, because i know it had been wrapped up with some singles. pretty sure i had pulled the jackson from the bundle before i'd moved it to the pocket. 

i guess i could have gone back after it, she'd asked after all. i thank her for her honesty. if only there were more people like that, right? overall, it wasn't that much, and i still had some money to get water, so just smiled and kept on keeping on. good things come to good people.

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this chevy was an interesting shade of turquoise green. it was shiny and the light was hitting it just so.

best intentions

1951 chevy truck

this is a very bright orange truck. brighter than a del taco sign. whack you in the face with a wet squirrel to wake you up bright. i think my head would explode looking at that color every day bright.

fortunately, the overcast dulled it down a bit. my head didn't explode, and my eyes didn't bleed.

clean and shiny, it's a perfectly fine chevy truck. that color tho...

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i had intentions this weekend. intended to go to the front street show in norwalk, which is not too far away, and to which i've never been. X.

failing that, intended to go to the latin gents show in cypress. X.

intended to be at the pomona swap meet gates at five this morning. X.

my better half says sometimes you gotta listen to your body, and my body said, umm, no. not today.

yesterday, woke up late, felt yech all day, slightly off, moreso than normal. i was exhausted by about four in the afternoon, and lay down for a quick snooze. quick snooze lasted about four hours.

better half wanted to go to pomona this morning too, but his one caveat was that we wouldn't set the alarm. he's being overly protective, but i let him without fuss this time. if i was up, we'd go. shouldn't be difficult, since we get up so damn early on workdays, right? neither of us woke up until almost eight this morning, so, not going to make it. supposed to be over one-hundred out there today.

so, didn't shoot a thing this weekend. haven't looked at my pictures for most of the week. better half has stuff he has to get done around the house. his niece and family visiting for the weekend, a belated birthday suprise for gramma. gramma's worn out, and still sleeping at ten in the morning; they took their one-year old to disneyland for a few hours, so its quiet now.

i'll get a few pictures spit shined today, ready to post for the week. not going to be fun this week at all. work and other stuff.

road trip coming up that i gotta plan out, going to washington state to visit my daughter, taking a truck full of her crap to her, again. really hoping the rental place doesn't give me a big ass diesel truck instead of the smaller one i've reserved. i got the strangest looks from people when they saw me driving a big moving truck last time i rented one to move stuff from my home to storage unit and to whittier. it's kinda scary, but you just gotta step on the gas, and not think about it.

also our anniversary trip coming up quick...we used have that planned out six months ahead, now its been getting booked a few weeks before for the last couple of years. never seems to be enough time to think about where to go, yet i seem to have plenty of time to waste, mostly sitting on freeways, to and from work thinking random thoughts about what to write about here, only to forget because i couldn't write them down while driving, and siri is a bitch and won't wake up to take note.

i want to ride my...

harley davidson

so, i've been busy doing stuff i'm not allowed to talk about, so i won't talk about it. i've been away from my computer and/or too tired to turn the damn thing on all week.

saw this bike at the viejitos show. one of the few i saw that morning before i bailed. only one i shot.

liked the paint and pinstripes. not a girly girl, so i won't call it pink; more of a mauvey marooney color.

now i think i'll work on another picture until it gets late, which is going to happen quickly...time flies when i'm having fun...then gotta get some sleep.

stripper pole

overdue at posting a picture i'd promised to show.

i get behind in summer spending weekends shooting at shows or recovering from tough work weeks and/or the long drives back to be with my better half. lucky him that i think he's worth the drive, because otherwise, i'd really just kick my kid out of my house and have a quick drive home after work, and everything would be so much simpler. love makes you do crazy things, i suppose.

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this car was in a corner at the imperials show. i like chevys, the hood was down, so i shot it. lady asked about who i was shooting for...me, myself, and i. anyway, told her i'd post something. was a choice between this one and a profile shot. profile is nice, but i like angles that show a bit of the front, to help give it a bit character and to identify the year easier.

the little details were interesting too. i guess a stripper on the antenna is appropriate as my pinstriped hat here at a car show with kids running around.

one of those days

1952 chevy deluxe

sleeping in sounded real good this morning. really thought about it. for five minutes. then got up and got ready to head over to signal hill.

smeared sunscreen all over my face and arms, expecting the blazing sun that just seeks out my pasty white skin, or rather already sun-damaged skin. sunscreen makes me look more ghostly, or ghastly, especially later when i start to sweat it off.

stuck my phone in my back pocket, grabbed my camera bag, and a bottle of water. brought my pinstriped hat too, just in case. parked all the gear by the back door.

thought i'd take one more pit stop before heading out, since i never know what facilities will be available at the shows. so i go to drop trou and hear a plop...i hadn't even sat down yet...shit shit shit...the phone...in the back pocket. totally forgot about it. fortunately, i hadn't done anything yet, and blocked the fact that i was reaching into the toilet, and went after the phone. ewwww.

so, a couple of seconds in the drink, and the phone still worked. or at least i thought it did. actually, everything except the sound, that is. negates the whole point of a phone.

siri never liked me anyway. but the bitch wouldn't read me the directions anymore, so i had to write the directions down and/or keep peeking at the screen.

and i was going to stop for a donut on the way, but i left so early, the shop i would have stopped at wasn't even open.

apart from those little tragedies, the rest of the morning was perfect. got my favorite parking spot for this show, was there before the sun came up, and it stayed overcast and cool until i left at ten. seriously, the sun started coming out as i drove away.

the sultans are all very friendly and organized. and for a change, one of my better half's fans chatted with me several times, not quite gushing, but extremely pleased, about a print he had been gifted a few years ago. it is a very nice shot of the guy's car. i was there the night he shot it. but my better half wasn't there, had stuff he needed to get done, and perhaps get called in to work, so i've passed his regards and happiness on to my better half.

it's a good show, a good variety of cars, plenty of chevys. it's good to see some different cars once in a while.

oh, and their, ahem, facilties, were the taj mahal of porta potties, really a portable building. oh so refreshingly cold from the air conditioning. it was warm outside, and to open that door to the frigid air, was divine. and three separate stalls inside, and sinks with the automatic faucets...so fancy.

hoping my phone will dry out by morning, or i'll be making a stop at the apple store tomorrow.

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this car belongs to one of the sultans. when i got there so early, member cars were the only cars there. and this one was clean. and beautiful. i wouldn't mind a car like this. my hair is an unruly mess anyways, so a convertible would be nice.

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happy eighty-ninth birthday to my mother-in-law. let's have cake!

pain in my chesh

1951 chevrolet deluxe

and i can't breev. one of george lopez' classic stand up bits.

so, saw his car out at san fernando. famous not only for the owner, but for the glittery mexican flag painted on the roof. and check out that interior. 

yet another time i wished for a ladder or roof or platform to shoot from, but none of those fit in my camera bag, so maxed out the tripod, and got this piss poor shot of the roof.

curb was higher than the street, and the street had the occasional car driving by, so couldn't shoot too well from there.

golf carti was curious why his car was there, but he wasn't. maybe he's afraid of danny trejo? can't have two celebs at the same show at the same time?

he also had his golf cart there...el mas chingon...it is, it really is.

no number given

1965 ford falcon

on a normal day, i would not have taken this shot. but random white guy, with a muscle car at a viejitos show, bounds up and starts chattering away, so i can't not take it.

he seemed really nice, and really enthused. sort of that surfer dude attitude.

said he'd grown up in cerritos. had been at some other show, where i think he said raynbow had told him abou this show, so he figured he'd come on down. mentioned that he'd seen himself driving his car in someone's video on youtube. told him i'd seen myself in someone's video on youtube...my backside, because i was busy taking pictures of cars as the videographer went by...seems to be typical.

got kinda wierd when he asked what i was doing later. i said playing with my pictures, but i don't think that was the answer he thought i'd give.

i took a few shots of his car. and when he yelled, asking if i wanted his phone number...ya no. told him i didn't think my better half would be cool with that, showing up with some random guy's number and no reason to have it. the guys nearby giggled a bit, but no offense was intended.

cat's spots

1961 chevy impala

this impala is a little over the top, on the paint job.

airbrushing, pinstriping, etching, and to top it off, cheetah or leopard spots on the little side panel space. i'm thinking cheetah...it's a faster animal. though leopards are pretty bad ass too.

no doubt about the quality of the paint job, it's very good. it just overwhelms and detracts from the car, which seemed to be in good condition.

completely my opinion, which means diddly-squat. it's a beautiful car, if i just go with it. 

was kinda sad it was backed up so close to the plants behind it, and close to the car next to it and pop up on the other side. just got in the way, and couldn't get a clean shot from the back angle.

1961 chevy impala

somewhere near the raynbow

1957 chevrolet bel air

got up slightly early, and drove up to the viejitos show. wanted to beat the heat of the day, knowing this one is on pavement. at one point, some clouds blocked the sun, which gave some relief for about half an hour.

i am noticing that shows that used to be packed, even this early, and are more slow to fill lately. great for uncrowded photography, but the real bulk of cars start showing up about the time i have to pack it up and go, either because its too hot or because i need to find breakfast or i'll faint.

guessing there are more parties going on these summer nights before the shows, and people are busy dealing with the aftermath. or they don't care about parking with their groups, since they figure one member can just save spaces for the whole club. not fair to that one guy, or anyone else who understand roll-in time.

there were plenty of cars here early, the club members themselves have awesome cars, so i could have just spent three hours with them and be happy.

found this one in the back parking area, where the bicycle guys were setting up. nice car, interesting little mural on the garage doors, and no people in the way. so yay.

then back out to the main lot, where i noticed the viejitos' president, raynbow, riding around on a bike, directing cars and people. just not something i'm used to seeing him do everyday. most shows he's sitting under a tent.

i think it's a good, sharp picture of him, if only i had caught him looking my way, but then again, i am already too shy about taking shots of people, i snuck this shot in from a row away.

raynbow