"Send me a postcard when you get there!"

I love traveling! But I've only had the means to leave my hometown twice, and I've never been out of the country. Though I'm working on changing that I still can't wait to see the rest of the world!

My wanderlust fix for now are postcards, and Postcrossing helps me get that. With postcrossing I can send and recieve to people all over the world. It's awesome and like having mutiple pen pals all over the world(something else I've always wanted to do!). What I early like is that you never know where your going to receive a post card from. Everytime you send one you get one!

Some of my favorites:

 A la prochaine!

Road Trip Music

So today at 12:30pm I will be on my way to DC to go meet my father and then go to his house in VA. I will also be achieving my goal of traveling out of NYC twice this year!! I went to Baltimore the last weekend in July. So this is my second trip out of NYC and I've figured out that even though I'm going to be exhausted(it's 3:30am right now) I probably won't sleep or read the books I've packed.

Which leads me to Ipod. I don't know what I would do with out my music. I ALWAYS have my Ipod with me and I always have my headphones in(though sometimes there just in to keep people from harassing me on the sidewalk). I usually just put my Ipod on shuffle but there are a couple of albums that I can listen to from start to finish(all the while fighting the urge to sing out loud or dance in my seat!).

So there's album Sara Bareilles Kaleidoscope Heart

The soundtrack to the movie 500 Days of Summer

And the Black Eyed Peas album The Beginning

If none of these help with the 4 1/2 hr ride then I'll listen to my Harry Potter audiobook(number 5). Don't judge me!

 A la prochaine!

Wanderlust: Iceland

Iceland from Violenn Simon on Vimeo.

Wheels for the Summer

For the last couple of summers I've found my self stuck home during my one of my favorite seasons. Anytime I'm in school I don't buy metrocards, there brought for me. So when I'm on break from school, or not working, I'm stranded in at home. This summer I decided that I was going to invest in something that helped me feel...free. So here's my bike. It's beautiful, and I love it!

A la prochaine!

Wanderlust: Portland, Oregon

I've beening like I want to move out of NY for a while. For some reason I've been thiunking that I should move to Portland, Oregon. I don't know why. I have no family or friends out there. I'd be completely alone. So maybe that's whats calling to me, the fact that I'd have solotude. The fact that I'd have no one to depend on but myself. That's scary but also so exciteing at the same time.

What ever the reason(s) these images aren't helping!

 A la prochaine!

"Can We Kick It?"

I've always admired the friendships men have with other men. It always seems so effortless. The friendships just seem to happen there never seems to be some big back story like women sometimes have. "She was a friend of a friends sister, we hung out one day and became best friends!" The thing I admire most about male friendships is that they don't seem to have as much pressure as female friendships sometimes do. Or maybe when your friends with someone through art gender doesn't matter.

I say all this to introduce my friend Chad(again). We met a couple of years ago at an art show. We've kept in touch and when I saw he was coming to NY I jumped at the chance to hang out with him. He is a great artist, but an even better human being. Well it didn't happen, mostly because my phone is a jerk. The stupid thing takes calls, and alerts me of voicemail, only when it wants too. But I digress. I had planned to take some photographs of him, but since that didn't happen I've provided this nice link to his blog with images of his time in Brooklyn.  I don't know how or where he found the beauty in Brooklyn because I can't seem to find it here, and I'm a resident.

A la Prochaine!

Video of the Day: A Hill in Spain

A Hill in Spain from chris akrigg on Vimeo.

Soon I'm going to become a biking member of NYC. I promise that I will wear a helmet and will never attempt to do stunts off of hills and rocks. Never the less this I find this video awesome! While I'm trying to get the confidence to bike in the street there are people biking of hills. In Spain no less!

A la prochaine!

Maps

I've been doing some thinking about where I want to travel to this fall. I'm staying in the US. This time. I've never been farther then NJ, and have only been there because my father used to live there. I can't plan with out some kind of visual inspiration so I went to Barnes and Nobles and brought a map of the USA last week. Here's what I'm planning on doing.

From NY I'm going to go too:

• Charlotte, NC
• Then on to Virgina(where my father now lives),
• Then Baltimore(to see one of my uncle, I have two favorites. the other lives in Chicago)
• New Jersey(to see my nephew)
• and then back home to NY.

 If you look at all of these places on a map you'll see that I'll be going in a straight path from NC onward. That's kind of why I chose these places. That and the fact that I will only need to stay in a hotel in NC, all the other places I can stay with family! So that's the plan, and though plans change I hope this one doesn't.

A la prochaine!

Project 365: Day 26/ The End

I had a plan, but things never go exactly as you want them to go. My project 365 didn't get funded. Boo hoo. Though I am disappointed I'll get over it. Just because one part of my plan fell through doesn't mean I'm going to give up on the things I want to accomplish this year. Though this is going to be a little bit harder now. I'm still going to have my degree by the end of the summer. I'm still going to travel somewhere outside of NY twice.  At the end of this year I'm still going to create my first book.

I'm just going to have to be a tad more creative now that I don't have any extra funds. Money is VERY tight for me these days! Actually money is always tight for me. My time is also very limited so project 365 is going to be postponed for now. Let me explain what that means. When I decided to do this project I wanted to do it a certain way. I wanted to do it with instant film. That's just not possible right now.  So though I will be taking alot of photographs, and sharing them here, I won't be doing a photography every day. For the majority of the time I'll be using my digital camera. A soon as I can I will buy an external hard drive.

At the end of the year my book is going to be a little bit different, now that I'm not taking a photograph every day. For now though I'm keeping the details of that my little secret.

 A la prochaine!

Thoughts on my Bike by Andrea Dofman

One of my goals for 2011 is to start bike riding in the warm months. There's now way I'm riding a bike in the cold weather. With MTA fares continuously rising as soon as it gets warm enough, and only when there's no rain in the forecast, I'll be moving around on two wheels!

My mother brought this bike off a man looking for a drink for $5 years ago! It's an ugly pink bike with two flat tires. I think the brakes are bad too. I'm going to get in fixed up nice and pretty like ASAP!

A la prochaine!

Dumbo Pt. 2

Taken Dec 17, 2010 in Brooklyn, NY.

Dumbo Pt. 1

I went to Powerhouse Arena in Dumbo back in the last month of 2010. It was awesome, but I'm never going there again by myself at night with out pepper spray or some kind of weapon of mass destruction! Dumbo is filled with old warehouses turned new business(all of which where closed). The street are very small and sometimes the difference between where I'm supposed to walk and where the cars drive isn't always clear. But I love Dumbo all the same.

There were two exhibits on view that night. Humankind and Katsu and DestroyRebuild. For more information about the exhibits click here. I enjoyed both exhibits equally. I think there on view until January 20th. I will post the rest of the images I took in the week.

A la prochaine!

Ignoring those pessimistic voices. Mine and others.

Today's post is dedicated to self doubt, pride and pessimism.
So as you guys may know starting January 1st I'm going to be doing Project 365. In the middle of last week I made the decision to make a book and do this project. That's big, and I'm very proud of my self! I've been trying to figure out how I wanted to approach the project. Digital or film photographs. I'm crazy about film photography, more specifically instant photography. I was devastated when Polaroid stopped making film, but very excited about Fuji's new instant film cameras.
I decided that I want to do the whole project using this camera. It would be great! It would help me become a better photographer. It would help me with the tiny problem I have with creating something every day. The only problem I have is funding this project. I HATE asking for anything! I'm a prideful creature, and along with that pride is the tiny pessimistic voice that I carry around with me. My main problem is that I can talk myself out of anything! I also come from a family of pessimistic individuals. I say that pessimism is our religious view, they don't like that.... I started doing some research in hopes of finding some inspiration, and some way of funding my project with out feeling like I'm begging.
I found this web site called Kickstarter, where you can ask people to help you fund creative projects. Score!! I found out about it when my friend sent me a link to her project. View it here. I've been working on writing my project out. I'm very good when it comes to talking about something, but have a hard time getting it on paper. Send some positivity my way and I promise to continue battling my pessimistic ways.

A la prochaine!

Documentaries

"Lost In The Night" from The Madbury Club on Vimeo.

The Black Girl Project {a short} from Aiesha Turman on Vimeo.

I really want to create a documentary...I have for a very long time. Maybe this will be something I try to do after I finish Project 365. One thing at a time. On a side note: Did notice me in the second film? I'm very blessed to have met or know people that have made these documentaries or are in them.

A la prochaine!

Aim High

Today's Goal

1. Resist the urge to run home grab cameras and explore, explore, explore!
   
2. Leave computer lab, go to library and attempt to study for last two finals tomorrow evening
3. 7pm tonight, a free show at Therapy Wine Bar in Brooklyn, NY with Selzin. Gotta love live music!

Tomorrow

1. Finish sketchbook
   
2. Find Brian Wren, my tattoo artist
3. Draw tattoo ideas
   
4. Make an appointment to get new ink!
   

Baby Steps

Have you ever wanted to just pack a bag a leave...the country? I've been feeling that way. I made a promise to my self to take a long trip after I get my degree(by the way I'll be finish next fall!). I really want to go to France. If you can make it in NY you can make it any where right? I took Spanish in high school and college, though I can't speak it, at all! I started taking French lessons with these podcast I found on itunes. Coffee Break French is amazing. I may not be a pro when I finally make my trip to France, but at least I'll be able to ask for food and water! Check this out also.

SO I've been trying to find some art exhibits to go to. I really like going to the open reception's. I love hearing what other people have to say about the art. It's how I learn. I went looking for some opening reception's online for this month and found this web site here. I'm really excited about this because they have listings for not only areas of NY , but also places like Chicago and LA. Places I will visit someday!