Sarah and Victor are beyond doubt two of the sweetest, nicest people I have ever met. There is no doubt in my mind that Stasia will grow up equally sweet because she'll never know anything but love from these two.

 
 
We headed out to the park for a little bit of sunshine and play.


 
  



Victor was testing out the Stasia rocket, ready for launch! Just kidding, no baby was harmed during this shoot.



I love the little bumbo throne, and it was Stasia's first exposure to grass, and once she got her little hands on that grass... the grass + bumbo portrait session was over.


 
The inevitable fed up baby face, always a good indicator that a break is needed.


 
Her face when she caught me watching her was priceless.


 
And why do I think that Vic and Sarah are goofy? I think the evidence speaks for itself. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em! Family portrait #2
 
Family portrait #3:


 
Sarah and Vic, your new little family is so adorable, it was such a treat hanging out with you guys. I'm going to love watching this little one grow up. :)

Seventeen days ago my friend Ricky started taking a picture a day and uploading it into an album he called "three six five." Essentially, it's a picture a day for a whole year. At least... that's the goal. Anyway, big bully that he is, he managed to get an impressive number of people on board, including me. You would think that after taking so many pictures that I'd get tired or bored, but for some reason, the 365 project is a great creative outlet for me. It's like working out a muscle, taking pictures daily helps me see things a little differently and (I think) shoot better. Plus it's also an interesting way to connect with your friends, what they photograph and why.



You can check out the whole album here.

A couple days ago I met up with Albert for a fun photoshoot. He didn't want anything too contrived (reasonable) and even picked a grocery store for some shots (interesting!). So I turned paparazzi for the day (or at least an hour), and just followed him around his 'hood.
 

Yesterday I met up with Ellen at Wurstküche, a trendy, minimalistic hot dog eatery in the artist district of downtown Los Angeles. We had originally made a date for tea, but somehow ended up at a sausage-and-beer place. It has some rather exotic flavors like rattlesnake and rabbit, along with the more traditional bratwursts.



The meal also made me very nostalgic for Top Dog, a hot dog "stand" in Berkeley. Because though a good smoked chicken apple is more readily available than it used to be, how can it beat the late night memories of political debates with the Top Dog guy as he handles both your hot dog and your money with his bare hands?

 

Afterwards, we walked around for a bit, the people seem to paint on every surface imaginable. Guess what's below:
  It's a dumpster. We eventually ended up at Little Tokyo for some cream puffs at Beard Papa.
I rarely visit downtown LA, it feels like parts of LA are worlds away because of traffic. But the very first place Tony and I lived in together was downtown LA. Downtown is a place that is convenient to everything but close to nothing. But it has it's own charms and I definitely miss it. It brought a lot of memories as I was driving through some of the places I walked through while living there.

Breakfast at the Pantry
 
Walt Disney Concert Hall

 

French dip sandwiches and pickled eggs at Philippes
 
The tomato basil empanada at the Farmer's market
 
But mostly I think I miss seeing all the skyscrapers and bright lights that characterized my imagination of Los Angeles growing up. Below is the view from my apartment "backyard." I took this picture one night after we were walking back from a modern rendition of the "Taming of the Shrew" at the Catheral of our Lady of the Angels (complete with a wii they somehow incorporated into the performance).

 

Bye downtown.

Who knew, that behind Irvine's tidy little facade, lurks a wasteland of concrete pipes and tractors?



My favorite pic of the day.