New Year, New Images, The California Trip Story, and more!

I am so sorry to all my followers that I have taken a month to update this. I have been so busy with preparing to graduate and editing images, working etc. Well where to start?

The California Trip
The California Trip was amazing. It was a real nice getaway from the cold and the snow of Colorado, not that i don't love it, but it's nice to get away sometimes. I met Gabby's family and loved them, and I think they loved me also. : ) Gabby's mom described me as looking like Clark Kent! Ha I'm Superman! I know I am!...... OK..... Well here's the story....


We got into LAX airport, drove up to Tehachapi, California where Gabby's aunt lives and stayed there for a day. Than we decided to drive up to San Francisco, one of my favorite cities I've been to, if not my favorite. We stayed in a hotel downtown which was beautiful I might add. There was a beautiful antique typewriter in the hotel that I had to shoot. I believe it was in every hotel room and was the hotels unique branding theme. We enjoyed the jacuzzi and heated pool well we were there, and actually ran across the street in our robes. Ha that's how we Coloradans do it! The only bad thing was I some how managed to get an ear infection when swimming. It's better now but not 100% : (

While we were in San Francisco we managed to visit a lot of places, and I managed to get a lot of shots (1,020 to be exact) We went to places like Fisherman's Wharf, Muir Beach, Muir Woods, Aquarium of the Bay, Lombard Street and the most interesting place of them all, Baker Beach. When searching for beaches in San Francisco where I could get a great view of The Golden Gate Bridge, I stumbled upon Baker Beach. It turns out the beach is a "nude" beach. Well we went there expecting nobody to be naked, because it was winter time. There were about 5 naked beings there. It was pretty interesting I must say. Of course well we were there I had to have a bread bowl of Clam Chowder and some sea food, something San Francisco is famous for. We had a blast in San Francisco, but sadly had to leave back to Gabby's aunts house for Christmas Eve.

On the way back to Tehachapi we rode through some interesting little towns, and took a drive down beautiful California Highway 1, which offers breathtaking views and beautiful beaches. We stopped by a beach where we spotted some surfers, and the waves of the ocean almost caused me to drop my camera and lose my sandals. It was a scary moment to say the least.

We continued back to Tehachapi, and finally got a chance to relax and wind down. The next day was Christmas! It was an odd Christmas for me, because it was the first Christmas with not one member of my family. It was fun though. Gabby received tons of presents from her family, including a lot of dishes, pots and pans. These are coming in handy now, because we can pretty much cook whatever we want because we have the tools to do so! I received a tripod and camera bag from Gabby, and my gift to her was in iPod Touch. Pretty fancy I know! Her family gave me a Swiss army knife, and some clothes. The knife will come in handy I'm sure!

A few hours after the Christmas festivities were over we drove down to Palmdale to visit Dennis Marie and Michael, who are Phil's part of the family. Phil is Gabby's Godfather and father figure, because he pretty much raised her, and he is a very special person to Gabby. Dennis and Marie and Michael were a great group of people. They were kind, intellectual and very welcoming! I was glad I got a chance to meet them. We chatted, had a beer, exchanged presents and had some dinner before heading back to Tehachapi. I noticed in Tehachapi, which is a small town that there is still a lot of beautiful sites to see including big white windmills and curvy hills and mountains. We spent the last day there packing up and getting ready to go back home.

It was back home to Denver. We got our stuff packed up, and headed down to LAX airport. On the way to the airport we stopped at Vasquez Rocks, which is California's version of Red Rocks here in Colorado. The rocks were gorgeous, and I was glad I had the opportunity to shoot them. Before heading to the airport we had to stop by In and Out Burger. They only have them in California and Nevada I believe. It's the best fast food burgers you can get. It was pretty smooth sailing back at the airport, not to packed, no long lines and we had plenty of time to relax before boarding the plane. Unfortunately well at the airport I had to watch the Broncos suffer a loss against the Eagles and ruin there playoff chances. They didn't make the playoffs, and it has come down to the Vikings against the Saints in the NFC Championship Game, and the Colts and Jets in the AFC.

Since we've been back in Denver, it's been pretty much the usual. Hanging out with the family, going to work and school, and taking care of our kid (dog) Skye. On New Years Eve we went to my cousin Chris's house and had a blast.

Only other things I really have to update you on is that, yes I am graduating this quarter and am very busy with things like: printing my portfolio, marketing materials, and working on getting a real web site up. This quarter my classes are: Career Development, Portfolio Expansion, Marketing, and College Algebra. Yes, I said College Algebra unfortunately. : (

So far going into my third week I have bought my portfolio case, paper, and am working on profiling my paper, and getting my prints to look as good as possible. The paper is Pictran Kyokushi, 13x19 and it's from Japan. I've done 1 print on the paper and am already amazed by the detail it displays, and the papers texture and it's not even a fixed profile yet! I will be working with my Dad who is a graphic designer on my logo and marketing materials.

Well there you go! Thanks for reading, and enjoy the images!

Until next time sayonara! (You just learned how to say goodbye in Japanese)