jack's o'lantern

Where does one draw the line between art, a mild form of child abuse and just purely amazing? 

artist: goldie

subject: jack g.

photographer: ribods

location: 715

purpose: pumpkin-butt halloween cards

a beautiful place

What makes a place beautiful?

Is it the buildings?

Or the mountains?

Maybe the language?

Could it be the drinks?

Perhaps it's the people we meet.

Or the laughs that we laughed.

I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

 It's hard to say that this place chosen to exchange vows, somewhere in the mountains, on a lake, somewhere in neutral territory in a far away land is anything but...beautiful.

For this and more, come to Spiez

i'm coming home

When I was a student at Somers High School, there was something always magical about homecoming.  Maybe it was the entire week of spirit days leading up to the football game or perhaps feeling a sense of not only having Tusker pride, but class pride as well.  On that fall weekend each year in the late-90's, the air always got a little cooler, there were parties, car pools, ridiculous clothing, and face paint all throughout Somers.  

 We were serious about our spirit.

And now...the year is 2010 and I return to that same field for the first time since I graduated.  The field is now covered in turf and the school has been redesigned.  I almost cannot even recognize it, but I notice the sea of red, black, white and silver.  There is still face paint and Tusker pride is greater than I have seen it in a long time.  

I found myself sitting with a few former classmates on this beautiful evening.  We caught up.  We reminisced.  We laughed.  We cheered.  We were Tuskers. 

Even the love birds came out.

 And I experienced the new, up and coming generation of Tuskers.
(all of these kiddies were produced by one tusker)

  Not too different from the older generation of Tuskers.

There were no class floats going around the track.  No t-shirts made with the Superman "S." There was no bon-fire. The band was half the size as I remember it.  The cheerleaders just weren't as loud without Ashley, Laura, Tara, Angela, Dana, Jacky, and Jenn screaming, "BOOM Dynamite....BOOM BOOM Dynamite."

It's okay...because I was home.

Not Your Typical Lays Potato Chip

Potato Chips. Also known as just plain 'chips' or 'crisps' in other parts of the world.  Virtually a side dish to any meal, but can easily stand on it's own as a snack.  Originating in Saratoga Springs, New York...this snack accounts for over thirty-five percent of the global savory snack market.  And yet, with all the culinary treats prepared in 3D, no one has ever attempted to make them.

Until now.



She sliced (thinly). She fried (deeply in evoo). She peppered and salted (cracked and from the sea)....even made a magic fondu with truffle oil, bacon and blue cheese.

The chips were delicious on their own.  And for someone (me) who is not fond of cream sauces, fondu included....it wasn't so bad after all.  Then again, everything is better with bacon.

Credits: Roommate acted solely in the preparation and execution of this snack. 

at last

I've been having trouble...trouble finding the right words to describe this wedding day.  I keep going back to the photos, hoping fuel some type of poetic magic, but I come up empty.  I've come to a conclusion that it is hard to find words when.....

this is the view walking down the aisle;

and this is what everyone has been waiting for;

and this is "thank you mommy";

and this is "I love you daddy";

and this is "I do";

and this is a barefoot, beach cocktail hour;

and this just makes me laugh;

and this is the esperanza;

and these are the spirits...be it shaken, stirred, on the rocks, with a twist of lime or just shot; 

and these are the proud parents from that place I call home and their children;

and these are just some of the guests;

and these are the beat fighters;

and this is the bride and groom fighting their own beats;

and this...well, this is Danielle and Paul.

Oh...and this is a little motion picture with one hundred and eighty of my favorite snapshots from this day.

Can't wait for the empire state wedding!!

after hours with mexican flair

Even though we spent about 80% of our time in Cabo at the pool, we did venture off the compound...it was a rarity, but it was well worth the dangerous cab rides at high speeds.  There were delicious dinners, a little dancing, learning of some magic tricks, and there was even some musical talent among the group.  

garden dining at la panga

sun-kissed. hungry. thirsty. and hot. 

daddy's little girl

oh...those rios girls.

"dead serious" - take one

dead serious - for real.  it looks like LB had been looking for her puppy all day with no luck.

deep in tequila thought

the world renown pink kitty. aunce. aunce. aunce. 

our little fiddler and maraca man.

these two were truly enamored by the ole' can stuck to the hand trick.  oldest trick in the mexican magic book.

for more images you won't find on the cabo city-search night-life website, click here.

the little things we tend to forget

It is hard to be at a beach destination wedding and take notice of something other than the blue ocean water, the infinity pool and the people around you.  In between the laughs, the drinks, the lotion re-applications and catching a football, I made it a point to walk around.....

...walk around and capture something interesting.  On my walk I could not help but fall in love with these little guys...

Sea turtles.  They hatched that first morning in Cabo in their little sanctuary on the beach.  They were brought from that little sanctuary to the shoreline.  I could not image how scared these two little reptiles were to face those strong waves...alone.  But instinct told them to head for the water...and they did just that.

And then there was this bottle of tequila that kept popping up everywhere we went.  The ceramic bottle that is hand painted and whether tequila is your thing or not, it is just beautiful.

Being the early bird and putting towels on the chairs in the morning, I was greeted with this breath-taking scene of the sun rising, the waves crashing and solitude on the beach. 

What would Mexico be without guacamole and fajitas?

I'm pretty sure this was the only life saving apparatus at the pool. 

I could not help but admire these fixtures every night at the hotel bar. 

Words cannot describe this molten chocolate tamal baked in a corn husk with ice cream.

I am not a shoe person, but these shoes resonated with me...maybe it was the big bows or perhaps the patent leather, but they were just stunning as they walked into room 4038. 

After looking through my photos, I was sad to not have captured more of the little things we tend to forget about when we are in a magical place.  Regardless, here is a small collection of snapshots...a few things my eye thought were special.