Blatherskite

Foolish gibberish

about

I am a Children’s Librarian living in the Portland, Oregon area. When I am not Children’s Librianing I like to play with cameras and film. I also like playing the ukulele, knitting, sketching, and hiking.

Weekly photo challenge – layers

November 15, 2013
So many layers of ick.

This week the WordPress Weekly Challenge theme is layers. Here is what Sara had to say about the subject:

Layers. Layers can reveal, conceal, and make something more complex. They can vary in size, texture, color, or functionality. Each layer can have its own story, meaning, or purpose. They can overlap, blend, or be distinctly separate. A layer doesn’t have to be a part of a single object but can even be a slice of a multifaceted image or scene.

As I combed through my Flickr archive I realized this photo would be perfect for this challenge. This is the Gum Wall of Seattle, Washington ( I wrote a bit about it on Pinhole Obscura).Sometime in the nineties bored theater patrons waiting in line started sticking their gum to the outside walls in the alley. Eventually it became a thing and the phenomenon that it is today.

The gum wall is oddly mesmerizing. It’s disgusting, no doubt. But there is something fascinating about the collaborative effort.

This photo was taken with my Canon EOS 650 and Fuji Neopan 400. I am down to one last roll of this wonderful film. I am kind of thinking I might switch to something else for awhile. What is your favorite black and white film?
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Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo

November 14, 2013
I wrote a blog post about the Carmel Mission in California over on Pinhole Obscura!

Pinhole Obscura

The California Missions represent Spain’s expansion in California. They were built specifically for military and evangelizing purposes – to convert Native Americans to Catholicism. Because of this I am always left with a bitter taste in my mouth when I visit these kinds of places. The places are beautiful today and sometimes even peaceful. But there is an underlying history of violence that shouldn’t be forgotten or ignored.

Mission San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo, or The Carmel Mission as it is more popularly known, is located in the beautiful town of Carmel-By-The-Sea. It is one of 21 Spanish missions in California, and the second one founded, in 1770.

These days one can eat lunch at Clint Eastwood’s restaurant while enjoying the stunning Pacific Coastline scenery and then visit the Carmel Mission next door. Maybe even pinhole the bell tower while they are there.

Camera: Zero 2000
Exposure…

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And then there was Jimi

November 12, 2013
I fucking love that this happened once upon a time. Yes, my passion for this particular moment in history is expletive worthy.
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about a cat.

November 9, 2013
I received some really sad news this morning. My mom told me that her cat, Dexter, died this morning. I am going to miss him. He was such a sweetheart. Such a cuddler. Whenever I picked him up and gave him a little squeeze he would literally hug me back. He let me hold him for a couple of minutes but then that was it. He would wiggle out of my arms and go back to whatever he was up to.

When I lived in Spokane I visited my mom often and since I don’t have pets of my own I really became close to her pets. I love animals and try to make friends with all of them whenever possible. Dexter and I were good friends for most of the time I knew him but there were a couple of years when our relationship was on the rocks. One day I was playing with him and, for some reason, I thought it would be fun to play catch with him so I threw a dog toy in his direction. The toy accidentally hit him. He was absolutely stunned. He immediately left my vicinity, shunning me entirely. For two years Dexter would leave the room when I arrived. TWO YEARS. He would have nothing to do with me. I am not sure what I did to gain his trust back, but he finally decided that we could be friends again and he let me pick him up and snuggle him. But man. That cat held a grudge!

I am going to miss Dexter hugs very much.
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about a camera.

November 8, 2013
A few weeks ago I wrote this down:

In 48 hours I will receive an Olympus Pen EE series half frame film camera that works perfectly and is in perfect shape. It will be given to me or it will be found at a local thrift store for under $10.

I was testing the universe to see if I could pull something out of thin air. To make something that I really want appear out of nowhere. I have been coveting an Olympus Pen EE half frame camera for a long time and thought, “why not?” I’d see if I could find one. Cameras seem to be appearing out of nowhere for me lately so why not one that I actually want?

So I spent the next few days visiting all of the thrift stores and antique shops in Sandy during my lunch break. Unfortunately I didn’t find an Olympus Pen during my shopping excursions. I was kind of bummed.

I also searched Ebay to see what I could find. I felt like this might be cheating so I didn’t take my searching too seriously. I found one that had been in someone’s attic and the bidding started at $9.99. This price fit my parameters but still, that nagging feeling that I was cheating persisted so I told myself that I would check again in a couple of days and if it was still around I would just buy it.

A couple of days went by and no one gave me their old Olympus Pen and I didn’t find one sitting on a shelf in a thrift store. I went back to Ebay. The auction I looked at earlier was in full swing and the bidding was up to $20. This just wasn’t going to work for me at all. So I scrolled through the list. I found one that was being sold for parts. The seller couldn’t “get the back open” and the “shutter was sticky.” He was selling it for around $12 and shipping was free. The free shipping was really what sold me. And $12 is close enough to $10. I figured it was worth the gamble. If it was broken I would fix it. There are plenty of tutorials online. I ordered it and it was on my doorstep two days later.

The issue with the back wasn’t an issue at all. I knew this when I bought it because I read the instruction manual and the back has a funny way of coming off. So there’s one problem already fixed. The shutter seemed to work fine to me as well. So I plopped some film it it and took it for a spin. Here is how this “broken camera” performed.

I do believe the universe came through after all!!

45.397636 -122.249231
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