Carlos Almendárez Jr

It feels like we’ve been on the road forever now. As I count the days of the purpose of this blog I’ll admit that it feels like I have been away from SF about a month now.

We finally arrived on the west coast! We started off in Massachusetts and finally made it back to some blue states. I can now breathe a sigh of relief.

I wasn’t expecting much from Olympic National Park. Honestly, I picked it because it was somewhat close to Crater Lake which is our next destination. I am now glad that I stopped here. The park itself isn’t as well structures as a Yellowstone or Grand Tetons but the view of the Olympic Mountain range are beyond description. I felt as though I had gone to heaven or at very least was strolling through the cover images of those Jehovah’s witness pamphlets you see around every now and then. The combination of sea, meadows, mountains and glaciers is completely surreal to someone like me. I will let the pictures do the talking:

The itinerary from here is:
Crater Lake (Oregon)
San Francisco (1 day to rest)
Los Angeles (visit my family)
San Diego (to deliver the car – it belongs to Lauren’s sister)
Back home to SF (haven’t quite figured out if I would fly or not).


Caption (above): Lauren and I at the top of hurricane ridge overlooking the Olympic mountain range


Caption (above): Lauren


Caption (above): The pictures can’t describe how amazing the meadow with mountains in the background looked



Caption (above): The wilflowers and snow-capped mountains were just begging for a picture


Caption (above): The drive up the mountain was fun


Caption (above): At close to 6,000 feet the top of the mountain was like a cloud sanctuary




Caption (above): I was stalking this deer


Caption (above): At sea level it was in the 80’s but just a 30 minute drive up the hill there was still snow. Odd.


Caption (above): We managed to make it over to Seattle via ferry. See space needle in background

We are on day 7 and 8 of our road trip. The Grand Tetons are right below Yellowstone, but couldn’t be more different. For starters, there are waaaay less tourists. The main attraction is the mountain range and there’s a lot more wildlife. It’s majestic and less diverse in terms of terrain than Yellowstone but no less spectacular. We scored a great campsite in Signal Mountain overlooking Jackson Lake. From here on out the plan is to go to big Sky, Montana for one night and head to Portland as we go to Crater Lake (Oregon).

Some pictures from the Grand Tetons National Park:


Caption (above): The Grand Tetons


Caption (above): I thought the flag made a cool backdrop.


Caption (above): More of the Tetons


Caption (above): This picture looks awesome when you blow it up. I don’t have a reliable internet connection for large file uploads to flickr, but will upload them when I get back to SF.


Caption (above): Mule-ear deer?


Caption (above): I believe this is an elk. I could be totally wrong.


Caption (above): Wildflowers and Tetons


Caption (above): Wildflowers and Tetons

THESE PICTURES BELOW ARE FROM DAY TWO IN THE GRAND TETONS:




Caption (above): This one takes the cake for most random things to happen. We are quite literally in the middle of nowhere and we see a small road with 30 or so Porsches. Of course we pull over and start posing with them. Some of them were censored for your safety.


Caption (above): The Tetons are wow, wow, and more wow.


Caption (above): You know, for a second you almost take the beauty for granted. The whole place is just stunningly picturesque.


Caption (above): I am going back with a kayak or canoe. Seriously. That’s my new summer itinerary: just hang out at national parks.


Caption (above): More of Jenny Lake


Caption (above): au natural, blonde ale? With the blonde skinny dipping in the lake? Hahah. Good beer, too.


Caption (above): Is that a falcon?




Caption (above): We hung out in “town” and apparently they are well-known for the elk arches. I found this funny considering there is an elk refuge about a block away.

Referring to my last post – Yellowstone is a “classical beauty”. I can’t say I’ve ever been to a more beautiful place than Yellowstone national park. What is most impressive to me is its scale and varied landscapes.

More so than Yosemite, Yellowstone attracts an unbelievable amount of tourists. You could easily spend days here and only leave your car for a couple of minutes to stop at the vistas.

Yellowstone is a quadruple threat: mountains, waterfalls, rivers meadows and much more.

For some, our national parks system evokes a certain pride: a sense of pride in the beauty of our nation. As a city boy, the national parks bring up a certain sadness over the urbanization of this nation. Don’t get me wrong – I love the city, but experiencing the splendor of Yellowstone makes you realize that we have truly robbed ourselves of the beauty of the outdoors by limiting ourselves to the conveniences of the cities and suburbs.

At this point I’m really considering a couple of things. First, I may work/volunteer to work at a national park next summer. It would be a good way to see the parks, get free housing and learn a ton about our parks. My second plan is to go to Denali national park in Alaska next year. We’ll see. Like this year’s plan - I kind of let them develop last minute.




Caption (above): Old faithful is the big tourist attraction at Yellowstone. I thought it was lame. It wasn’t picturesque and the only thing remotely interesting about it is that it blows like clockwork, though apparently there is another geyser at Yellowstone that is more accurate.


Caption (above): I slid down some crazy canyon to get to this waterfall. It was definitely worth it as I took some pictures and dipped my feet. I think other tourists were jealous.









Caption (above): The thermal springs at Yellowstone were some of the most oddly beautiful things I have ever seen. Coming from Los Angeles, we don’t really see much of that. The colors were just spectacular.



Caption (above): Considering they boil at hundreds of degrees, I would hate to fall in one of these (especially since they are all over the park). Apparently, 60% of the world’s geysers are at Yellowstone.



Caption (above): I found this amusing. Oops on putting his plates on the net. I doubt he’ll mind.


Caption (above): There was a great fire in 1988 that burned tons of trees, so a lot of Yellowstone is forests of dead trees. It’s sad but beautiful.


Caption (above): I won’t lie – the bears scared me. I don’t mess with things I can’t outrun or kill.


Caption (above): Again – so many lakes. I wish I could have spent another month there.


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Caption (above): I loved wading in streams




Caption (above): One of the hundreds of waterfalls at Yellowstone. I LOVE waterfalls, and this place was paradise for me.




Caption (above): Yellowstone falls was AMAZING. It was like a combination of the grand canyon and Yosemite falls.


Caption (above): Me at Yellowstone falls.


Caption (above): I could spend months taking pictures at Yellowstone. Here is one guy with a $5,000 zoom lens.


Caption (above): Hello Mr. Bison

The badlands of South Dakota (see pictures above) possess are elusively beautiful, if only escaping my ability as a writer to describe them. In the world of nature there are classic beauties – (see Yellowstone pictures in next blog) – but at least for me rarely do I encounter the grandeur of the desert landscape. The badlands are nature’s eyesore – a product of millions of years f erosion.

I can’t say I can recall ever going for a walk that was less than 20 minutes and being totally dizzy from the heat. The 95 degree heat plus humidity was brutal.


Mt. Rushmore (South Dakota), as expected, completely underwhelmed. Basically – you roll up to a parking lot take pictures of a mountain for 10 minutes and then you leave. Oh, and parking is $15. You should go if it happens to be on your way but otherwise, it’s a bit of a letdown.

Here go some other random pictures:







Caption (above): More state signs


Caption (above): A ghost town in the badlands. I believe it was called “scenic”. I liked how this one came out. A total surprise as I thought the image was rather crappy when I took it.


Caption (above): Stranded car


Caption (above): You see these bales of hay everywhere through certain states. I saw more hay than people or cars. Wisconsin – I’m looking at you.






Caption (above): Me at the badlands


Caption (above): One of the most exciting parts of this trip was our off-road experience in the badlands. We took the sheep mountain road and went a good 20 miles out of the way to a place with no people (except for one car that showed up as we left). It felt so good to go off the beaten path.


Caption (above): Rusty mailbox in the badlands. This was funny only because I saw a fed-ex truck earlier that day and I couldn’t believe they delivered there. I couldn’t think of a place more remote than the badlands.

The badlands was just ripe for pictures. I could have spent DAYS there and been happy taking pictures. There were a series of flowers that I really liked that I will include below:

Not every day can be jam packed with recognizable attractions. Day 3 was mostly driving.

I will digress from my previous rants for a second and talk about the role of technology in our trip. Like any self respecting geek I wouldn’t dream of embarking on this trip without a couple of gadgets. Especially when it came to getting lost, these tools proved to be very valuable.


1 – Maps
Note: We did plan rather meticulously and had an excel sheet with our itinerary along with paper maps of all sorts.


2- Laptop with broadband
Note: The laptop came in super handy. Not only could we watch entourage on my dvd player but we looked up cheap motels to stay in as well as yelped pizza places in Chicago.

3 – Blackberries (Google maps on blackberry)
Note: The blackberry is probably the most useful thing on the trip, in my opinion. You can use google maps for blackberry to know exactly where you are and if you are lost you can get detailed directions. You can also email friends or go on facebook and let people know where you are in case you go missing.

4- Gps system
Note: Not mine, but it came with the car. This one was a bit temperamental but in conjunction with our blackberries and laptop we had a plan A, B and C.



5 - Books on tape
Note: Last but not least there’s books on tape. We chose On The Road by Kerouac and it was a perfect choice. So much of what was read was so relevant to any young traveler that I recommend it to anyone who wants to escape, even if only from your cubicle. Be careful though – it may inspire you to never go back home.


Caption (above): The longest freeway in the USA apparently. We have been on it for a LONG time.




Caption (above): I can’t even believe how beautiful some parts of this country are.


Caption (above): At the spam museum. Seriously. Also – reminded that people outside of big cities are really friendly.


Caption (above): hahahaha. Yup, go Blue Earth, Minnesota


Caption (above): Me


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Caption (above): At Spam Museum


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Caption (above): Let me tell you, getting all the state signs is NOT easy.

Caption (above): We had the munchies and wanted some pizza…so what better place to go than Chicago!




Caption (above): The Chicago skyline


Caption (above): I have ALWAYS wanted to see the Jordan statue. That’s really one of the only reasons we decided to stop in Chicago. To be fair – it was a great city. I would definitely go back to visit.


Caption (above): I have ALWAYS wanted to do this. haha




Caption (above): Chicago pizza lived up to the hype. I love Zacchary’s in Berkeley, but this was awesome.


Caption (above): We saw a lot of this on the road. I’m looking at you Pennsylvania



Caption (above): More farms


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Day 1 ( 7.12.2008): Lakeville, Massachusetts



From the beginning, the idea behind my little road trip was a journey to understand the essence of our nation.

I don’t say that in an overly-patriotic or Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants kind of way as much as I say it believing that there is no ONE America. From the moment I caught my connecting flight to Boston, Massachusetts in Charlotte, North Carolina it has been a culture shock.

You’d be inclined to think that my culture shock is a veiled way of my saying that I think my culture, values or beliefs are superior to others, but really it’s my way of seeing the rest of this nation and constantly being surprised at how different people are from me.

My blogs from this trip, I hope will be a record of my thoughts and what I have learned and hopefully the things that my travels have made me reconsider or at the very least contemplate.

One thing this trip has made me realize is how stress affects our lives. I consider myself a very chill person but being on vacation has forced me to realize that stress alters breathing patterns, blood pressure and all kinds of things. It feels great to not have a worry in the world.

Visiting Lauren’s family brought me back to a thought I’ve had for a long time now. In my life I can’t really say that I can really call anyplace home. Los Angeles as a whole is my home, but I can’t point to a particular building or home that I have an attachment to. It was interesting to talk to Lauren and her relatives and see the sense of history they have and memories of both their community and of growing up in their home.


Caption (above): Lake house in Lakeville, Mass


Caption (above): The launch point for our lake adventures


Caption (above): We enjoyed a great afternoon on the pond. Let’s just say that I sucked at my first water skiing attempt.


Caption (above): Lauren has skills.


Caption (above): The road trip mobile: 2005 BMW X3


Caption (above): I hate dogs, but these were cute.


Caption (above): Sweet car at the airport


Caption (above): We enjoyed a great dinner on the island. Steak and corn!

My friend Lindsay and I recently went on a hike to the Marin headlands. One of my favorite pictures from that set:




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I recently took some pictures at a friend’s daughter’s birthday party. Some of my favorite pictures from that event:







I have to say that shooting children is both awesome because of how happy they are but also incredibly difficult because they’re unpredictable and they don’t necessarily know what you’re doing so they don’t know to be cooperative. Despite the difficulty, kids are genuinely happy and I love that.

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You can never go wrong with theme parties. My friend had an 80’s party and we all met up at a local roller rink.






Caption (above): Ugly sweater + super tight jeans = 80’s?


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We kicked it old school on 4th of July. I got together with some friends for a BBQ and a game of adult kickball.




Caption (above): Catching the ball while having a cup full of…beverage… is not as easy as it looks.

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I went on one of my favorite hikes this weekend: Estero trail @ Point Reyes. This was one of the larger groups I’ve been able to assemble in quite some time. I think about 16 people showed.


One thing that was interesting was comparing my pictures from two years ago when I had a Sony point and shoot camera. Take the pictures from the abandoned boat as an example:





The pictures above, I think are very different from the ones I take today.

See comparison pictures from this weekend:









I left up the black and white with its color comparison mainly because I liked both.

Some other pictures from the hike:


Caption (above): Me next to the abandoned boat


Caption (above): Me avoiding flies


Caption (above): Our group


Caption (above): Friend Edgardo and I


Caption (above): The gang


Caption (above): I wish I could have captured it better, but the way the fog rolled over the estero was amazing in person (not so much as an image)


Caption (above): I am fascinated by large rocks next to bodies of water




Caption (above): Lauren, Nicole and Connie


Caption (above): Clyming a tree (hehe – get it?)

One of my favorite clichéd ways to start a blog entry is: “there’s something to be said for” insert the blank.

Well, there’s something to be said for crossing something off your to do list.

The other day Lauren and I were kicking around ideas for a vacation. Something opened up in my schedule and I was able to plan a kick-ass trek across the country to visit our nation’s national parks. As luck will have it Lauren’s sister needs someone to drive her BMW X3 so we gladly obliged.



Start point: Boston, Massachusetts (that’s where Lauren’s sister lives)
End point: San Diego, California (where Lauren’s sister will be moving)

We are going to do a national parks tour, so:
Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming)
Grand Tetons National Park (Wyoming)
Glacier National Park (Montana )
Olympic National Park (Montana)
Crater Lake National Park (Oregon)
Yosemite National Park (California)
Death Valley National Park National Park (California)
Joshua Tree National Park National Park (California)


Seems like a lot, doesn't it? Well, luckily I have from July 11th to August 3rd to do it.

Theme song:



There will be a LOT of pictures to be taken.

I’ve had a blackberry for roughly a year now. It’s pretty amazing how much it has become a part of my daily routine. Most of my friends now are blackberry users and this list is a product of thinking about the many ways in which they have taken over our lives.

Feel free to add to the list.

I am also attaching some pictures from our infamous “crackberry” collection. Keep in mind these are all pictures of me and my friends, not pulled off a website or anything.


Caption (above): Blackberry in the club.


Caption (above): Blackberry at sporting events.


Caption (above): Blackberry buddies. There’s safety in numbers.


Caption (above): Watch, check. Wallet, check. Beer, check. Oh yes, and the blackberry.


Caption (above): The women made us put down our phones (ok, slight exaggeration).


Caption (above): Email / dining multi-tasking


Caption (above): Fu*k, was that a touchdown? Ok, where was I with this email?


Caption (above): Cross-referencing on multiple blackberries. An extended desktop, if you will.


Caption (above): Crackberried out in our nation’s capital. An ode to America.


Caption (above): Mmm, yeah? I’m working here (or browsing craigslist).


Caption (above): What poison ivy?


Caption (above): Yeah, honey, I’m on the middle of the woods but the red curtains are definitely the way to go. Email me a sample pic and we’ll go from there. If I don’t pick up, just email me. Loves ya!

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1 You can blast off an email while driving (think knees on wheel, hands on blackbery)
2 You've heard your blackberry vibrate after 2am and rather than going back to sleep - you check your email
3 You ask people to email you instead of calling you
4 You have checked your blackberry while a significant other is naked in your bed
5 Your girlfriend/boyfriend has told you that your blackberry use is unacceptable
6 Your girlfriend/boyfriend has broken up with you over blackberry usage
7 On one or many occasion you have found yourself checking your blackberry in the restroom
8 While on a date you take a bathroom break to check your email
9 A friend has asked you to please put the blackberry down to have a conversation with them
10 A friend has given you guidelines on when blackberry use is not appropriate
11 You frequently use the term crackberry
12 You’ve replied to work related emails from a bar, club etc
13 You reply to work emails after 10pm (weekdays) and weekends
14 You wake up in the middle of the night – drink water, go to bathroom…and check your email
15 You check your email at stoplights while driving
16 You’ve been honked at for missing a light due to being on your blackberry
17 You check your email on your blackberry…while on your email on your desktop/laptop
18 You have a work blackberry and a personal blackberry
19 If free - you cannot withold the urge to check your blackberry if it vibrates/rings/red light goes off
20 You have checked email during a flight – when phones were supposed to be off
21 You check email at the movies
22 You've sent an email to a person while you are supposed to be having a conversation with them
23 You get "phantom vibrations" (you feel your device vibrate, even when the device is not with you)
24 You grow angry at people who don’t email back within the hour
25 You suspect you've been in a car accident as a result of blackberry usage
26 You sleep with the blackberry by your side
27 Your right thumb is worn where it makes contact with the scroll wheel
28 You are left handed and you learned to use your right hand in order to use a blackberry
29 You find yourself working...during work meetings
30 Phone sex circa 1999 meant a phone call. In 2008 to you that means emailing them.
31 Your close circle of friends includes at least 5 blackberry users
32 You talk on your personal cell phone while emailing on your work blackberry
33 Email has replaced texting or actual phone calls
34 You've fallen asleep with blackberry in hand
35 You believe your blackberry has given you carpal tunnel
36 You refuse to believe the I-phone or Treo are better than the blackberry
37 You’ve convinced someone else to get a blackberry
38 You can’t commit to an appointment without checking your blackberry calendar
39 You freak out when RIM has an occasional lapse of service
40 You’ve said: “I don’t know what I’d do if I lost this thing”
41 You have been at a table where every person has been on their blackberry
42 You use your blackberry as an alarm to wake you up
43 You have named your blackberry
44 A couple of times a year you find yourself somewhere without reception and you utter the words “it feels so good to be free”
45 You’ve left a meeting to email or take a phone call (all while in a meeting)
46 You find yourself constantly going on google/Wikipedia to settle disputes in non-work situations
47 You have uttered the words “I never thought I’d be one of those people” (in reference to blackberry usage)
48 You have called RIM – in Canada – on days when Blackberry service has been down
49 You carry an extra battery for your blackberry…just in case
50 You have checked email at a funeral
51 You have checked email in a “romantic setting”
52 At halftime you run to your blackberry to check email before going back in the game
53 You have given your email address to a woman/man instead of your phone #
54 You have expressed gratitude to another blackberry addict because “they understand you”
55 You’ve noticed that your email interactions are so quick they’re almost IM (instant messages)
56 You have thought an area/country was uncivilized because they didn't get blackberry signal
57 You've looked up porn on your blackberry
58 You've made a purchase over $200 via blackberry

I realized yesterday that very rarely do we acknowledge the nice things people do, particularly in a public forum. Well, I’m making this the acknowledge something nice that has been done for you day.



About two weeks ago my girlfriend Lauren threw me a surprise birthday party. As far as birthdays go, it’s not my style to celebrate them. I just never have. In spite of this Lauren decided to meticulously plan a surprise birthday party for me that included some of my favorite things (Lauren is included in the list of my favorite things, just fyi).

I think the card sums it up well:







Basically, she took
1- My favorite people in a limousine
2- One of my favorite pastimes (wine tasting)
3- MY favorite wines (white wines)
4- My favorite sandwiches for lunch (caprese sandwiches)
5- My favorite dinner spot with more good friends who couldn’t make it to the wine tasting
6- Arrangements to watch my favorite team in the NBA finals while at the restaurant


That, my friends, is how you throw a great birthday surprise.

What’s that show called…BEST WEEK EVER!

Well, that has been my mantra this week. Let’s start with CNN.



Most of you saw the picture (above) I took at City Hall last week. I truly thought it was a historic event and a step forward in equal rights for Americans. Well, I submitted the image to Ireport.com (a subsidiary of CNN) and within a few hours I was given a call by a CNN producer to tell me that it was on CNN TV and on the CNN Main page.



For my picture to be on one of the US’s top visited websites was pretty cool. I generally don’t say that I was proud of myself – but I definitely am.

MY CNN Page: http://www.ireport.com/docs/DOC-36560

In addition to CNN, I was contacted by the news director at the SF Chronicle and was told:

“Calmenda -- That photo you submitted, Two Worlds Collide, is fantastic”

I lagged on submitting it to the Marin Independent Journal but their photo editor wrote:

“Thank you submitting this image. We are a daily paper and this is photo is dated. I would of loved it the day of the event! In the future please submit news photos ASAP.”

These are all lessons for me. I am new to all of this and I am happy with the progress that I’ve made.


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I am now 27! Wooohooo! Thanks to all the people who emailed / yelped / facebook / myspace / texted / called me. Man, that was a lot.

The other day I saw someone make one of these collages so I was inspired to make one of myself over the years for my own amusement:



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And finally – here is my picture with Kelly Carlson from the show Nip / Tuck. I think my buddy was so nervous to meet her that he forgot to hold down the focus button.

She has been known to look like:


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It’s official – the gold cleats have come out of retirement. After a 2 year hiatus I have started to play again and am currently looking to try out for a couple of teams to see if I can play on a local men’s squad (on top of the coed teams I usually play on).


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Found these while cruising in Potrero Hill:


Caption (above): Sickest car ever?

I picked up a Canon 40D yesterday. Muahahahaha



The first pictures from the 40D did well and managed to get chosen to be featured in the San Francisco Chronicle’s online gallery. I went out to support equality in marriage at SF City Hall and three of my pictures were chosen:







Links: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/contribute/sn/photo?plckPhotoID=80f3b684-41ad-4534-abb6-fae60af76f94&plckGalleryID=cd5274fc-a7a6-44d2-ba11-a4a06681af0d

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/contribute/sn/photo?plckPhotoID=99f071a1-9dd7-4753-843b-42602c9ab0d4&plckGalleryID=cd5274fc-a7a6-44d2-ba11-a4a06681af0d

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/contribute/sn/photo?plckPhotoID=93451943-a300-463e-a8cb-ff5956050429&plckGalleryID=cd5274fc-a7a6-44d2-ba11-a4a06681af0d

In a second I’ll talk about equality in marriage and it’s importance.

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At some point it was written in the Declaration of Independence that as humans we have an inalienable right to "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ".

On May 15th, 2008 the California Supreme Court overturned the state's bans on same-sex marriage. Again, I am proud of my state for doing what is right.

In San Francisco, a 7mile by 7mile parcel of land we are all impacted by this decision. Many of us have friends, co-workers and people that we interact with every day that as humans have a right to be recognized by our government as lawfully-wedded couples.

We are truly on the brink of a historic event here in California. For the first time marriages performed here in theory would have to be recognized in other states of the Union. Clearly, this won’t happen, but it will set up some interesting constitutional battles that hopefully will go to the Supreme Court of the United States.

What it comes down to for me is a human issue. Is this about gay couples? No. It’s about our rights as humans. The protesters I spoke to yesterday were fond of quoting our founding fathers in saying that they would have rolled over in their graves had they seen gay marriage. Honestly, I pretty much invalidate the argument that somehow Thomas Jefferson is infinitely wise when he was a large slaveowner. The idea was freedom, not freedom for white males or for a larger ruling class, but freedom for all peoples.

If we held to what our founding fathers believed women and any minority group you can currently think of would be without the right to vote or even marry. You probably wouldn’t even be able to have the type of job you currently have if the status quo had been maintained.

To that end – I applaud the California Supreme Court for being visionaries in what is RIGHT. I’m not big on talking about morality – but I believe it is the morally correct thing to do to allow ALL PEOPLE to marry.


You may be thinking that it’s very typical for me to support gay marriage. Looking at my pedigree, I should be the last person to support it.

As a Salvadorian, homosexuality is VERY taboo. Not taboo in a “we don’t like gays taboo” as much as a gay people in El Salvador disappear in the woods taboo. I grew up in a strict Christian family that until this day condemns homosexuality as one of the most evil things known to man. My mother once commented to a neighbor that if her sons ever became gay she would commit suicide. On my end, I grew up in Los Angeles, which isn’t quite as gay friendly as the San Francisco bay area. At one point in my life I was very religious to the point where I taught Sunday School in church. Why am I telling you all this?

My point is that as a straight male I have no vested interest in supporting gay marriage other than thinking it is the RIGHT thing to do.

I am very happy for all the couples out there that will now be recognized by the State of California. I wish you all the best!


Caption (above): The CA Supreme Court absolutely did right. I am very proud to be a Californian.


Caption (above): Equality IS American






Caption (above): This series of photos is my favorite. Someone on my flickr commented that these pictures would one day be like the VJ day kiss picture. That made me really ponder and think that one day our kids will look back at 2008 and think “wow, gays couldn’t marry back then?” the same way we wonder why interracial marriage was illegal 50 years ago.


Caption (above): Seeing a child promote hate made me really sad.


Caption (above): Hamming it up for the news crews.





Caption (above): He was disgusted by gays, and decided to show everyone.



Caption (above): Well said


Caption (above): Ben and Jerry’s supports gay marriage. haha


Caption (above): Straight to the point


Caption (above): This guy shows us his wedding album





Caption (above): This made me laugh.

In my last post I talked about using my tech skills to benefit the programs I work in. I’ve always been technically–oriented. I was one of those kids who dismantled Apple IIc’s and one who installed RAM and 56k modems when PC’s were still not totally commonplace and plug and play did not exist.

Lately I’ve been expanding into multimedia, which you will see a lot in this blog in the coming months.

I was part of a mentoring program where I helped my mentee publicize her program to students, parents and funders. This was our product:



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Our Yelp parties keep getting more and more out there…and by out there I mean more fun. The disco party was probably one of my favorite SF parties yet. The pictures will tell the story:




Caption (above): Funny thing was I didn’t dress up and people thought I did. If anything I was more 30’s than 70’s.

































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David Beckham is healthy now and they made an appearance in the bay area to play the San Jose Earthquakes. It was a massacre.



I’m an OG Galaxy fan from the days of Mauricio Cienfuegos. It was nice to go to the game because I invited my mentee (above).



I didn’t take my real camera, but if I had you would have seen a picture of Beckham with his shirt off. I can’t believe how loud the cheers were. Crazy.

(PS: I took these with my point and shoot, not an SLR)


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Saying I’m not a self-promoter probably isn’t entirely accurate. Despite that I’ve never been into my own birthday. My birthday is on June 20th but I was surprised with an early birthday this weekend by Lauren.

It went down like this:

1) Danny emails me so we can go take pictures on a Sunday.
2) We go take pictures and stop at our friend Roy’s house.
3) When I walk out of Roy’s there is a limo waiting for me with a bunch of my closest friends. Woohoo!
4) We go to Napa to taste white wine (I don’t like reds).
5) We munch on caprese sandwiches (my favorite) at a local picnic area.
6) We head to SF for dinner at one of my favorite spots, a Senegalese restaurant.
7) I get to watch the Lakers pull an upset and beat the Celtics.
8) It was a great day 



Caption (above): Mike double-fists


Caption (above): Awesome picture



Caption (above): How appropriate!


Caption (above): Our friend actually wanted a picture of the server’s ass, not of Niyi. haha


Caption (above): Our table at Bissao Baobab


Caption (above): The guys


Caption (above): The vineyard


Caption (above): Me with silly hat








(PS: I took these with my point and shoot, not an SLR)

I can’t even tell you how busy these last couple of weeks have been for me.
For starters, it’s the end of school this week so I am in crazy planning mode plus planning for the fall.

I don’t know if all of you know this but over the summer I get a couple of weeks off. I should be off most of the month of July so I am working on putting together a mini-vacation for myself. One of my projects for this summer is to launch a photography website. I’ve officially been paid for a couple of different events and I would love to shoot casual events (nothing stressful like weddings). My focus would be on nightlife and sports (appropriate, no?). I may actually venture into working with non-profits and schools at a free or reduced rate, but we’ll see about that. I’ll have a whole post about the website in the next couple of weeks.

On that note, one of my professional development projects this year was to work on marketing programs. I took a class at the Apple store and helped my mentee put together a video of her program. You can see the video here:

I think these videos put a face on the type of work that we do. I can sit here and talk to you all day about the need for after-school programming but it’s a lot more moving to see it from parents, students and volunteers that work in our programs.

I am definitely making the move to the Mac this summer in order to further my video/photo skills.

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Another piece of news is that I am cleared to play soccer again. I will take this summer to get back in shape as I am significantly slower and have definitely put on a lot of weight. It’s funny because I got into photography after my knee injury as a way to keep myself occupied. In a way I’m thankful for my injury as photography has been a great outlet for me and really prompted me to join Yelp and become more involved in the social life SF has to offer.

This weekend I went out to take pictures of my co-ed team.

Some of my favorites:


Caption (above): I always love capturing people as they strike the ball. I need a shot of me doing this. Paging Jared, paging Jared. haha


Caption (above): I think he popped the ball over his head


Caption (above): I’ve been chin checked a couple of times trying to do this


Caption (above): Oh no, a juke in progress?


Caption (above): A cute teammates picture


Caption (above): I think this was her way of telling me she didn’t want her picture taken. haha


Caption (above): Keeper in motion


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Speaking of things I love, hiking is up on that list. I recently put together a trip with some friends and about 20 of us went to my favorite hike in the Point Reyes National Seashore.

It’s really funny because it seems pretty easy to get a large group of people to go drinking but rarely do you see groups this big get together to enjoy nature. Maybe I’m on a nature kick because I grew up in LA and never got to experience it as a child.


Caption (above): There are very few hikes that I can think of that go along the coast and are relatively easy.


Caption (above): my crew


Caption (above): Another great thing about this hike: the rope swing.


Caption (above): Me preparing for the swing.

See video: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zomglemuffin/2561766713/in/set-72157605500848470/


Caption (above): Me In flight. I know you like the shorts. Haha. Ross!


Caption (above): Pelican Lake and wildflowers



Caption (above): Bryan and Lauren wade through the brush


Caption (above): Lunch by the ocean and waterfall. Apparently this is only 1 of 2 waterfalls that drop off into the Pacific Ocean in California.


Caption (above): People like pictures with babies…and waterfalls.


Caption (above): More of the coast




Caption (above): When I hike, I still rep for LA.


Caption (above): Flowers and the coast. Bokeh!

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One of my favorite yelp events to date, they went all out and had an intimate pool party at the Four Seasons Palo Alto for us.

The perfect yelp party equation:

Pool + good weather + open bar + free food + swimsuit models + good music = good time.


Caption (above): Me taking pictures of the crowd


Caption (above): With some yelpers


Caption (above): More girls…err, yelpers, yeah.


Caption (above): the pool


Caption (above): Lauren with her sponsored drink


Caption (above): Connie, our photogenic hostess


Caption (above): Oh yeah, there were swimsuit models


Caption (above): She was my favorite model.


Caption (above): Awesome


Caption (above): I just had to. Wow, I look uncomfortable. haha


Caption (above): Tell me the girl in the middle doesn’t look like Shakira?