Okay, for the first time ever I received a jury summons for Erie County…really, I got it in August and deferred it for 6 months. I got the new one (which you cannot postpone again) a few weeks ago. So, my number is #438 and I just called in and do not have to report tomorrow morning as I’d feared! (They called in #s 1-411.)
Let me say that I am all for fulfilling your civic duty…my issue is that I only get paid $40/day by my company and only for 3 days…after that, if I want to be paid, I am required to use my vacation time…

More tomorrow night after I “call in” to see if I have to report on Tuesday…

Monday night update - don’t have to go Tuesday.

**Tuesday night update - I’ll be reporting tomorrow morning…hopefully I won’t be very long…check out the site periodically because I’ll be posting about my experience…

DSC03106

Originally uploaded by uwe_pescatore.

My friend’s brother Franco is currently in Africa…a very cool trip that he’s been planning for years. Franco wanted to document the people in Lesotho, Africa and was able to take a 4-month hiatus from his job…

Check out Franco’s site for pictures and his update - he’s been updating every few days…it’s really interesting…and a great way to learn what he’s learning…

Franco…sounds like you’re having the time of your life in Africa - thanks for sharing this journey with us!

As much as we love the View from the Bottom (shout out to Amy!) sometimes it’s fun to check out the View from the Top, too. Here’s a look out of a window on the 8th floor of the Hotel Lenox, where I spent my Saturday doing set up for our Peep Show installation.

Check out this post from our friends at BR about Buffalo Old Home Week…it hasn’t been held in a long time, but BR and RB are spearheading the effort to have it this summer.  It’s going to be a great event!!!

…that make me happy!  I’ve discovered two things in the past few weeks that are very simple, but really make me even happier to be in Buffalo!

First, Delta Sonic has Purell sanitizer dispensers next to each of their pumps - at the DS on Walden anyhow…and it’s so nice to be able to wipe the smell of gas off your hands.

The other thing was the discovery of a cobbler (shoe repair) in Buffalo.  I grew up in Lockport and we had this great place where we could always take our shoes for repair and it was always very inexpensive.  I discovered - thanks to a friend - Jimmie’s Shoe Repair at Hertel & Wellington.  Great guy…friendly dog that greets you when you walk in.  He’s been there forever!  And he has great hours and it costs virtually nothing to have your shoes or boots repaired!  He’s always friendly and there’s usually decent parking outside his shop…a great find for those of you who spend a lot of $$ on your shoes and don’t want to have to throw them out if a heel breaks or something…

A good reminder that it’s really the littlest things that can make you happy…

Don’t forget about the fundraiser tomorrow night for the Frank Lloyd Wright Boathouse, hosted by Buffalo Rotary at the Statler Towers.  Tickets are $50 each.

The fundraiser will have wines from all around the world and food from several restaurants.  The event runs from 6-9 PM.

There’s a certain amount of self-indulgence inherent in blogging, but, even so, I have to apologize in advance, because this post is all about Me Me Me Me Me, even more so than usual, and the half-assed “lesson” tacked on at the end doesn’t even come close to justifying the self-absorbed rant that precedes it. But enough about you. Let’s talk about me.

As you no doubt already know (my life being an open book, and you its voracious reader) one of my hobbies is photography. I absolutely love it. Now, as with any creative endeavor, success in photography depends on a certain amount of natural talent along with plenty of hard work and dedication. Expensive equipment doesn’t hurt either, but that discussion is for another time and place. We’re talking about me.

I don’t have any delusions about my innate talent. I know I have what’s commonly referred to as A Good Eye, which means I can usually find an interesting way of looking at something, and, if I’m lucky, capture it in an image. No, I’m not a bad photographer, and with time and practice I think I’m getting better. But, alas, the white-hot flame of Talent does not burn in me. One area in which I am talented, however, is the ability to bury such unpleasant self-appraisals so deeply that, for all intents and purposes, they simply cease to exist. Therefore, I happily inhabit a world where the problem isn’t so much a lack of talent on my part as an unwillingness to recognize artistic genius on yours.

So anyway, a few weeks ago I found a stock photography website. I use a lot of stock images at work, so I joined, and on a lark even applied to be a contributing photographer. The process was simple: complete a short application, take a quiz, and submit three examples of my work for review. I read the requirements and restrictions carefully - twice - to be sure I understood what they were looking for. Then I started going through my archives to decide which photos to submit. I said the process was simple, but it wasn’t easy. I had a tough time finding three images that I was proud of and which met all the submission requirements: no people without a model release. No trademarked products, objects or shapes. No dogs. No flowers. No converging railroad tracks. At last I had my three, and, fingers crossed, I submitted them for review. A few days later I heard back. Of my three submissions, one achieved the glorious distinction of “ok”. The other two were dismissed as “unacceptable”, and so my application remained incomplete. But all was not lost. The judges offered constructive criticism of the two rejected images, and I had the opportunity to either fix them and resubmit, or come up with two new images. I decided to take the criticism to heart and shoot two new images.

The pressure was on. For one thing, I didn’t know how many chances I’d have to resubmit images until I finally got three that were “ok.” But what really worried me was the picture that was accepted was the least like my usual style. I realized to my dismay that if I wanted to pull this off, I’d have to venture outside my little stylistic comfort zone. As they say on reality television, I’d have to step up to the plate. Could I do that? Did I even want to do that? What if I couldn’t do it? Eventually, I got two more images that I was satisfied with, and again, fingers crossed, I submitted them for review. I got an email the next day… two more oks! Woo-hoo!

But here’s where things get confusing. I enjoyed the process of pushing myself, both in terms of subject matter and quality, and I really enjoyed seeing tangible results for my efforts. Still, my style of photography isn’t really a great fit for this site. So should I direct my energy toward improving myself in an area that I’m not naturally drawn to, or concentrate on the style and subject matter and techniques that I’m more comfortable with, better at, and enjoy more? Would it be improving myself, or wasting my time on something that simply isn’t me? Is it an investment of time or a waste of time? And am I being brave or a coward? Am I being realistic in acknowledging that it’s not my forte, or rationalizing my fear of failure? Am I trying to fit a square peg into a round hole? Is it possible to overthink something so drastically that your head actually explodes? Do I really want to find out?

Of course there are no easy answers to these questions (with the hopeful exception of the head exploding one), but they do have me thinking. I look around at the flurry of creative activity in Buffalo these days: exciting new architectural projects downtown and along Elmwood Avenue and Main Street; the mini-boom in visual and performing arts at places like Hallwalls (in their beautiful new home) or the galleries along Allen Street. So many great things are happening in what is usually the Buffalo’s hibernation time. The best of these somehow manage strike a workable balance between things I seem determined to treat as an either/or choice: they play to their strengths but they’re not afraid to try something new and unexpected. They don’t let fear of failure stop them from conquering and succeding. They highlight what makes them unique and special, without painting themselves into a corner of expectations. They thrive and grow and change and evolve and improve without losing their essence. As the struggle to Revitalize Buffalo continues, I’m glad to see this balance, where strengths are recognized, appreciated and respected; where weaknesses are given whatever attention they require. I want to find a way to do that, to achieve that, to be that, both in my art and in my life.

Tonight, we started a new tradition…I had some close, single friends over for dinner.  Rich brought dessert.  Pete brought wine.  Lynn (via Pete) brought bread and cheese.  Harvey brought himself…which is more than enough…oh and his nephew Brian.

Right after Pete arrived, and before dinner was cooked, the power went out on the block.  It’s amazing how interesting it is to cook by candlelight.  But I managed to cook everything on the gas stove and the lights came on just as we served dinner.  And since we enjoyed the mood lighting so much, we turned off all the lights and enjoyed our dinner with only the candles on the table.  It was a fun way to spend the evening!

Hope you enjoyed yours as well!

Here is a random collection of words I found online about our litttle city.

I’m from the Be You DubbLe F. A El Oh
Got to represent were I’m from
Every where I go
Where you can’t predict the snow
Our city’s so broke yo
But ask anyone they say “We love Buffalo”

Oh how i miss the smell of cherrios baking across from Pilot Field…

Huzzah huzzah for the queen city.

Buffalo, just saying hi from the Big Island of Hawai’i. Missing your wings/sponge candy and wegmans….. ah a real grocery store.

America’s best kept secret: Buffalo NY

Out of the car, on to the street,
Feeling that feeling that can’t be beat.
No matter whatever find us this evening,
Nothing can beat that Buffalo feeling.

Glass

Originally uploaded by djcollinator.

The Buffalo Rotary Foundation is sponsoring “Wines of the World” , a
wine tasting and hors d’oevres event at the Statler Ballroom on February 24th. The event will benefit the Frank Lloyd Wright Boathouse construction on the Buffalo Water Front.
The event’s objective is to raise money for the construction of the
Frank Lloyd Wright Rowing Boathouse on the waterfront in Buffalo. The plans
that Wright developed for the construction of a rowing boathouse were never used. Buffalo has the exclusive rights in perpetuity for the construction of this facility, which is expected to be constructed in ’06.

What is important to mention is the value the Boathouse presents for scholarship opportunities for young men and women as well as the attention of a prestigious building on our water front.

The wine-tasting itself will take place on Feb. 24, 2006, at the Statler Golden Ballroom from 6:00to 9:00 pm. Tickets are $50 per person.

It will feature a wide selection of both red and white wines from Australia, New Zealand, Italy, France, South America, California, and New York State. There will also be hors’douvres prepared by many of the leading restaurants in Buffalo. The event will also feature both a live and silent auction.

One of the best things about this project is that some of the $$ previously ear-marked for the Adelphia building will now go to the FLW Project. And the Buffalo Rotary Foundation has pledged $500,000 to move this project along. The plan is to have the building completely built by the end of 2006.

Tickets for the event are $50 each. Anyone interested can call 877-1752 and ask for Paul Terranova or e-mail Paul directly at pterranova@KISinvestments.com. He will work out the details of delivery of the tickets.
Thank you for your consideration, and please pass this on to people
who you feel would be interested.