Family

Hold onto that family, they really care.

Dad

A man with a lot on his mind.

Little Sure Shot

Went for a hike a week or so ago, up to some old meadows with a homestead chimney still standing off in one corner. I offered Grace some stories placing her in a nineteenth century girl's identity; a bit Annie Oakley. She loved it and came home saying "I want to take off this fruity little cupcake t-shirt I have on and put on some 'cowgirl clothes'" I bought her some old 1950's Annie Oakley movie serial DVD's and now I can't get her away from wanting to rope and ride!

Aerial Mulching

Four Mile Fire burn zone mulching by helicopter. Picking up 1-4 tons of hay mulch at a time, ferrying it to denuded hillsides and dropping to stave off erosion when/if the spring rains come. Randy and Clint, crack pilots navigate canyon crosswinds, power lines and FAA guidelines NOT to fly over houses with their cargo dangling thirty feet below them. Here a Vietnam era Huey is gassed up to begin another series of drops.

Mask Maker

Wood carved masks are an integral part of many Balinese ceremonies. Particularly impressive is the Topeng where a single man plays multiple characters to tell a story, donning an array of masks and costumes for each. The totality of their immersion into their roles borders on trance, where the line between actor and character does not exist, they literally become who they are playing and it is exhilarating.

Dancers

It's all in the hands and in the eyes. Young girls practicing "the dance."

I was running late for an appointment in Tampak Siring because the afternoon rains had been relentless and there was absolutely no way to ride a motor bike through the deluge. Finally, things broke, I decided to take a different route than my usual one, you know, maybe shave a few minutes off. I passed one beautiful village after another, it felt like I was entering "The Twilight Zone." This was a land untouched by time, by nuclear meltdowns, by all modernity; I felt contentment. Then I saw this guy out in a ricefield, man I was late, but damn if it wasn't the coolest, most sublime scene.