DAY 10: ATLANTA

i apologize for the lack of updates. or rather the poor writing/inconsistencies/typos.  i am so exhausted by the time i get to posting i don't even know what i'm saying.

i'm starting to get pretty warn out.  i can't wait to get back home and just sleep.

....
today we are going to the aquarium, which should be great.  i am armed to take lots of pictures. after that, we are going to scout EMORY's campus for a good location to photograph.  i hope i get to sleep super early so that we can leave early tomorrow with a good nights rest.

UPDATE:
the aquarium was fun.  it was huge and saw a lot of great fish.  i particularly LOVE the jellyfish. i am fascinated and took one too many pictures of them. they are so elegant and beautiful they way they move. i would buy one, but i wonder if its good to keep them since they're so poisonous.

after the aquarium we feasted on CHICK-FIL-A.  amazing. so yummy, had a milkshake, and a boatload of nuggets.  so filling and fun.

post fullness, we are now watching OLD BOY in hd...dunno if i can handle the hd.

DAY 9: SALEM, NH

for some reason the journey today was epic.  it took us 11 hours to drive a 4.5 hour drive. sigh.  it was pretty miserable and i was effing tired. the morning started off with brunch with noah. what should have been a short and relaxing night last nite, turned into a long conversation. altho still relaxing, we didn't end up turning in until around 2am, which made waking up at 8am hard today. on 6 hours of sleep, this was the first drive where i felt insanely tired.  woke up at 8, took a shower, and moved the car. then brunch. yea back to brunch, had an amazing omelet. after loading the car we proceeded on the road. after an hour or so of driving, we made it to RICHMOND, VA, and stopped at ELLWOOD'S COFFEE to grab a snack and check our email/sort things out.  we had googled for a wifi place we could eat, and therefor settled on that place.  it was cute, and reminded me of ABC CAFE in ithaca.  the menu and everything were written on chalkboards, there was a library of books you could read, and people were sitting with their computers. they had vegan friendly dishes, and postcards from different artists. which was perfect, because i could leave postcards around for people to fill out. i left around 30 postcards there.  i sipped an iced chai, ate a yogurt parfait, and addressed my postcards as well as finished posting on my blog. i need some more me time, some more relaxing time. i'm craving it badly, and hope to get it when i get back to nyc.

after that we headed out again, stopped a whole bunch of times. first we stopped in PETERSBURG, VA.  i had completely forgotten that i needed to take pictures in RICHMOND or at least some place in VA.  so we got off the highway a couple of times, and we were looking for a cemetery.  however, we had no such luck, and basically ended up in the ghetto. further along the highway, still in virginia desperate to take pictures, we drove towards signs for the PETERSBURG NATIONAL BATTLEFIELD.  driving for 5 miles in the direction opposite of our destination, we finally reach the "battlefield" and debate whether to get out of the car to take pictures in front of the trees. as we do that, this CRAZY ASS BUG kept swarming outside the car. the body of the bug was about the size of a nickle and it was zooming and flying around the car and flying directly into the car.  crazy crazy. and as two girls from nyc were inside, we freaked out, and decided it was too much for us to get out. stupid terrorist of a bug.

leaving PETERSBURG for good, we decided to forgo VA and just keep driving. we were losing time.  cc took a nap in the car and i began to start fading quickly. i didn't want to wake her up because both of us were so tired, and i felt bad for never letting her nap in the car. so we continue, and we were fortunate enough to stumble upon a rest area.  perfect! we could stop on the side of the road, take pictures, and wake up a little bit.  i photographed on the bench of the rest area, we both used the bathroom, and then we headed out on our merry way.  

NEXT STOP ON THE DRIVE ...

cc began to get hungry, and we were gonna scrounge for food. so we kept driving into NC until we found a QUIZNOS.  she got the sandwich she was craving, i got MOE'S (yum yum yummmm), and we ate. we also got to stop by TARGET, and i bought another bra (i needed more for the photographs) as well as a shower caddy (yay!! no more plastic bag with holes).  

after all those crazy stops, we got into WINSTON SALEM, NC around 9:15.  ridiculous timing. as we get in, i noticed that it was much bigger than i expected. felt more like a city than i was prepared for.  there are cops swarming everywhere.

we took pictures outside of a huge WACHOVIA building.  there were at least 5-6 cop cars driving around.  after the guard left, we quickly took pictures. i am beginning to think that we aren't taking enough pictures in each location, but its hard to when i keep feeling this "danger".  i need to just suck it up and know that i really am not doing anything illegal. 

we took pictures just in time, and i put my clothes back on when the cop car pulled in from around the corner.  

DAY 8: BOSTON TO DC

we left for dc early, around 930. although it wasn't as early as we had hoped, we needed to eat a good breakfast so all worked out. after getting on the I-95 it was pretty much a straight shot...smooth sailing. after about 4 hours, we made it to NJ, where we dropped of cc's glorious merchandise at the place where she will be staying. continuing on the 1-95, we headed to DC. surprisingly we made excellent time. with the stop in NJ, as well as multiple other breaks (coffee, gas, food, bathroom, etc.), we made it into dc at 7:30. record time of 10 hrs with a route that is supposed to take 9 hours. previously, we had been adding in 2 hours of "break" time which included time for us to set up and break down to take photographs.

the photographing along the road was interesting. we stopped at a SUNOCO gas station and found four phone booths that were attached to each other with an amazing pale turquoise color to them. right in front of a huge line of cars waiting to gas and all the SUNOCO employees smoking on break, i set up the camera and began to take pictures.

after that, smooth sailing once again. as we got into dc, the sun was setting, and we set up to take pictures in front of the washington monument. it was beautiful. you can see the monument in the background, and i am lying in the grass in the foreground. lighting was tricky since most of the light was coming from way in the distance, and where i was lying was dark. after some impromptu rigging of sorts, we whipped out my canon flash and used it remotely in an attempt to light me. i hope that those pictures turned out.

post pictures, we had exciting highway adventures and ultimately ended up at noah's apartment (the place where we were staying). we drank a bottle of wine on his balcony, and then went to bed. great night. we needed the relaxation.

DAY 7: ALTON BAY, NH TO BOSTON

the lack of sleep and constant moving is getting to me.

today we got to spend a good amount of time in new hampshire. after sleeping a good 7 hrs, we ate an amazing breakfast at a small local diner, took a tour of lake winnipesaukee, and headed out. cc planned an extravagant trip to the apple store in rockingham, nh. there, with the combination of her student discount and the tax free, she cut an amazing deal on her purchase. walking in, i just gazed like a kid looking through the window of a candy store. things i should not touch or even glance at. i was entranced.

after that short stop, we headed to boston. the total trip wasn't more than two hours, which was nice. the long hours are starting to ware me out. we made it to boston at 6, i reloaded on ammo (aka bought more film), and we scrounged for parking for an hour. with the car parked at 8, we stopped in chinatown for dinner, and headed towards the downtown area to photograph. we scouted for a while, and ended up landing in quincy market on a 2nd level "bridge". timing the security guards rounds, we managed to sneak some pictures in. on our way back to the car, we also took pictures with a statue sitting on a bench by the holocaust monument.

statue photo, check!

i have been keeping a mental list of photographs i want to take:

parking lot, check!

rain, check!

statue, check!

to be done...

climbing a tree

gas station

city buildings

bed time. tomorrow is going to be a long long day.....

DAY 6: SYRACUSE TO ALTON BAY, NEW HAMPSHIRE

today drive was pretty fast. i think we are really getting settled and into the groove...

we left syracuse around 10am, and were on the road until around 12:30 when we stopped to photograph. we stopped in TROY, NY and found a alleyway with beautiful lighting. i was a little hesitant as it was right next to a YWCA with a group of mom's and a playground. nevertheless, we began to photograph. we have worked out a routine to try to attract the least attention possible. we set up the tripod, and had to move every once in a while when a car drove through. i hope that everything went ok, the lighting was hard to gauge because the sun kept coming in and out. a

fter a total of two hours to set up, photograph, break down, make a bathroom run and grab more coffee, we headed back on the road. with a couple of stops due to the ill state of my stomach and needing to pull over, we got to dan's house around 6:30pm. his mom and family greeted us with open arms, and were very hospitable. his mom cooked us a scrumptious lobster dinner with steak and potatoes, and we feasted. nice conversation, sitting on his porch overlooking lake winnipesaukee. after a nice long dinner and desert, we decided to trek into the woods by dan's place. we parked the car facing the shot, so the car headlights could light the scene properly. it was daunting to stand in the middle of the dark woods. the trees loomed above and the space was out in the open. but the pictures are very much in the moment. posing for the camera, and performing during the exposures gets my head into the game, and the scary woods that exist when the camera is not there become a stage.

our coordination and flow of photographing is becoming more and more productive. it only took us 45 mins to set up, shoot, and break down. we came home at 11, watched some tv, spent time with dan, and went to bed. it was a good day.

DAY 3: ANN ARBOR TO TORONTO

it was a long drive from ann arbor to toronto.  waking up at 8 after sleeping at 3 was the hardest part.  we loaded up the car, ate with dan, and headed out. on our way out, we stopped by MEIJER which is basically a TARGET/WALMART to buy random necessities. after the rainy pictures in the parking lot, we knew what we needed for all weather conditions.

after that, away we went. as usual, in the car and gunning it.  crossing the border was much easier than we had anticipated.  without even checking our passports, we made it through. 

the conversation went as follows:

him: "where are you going?"

me: "toronto"

him: for how long?

me: "two days"

after which the border patrol cop hand motioned to me to proceed, and that was it.  about an hour into canada, we stopped at a random exit and found a deserted patch of weeds/flowers where there was room off of the road for us to pull our car in.  

 we are learning more about timing and photographing. our flow is getting more consistent and things are going smoother.  if it werent for the crazy downpours of rain that forced us back into the car, we would have been done much sooner.  

DAY 2: THE FIRST DRIVE. CHICAGO TO ANN ARBOR

i woke up at 745 for a phone interview. i was surprisingly ok with not sleeping a whole lot. i keep surprising myself with my abilities. the interview with TEACHERS TODAY LLC went well, and i got a job with them! exciting. after the interview, we packed up cc's other stuff, and stuffed it into the car. we ran a couple of errands (postcards, post office, etc.) and headed out to ANN ARBOR! leaving chicago around 2:30, we got stuck in a crazy amount of traffic. the drive wasn't so bad. along the road, i was going to stop to take pictures, as i said i would in my original artist statement. so we reached PAW PAW, MICHIGAN around the halfway mark of our trip. since we loved the name, we got off, and attempted to scope out a place to photograph. it was not easy, and it seemed like most places were highly residential. places with families, where they wouldn't necessarily like a girl in her underwear wandering around. 

anyways, after a failed attempted to find a good place to stop, we got back on the highway, and kept driving. after traffic, the time change over (we lost an hour), we arrived in ANN ARBOR around 9, had dinner, and headed out to photograph again. i decided to knock off the parking lot location on our small mental checklist. we asked dan the man for a good empty parking lot, and he drove us to the parking lot of an elementary school not far from where steve lived (where we were staying). in the lot, there was only one other car that was parked, with no one in it. we decided to disregard it, and compose the picture so that the one car was not in it. as we set up the tripod, a car zooms in, with the driver evidently driving recklessly and perhaps drunk. he makes a huge circle around the parking lot, hitting every speed bump hard, and comes to a screeching halt right next to the original parked car. a woman got out, and drove her car away. perfect for us.

it was successful, the light drizzle made the parking lot look amazing and i think looked great in the pictures. we spent a good time there, but got a lot of good pictures i think. we didn't end up getting home until around 2. steves place was nice, and his roommate lee, has a dog named gracie who was adorable. however, when we snuck back in around 3, i realized how open everything in the house was. the room we were staying in didn't have a door, and EVERYTHING in the house creaked. so it was difficult not to wake his apartment mates up. post shower, i took pictures in the room where we are staying (something i am doing everytime i stop). once again, the windows reoccurred again. there was a big huge beautiful window right in the middle of our room, and the streetlight poured into the room perfectly. i wanted to take backlit photos, and now was the chance to do it. it was a very interesting experience, where i was naked in front of a huge window on the ground floor. i could see the people pass by, but because of the darkness in the room, they could not see me. i was doing something risky where i felt vulnerable yet was still somewhat hidden by the lighting. i can see them very clearly, and have to remind myself that they cannot see me. i found the dynamic very odd and at the same time intriguing and attractive.