So Monday while I was at school reading through my emails I got ma message from my friend Ian. He was my best friend when I was a kid. For years we hung out, played soccer, went to boy scouts, camped, went on double dates, etc...

Well after High School we didn't talk or hang out nearly as much. We kind of lost touch which ws mostly my fault as I am not good at keeping in touch with family or friends. Luckily for me he hasn't held it against me all these years.

So I got this email from him on Monday saying that he was in town and had some time Tuesday morning to get together and have some breakfast. I jumped at the opportunity and got to meet his wife and his two adorable kids. I wish I would have snapped a picture of them. Anyhow, it was really cool to see my friend all grown and transitioned into a family man, a provider. They are such a happy family and were all smiles all breakfast.

Thanks Ian! I really enjoyed seeing ya again and meeting your family! The picture below is from my trip to Japan taken last year.

Ok,

So it's more than a day later, but I guess that's how it goes. I can't believe it's already Thursday practically. So Ill sum the trip up from the start...

Friday morning, I got my Starbucks and headed for school to hop on our charter bus to take us to Owens Valley. Here is the bus...



The way up was fairly uneventful. Our first noteworthy stop was in some old small mining town. Later we stopped at one of the more memorable stops called fossil falls. You can google it for some images of the place, but nothing does it justice as being there climbing through the dried up canyon. It was definitely the funnest stop just climbing around and squeezing through crevices and holes.

Upon leaving Fossil Falls our bus was having some trouble making the tight corners and drops in the dirt road. Offroading + Charter bus do not mix well and the bus left with some damage to both sides.



Meet the beautiful Arielle:



Arielle is my lab partner and was my "buddy" on the trip. Somehow time after time, throughout the trip we were always the last on the bus, lol.

Friday night we ate in lone pine at The Pizza Factory. Arielle and I started talking to Matt and Katie who were our "tent neighbors." Turns out they live right around the corner from me and they are great fun so they are a great addition to my arsenal of incredible friends.

Here they are in the morning after graciously sharing some morning brew with me :)


Saturday was a long day with a lot of stops. We went through the Alabama Hills where there is some really cool looking granite rocks. I took some time to start climbing again, but did not get a chance to get too far before Arielle and I had to turn around and head back for the bus, once again we were last on the bus.

After that we headed in towards Whitney portal. I could have stayed here and shot pictures all day. With the stormy clouds coming over the mountains it wasn't too long before we started getting some winds and some sprinkles and we were back on the bus. Here are a few shots before we left



Here is a shot of the fellow campers. Can you find me?


Sometimes as a photographer you mess up (I do this quite frequently :oP ). Maybe you miss focus, overexpose/underexpose, or any other multitude of things that may go wrong. However sometimes those shots mysteriously turn out way cooler than they are supposed to. This is one of those shots, and I really like it...


Saturday night we were in Bishop and I finally (after years of wanting to go) got to step into the Mountain Light Gallery. The work on display is truly amazing and it just left me breathless walking through... After that Arielle, Pat (the Prof), Kierstin (the T.A.) and I headed into a Japanese Restaurant. Arielle and I had some sushi. Arielle hasn't perfected her technique of using chopsticks yet, so it was pretty entertaining to watch.

After that we headed to the Starbucks where believe it or not, I did not order coffee! I know, CRAZY! Anyways, the four of us all got hot chocolate. Starbucks has some new flavors so I ordered the Salted Caramel Hot Chocolate (I reccomend it), and Arielle ordered the Hazelnut(also not a bad choice). After trying each others H.C., we decided we would drink them 1/2 way and then swap. In total I think I ended up drinking like 1/3 of both combined while Arielle finished the other 2/3, lol. Anyway, wouldn't ya know it we were once again on the bus last again... Not to fear though, we got our Starbucks!


Sunday, we had to get up early and pack up. I was awoke early by chatty neighbors once again in the opposite direction from Arielle's and Matt & Katie's tent. (I guess it was ok though since my alarm did not go off on either day). Anyone that knows me very well knows that I am not a morning person. I like it quiet in the morning, I don't like to talk and if I can sit, munch on some food and drink my coffee in peace and quiet all is good in my world. Anyways, we wound up back on the bus to begin our way back home. Our first stop was at an old lava flow


After that we stopped by an old mining town. Which was tiny. We walked into a gift shop and it reeked of cigarette smoke so bad that within a minute I was feeling ill. After that Arielle and I had burgers finished off by a blueberry shake that hit the spot.

On the way back the bus watched Fools Gold with Matt McConaughey and Kate Hudson (sigh*). I watched it while listening to my Ipod and getting some mini power naps in.


To end this entry, an image of Arielle busting a move on top of some lithofied lava. LOL Good times.....

Well I am back from my trip. I got back earlier this afternoon around 4:30. I was pretty tired, so it's nice to be back home, but I had a great time. I did not bring my SLR, but I did charge up my handy point and shoot and got some snapshots. I will post more and write more about everything probably tomorrow after I catch up with a few other things, so stay tuned...

Hope you bought tickets to the gun show, lol...



We had to wake up early this morning, but this was my reward as I woke up and looked out the door of my tent...



And this shot looking the other direction towards the sierra mountains


The final two for tonight, I cant decide which I like better, the B&W or color version. Opinions??





Hope everyone had a great weekend...

Someday I will look back at today and more specifically this blog and laugh. Well at least I hope so. Today has been rough, and I hate to mention negative things or be negative in general because I am typically a pretty happy/smiley person. But here has been my day so far as it played out.

7:30a.m. - Woke up looked at the clock and thought "Oh crap, you're gonna be late for class!"
7:50a.m. - Parked at Starbucks to run inside because the drive-thru line was too long.

7:51 a.m. - I jump out of my truck (which is lifted) and when I do the door began to shut back towards me and the corner of the door slammed into my thigh. At this point I realize I am still 1/2 asleep and woke up in one of those panics which is never a great start to a day. Grrr.... Well no time to fret, lets get my coffee and get back on the road to class.

7:53 a.m. - I realize while driving to class that my coffee keeps dripping/spilling on me and my truck. It seems I couldn't get the lid to seal completely and every bump I hit seemed to spill a little more coffee. Grrrr....

8:15 a.m. I arrive at class coffe stained and splattered. Luckily I had my jacket in my truck so I could fend off the cold wind, but it also doubled as a cover to hide my coffee stains...

9:15 a.m. I leave art appreciation (prereq) class realizing that my Geology test looming just a few hours away and I had better go over my notes, and get more coffee to wake up.

9:45 a.m. - Sitting in It's a Grind coffee house studying I realize that My phone is busted. I shattered the corner of the display screen and there were abstract black spots blocking some of the screen. After thinking for a sec I realize that it must have happened while I was jumping out of my truck to get coffee at Starbuck's before I got to class. The good stuff continues....

1:00 p.m. - I walk into my Geology class feeling moderately confident for the test...
1:45 p.m. (approximately) - I hand my test in knowing that the results ogf my test are not going to be a favorable one. I do not know why I did so poorly, I could have studied better and more yes, but I was confident that I know the material better than what was on the test. The hardest portion was last part where we had to match areas of the earth to the terms given. The problem I had with the areas of the earth was that the illustration was hand drawn by my professor and the lables were not marked clearly which left a lot of room in my mind for misunderstanding. I fear I got a "C+" on the test and that it is going to bring my grade in the class down from the "A" it is now.

3:52 p.m. - I walk out of class feeling frustrated and tired.

4:25 p.m. A letter regarding a person of my past of whom I wish to forget, came in the mail. Someday (I hope) that saga will end and never be heard of again.

That pretty much sums up my day. After writing this maybe it's not so bad. I suppose it will all pass.

On brighter note, this weekend (Early Friday morning through Sunday night)I will be camping in Owens Valley with my Geologic Field Studies class. It should be interesting and a good break from the monotony. I thought about bringing my camera as I am sure the sunsets and area will be awesome to photograph, but I also have to fear theft regarding the situation of other students. I will however bring my trusty Fuji point and shoot. I just bought a new charging cable for it because I couldnt find the old one. The battery life is so incredible with it that I have only charged the camera 3 times in the 1 year I have owned it, so I must have misplaced it the last time I moved.

Wow, that was a lengthy one...
Anyway, I'm going to snap some photos in hopes that it makes me feel better.

Friday started with my niece Aeralyn waking me up around 730 A.M. She is such a funny little girl, she makes me crack up. She is still young enough that she slurs a lot of words that come out of her mouth and she tries to tie words into sentences. It's fascinating to see her grow into her personality through her little body. She says her best friend is my dog Nitro, but she calls him "Wytro." Seeing them play together is hillarious. She used to be deathly afraid of him when she first met him, but now she cant seem to get enough of him. Here is a quick snapshot of the Hula girl playing with my lens cap, and her hairdo from today...





And one of the older brother & Sister (Kanyon & Aspen)




After some breakfast my brother asked if I wanted to go Mtn. Biking. (I have got him hooked on mtn. biking now too!) To be honest I really didn't feel like it as I was feeling pretty exhausted and also a little worried about my Mid Term project that is due this coming week. Nonetheless, we headed out. I wanted to see if we could discover some new trails nearby and we lucked out. We found one that was technical, challenging, and quick in some spots too. Add in some jumps and you have a good variety to keep a smile on your face. *Did I mention the weather was perfect?? 75 degrees, slight breeze and sunny. I can't wait to ride it again! You can tell it isn't ridden much, but that's fine by me. There are some great views as well, so next time I am going to ride with my camera in my camelback.

Well I better get back to my mid term project. As my niece would say, "See ya later awigado."

-Ellis

So last night I went and played (outdoor) Soccer. I have been playing fairly regularly for the last few months, but it has been indoor Soccer. Anyway, it was nice playing outdoor as the pace is much different than indoor. I also ran into a few people that I knew from high school many years ago. To top it off we took the win so that is always a plus too. I have an extremely busy few days coming up as I have mid-terms to study for, a mid-term project, as well as a very busy work schedule for the next 4 days.


Happy Birthday to my buddy Marko (His birthday was yesterday) you can read his wife's blog at http://ocmilo.blogspot.com/.

I learned about Dale Chihuly in school today. He is a famous artist for glass blowing. You can see his website at http://www.chihuly.com/. If you have been inside of the Bellagio in Vegas, then you may recognize this work of his . Here is some of his other awe inspiring work... He has many other chandeliers like this as well that he has done...

Ok gotta go study for my Geology test now...

-Ellis