The Heard and the Book

Finally getting organized after a long weekend in Phoenix. I’ve been working on a book I’m calling (for now at least) “Sacred Southwest: …” . And this trip to Phoenix, specifically a full two days at the Heard Museum’s Indian Fair and Market, is to experience one of the preeminent Native American art events — and an important nexus in the artistic and economic landscape of two cultures. So…

Now that I’m Home

Here we are, the end of July. Summer days here in SoCal still going till 8 PM with temperatures in the low 80s. And I’m starting to plant myself more deeply into the work now that I’m back from a month and a half of travel. By now, most friends have heard the elevator speech I give when they ask, What did you do in…

Italy Images: The Uneasy Supplicants

Beggar that I am, I am poor even in thanks.   Hamlet When we went to Italy this June, I was struck by one image that kept repeating, of old women begging. Now obviously, living Southern California, there are no end of homeless folk who ask for donations. Here in So Cal, we have a relatively predictable relationship with the homeless; so for me, the beggars of…

Publication of Photographing the American Southwest (for Zion, Bryce, Canyonlands, Arches, etc.)

So after spending weeks and months photographing the Utah parks, months and months fine tuning each paragraph, the eBook is out. I feel like most of it is good, sometimes very good. But each time you reach high, you take a risk.  And there are always folks who will point out the mistakes and miss the good stuff. That’s part of the deal. But let me go…

A Trip to the Woodpile

In the last few months I’ve spent more time going back to the basics — how I see myself, how I connect. Some of the “inside” work involves dealing with unresolved issues. And I’m finding situations where I act without fully attending to what I’m doing. All this stuff reminded me of one of my favorite spiritual metaphors, “chop wood, carry water.” The phrase is a core Zen…

Driving in a Car

One of those obvious truisms is that the person in the driver’s seat gets to know the landscape of a place more than the other folks along for the ride. Nothing too complicated about that notion. If you’re driving, you’re going to be working off some sort of mental map. The same thing happens with travel to a new place. If you’re the one who…