tea and cement flower

i've been missing my blog again
i've been sick for over a week
cold, cough, cough, cough, sore throat
and more cough
on Thursday i went to the doctor
looking for help, just got some cough syrup
and more sadness...

yet, the sun was stroking my back for a bit
and i got to seat on this pretty bench
with cement flowers on it



and i sipped from this yogi tea
the kind that comes with labels with quotes
remember my tea-advice series?
here comes a little addition to it



and by now, i feel a little better
and i can always sip, breath (even if with difficulty) and read

eating shark

eating shark
Hai gegessen
comiendo tiburón

i have never tried shark before
the other day at the Fish Market i saw it
it was local Southern California shark
either Thresher or Bonito

it was actually pretty good
not a very strong fish flavor
more on the mild side, white lean meat
and very soft, i guess is the freshness too
that made it so soft, the Fish Market has
really fresh fish to go



I cooked with a non-chef proof recipe
olive oil, chopped garlic, fresh ground white pepper
and sea salt, on a pan fried about 5 minutes on each side
it was easy, quick and tasty
for side dish, some grape tomatoes with
home-made dressing of balsamic vinegar, olive oil and rosemary



now i guess the only concern on eating shark
is that apparently has high levels of mercury
too bad 'cause i really liked it and it's very affordable

man in action

photographer, to take!

The Thilo camera in hand
from our Bielefeld / Herford adventure
in Deutschland, free days traveling around just chasing photos

check here for other
Bielefeld and Herford photos

caprese flowers

these little Caprese flowers are based
on my favorite Italian salad, Insalata Caprese



i found at Henry's, i mean, Sprouts
these mozzarella balls, made by BelGioioso
a superb brand of cheese



so from the little mozzarella balls and the grape tomatoes
i got the idea of combining them on top of basil leaves
to form little flowers instead just tossing them on the salad

in my version of Caprese flowers, i added fresh-cut rosemary
to the dressing, which i made with Olive Oil,
balsamic vinegar, fresh-ground black pepper and chopped garlic



the result was delicious! the taste is a bit different
from a 'regular' Insalata Caprese, as with the flowers
you have to bite each little ball of mozzarella
and the grape tomatoes, so they feel different in your mouth
now i like my version better than the original!



give it a try!

Kodak no more

as Kodak files for bankruptcy, The Guardian releases
this lovely collection of images from the legendary company

visit the entire collection
http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/gallery/2012/jan/19/women-in-focus-kodak-girl-in-pictures

and as the world went digital

for a while, and still, i keep on photographing

with 35mm film, some of it Kodak film

[i do photograph digital too]

35mm Kodak film, grainy, old, familiar stuff

the infamous T-MAX film black & white

and some random 35mm film

with my good old friend Nikkormat

here all my Kodak film photos on 23hq

http://www.23hq.com/bere/kodak

here some of my own photos shedding a little

digital tear for yet another company lost

love the feeling of film, cannot be recreated by any digital camera

on my way

yesterday's morning
every morning
on my way to work


Washington Street in the morning

and the feeling reminds me of this
old Tom Waits song, Old 55

Edward Hopper

my mom discovered Edward Hopper's art tonight
she only knew a few pieces of his art

Morning Sun

browsing through this catalog online
i realized i knew only a little of his work too
superb browsing

the first post of 2012

and what more suitable than talking about my lovely
National Gallery of Art 2012 Softcover Engagement Calendar
this is the second year that i order this agenda



since 1999, i've been writing in little agendas
it is sort of a short journal
i use them for engagements, but also to track
from happy events, to dreams, and even medications

i document there little and big daily events
it's sort of fun to be able to open a page of
let's say... June 13, 2003 and found out a quick outline
of what i did

these editions of the National Gallery are superb looking
every week, a new piece of art, wonderful paper too!
inspirational indeed!



wish you a wonderful 2012
full of art, love, and health