The Rites of Spring

Posted on April 23rd, 2008 by Jim.
Categories: General, Event Reviews, Travel.

Spring arrives to many fun events. The weather is improving and overall attitudes improve too. This year, as Spring has arrived, I find myself travelling more, dealing with some new challenges, and finding that life throws you lots of curve balls.

Let’s begin with the challenges.

Shortly after returning from Sydney, I received a call from my dad, letting me know that my mother was in the hospital, having suffered a major stroke and minor heart attack. The good news is she is well, and suffered very little physical issue. However, she has had significant brain trauma and is dealing with a level of aphasia. I am happy to report she is home, but many things have changed. Mom has some challenges with expressing herself, and seems most challenged in stressful situations. She is working with a speech therapist and a physical therapist, and is slowing getting her life back together. Her friends have been a source of amazement to me, as they prepare meals for my parents and visit on a regular basis. My dad is holding up pretty good and has been sending out a daily blog email of status on my mother’s health, which I think is ultimately a great deal of therapy for him. Keep them both in your thoughts.

Now with that going on, let’s talk travel - this year has been full of fun trips.

The most recent has taken me to New York, where I was able to catch up with my good friend Greg and enjoy a lovely home cooked meal with him in his new home. Additionally, I was able to celebrate my friend Noah’s birthday and have some fun times out with him (funny thing is that Noah lives in San Francisco, a former resident of New York, and I see him more in New York than I do in San Francisco). Later during the week, my traveling buddies (Steve and Leif) arrived and we all met up with more friends and we attended the annual Rites XXIX: Black Party event in New York. It was a great joy to have my two close friends with me and have us all share in that event together.

This past weekend I was able to enjoy a little time in Palm Springs for the annual pilgrimage to the White Party. The events were certainly more fun this year, the music happier, the crowd friendlier. As remarked by one friend, hopefully this is a change towards a better time in these community events. I really enjoyed this weekend time with my good friend Dan and his partner David at the lovely home they have in Cathedral City - the environment is relaxing and refreshing. Additionally, I was able to hang out with my buddy Eric who lives in Palm Springs and I was able to catch up with my good friends from Calgary, Neal and Denis and their friends Tom and Rome.

Soon, I will be jetting off to my first trip to London. I am very excited and looking forward to relaying what that trip is like.

Finally, other things in life are stable.

Coming soon, my partner John and I are planning a great European travel excursion on the Atlantis Barcelona to Rome Cruise, so stay posted for more to come on that.

Until my next post, Happy Spring.

0 comments.

2007 Passes

Posted on December 21st, 2007 by jim.
Categories: General.

It is hard for me to believe that 2007 is almost over. The holidays have come so quickly and I just can not get my head wrapped around the fact that we are now heading quickly into 2008.

As I look back at 2007, I have many fun times to put into my book of memories. Lots of travel, time with friends, and time with family. Overall, 2007 was a rather good year, and 2008 is shaping up to be pretty good too.

So, as you approach the midnight hour on New Year’s Eve, I hope you find yourself with someone you care about and love. I am excited to know that I will be spending my NYE with friends and with the love of my life, watching the old year pass and the new year start.

Here’s to wishing you the happiest of holidays.

0 comments.

October Comes and is Going, Going, Almost Gone…

Posted on October 27th, 2007 by Jim.
Categories: General.

Wow, where has the time gone. Seems like we were just preparing for Burning Man and then returning from Burning Man and then cleaning up from Burning Man. Soon after that came a cruise to Mexico with Atlantis on the Serenade of the Seas for the Mexico Celebration Cruise 2007. A whirlwind of activity and some pictures for you to check out too.

October is also the month of John’s birthday and we celebrated it in wonderful style, taking a hot air balloon ride with Balloon Tours. This is a very fun experience and a bit different than I had expected.

We started out very early (try 4:30AM wake up alarms) to get ready and head to Santa Rosa. So much depends on weather for the ride, we had to wait for a call from the pilot to even know if we were going, but given the hour drive we had to be ready to split. We arrived in Santa Rosa at about 6:45AM and waited with others for the balloon team to show up, we boarded to large passenger vans and drove North. The pilot upon our first stop told us that the fog was growing and not good for flying, so it was time to head over to Calistoga and up into Lake County to try. The ride over the hills and around the curvy roads for an hour in the vans was a bit much. Once we got there, we were quickly briefed and the team got to the work of setting up the balloon and before you knew it we were flying.

It is so quiet, so peaceful, warmer than I expected as well. The views were stunning and made for a wonderful experience and something I will not soon forget. The pilot spends the initial time of the cruise checking out the different wind currents (who knew there were so many at every level) and then starts to work them to take him to our destination, about an hour flight and only about 1-3 miles from where we started, or so was the plan. We stayed aloft in some still air and that was nice as the balloon rotated around for our viewing. The pilot, after about an hour, headed towards a glider port, and we missed our ideal landing spot, something that happens often. We ended up landing on a ranch, between a grove of trees at the lower end of a hill. We all helped pack up, got back in the vans and headed back to Santa Rosa for brunch. A wonderful way to celebrate John’s birthday. Check out the pictures when you get a chance.

We followed that evening with dinner with friends at Old Krakow, an wonderful Polish restaurant in West Portal and then by going to our friends house for a house party prior to heading out for fun in the hood.

Hope fall is special for you.

0 comments.

Return from the Burn (aka Back to Real Life)

Posted on September 16th, 2007 by Jim.
Categories: General, Event Reviews, Travel.

It certainly has taken me a few weeks to get back to the journal here and write something about Burning Man and the re-entry into normal life following the burn.

I am sure as you read this you are aware of the drama that unfolded at the 2008 Burn.  First was the unscheduled burning of the actual man on Monday night (or Tuesday morning) during the lunar eclipse.  The crowds that night were insane for a Monday on the playa, more in line with the typical crowd of a Thursday or Friday night of the burn week.  John and I had headed out with intentions of enjoying the evening, seeing the eclipse and having a great night, but neither of us were very happy with the crowds or the attitude of lunacy that was surrounding the night.  At about midnight we crashed and awoke on Tuesday to hear that the man had been burned.  I took a bike ride out to see the man standing, charred a bit, bit still standing.  Amazingly, the BRC team pulled him down and rebuilt and added neon back come Thursday night, in fact a phoenix then adorned his head.  It was a beautiful sight to see, after several night of having a problem with bearings and reference without the man on the playa (for those of you who have gone you know how important he is for a landmark to find your way around at night).

Secondly was the suicide that took place at a favorite camp we enjoy, Comfort and Joy.  This was a sad moment for both this camp and for the friends of the man who took his life.  It seemed to cast a bit of a shadow on the camp for the week once word got out.

Other than that, it was a good burn, not remarkable, but good.  I come away with a lot of great memories (see photos) of time with spent with my sponsored members of the camp and some good friends.  I went to the festival this year, thinking I would not return next year, and take some time off, but I am leaning more towards going again.

Finally, it is September in San Francisco, which means another busy month.  The end of this month will be crazy with the Love Fest on Saturday, September 29, and then all of the events of Folsom Street weekend, culminating with my favorite party, Real Bad.

Hope to see you soon, and if you are reading this and we have not chatted in a while, please drop me a line.

0 comments.

The Exodus Begins

Posted on August 25th, 2007 by Jim.
Categories: General, Travel.

Here it is, the last wee of August, the plunge towards September and fall, and for many San Franciscan’s that means a trip to the Nevada Desert for the unique music/art/survival festival called Burning Man. 

I too will be joining this exodus for many days of fun and frivolity in the desert.  This is my 4th year to attend the burn and likely the last for a year or two, as I plan to take a break from the work my friends and I do to create a wonderful theme camp called Fairyland.  This camp has become a true home on the playa and a place where some of my dearest and closest friends gather, in a larger village called Avalon, to spend time together, build a community, and just let our hair down.

The past couple weeks have been filled with preparations, shopping, dreaming and scheming.  From a personal note, this year is my first year to take my own art to the playa - with the help of my good friend Scott, we have created a 25′ hexagon shaped installation on which I will hang 36 nine foot long by fifty-five inch wide 5mm silk panels that I have dyed.  The panels will be set up to have an amazing amount of black light thrown on them at night and are reactive so they will glow with a fire yellow to orange blend then to red, magenta, purple and eventually to blew, with some drop out effect to simulate fire burning up into a sky with some light clouds.  I am very proud of this installation because it represents to date the largest single silk project I have worked on.  Many thanks go out to Scott B. for the silk, Leif W. for ironing, Scott S. and Dan V. for sewing with me, Phillip B. for being the inspiration to my project, and to John for being supportive and allowing me to discover, draw, and pursue my inner artist.  If you are out on the playa over the next week, stop by Fairyland on Desert, between 7:00 and 7:30 streets to see the installation.

So, here it is Saturday morning.  The sun is rising, I have taken the last full pressure shower I will take for a number of days, and I find myself getting chills, the excitement rising, and the expectations growing.  The man and the desert are calling me.  Watch for photos in the gallery of the burn this year, but in case you are curious about previous year, check out those photos too.

0 comments.

Older » « Newer