one image

The concept:
1. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search.
2. Using only the first page of results, and pick one image.
3. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into Big Huge Lab's Mosaic Maker to create a mosaic of the picture answers.

The questions:
1. What is your first name? Jill
2. What is your favorite food? right now? Blueberries
3. What high school did you go to? Strathcona
4. What is your favorite color? Blood Red
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Beckham
6. What is your favourite drink? Something tropical
7. What is your dream vacation? train trip
8. What is your favourite dessert? Creme Brulee
9. What do you want to be when you grow up? live someplace wonderful and own a hostel
10. What do you love most in life? comfort
11. What is one word that describes you? charming
12. What is your flickr name? Jill Y

Here's mine:

My creation, originally uploaded by jill y.

1. Jill's Fresh Tattoo, 2. A Berry Good Day, 3. strathcona back alley, 4. Blood Moon, 5. Adrenalin junkie, 6. Up in the sky, 7. The Train Enthusiast, 8. flan, 9. Village of Gorbio, Maritime Alps, Provence, 10. "I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father's protection." Sigmond Freud..., 11. breathless, 12. The Start Of Something Big

IMGP0419.JPG, originally uploaded by jill y.

Storm Troopin'

You must enjoy this photo set.

kind of a shitty picture of a sunny Scottsdale hotel resort

But maybe you can see more here..

I'm really hoping I can get to the Camelback Mountains tonight at sunset and hopefully get some decent photos. Otherwise..it's just me and a hotel resport and 40 of my closest friends.

the horse and the bull

IMGP0454.JPG, originally uploaded by jill y.

Still can't believe this photo came from me- it's one of my favorite photos ever. Click on it to see it large.

I used to love these 20 years ago

Washing Grains from the Body Shop.

I adored them. The little cardboard tube with spice container top to shake them out. The little paste in my palm and the smooth soft effect left on my face and the soaplessness of it all.

Walking down Burrard yesterday, the "competition" had a big window display of rice washing grains. I went in. After inquiring about animal testing policies and useless ingredients I returned to my first love and bought a container or beloved washing grains. The instructions are to apply to a damp face and use circular motions. This lovely fine dust smells very slightly of lemons and sort of creams when it hits water. The result after 2 days is by skin is luminous and my pours are tighter and oddly my skin looks youthful.

Is it the washing grains or my memory?



If my favorite cosmetic company made these I would not have strayed, but what's a girl to do? But now I search the internet in hopes of making my own because at $32 a container- this love affair is doomed.

transportation Cuban style

transportation Cuban style, originally uploaded by jill y.

sticky & sweet

click on image to enlarge

Joyero...

Joyero..., originally uploaded by jill y.

every day I put more and more up

6- The view from the Bacardi Building, towards Florida, originally uploaded by jill y.

You can watch for more photos and look at what's up here.

if only I know now what I knew then

stalker

Oh my..

2 of my favorite bloggers are coming to town.

Mightygirl and Dooce will be in Vancouver.

Their blogging names make them sound like superheroes. I can imagine the floodlights. The film noir setting and finger wave curls and handbags. And Heather and Maggie in wonderwoman outfits with gold wristbands and red caps flapping in the wind.

I'll be the stranger in the fedora and trench coat asking if they want to buy a vowel. And you can just call me "More Kisses Please".

No, but seriously. What do you say to 2 people that you read about their lives via the Internet. So nice to meet you finally?

Oh whatever. I'm a goof. I'll take them some of my favorite soap and call it a freaky day.

on the move again..

02- 04 June- Scottsdale, Arizona
17- 20 June- Chicago, Illinois- CANCELLED and too bad for the Art Deco. The date with my camera will have to be postponed.

shortness of trip would suggest these are NOT leisure tours- but I do hope to catch some Art Deco in Chicago.

cross these off my list

I can cross off a few things from my list of 100 things to do before I die.

#16- pay someone's rent for 1 month- I have another candidate for this- but while a Cuban doesn't technically pay rent, I gave a Cuban couple 40 Convertible Pesos which is the equivalent of almost 1000 Cuban Peso.

#45- Inspire someone- Sonia says she is inspired to go to Cuba after hearing of my trip

#54- Visit Cuba before it's too late- it's never too late, but I'm glad I went.

keeping it alive

keeping it alive, originally uploaded by jill y.

it's a lonely planet

it is a lonely planet, originally uploaded by jill y.

I saw him sitting in the heavily tourist area of Havana Veija. He was a street beggar and maybe an alcoholic. His pants were soiled and I'm not even too sure if he grasped the fact that he was on hundreds of Lonely Planet Guide Books all around the world.

I wonder if they got a signed release or if he was paid?

I'm back. I'm working on my photos in bunches of 40 or so. It will take a while to get 800 photos up but you can keep an eye on them here.

modes of transportation

For all the different ways to get around in Cuba, I think I have tried it save for one or 2 (horse cart and shared taxi). I have done the freaky and life threatening Hersey Electric Train. I have taking a trip in the equally freaky and life threatening old belching 1940 Ford car's that clearly outnumber any other type of vehicle on the road. I took the horse drawn carriage ride, which was very lovely and advantagous to taking photos along the Malecon.

And today, I needed to go to Vedado and looked for a taxi. I saw a motorcyle with a sidecar and a little sign that said "taxi". Oh great fun!! So- off we went. I asked for a little tour and near the Plaza de la Revolution, we got a flat tire which I helped to change.

All part of the adventure.

Grateful for the help, the driver waited for me to get my posters and drove me back to where I started, the Hotel Floridita, all for 10 pesos.

Today, is my last day in Havana, save for tomorrow morning before I go. I am tanned, relaxed, tired of the humidity and pollution, grateful and looking forward to being home. I bought 3 year old rum and plan on having mohito's in the park on Sunday!

xox
Jill

the water is warm

I have left Havana on a overnight tour. What a wonderful way to travel. Really, it is just too hot to not go comfortable in an air conditioned coach while you jump off and see the best parts with a local telling you all that is signifigant.

Quite note to say I am on the beach on the south coast of Cuba outside Trinidad. I have dipped my toes in the Caribeean Sea. In case you want to look, I´m at Hotel Ancon.

More later..

Havana - Obispo Street

Havana - Obispo Street, originally uploaded by Macnabbs.

I walk down Obispo everyday. My Casa is on this street.

day tripper

I ususally find the idea of organized tours hideous and cheesy and remind me of school trips where I was scolded for breaking away from the pack- like that time we went to a ghost town and I was facinated with the inside of the building and the contents. What did those scraps of paper on the floor SAY?? I was reprimanded and sent back to the bus to wait for all the others. It was dangerous to go inside the building and shame on me. I still do it. I wander down the side street for the unexpected and of course, I still want to go inside the abandoned building and see what's what.

But I relented and took 2 day trips. Look, I'll just be straight up. Cuba's transportation system is a bit..ahem..troubling. They have been running Ford's from the 1930's and 40's on tractor motors. I saw a rigged up radiator from a 1 litre bottle and a tube duct taped to the outside of the fender!! So, it's not surprising that the electric train from 1910 was about to bounce off the tracks or stop working in the middle of nowhere.

I have made attempts to find my own way. The train station was a sea of madness with no oasis in sight. It was about 80 degrees humidity inside and I quickly became discourgaed to only sit on the curb with my water bottle and wonder if I should bother. But I did and I have to say the 2 days I spent travelling in airconditioned luxury as we wizzed past people trying to sell bricks of homemade cheese and bbq'd chicken in the middle of nowhere was, alternately guilt ridden and confortable.

I spent one day visiting Pinar Del Rio and and cigar factory- where I wandered down the street and took a rather captivating photo of an old farmer. Vinales valley and horse back riding on a ranch, hiking in old caves with a boat trip in the underground stream and walking through Vinbales itself- where I was left behind by the tour bus for lagging behind- shame on me!! (They came back and got me.)

The next day I went to Las Terrasas- which is an eco village and a national park. We had lunch of roast pork, rice, beans, cucumber, tomatoes, taro chips, coffee and custard in a beautiful old hotel with trees growing through the middle of it. We visited the ruins of a coffee plantation and I picked limes and mangoes growing on trees. I took a "canopy tour" where you get in a harness and get attached to a cable and zip down a line through a valley. It was nothing short of amazing!!

Tommorrow, I am taking an overnight trip to Santa Clara, Trinidad, Cienfugos and Santi Cristi. I leave at 6am Tuesday and will get back late Wednesday- which leaves me with Thursday as my last day in Havana and I fly home on Friday.

I have also found the mother of all Cuban souveniers. No it is not cheap cigars or rum. I found a place that sells hand screened Cuabn independant movie posters for about 12 apeice. The art is amazing and startling and freaking wonderful. Some of them are very 60's looking and one was in an Art Nouveau styling. I bought 5 but I will go back and buy more and keep my fingers crossed that they are not confinscated at the airport.

So Mom, if you are reading this.. that is what I did with my birthday money.. bought day trips outside of Havana and bought beautiful old movie posters.

By far- I have to say that this trip to Cuba has been the most relaxing and enjoyable holiday I have ever had. Better than Prague. Better than Paris. Better than 6 months in Europe. I have never felt so relaxed or at ease in so long. Maybe it is because no matter where I go, what I see or who I meet- there is no North America- McDonald's, Starbucks, Levis, or Coca Cola and oddly no Americans or Canadians either. Most people I meet are from South America, Mexico or Italy. Lovely bunch.

Love,

Jill

I have just discovered the tourist office a few feet from my Casa!!

Tomorrow I am on a full day tour of the valley of Vinales, that includes caves, mountains and a tobacco farm.

Sunday I will be off on another tour of the Cuban wilderness and countryside.

Mom- Happy Mother's Day if I don't have a chance to contact you.


xoxox

checked off

-visited the Revolution Square
-knocked on the grave of La Milagrossa
-taken a ride in a 1950 Buick (likely with a tractor engine)
-drank a Mijoto
-got lost in Vedado
-rode the only electric train in Cuba
-haggled and had a trip on a bici-taxi
-walked Calle 23
-did not drink in one of Hemigway's many drinking spots
-had a coffee with a local in a peso bar
-washed my clothes by hand
-cut the legs off my pants
-cut the sleeves off my top
-got a sunburn
-got shortchanged
-ate the local cuisine of grilled fish, rice and beans, cabbage and papaya juice
and
-bought a souveneir that was not Che related

bird song

Someone, every day, opens the window and steps out onto a ledge that overhangs the street of the green building across the street from my Casa. They hang a little rusty bird cage on a nail. A pretty little songbird flutters inside, but outside. Fresh air and a cool breeze is readily available. Someone gives the little bird a bit of food and water everyday. No need to fight, for this little bird. It can sit on it's perch and sing, happily, as long as the day is bright.

I see this birdcage every day and see an ornate antique cage. It's rusted bars contrasting against the tranquile tourqoise green. The little bird inside must be teased relentlessly with the freedom just on the other side. The other birds that swoop, flutter and perch at will, wherever they please.

Today I met a couple in their 60's. They asked me if I was Norweigan or Dutch. We had a friendly conversation and I asked them where they were from and they laughed and told me they were from Havana. With shared English skills we chatted and strolled and they told me their story over lunch. They told me of life in Cuba. Of their careers as an accountant and a secretary. He told me of how he lost his job for making a remark in the street against the goverment and how it was overheard. The told me of the ration card and the average salary. I was startled to learn that I had without a thought, spent a months salary in a day wandering around Havana.

I bought them lunch and slipped 40 Peso Convertables into his pocket. I told them I was very lucky to have such a good job and with opportunity. I told them I was lucky to be so free to travel and see this beautiful city that reminded me so much of places like Paris, Barcelona, New Orleans and a bit of Marrakesh thrown in. I told him I was grateful that no one cared whether or not I liked the goverment or voted. I told them the day of conversation, of sharing and their company was a great gift.

They walked me back to my casa and I pointed out the little birdcage hanging from a nail high up on a wall and I saw that they too have the cool breeze and fresh air available to them, that they are provided with food and shelter, but they too are caged and not free as they should be to sing their heart's song. Alberto and Teresita, still, manage to be heard.

I am privledged and happy, I hope, to count myself among their friends.

Hershey Train

HersheyTrain, originally uploaded by BikeTrip.

adventure to Hersey

The train rolls into Casablanca late and to cheers of dusty and sweaty travellers. The man with a wrench cuts rusty wire and climbs onto the top. The trolley is broken- again. We wait. He hammers the trolley and attaches more wire. I take photos while we wait. A young man in a white shirt, old Frank Sinatra hat tipped to the front, watches me from behind his newspaper. He later gets off in a small ramshakle town and shuffles he black dress shoes in the dust.

Aboard to dusty and worn green velvet seats and broken windows, the same from 1917, I'm sure. We roll off into unknown places, slowly at first then picking up speed. This train is a death trap on rails and I wonder what I have goten myself into. It bounces and swerves. Resigned to my 3 peso fate, my head whips from side to side, my shoulder slams into the window at the train's velocity. It courses down on it's predetermined destiny of Mantanzas.

As I watch out the window at the Cuban countryside of wind wipped palms, dried grasses and tinshack farm houses, I notice something dark, large and unusual. It's a cow. It's falling down the ditch. Fallen when I focus my eyes against the distance. It's legs straight up, head twisted- one eye looking. We pass, but only to stop a short distance and then back up. Passengers crane their necks out the windows and doors swish open. The train hit the cow and we backed up to make sure of something. Not sure what as no one got out and helped the cow up.

When we arrived in Hershey- the site, I presume of a chocolate factory, I figured that maybe this train adventure was a bit too much. It would be another 2 hrs to Mantanzas and I had no water or food. I got off and sat down and pondered my fate in Hershey. As the train rumbled away, I wondered still what sort of adventure I had gotten myself into. The return train to Havana wouldn't be for 2 hrs.

He sat down with his translation book and spoke a little english. I waved to the other with the tattoo and motioned to mine. The 3 of us became an unoffical pack for the day. One who spoke a little, one who spoke none and a book. I wondered what the day had in store. We walked across the street and bought fresca limonada served in cut off beer bottles. We walked through Hershey and they pointed out the broken factory, the old hotel from 1920 that was near demolished, the police station. We went to a market and bought a pineapple and with a pocket knife cut peices for one another and washed our hands with bottled water. I said Ola! to everyone who passed and they laughed. We laughed.

I took photos of the beautiful and decrepet stately houses, left over from the chocolate boom. Photos of the horse cart taxi's and chickens in the street. I tried to bribe 3 girls with a peso for a photo but they went running away laughing. We bought breadsticks from a vendor and sweets from another. Laughing, I said the nonesense phrases in the Language book, "Does Hershey have a bullring?" "Does Hershey have a recycling program?" and I helped them learn the months of the year in English.

These 2 waited until the train arrived. It had to wait as another train on the track was broken. I made origami birds from ripped out pages from Lonely Planet Cuba and gave them to the little girls on the train. I folded origami boxes and made everyone laugh when I blew them up. They waited and entertained me for a long time and then both gave me a kiss when the train was leaving and we exchanged adios.

Now dark, the Hershey Electric Train rumbled, bounced, careened and crackled into the night. Large electric flashes from the working trolley flashed bright green and illumanated the scenery for a moment almost as brightly as my 2 compadras during the day.

taking the Hersey electric train

Today Iamleaving Havana Veija and crossing an inlet to Casablanca. There, is the only electric train in Cuba. In 1917 the Hershey Chocolate Company built this line to Matanzas. Apparently it stops at every pit stop along the way. I'm hoping it will create a breeze. And I'm hoping I won't get lost.

Like last night. I started walking and walkingand the next thing I knew I was in sketchy sketcheramaand it was dark and everywhere I looked it got darker and darker, weirder and weirder. I put my camera away. There are these bicyle taxis everywhere. I found one and 5 pesos later I was back at Hotel Florida (of which I can't help but pronounce it Flo-RI-da. Look it up. It was a Hemingway favorite.

Other observations:

The elevator in my building goesout of commision for certain hours of the day. It is a rickety thing and there is a crumbling cement gap between the floor and the elevator on the first floor. It jerks to a start and slammsto a stop on your desired floor. Yesterday it didn't want to stop and sort of jerked between floors. I was slightly drunk from Mohitos and didn'tseemto mind but fretted that I might sweat to death in it's chamnber. Maybe I should walk up the steap narrow stairwell instead??

Off in the distance someone is playing The Beatles "Yesterday" on oboe. The big hotel are cool oasis with internet and cheezy music.

Off for the Hersey Train!

xoxo
Jill

veija

DSC03938, originally uploaded by Simon 2000.

At the end of the day I see these cars belching caustic fumes, rolling down the slick ashphalt streets packed with Cubans like salty sardines in a blue tin can. Transportation is dismal. If there are buses, there are no route maps. They are inevitably packed if you see one, or the bus stop has 50 people waving bits of paper in their faces in effort to create a breeze.

It's hot.

And the women wear the tighest clothes. Only tourists are in gauzy coton skirts. I packed foolishly. I will not wear the jeans and sweater I packed for Toronto. You sweat geting dressed. I will likely wash out and wear everyday my cotton cargo shorts and my 2 coton tops.

The food is meat and bread focused. Anyone who says you will find times of no food is mistaken. You can get food everywhere and all hours. There are even ber vending machines on the street. It's hard to find vegetables. Salad is cabbage and carrot. Probably because they last the longest in the heat. I did have a cheese platter in hopes of Cuban cheese, but it was cheddar, edam, and parmesan. The bread was slightly toasted and stale. The lemondade was real.

No one sems to have a decent coffee.

All the music is slight cuban versions of bad lounge music. Barry Manilow type stuff. No Gypsy Kings yet, thank god. Buena Vista Social Club is closed.

BTW- this is not my photo, but I have sen this frame- old car, many cubans investigating. Another day and it's impossible to take a bad photo.

Habana

Habana - Cuba 17, originally uploaded by Helio Rocha.

Umm. she sits here and sells Cuba to the tourists. Today she is all in red. Mmn. I will watch and see what she is wearing tomorrow.

I look forward to showing my own photos. I have found it is difficult to take a bad one.

Having lots of fun on my 1st day in Havana. It's very beautiful, lovely and hot.

Habana

All is well in Havana.

Strange and wonderful, old, hot, busy, crumbling and lively.

Last night I got on my flight and I wish it hadn't have been in the middle of the night or the view from the window would have been more spectacular.

Observations of last night:

-was photographed coming into the country
-pass through security and xray of luggage coming in to Cuba
-woman standing next to me at the luggage carousel was smoking
-everyone wanted to be my cab driver
-the cab ride from the airport was fast
-lots of car stopped on the side of the road
-people standing around along side the road
-this was at 2:30 am??
-saw buses full of people going places
-lost 20 pesos somewhere between money exchange and counting money on casa bed

My Casa Particulare or room in a private home is very nice. Only a top sheet and another sheet on the bed and 2 pillow. You don't need anything else. It's hot. Very hot.

My host was very pleased when I gave her a giant slab of soap. I was asked for soap when talking to someone. Apparently it is hard to get?

My Casa is on Calle Obispo. A very busy and lively street in Old Havana.

More observations:

-lots of selling Cuba to the tourists
-someone dressed up as Che, another woman in traditional costume smoking cigars.
-small bottle of water 5 pesos, a few blocks a way- 1 litre is 1.50
-lots of small stray dogs. Some of them look dead just laying on the ground. I feel sorry for them.
-it's impossible to take a bad photo.
-lots of old fords just like you hear.
-the big hotels are havans of coolness and luxury.
-found one with this Internet access and the whole lobby and entrance is beautifully tiled.

Everything is well. It's lovely and I'm having a great time. I feel safe, but sweaty.

xoxo
Jill

bliss

bliss, originally uploaded by jill y.

chelsea garden

chelsea garden, originally uploaded by jill y.

Good news for the Chelsea Hotel. The oppressive and diabolical management staff that ousted long time manager, Stanley Bard has been fired.

Bard is largely responsible for fostering the bohemian spirit of the Chelsea- long allowing people to defer rent payments to art. He turned an eye to the rock musicians, drunkard authors and creative spirits and let them roam free through the halls and gilded banisters.

I hope he get's his job back.

Good news!!

in case you were wondering...

I'm off to Cuba in a day or two. I hope to successfully remove myself from the internet. If you see an update- be surprised, very surprised that I have torn myself away from old cars, mohitos, and the fact that I am in Havana.

xoxo
Jill

touch me

touch me, originally uploaded by jill y.

Blissfully unaware of the 1970's

Blissfully unaware, originally uploaded by jill y.

"Convert the World to Your Methods"

not happy 1, originally uploaded by jill y.

Tips for getting a great tattoo:

1. ask for a quote
2. confirm work and time line involved

I have a lovely tattoo on my right arm (showing left in the photo), in a beautiful Art Nouveau design of wheat and rosebuds. It shaded with black and grey ink, with white ink. Over time, this has turned to a bluish- grey. I commissioned a complimenting piece for my other arm. Same style, wheat, this time with open blooms and barbed wire.

I booked my appointment and went through the back and forth of designs. I was not told of the fact my chosen artist was booked to the yingyang or offered a 2nd booking. I sat for the initial outline and when told I would wait 7 months for a 2nd appointment, asked for an alternative. She would see me after hours at an increased rate from 160/hr to 180/hr. I agreed.

side note: my 2nd appointment clearly interfered with some plans with a friend as the friend showed up and was told, "sorry, Jill has an appointment." Said friend returned with an hour left on the session. After paying $700, the friend said, quote: "Now get lost!" and right in front of the tattoist. Clearly it was fucked up attempt to cover her annoyance of her "friend time" interrupted by my tattoo booking. The next day I saw the same girl in a grocery store and point blank told her to her face it was "really rude", "made me feel like shit after sitting for a 4 hr tattoo and $700 later" and "it had really bothered me and I was glad to get it off my chest." I do believe the choice to speak my mind has affected the future course of my tattoo.

After my piece healed, it was hard not to notice and wonder what exactly I had paid for. The lines were noticeable fainter, paler and washed out. Lines that had been tattooed TWICE. This is not fun on sensitive spots. So- I called to discuss. Being that my tattoo artist is "so booked up", you can't just walk in and talk to her. The receptionist said to write an email so I did and because I continue to be pissed at the $1100 dollars I "spent" getting this amount of work, the rudeness of her friend in front of her, and the lack communicated "time lines" or cost.. I'm posting the emails unedited except to remove names.

From: Jill

Sent: April 1, 2008 8:52 PM

To:________

Subject: wheat tattoo

Hi ________,

I meant to write this a lot sooner than today.

Without trying to offend you- I’ll just jump to the point.

I’m having a few concerns with the tattoo on my left arm. The issue is the current cost and darkness of the tattoo. It is noticeably paler than the older tattoo on my right arm.

This concerns me because I have sat for the initial outline and another session to shade. My understanding was that there would be further sessions to shade the barbed wire and color the flowers.

The tattoo line work has been done twice and shading once but the result is much fainter and paler and the 2 tattoos do not match in tone. Because I have paid approx $400 for the outline and $700 for the 2nd session and with the result- I’m not happy with it.

I did mention to you that I wanted the flowers to be a light washed color and showed you some drawings in a Charles Rennie book, but it has always been my intention that the 2 pieces match in look, design, tone and shading and I thought you understood that as well.

I’m not sure where to go from here. I would prefer that you sat me for no charge to have the tattoo brought up to match the other arm in shading- minus the shading in the barbed wire and color of the flowers.

Please let me know what your thoughts are on this and where we can go from here.

Thanks,

Jill

From________

Date: April 11, 2008 1:09:03 PM PDT (CA)

To: ________

Subject: RE: wheat tattoo

Hi ________,

I haven’t heard back from you regarding the email I sent earlier.

I have attached pictures that show the issues I am unhappy about.

I would like to hear your response about this. I don’t know if I should come in to talk to you directly as you’re pretty booked up. However, I do need to move forward as I want the tattoo to be completed. Are you willing to help me resolve this situation?

I hope so.

Thanks for your time,
Jill

From:________
Sent:April 15, 2008 8:42 PM
To: ________
Subject: wheat tattoo

Hi Jill.

Sorry for the delay in getting back to you as I was away in Ontario and just got back. I take care of all ________'s correspondence so it was not that she was neglecting to respond.

She has now read your e-mails and has asked me to relay the following information.

________absolutely did understand that you wanted the two pieces to match in look, design, tone and shading but as you wanted the 2nd arm to be shades of grey as opposed to black lines and shading (or the colors of the original) it is a process which takes time. The look would have always been somewhat different as the first arm had green and white in it, but would have been complimentary and well matched. She was clear on your intention for the flowers but they had not yet been started.

The cost for the 2nd session was $80 above what it would have been at the regular rate and was proposed by you as compensation for getting in immediately and not waiting the full 8 months for a standard opening.

For ________ there is the additional issue of your missed March 12th apt with no notice. We were unable to fill that spot on such short notice and so lost income on that day.

________ understands that at this point you are unhappy with your piece but feels fully confident that by the time your final session was complete your pieces would have been completed as per your original request. She does not feel that there is cause for her to complete your tattoo free of charge. She is willing to finish your piece but it would be at her regular rate and in the time frame that her current bookings allow. She understands if you choose to get your piece finished elsewhere as the two of you seem to have reached a point where your views differ significantly.

Please let us know if you would like to book a further apt and if not she wishes you well.

Thanks

________

From: ________
Sent: Tue, 15-4-2008 9:14pm
To: ________
Cc: ________
Subject: RE: wheat tattoo

Hi ________

Thanks for the response.

I'll take a moment to comment back...

The entire look of the 2nd arm was to match the 1st, as Teresa understood in "look, design, tone and shading". My first arm is shades of grey with white and black line work. Currently, the basic black line work of the 2nd^ndtattoo is noticeably paler than the other arm and has been tattooed twice. Regrettably, it was not discussed openly the “time it would take”.

My right arm or 1st^sttattoo does not have green in it. It was done with black, white and grey ink in shades of grey and a very light pink in the rosebuds.

I apologize for missing my booked appointment but as that was booked after hours; I am unclear how Teresa lost income on that day with the short notice preventing her from filling the spot. I was unaware she normally booked after hour appointments and only did so by special request and additional cost. Once again, my apologies for any inconvenience.

I am surprised that an expression of my disappointment, and the request for discussion along with what I felt might be a solution is met with a statement that our view points “appear to differ significantly”. I was hoping to be able to meet a compromise of sorts, if possible.

I continue to be disappointed in the result of the current tattoo with the length of time and cost incurred thus far. With ________'s response of how to continue forward and with the consultations I have had with other tattoo artists of the work, I feel that I am better suited to have the tattoo completed in a more agreeable timeframe, to my schedule and wallet with someone else.

Thanks again for relaying the information and the follow up.

not happy 2, originally uploaded by jill y.

By the way- both these tattooes cost the SAME- $1100.00, but she stands behind her work??

So let this be a lesson. Ask what they are doing. How long they are doing it for and how much they think they will eventually milk from your wallet. If their friends are point blank rude in front of their customers- think again about where you take your business.

Bess is one helluva photographer!!!

diaper change, originally uploaded by bess grant.

covet

covet, originally uploaded by jill y.

corporate america on the Drive

corporate america on the Drive, originally uploaded by jill y.

parisian patio

parisian patio, originally uploaded by jill y.

when you haven't had enought sleep

Catherine invited me over. She said she had chili. I asked- do you have the cheddar for on top?? I was hungry and in search of comfort food.

I walked into her kitchen and looked at a bowl on the counter. I thought this is kind of unusual Chili. What did she do do this? Did she put this in a blender? I was really tired. I just said, "Wow. This is really wild chili."


Then Catherine* said..

"Jill- that's the bran muffin mix."


*Catherine is my sister. When we were growing up, my mother had the brilliant idea of having us plan dinner once a week. I remember Catherine making the family peanut butter and banana sandwiches. I also remember asking my Mom how hard it would be to make Chicken Cordon Bleu.

Case closed.

I need a holiday

And I think I'll go do this..

I'm a bit surprised that it's only rated 2 out 0f 5 on the culture shock rating.

Guimard

Guimard, originally uploaded by jill y.

sigh

"There is a huge polymer stew twice the size of Texas in the Pacific Ocean."

"A heap of trash that's twice the size of Texas is floating somewhere between San Francisco and Hawaii. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch, as it's called, is 80 percent plastic, and weighs in at 3.5 million tons. Trapped in a circular course by winds and currents, it's been around since the 1950s, and has been growing tenfold every decade. It's not a dumping ground in the sense that people are flying or boating by and throwing their refuse into the heap. Instead, it's picking up trash that originates onshore, and has since made its way out into the Pacific. Cleaning it up doesn't sound too likely, since the effort would cost billions, but it would be nice if we figured out a way to stop adding to it. Another possibility: turning it into a sort of anti-Disney World. Surely that would convert even the worst plastic-wasting offenders among us into ardent environmentalists." Gregory Mone

I just don't know what to think except I would like to have a wee home carved into a hill that is naturally heated from an underground spring.

not Britney

37 things I'm really glad exist

1. cherry blossoms in bloom
2. creme brulee
3. earl grey tea with hot milk and honey
4. running squirrels
5. kitteny cats
6. art nouveau
7. handmade quilts
8. realy great grated parm on fresh pasta
9. feather duvets
10. feather pillows
11. craft fairs
12. tables outside
13. dewey rain
14. email
15. kisses
16. butter chicken
17. helium balloons in bunches
18. postcards
19. warm days with a cool breeze blowing through them
20. the blues in a dark club
21. downhills on the bike through unknown neighborhoods
22. mashed potatoes, piled in a mountain, butter inside and covered in gravy
23. "real" hot chocolate
24. Michael Oscar Rowan Trainor
25. Tomy's "Nohohon Zoku"
26. flannel bedsheets on cold days
27. antique embroidery hoops
28. my Pentax Digital
29. The Vancouver Car Co-Op
30. Spring and Fall
31. fresh croissants with jam and cream
32. road trips in the country
33. my family
34. Scotland
35. train trips
36. spiders that eat the bugs
37. fresh tulips and spray roses

blue eyes

blue eyes, originally uploaded by jill y.

best birthday present ever

my adorable boyfriend tricked me into thinking that the studio he works for might want to use some of my prints in an upcoming production. He wanted me to burn a few images on a disc for him- high resolution. Sure, I can do that. I didn't think much of it.

Yesterday for my birthday- he gave me a bundle of postcards, complete with the spot for the stamp and the address and all of that- OF ONE OF MY PHOTOS. Not just any photo though- the one that I took sitting next to him in a cafe minutes before we first met. (He also talked the cafe where we met into selling them!!)

SO PERFECT A BIRTHDAY PRESENT!!

happy birthday to me

Today is my birthday .

Don't forget to tun out your lights at 8 pm wherever you are for Earth Hour. But why not just turn out your lights for the day.

and then I found this funny video...

almost a year ago I walked long a street in Paris

then and now

then and now, originally uploaded by el_rebelde.

not my photo..click on it to see more from the photographer.

plum blossoms in Tokyo

plum blossom 1, originally uploaded by jill y.

children's secrets

As someones child, I would like to assume they are curious to know of all the "bad" things I have done. I would like to assume that they are innately curious of all the high jinx I could get into. They maybe pretended to "trust" me, but deep down, I think they are dying to know the secret lives of their child. Sensing this, I have often opted to spare my mother the gut wrenching anxiety she must have felt for all those nights I was out beyond curfew as truth be told, I was at a diner eating fries with mayonnaise with a bunch of up to no good punks.

So recently, I confessed a few things I've done. I didn't think too much about it, but when she recently commented, "So where was the secret fort??" I wondered why she didn't want to know more about these other things I could cross off my list as done...

31. hitchhike
33. travel with musicians
68. swim naked in the ocean at night
90. make a complete and utter fool of myself
92. forgive my parents
100. get arrested

But no- it's the secret fort I built with a bunch of no good punks. So here it is...

There was one house with green siding, a gently sloping lawn, by best friend next door and nothing but a ravine, a farmer's field and the rest of Alberta across the street and behind the neighbours house (see map and see that across the highway is seriously developed housing now). It probably wasn't so secret, but at the time, it sure felt like if you crossed the street went behind the house and a little bit further you drop off the edge of adult land.

One summer a bunch of older kids made off with the farmer's hay bales (from across Baseline Road) and built tunnels and little rooms. We were small bundles of legs and arms. We didn't need a whole lot of room. I maybe more accurately, didn't "make" a secret fort, as much as I was aware of a secret fort and played in it. I climbed trees in this wild growth of magical childhood fantasy and played pirates. We pretended we would find hidden treasure, and we would watch for invading tribes from afar. You know the drill.

Once, it rained heavily and flooded the ravine. A couple of kids made a raft- or at least that is what I seem to remember. I distinctly remember crawling along a fallen tree log that was arched over the water. It's a sheer madness that no one got hit running across the highway that separated this wilderness from the farmer's field, that we never got caught stealing hay and that no one got seriously hurt or drowned in that murky water that one summer.

The whole thing is a bit of a weird memory- half submerged in memory and the other half gurgling for air in fantasy. Did I really crawl on my hands and knees through the yellow, musty, poky straw bale tunnel or did I imagine it.

Either way- it was a secret and it was a fort.


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100 things crossed off, 1-100

Doing these lists of thing to do before I die is not as easy as it would seem. So, I started reading all the other lists I could find and noticed quite a number of things on other people's lists that I have done. I thought- that's pretty neat. I've done some cool things and I think it's worth celebrating all the things you have accomplished- big, small, fanciful or boring..And this list was considerably easier...In no random order- the incomplete list-100 things I have done

Both lists was an extraordinary personal review of the "books on my shelf"- meaning the ideas I have in my head on what i thought my life would be like, what I hope for it and what I just wish for despite the odds- no, I really don't hope to ride a giraffe one day- but darn it- it would be fantastic.

I highly encourage you to write your lists. Scratch things off and add more when they come around. There were alot of things I wanted to put on my list but I just wasn't ready to. Be gentle with yourself, but write the list.

Good luck..

1. visit Japan
2. live in Scotland
3. live on a boat
4. road trip to New Orleans
5. have a Corona in Mexico
6. skydive
7. have croissants in Paris
8. Visit the Victor Horta house in Brussels
9. Visit the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam
10. sleep on a train
11. Go to Ground Zero
12. see the leaning tower of Pisa before it falls down
13. own something from Tiffany's
14. learn to accept that I have to eat my greens, take my omegas, get regular exercise and water and occasionally get a medical lift to pull up from mild depression and anxiety. No you can't be happy and immobile on potato chips- get over it, Jill
15. Go to the Red Light District
16. Meet a Harijuko girl
17. talk to someone famous
18. visit the Grand Canyon
19. see the inside of Janis Joplin's house in Larkspur, California
20. ride a camel down the beaches in Morocco
21. travel through Europe
22. visit Prague
23. look out from the top of the Empire State Building
24. Go to the top of the Rock
25. visit Alcatraz
26. sell a photograph
27. help someone with their groceries
28. ride by bike to work every day for a week
29. make my own ginger ale
30. go fast on the Autobahn
31. hitchhike
32. accept an invitation from a stranger
33. travel with musicians
34. build a secret fort in the woods
35. give $20 to a panhandler
36. send a postcard to a stranger
37. get paid to travel
38. hike up the Grouse Grind
39. ride a scooter in Rome
40. take a long distance taxi cab ride
41. travel across Canada
42. get a very large tattoo
43. buy someone a gift for no reason
44. be in a parade
45. have a quote printed in a newspaper
46. take a tour of a brewery
47. take a large group of people out to dinner and pay the bill
48. visit Pompeii
49. Go to the Louvre, the Prado, Musee de Orsay, MET, and the Uffizi Galleries
50. have a job I'm really great at
51. Climb the towers of the Notre Dame
52. quit smoking
53. buy a tree for my mother
54. change my last name
55. go to the circus
56. go to a rodeo
57. drive a tractor
58. visit the Roman baths in Bath
59. take a TGV train ride
60. see a bull fight
61. see kittens being born
62. ice skate on a pond
63. walk across a suspension bridge
64. go sailing in the Mediterranean
65. cross shibuya intersection in Tokyo
66. grow something from a seed
67. eat octopus
68. swim naked in the ocean at night
69. visit the Hampton's
70. do a cleanse
71. go horseback riding
72. drive through Scotland to the isle of Skye with my mother and her mother
73. make it through my 20's
74. live in a historical area
75. see the Northern Lights
76. plant strawberries
77. pick berries and make pies
78. see salmon spawning
79. learn to crochet
80. start and keep a blog
81. write a poem
82. shave my head
83. buy art
84. apologize to someone I have hurt
85. take a road trip with my mother
86. quit a job
87. dance publicly alone
88. visit a nude beach
89. write a fan letter and get a response
90. make a complete and utter fool of myself
91. ride a roller coaster that goes upside down
92. forgive my parents
93. sing a great song in front of an audience
94. see Old Faithful
95. learn to drive
96. drive route 66 (partly)
97. visit the San Diego Zoo
98. have a long term relationship
99. ride a cable car in San Francisco
100. get arrested

100 things to do before I go, 1-100

One of the blogs I look at regularly is written by a very clever and funny San Franciscan woman named Maggie Mason.

She recently prompted her readers to write the list of things to do in one's life.

After doing it in a series of lists 25 things long.. I finally completed the arduaous task and found my list. This was somewhat harder than I thought it would be.

I also did the list of 100 things crossed off. That was easier. Why was that?

Remember.. in no particular order of importance..

1. open a cheese shop
2. open a hostel
3. sell a photograph for $200
4. go on an African safari
5. Scuba Dive someplace tropical
6. have a public exhibit of my photographs Does putting them on a laundry line on the street count?
7. sew a wrap around apron dress in navy linen
8. hand embroider bed sheets
9. hand embroider a matching duvet
10. travel through Japan
11. go to a yoga class in India
12. learn to ride a motorcycle
13. spend a night in the room Janis Joplin died in
14. plant a vegetable garden and eat from the harvest
15. finish my art history degree
16. pay someone's rent for the month or let them live with me for free
17.give someone a job well, technically I did hire someone
18.swim with dolphins Cuba 2009
19. go 100 days without flour, dairy, or sugar
20. spend a year without ordering in or eating out
21. live in a house with a front porch and a screen door
22. have more than 1 cat at one time
23. learn a specific occupation
24.spend the night in the Chelsea Hotel It was FANTASTIC and worth every penny
25. take a train trip across Canada
26. visit the Pyramids
27. be in a movie
28. knit a pair of socks and wear them
29. design my own web page, top to bottom, code and all
30. swim with sharks
31. invest in stocks independently
32. go to Holland during tulip season
33. let a backpacker stay overnight
34. produce a line of t shirts
35. participate as a vendor at a craft fair
36. make my own jam
37. spend a weekend without talking
38. invent something
39. volunteer my time
40. become an aunt
41. ride a bike long distance
42. tandem skydive with free fall
43. go on a retreat
44. own property
45. inspire someone
46. cook a stranger a meal and deliver it
47. have an 88th birthday
48. drink 6-8 glasses of water everyday for a month
49. sleep in an igloo
50. publish a photography book
51. spray paint something large and inspirational in a public place.
52. dig up a time capsule
53. find my best friend from when I was 5- Tanya Barter
54. visit Cuba before it's too latebeen twice now & traveled from tip to toe.
55. publish a poem
56. hide Easter eggs someplace
57. see a ghost
58. make my own cheese
59. ride a donkey to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
60. mail a secret to Post Secret
61. send random love letters to 5 people I know
62. go camping alone
63. loose 30 pounds
64. visit Chicago to photograph the architecture
65. ride my bike to work every day for 1 month
66. cross the equator
67. stop eating meat
68. take a flight in a hot air balloon
69. take a mud bath in one of those "spas"
70. live outside of Canada for a year
71. make a living from home
72. spend a significant amount of money on a piece of art
73. quit smoking10 years ago last April
74.make all my Christmas gifts one year everyone got photographs, framed for Christmas 09
75. sleep on the beach
76. visit Port Arthur, Texas and New Orleans Road trip '99
77. give birth
78. talk my way in to Janis Joplin's house Larkspur, California 2006
79. stop getting tattooed
80. find the perfect pair of jeans I may kill them though if I keep washing them
81. swing from a rope over a lake in the summer
82. cliff jump
83. turn all my craft supplies into finished projects
84. do a large scale art installation in a public place in the middle of the night
85. See the Art Nouveau in Nancy, France
86. Visit Greece
87. skinny dip
88. dance more
89. make a quilt
90. fit into the dresses in my closet that i can't get rid of because they are too beautiful
91. Throw a block party
92. learn to drive a scooter Thanks Denise
93. remove money as a concern
94. sit in a natural mineral pool
95. visit a hammam in Morocco
96. work for myself
97. plant tulips in random places
98. feel true love
99. walk away from trich peacefully
100. Visit Buenos Aires

a budding romance

SPRING has sprung. It's officially my favorite time of the year. Spring is everything the name implies:

verb ( past sprang |spra ng |or sprung |sprə ng |; past part. sprung)
1 [ intrans. ] move or jump suddenly or rapidly upward or forward : I sprang out of bed. move rapidly or suddenly from a constrained position by or as if by the action of a spring.

Yes, Spring puts a spring in my stride, a lightness underfoot and refreshed joy in my heart..and thanks to my mom (who else) I am spring born so it YAY for ARIES!!!

Tokyo- no words can express the sprawl of 30 million people

According to Wikipedia, "The Greater Tokyo Area, centered on Tokyo but also including Chiba, Kanagawa, and Saitama, is the most populous metropolitan area in the world with a population of over 35 million people. It has been the world's most populous urban area since between 1965 and 1970, and despite Japan's overall declining population, is still growing."

japanese pop star??

Snapped this on Takeshita street in Harajuko, Tokyo. He seemed very please to be photographed.

I feel sad I didn't see this character when I was in Tokyo

Some great shots of Shibuya intersection though..

an early birthday present

A recent trip down to Portland Oregon resulted in a bit of shopping. I saw these lovely and intriguing felt wool bags- "built by hand in Portland, Oregon, of recycled wool felt". The wool was recycled from scraps left from the garment industry and reworked into roomy and cozy handbags. The wool felt showing bits of different colors-flecks of blue and red, green everything. Almost looks like bunched up newspaper if you squinted- but smoother.

I saw the bags in a few shops and for some reason decided against it- rationalizing that I already had too many bags. I left Portland and found myself pining for a wool handbag.

I tracked them down and phoned them up to found they had only 2 left so I snatched up their satchels. One for me and one for my good friend Sonia.

Queen Bee Creations
1847 E. Burnside St. #103
Portland, OR 97214

doppleganger

dead ringer –noun Slang. a person or thing that closely resembles another

the daily catch?

the daily catch?, originally uploaded by jill y.

sprung

The crocus' seem to have popped up in the middle of the night. There are suddenly little gangs of purple and yellow topped figures, stalking in groups on the outskirts of trees. Trouble makers in disguise- daring the tulips to a silent duel of color.

a tiny universe of music

a tiny universe of music, originally uploaded by jill y.

My favorite photo of my entire trip to Tokyo