Pechanga

I am a little late writing this blog but this is about our visit to the Pechanga Indian Reservation. Pechanga is near and dear to me as I moved to Temecula when I was 14 have seen the evolution of the casino. I was happy that it was at this reservation because it does not require long winding roads to get to it so I volunteered to be the driver! 

Of course this was a day when I didn't think that it would be very cold, however it turned out to be freezing outside. I was only wearing a light thermal shirt so I was very happy to get into that warm bus and sit down. The bus began to drive us around the reservation for a little tour of some of the wildlife at the reservation. The first stop was my favorite because we were able to follow a path that lead into a giant tree. The tree was amazing, it would have been my dream tree house when I was younger. The light peered through the branches that made it almost seem like something that would be seen in the lord of the rings. 

After getting some good shots we hopped back on the bus to a small little pond where the tour guide showed us some of the different plant life and told us what type of plants were good for basket weaving. We then went up a short hill and saw some housing structures that the Native Americans used in the past. I thought they were very interesting because of the way they were built.  

Unfortunately we had to leave early because of class but I felt like the day was productive and got some interesting pictures.

Harrahs.

Today after a rough start(Lauryn lost her wallet, I bought a subway sandwich and dropped it on the ground) I scrambled to get in the car and jet off to Rincon Tribal road. After making a few wrong turns nearing ending up at the casino we arrived fashionably late and hopped out of the car only to realize we were right on time. A group of us began to gather and graze over to an field with a tremendous moutain view. The sun peered over the mountains casting a beautiful bright glow across the entire reservation. 

The weather was warm as I felt completely ridiculous wearing a sweater. Before I could even blink we were thrust into groups and I found myself with two plants in my hand transporting it to our plot. The goal was to arrange the plants in a way so that when they grow they do not dominate the other plants space. While most of us were completely lost, fortunately we had another member from another group who was eager to point us in the right direction and show us what we needed to do.  I started by grabbing my camera and taking pictures of everyone working. It was refreshing to see everyone take part in helping out the earth by planting a the different trees and bushes. After getting the shots I wanted I too picked up a shovel and began planting. It was kind of liberating, and I really felt like I was helping out the planet.

  After planting some of the classmates took a side trip into the reservation to look at native plant, where I saw native cactus amongst other plants. Past the tall grass and barbed wire we searched for a creek however it was dry. I noticed that it was getting late and Lauryn had to start heading back for her class so we headed out. Before going we chatted with our fellow students and got two free mugs for our help! To bad they didnt have any coffee because i was exhausted. This was my favorite of the field trips and had a great time. 

Wild Animal Park.

So before work, I was headed to the wild animal park for my of the elective class field trips. Equipped with my camera, and plenty of snacks in my bag, the class met in front of the park waiting to get in. The weather wasn't great as the light was constantly changing because of the clouds, but despite that I was able to get some good shots. Once we got in we met with a tour guide who first introduced us, to a pregnant elephant that was very close to giving birth. I checked back to see if the mother had given birth, and it did on March 13! The baby elephant is so cute!

Then we headed up a long hill to the plant section of the wild animal park. The guide described to us about the plant life at the park and the history of the plant life. Because the park was designed with an African theme many of the plants that were originally brought and planted here are not native plants in California and many replacements are currently being introduced to the existing plant life to incorporate a more natural feel.  The group is called the Conservation and Research for Endangered Species and they are trying to re-grow native plants. Some of the plants that can be seen at the park are various aloes, acacias. There is also at conifer forest.

We traveled down a winding dirt path, in the plant section, which felt as if you were almost disconnected from the park itself. However you were constantly reminded where you were when you looked up in the sky and saw the hot air balloon ride at the park.  I learned that the Wild Animal Park is really making an effort with the native plants and that they have about 1500 types of plants local to San Diego County. I thought it was interesting that the park is even trying to switch the grass to a more native grass which really shows their devotion to the project. 

 After seeing the plant life, a group of the classmates took the tour to see the giraffes and all o the animals, which was really fun. Then we all walked around to see the lions and gorillas. I hung around for a little longer before work on my own, relaxing and getting some last pictures of my favorite animals before I decided to head off to work. But before I left I made sure I got my girlfriend a souvenir, a solar powered light up key chain, before I left the park! Here are a few shots from the trip. I still want to to pull them into camera raw and work with them a bit, but I like the natural of these shots because the capture the day well.

I had to throw in the picture of this meerkat. They seemed so alert.

sally man.

For some reason I forgot how crazy Sally Mann really was. This added a whole new dimension to her as it went from more than just taking strange pictures of her kids and now moved into her pictures of her dead dog, its corroding body, its bones, and finally the last claw that remained. She clearly had a whole lot of unresolved issues going on which I think helped her as an artist because it made her different and showed her work from a new fresh perspective. 

While I respect Sally Mann as an artist, to me a lot of her work seemed the same and very formula driven. She would take something shocking like her naked kids or a dead dog and photograph it. An idea that was seen by the art world as new and fresh began to appear as just another strange picture. 

Many of the great artists have had issues within themselves and this is often times their claim to fame. I think that because she was so strange, this made her unique and ushered in her success. I think it was cool at the end where she was doing a piece that she did for herself that was not for money or commercialism but rather for her own piece of mind.

QUIZ

1. 2. and 6. SEPIA. BLACK AND WHITE W/ EDGY TEXT. COMBINED IMAGE

3. FRAMED IMAGE

4. PERFECT COLOR(Natural)

5. SPLIT TONING

tierra miguel.

On Monday the weather finally permitted our trip to Tierra Miguel so after shortly after class Lauryn and I rushed to her car and began our journey to the reservation. Thankfully I did not have to drive for this particular trip because it was a long route to an unfamiliar location, tucked away from the city. A long, winding road lead us towards our destination as we passed wild landscape that alternated with booming casino life and back to wild landscape. I wished I would have gotten some coffee before leaving because I was beat! When we got there we were greeted by fellow students, all of us seeming to have felt a sort of accomplishment for at least finding the place, and all of wondering what comes next. I looked around at blank faces and mountain ranges thinking, "Whats Next?" 

The mob of us then looked around trying to see where to go, hoping we did not show up to late. Were we supposed to walk around and take pictures? Are we even in the right place? Around the corner in an old shed we found the rest of the group all sitting down preparing to listen to a powerpoint presentation. As we were being seated the speaker began to tell us about the Tierra Miguel Foundation and what it stood for. I thought it was interesting to learn about the environmental friendliness of the program and their mission to produce local grown foods and distribute it amongst the communities of Southern California. With all of the resources we have here many of our fruits and vegetables are grown and brought in from other countries despite our ability to grow many of the mentioned produce. I admired their dedication for trying to get people edcuated on the region and the things that we can grow here locally. However if you want to buy from their service you have to pay ton of money! $2000 a year, upfront, must be payed in order to get your fruits and vegetables delivered to your doorstep each week. I think I will be sticking with Trader Joes and Ralphs. 

After the presentation we were able to walk about the farm and take pictures of the plant life. I began taking pictures of my classmates with the sky and mountains as a backdrop. Lauryn pointed out a tiny lady bug on a leaf so I crouched down and got a shot of it right before it flew away. To bad I had the flash on and it overexposed the leaves. O well! Not knowing the first thing about plant life I found myself just taking some completely random shots of things I saw growing from the earth.

A guy from the organization lead our group of students and explained what some of the plants were. He even told us to pick some and try and eat it. I got some pictures of Zane and Matt eating what I think was called "Kerabi". I thought it looked kind of gross so I didn't eat any and from the pictures they don't look to enthusiastic about the taste. As the sun began to set I took and few pictures and then put my camera away so that I could just soak up the scenery and enjoy my presence in the great outdoors. Then it was back to CSUSM to round out a llloooonnnngg day of class and homework.

Here are some of the original pictures from the Tierra Miguel site, with more to come as I begin to edit them within photoshop and camera raw.