ciclavia - to the sea!

ahhh, venice  :)

life in los angeles is quick...time has found a way of blurring days and weeks together, so that the moments spent on-set...these amazingly spectacular, and always changing moments, must be dumped from memory to make room for the next flood of daily content.  i can't tell you the most exciting moment, or the coolest person i've had standing in front of my lense, but i can speak on the truth that i love my work, and that this is just the beginning for me and my career in photography.

with my first post in all these months, ciclavia is an event that is well worth the wait, although the break in posts does not come from a lack of subject matter.  the paragraph above explains it best; simply a lack of time!

ciclavia is an event put on throughout the streets of los angeles, with the first few originating just outside my window in beautiful downtown.  streets are closed to cars, and although the lanes are kindly dominated by bicycles, I, in my most perfect germy fashion, have taken to the streets with my longboard for an out-of-this-world sidewalk surfing experience.

sunday, april 21 2013 the route for ciclavia - to the sea! stretched the length of the city!  connecting my two favorite areas of this town via venice boulevard, i set out on my mission to longboard the entire 15 mile route from downtown to venice beach!

my friend kelly caught up with
me for the last mile to venice  :)

jenny joined me for a few
blocks from la brea to fairfax!

making my way from the routes downtown start / finish line, I was nervous as I approached my first hill and found myself already breathing hard, with beads, no rivers, of sweat pouring down my face...with only a mile under my belt I felt the split-second doubts that I may not make the full 15 miles...I had spent the previous three or four weekends longboarding the boardwalk from venice to santa monica, a 2 mile stretch that I can cruise with ease...and when the full scope of skating across the city of los angeles hit me as I made my way up that hill, I took those doubts and tossed them aside as the rewarding thrill of peaking the hill and surfing down the backside on smooth, open asphalt dominated my senses.

words of encouragement and shock from cyclists, 'are you going all the way to the ocean?!' yes ma'am, yes i am!  I fell into auto-pilot and the next thing i knew, the downtown skyline was in my rear-view, a mass of metal and glass was slowly fading behind me...kicking and kicking, and cruising, and carving my way past block after block, all of the sudden i had made it 8 miles.  just over halfway to venice and i couldn't have felt better!  next thing i know, downtown is no longer visible, and the smell of the ocean hits my soul...

laci made it from downtown on her bike, we met up in venice!

the realization that i had made the 15 mile trek, in just over 2 hours, was alot to take in.  the beauty of this city, it's inhabitants, and all the other things that make los angeles los angeles filled my emotions with humility.  it's so much bigger then me...and i love that  :)

me and my trusty board, we made it!

the next ciclavia is down 'Iconic Wilshire Boulevard' june 23, 2013 from 10am - 3pm.  you can be damn sure that you will catch me surfing the paved route, board beneath me, and the streets of los angeles welcoming the simplicity of human powered vehicles and smiles.

thanks for reading!

- j

the day a space shuttle flew over california

nasa's historic space shuttle endeavor 

Friday September 21, 2012 was one of those great days where I grow old and look back at with a smile.  An event that I heard broadcast on the radio found its way inside my ear. It immediately exploded to first in-line on my list of priorities!  No way am I going to miss out on watching a piece of history that happens to be so closely connected with the study of the universe, that massive organized chaos of the unknown.

I welcome you, loyal reader, to another fascinating post here on germy-in-socal!  After a formidable documentary slumber, it was a retired old rockets final flight that awakened the quest that continues on as germy-in-socal returns!

with the benefit of binoculars,
 a lifeguard watches endeavor's venice beach fly-by

Months spent away from my documentation of southern california have brought me to this moment of clarity...life is good  :)  Growth, experience, wisdom and patience guide the path I chose to walk.

Life as a unit stills photographer, a pulsating new passion for surfing...even hosting guests from around the world to give others the opportunity to feel that california sunshine!  Then, as if on cue, I hear that a space shuttle, attached to a giant 747 was going to make it's final 'farewell' flight over los angeles...thats when I knew...life is good  :)

two f-18 jets fly escort to the legendary spacecraft

Current guests of my downtown los angeles apartment, three Macedonians, (who by some crazy chance had never been to an ocean beach before this day!) accompanied me to one of the designated fly-by areas, the beloved venice beach.

mirjana      stefanie             anna

waiting for the shuttle to make its way down from san francisco and sacramento, I offered my skills behind the lense and agreed to grab a shot of the girls in a jumping photo together...then.......BOOM!

It came!  And I accidentally caught this shot of the three of them glancing behind to catch their first glimpse of the shuttle as they race back to our towels to grab their own camera's!  Love this one  :)

endeavor's piggyback flight headed north over santa monica

It was an incredible sight to see, and in every way, shape and form I was overwhelmed. But the day was not complete...

After a visual adrenaline rush with emotions at capacity, the waves of venice were looking damn fine! I sped off to grab the board, and snuck in 2 hours of bliss, just the ocean and me...

days like this are rare, as are the moments of clarity they can inspire...

thanks for reading!

- j