flat tire, cheeseburger coma, and a walk with old friends

It's been wonderful to see friends and my family from my home state of Texas - and these are just a few images of the moments I've had so far.

slideshow

I put together this small slideshow - please forgive the numerous snapshots - for friends and family so that I wouldn't have to spend so much time explaining the details about Armenia. It's a 5 minute take on my journey here; it begins with the first picture I took and ends with a recent-ish one. I put it to The Hood Internet's 'Radiohead vs. Eve', as well as a new Neko Case tune I really like. I hope you also enjoy the music, and the pictures.

friend-jan

Some portraits of my very good friends - Jon & Emily. An amazing writer, and a terrific photographer. My time here wouldn't be the same without them.

shoes

The shoes of a little girl - with their silent pink laughter they carry like a tiny secret. I used to have a pair of red cowgirl boots I'd wear with every outfit. Every outfit. There is something about shoes and girls....

sunday church

Very few people go to the churches here on Sundays, but by ethnicity they are folded into Christianity. There are no dunkings, sprinklings, or bread and grape juice to save you from your Sunday morning teenage hunger, just a simple birth-right instead.

A recent Me

.....and a little sketch I drew.

year 2

Year No. 2 in Peace Corps is much better than the first go round. I look at the pictures I took during my first Fall here and see and feel the differences. This picture is from October 2008 of some of the girls in my classes, after school. My life has more or less settled itself here, and I've become used to it. Now, we begin to talk about and plan for our lives after Armenia - and it's a damn whirlwind of emotion that is on par with coming here 18 months ago. I haven't made big plans yet, but I look forward to making them very soon.

age

A picture from an evening I spent tutoring English....on age, and being young. Whatever being "young" is, I think everyone clings to the idea. Have a great weekend - enjoy your time.

kid labor

This little boy is part of a new community of houses the Fuller Center of Armenia has built, and worked with us on Saturday to help build a new one. While we passed buckets of dirt and concrete, he hustled back and forth in the mud with oversized clothes and dress shoes to bring the buckets to the front of the line like it was a game. A cool kid in my book, beautiful too.

officer man

A few weeks ago I missed the bus, and hailed down a random car going in the direction I needed to go. It happened to be this nice guy, a local policeman. He drove me to where I was going and we talked about the usual questions (where are you from, why are you here, how old are you, do you like America or Armenia better) for half an hour. He agreed to let me take his picture yesterday - I was hoping for a better background but I wasn't allowed to wander around the station looking. I really like these hats. They are absurdly tall, but make the stature more impressive on whomever they sit. I didn't have to worry about him smiling in the picture, because he'd never think of doing it.

010

I'm not sure how busy the Vayk Fire Department is, but this is their trusty truck and one of their long time firefighters. I photographed the whole crew, and then they wanted to photograph me, but this old man's expression and calmness was too hard to pass up. I took a few just of him. Just dial 010 and the truck and crew will come a runnin.

yesterday

A few from my walk yesterday. Thanks for paying any attention to this blog - I hope you enjoy it.

two

I attended the engagement/wedding party for my friend Anush and her new husband Karen (a male's name in Armenia) last night. I liked the symbolism of these two chairs on their back porch - open and ready for two people to come together, to share and enjoy time. I think that's what it's all about really. And I wish them the best.

Letter No.1

This was just for fun. A Friday night in Armenia just for fun - although I did get my inspiration from elizabeth poje from a series of ads they run for her in Communication Design Magazine every month. You can check her crew of talent out at www.elizabethpoje.com. They take 4 random pictures and write around them in a letter format. It's a cool idea - or so I think. Here's my stab at it.

posed and ready

Yesterday while walking out of my piano lesson, I noticed how gorgeous the light was outside. The rain storm was coming, but the sunset was competing for the attention. I was trying to get the buildings, but the kids just weren't going to let me. They were much more important than buildings. The onset of Fall is hard to miss - the nights are cool, the air is lighter and it carries an easy playfullness. It's a nice change.