Hello, I am back! I know that in my previous blog I mentioned that I will be doing a new blog every week, but let me tell you, this weather is making it very difficult for me. Please excuse me while I talk to my city for a second...
So how 'bout this weather Chicago? What's up? It's been snowing almost every day this month. Six to eight inches of snow on the ground, it never melts, and you just keep adding to it! They are now calling you "Chiberia!" I mean come on. Give a photography girl a break! I need to be OUTSIDE to complete my assignments and you are going to make it harder and harder for me, huh? I know, it's not your fault. It's all good...I STILL LOVE YOU CHICAGO! :)
Anyway, sorry about that. I needed to vent a little about this CRAZY weather we've been having. If you remember in my first blog, I was in Pilsen. http://spanos311.blogspot.com/2014/01/first-photography-lesson-pilsen-chicago.html. So where should I go to today? Hmm....how about ROGERS PARK! Why here? Well first, you got one of the most diverse neighborhoods in the city, and I LOVE diversity. There are over 96 languages spoken in this hood alone! Second, it has a ton of graffiti art, which by now you guys know I adore. Lastly, Rogers Park has been my work home for seven years. Even though I may have changed residencies six times since I moved to Chicago, one thing has remained the same...I always end up coming to Rogers Park. All right, all right, so I picked it out of convenience, BUT wouldn't YOU do the same if you were in my shoes? IN THIS WEATHER? That's what I thought ;)
Ok. Let's go. It's like -10 degrees right now and my assignment has to be done outside on a cloudy day, or on the shady side of the street. I have to take 36 photos using different shutter speeds. Shutter speed? You may ask. What's that? Shutter speed controls TIME. It is the amount of time the camera's shutter is open while taking a photo. So if photography is about "capturing time," being able to control shutter speed, could produce some pretty cool images.
I decide to pick up my co-worker Nikko Jones on his lunch break to help me out with this assignment. The only way to get Nikko to help you out is to bribe him with food. Yeah, it really IS that easy;) Anyway, we decide to go to Royal Coffee, a cute Ethiopian spot on the corner of Sheridan and Pratt. As soon as we walk in, I notice a sign that says "The story of Coffee." One thing about me is, that I am a coffee ADDICT. I seriously have an addiction to this stuff. If I don't have my coffee in the morning, stay away for me please.
I ask the lady that works there if I could take a picture of it, and not only does she says yes, but she wants to model it for me! Her name is Yodit. Isn't she gorgeous?
Royal Coffee 6764 N Sheridan, Chicago.
So coffee was discovered by goats?! How fascinating! Well the shepherd noticed the goats, but face it, the goats are the real heroes in this story. So next time you are enjoying your cup of Joe, just remember that a hyper Ethiopian goat put it in your hands. I wonder if that's why we drink it for breeeeeeeeeeeakfast (in my goat voice) I know, corny, but had to throw it in there! :)
Moving on to the second most important part of this place, the FOOD of course! I decide to go with the vegetarian plate which consists of, potatoes, greens, chickpeas, and beans. It is served with traditional Ethiopian injera. Injera is a spongy-like flatbread which reminds me of the Greek pita, or the Mexican tortilla. Either way, it holds my food in place while I devour it. Mmmm....so GOOD!
Vegetarian Plate: Royal Cafe Chicago
Niko is having the Kitfo, which is an Ethiopian stew, made with beef and vegetables in a curry sauce. It also comes with injera, and is beyond delicious. Notice the little candle inside keeping the Kitfo warm? It makes me smile. :)
Kitfo: Royal Cafe Chicago
After I was done eating, I ask Yodit if I could take some photos of her by a cool coffee bean wall in the restaurant. I tell her I will use my Nikon this time. Looking at me, she smiles and says, "Of course!" I could tell she was a little nervous at first, but then I said a little joke to her and brought out that beautiful smile. :)
Here she is! I promised her that I would print it out and give it to her. Royal Coffee is a unique place, with great food, and even better coffee. If you are ever in the Rogers Park area, stop in inside, have some authentic Ethiopian coffee, and say hello to Yodit.
Yodit at Royal Coffee Chicago
Now that we are stuffed and can barely move, we must go outside in this weather and take photos. How does that sound? Not very appealing huh? Well a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do. Nikko and I rush to the car and drive one block to the lake. That's right! You heard. We DRIVE one city block. What? You expect me to walk ONE minute in this weather? Ain't nobody got time for that!
We get to the lake and it looks like something from Antartica. I am thinking this is NOT the beautiful beach that I am used to seeing. The sand is covered by snow and ice. Now I see why they call it CHIBERIA! Brrrr.....
Pratt Beach Chicago January 2014
If you look out in the distance, you can see the Chicago skyline in the second picture. In the summer, this beach is truly beautiful. If you are ever in Chicago in the summer, definitely stop by and see for yourself. This is where I come and drink my wine and relax. It takes all your stress and tension away....believe me.
Ok, so this assignment is definitely going to be rushed, because I can't be outside in this freezing cold. I tell Nikko to climb up a little ramp and jump down so I can "freeze" him in the air. In 18 of the 36 pictures that I take, I have to use the shutter speed to "freeze" the action. (Freeze I know, no pun intended). Poor Nikko, climbs up the ramp, jumps as high as he could, and lands on his feet. He starts screaming, "Ouch, ouch my knees, my KNEES!!!!" I go over there and ask him if he's ok. He says "No you idiot! You got me jumping and sh... and I'm in pain! On top of it, it's cold as f...out here! "
Air Nikko
At this point, I start bursting out in this uncontrollable laughter. We both cannot stop laughing. I tell him only a few more jumps on this smaller ramp and we can go. None of the pictures are coming out right. F.... this! Let's go!!! Even though I won't be able to use them, the pictures are hilarious!
Nikko Jones Flying like Superman LMAO!!!
I drive Nikko back to Walgreens, and he couldn't be more relieved. He asks me what I was going to do about my assignment. How was I going to get it done. I needed 18 photos of freezing the action, and 18 photos of showing the action occuring. (Blurring the action) I tell him that I might just go into Walgreens and ask a fellow coworker to wave their hand really quick, and capture the action that way. He turns and says "Girl, I could of done that the whole time in the restaurant! You got me jumping off hills and s... and you know my knees is bad!" LMAO! I can't stop laughing right now! We are both cracking up. He says "At least Yodit got one good picture for herself. What do I get? Broken knees?"
LOL
Laughter I tell you, it's an INSTANT VACATION especially in THIS weather.
-Milton Berle
So we go into Walgreens and notice some yelling by the cosmetic counter. Somebody was getting arrested right there by an off-duty police officer! It happens that this police officer was shopping at Walgreens and he noticed the guy stealing. He shouts to him, "Put your hands behind your back!" Then he cuffs him....Wow! Never a dull moment in Rogers Park I tell ya. After a while however, the officer plead bargain with the thief and let him go. He tells him not to do it again and releases him. Everyone deserves a second chance no? And I got to see this fine act of forgiveness first hand in my Walgreens. So you want a photo huh? Not this time sorry. Let's try to keep the photos POSITIVE:)
We walk back to the pharmacy, I tell Nikko thank you for his help, and let him know that the "wave of the hand" photo wouldn't of worked anyway, because it would be done inside, and that does not count. He laughs and says thank you for lunch. I wave good bye to my work crew, and start heading towards the door.
As I am walking out, SOMETHING catches my eye! It's a little table set up right by the front door, and on top of it it's full of condoms! I was like, "Hey! Are you giving those away?" The guy turns to me and says that they were. He then explains that he is here with Chicago House. Chicago House is an organization that started back in 1985 to provide housing for people with HIV and AIDS. That was the first year the HIV test was available. At that time, when a person tested positive, their life was headed downhill. They lost their homes, jobs, even family support; therefore Chicago House was created by community volunteers to provide support for these people. In those days, people with HIV/AIDS had a decreased life expectancy than they have today. Today, Chicago House still lives on, providing people with HIV/AIDS housing, support, and job programs all over the city of Chicago. How cool that Chicago has such an AMAZING program to help out people in need! It never hurts to stop and talk to someone even when you are rushing out the door. You never know what you may learn. :) I then tell him about my assignment, and ask him if he'd let me use the wheel to test out the different shutter speeds and see what happens. So after experimenting, I realize that at lower shutter speeds you can see the action taking place, but at higher shutter speeds it "freezes" the action. Hey now! There's your lesson right there!
I thank him for helping me. I take a few more photos. I grab a few condoms, (for my friends ok? ;)) and I finally walk out. Before I forget, I want to tell you guys about this video that I found that talks about the differences between living with HIV now, and back in the day. If you have time, please watch it. It's really eye-opening and heart warming.
So at the beginning of the blog, I mentioned three reasons for picking Rogers Park. (Even though convenience is the REAL deal here) You saw a little diversity. You saw a little bit of my work. Well ok. You guys barely saw anything, but aren't you having fun? When the weather warms up, I will post more pictures of Rogers park so you can see the diversity of it. It is simply UNIQUE! The whole world comes together in one spot in Chicago. This is why I love working here. I get to meet people from all over the world every day! Who needs to travel to meet different cultures when they are all RIGHT HERE! Well, I still LOVE to. :) Anyway, enough about that lets go shoot some STREET ART!
OK So for my finale. To HIGHLIGHT what I just said before about the UNIQUE DIVERSITY of Rogers Park this is what I found. Enjoy!
YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL ROGERS PARK. ONE OF A KIND. CREATING A DIVERSE EARTH.
XOXOXO
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I think this blog is awesome! It's full of useful information and hilarious!!! keep 'em comin and keep up the good work ;)
ReplyDeleteThank You ERNIE!!! That means so much to me and I WILL! :)
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