31 may, 2009

mary . 51 years old  /  denver . colorado

mary made things very easy for me today. i took a leisurely stroll down 13th avenue, towards the library and museum. i perused the area for just a few minutes before i saw her. she was sitting on a large flat rock, talking on the phone. as i walked by, i realized she was leaving a message, so i gave her a few moments and then turned around to pitch the project to her.

she accepted immediately. i can't tell you how refreshing that was. when someone gives me a friendly smile and says "yes" it feels so good! she had some time before meeting a friend and her husband is a photographer, so she was glad to help me out.

mary is an art teacher at a high school in the area. i bet she's a great one, too. she had a great smile, a warm personality, and a soothing speaking voice. she also had a very positive energy, which i'd imagine is very contagious in the classroom.

she was so pleased to be sitting on this big rock, cooling off from her bicycle ride. it was very warm today, but the sun hadn't had the chance to make these large slabs too hot to sit on. mary wanted to lie down on the one in the shade for the second shot. i had no objection to that. it is rare that people have a request for how i photograph them, so it is nice to be able to honor it when i get the chance.

thank you for your time today, mary.

30 may, 2009

lauren . 25 years old  /  denver . colorado

this is day 265... 100 days left in the first year of this project. i remember very well how it felt to have day 100 as a goal. oh so very long ago.

i kind of expected fireworks and a parade or something today, but it was anticlimactic. i figured barack obama would be today's stranger or something along those lines. maybe he will be around on the final day. i guess i'll keep plugging away until then.

a friend of mine spotted this girl in a pink hoodie across the street from us. we had just made some fun purchases at goodwill and i was hoping to shoot in the area before we pedaled off. i noticed that this girl was with three guys, so immediately ruled her out. it is not that fun to be the one guy that goes up to the one girl who is "protected" by three other guys.

but... on a whim, i decided to go for it. i darted across the street in front of some traffic and made my way towards the group. i started giving her my pitch when one of the guy's asked what i was up to. i had gotten most of the story out, but repeated it for him. then the other two guys made their way over for a piece of the action, too.

lauren agreed to it, but i am not sure she liked the idea. she told me she almost turned me down, but i guess the security of her male companions helped convince her. one of the other guys seemed more interested in the idea than the others, and i think he carried a bit of clout.

the foursome seemed like a pretty cool group. they were from salt lake city, just visiting denver for the weekend. we made some small talk about the general differences between the two cities. i've never been out there, but i got the impression from them that it's a cool spot.

lauren is in her final year of studying printmaking in college. i asked her what she wanted to do, but she said she wasn't sure. she knew only that she wanted to leave salt lake city. her enthusiasm to get out makes me wonder if it is really is a cool spot, but maybe it's just one of those "been there too long" things.

well... i fired a few shots away and then took a few steps back to get some atmosphere in there. i am not sure what the guys were doing behind me, but it was enough to get a genuine smile and a giggle out of lauren. i like the candid second shot.

thanks, lauren and company! i hope you have a safe trip back home.

29 may, 2009

jared . 22 years old  /  boulder . colorado

boulder was packed today! the weather was gorgeous, so the masses were taking full advantage. i went up there for a few hours with a friend of mine for a change of scenery. seconds after we parked the car near the pearl street mall, drama ensued.

a car pulled through one of the pedestrian crosswalks while people were passing. one of the pedestrians called something sarcastically complimentary out after the driver of said car. this was promptly followed by the driver slamming on his brakes, aggressively climbing out of his car, and meeting the outspoken pedestrian in the middle of the street. there was some yelling. some chest bumping. arguing. someone called someone else "boy" and then the accused needed to make sure he heard right, so responded with the ever so clever, "who you calling boy?!". it was all terribly interesting in the same way that watching a chimpanzee throwing a temper tantrum would be. it is so nice we humans have the ability to reason.

the two "humans" argued in the street while nearly all of pearl street snickered and jeered at the circus act. eventually another man reminded everyone that there were children around and people should watch their words, but even his tone was frightening. it was what i like to call a total "shit show."

the rest of the day was drama free, thankfully. although my luck with the strangers did follow a chaotic and frustrating course. an older gentleman in cool prescription glasses caught my eye. he passed by with another man, but i hesitated. i eventually ran down the street after him. i excused myself but was torn to shreds with "not interested" and "it's not going to be me" comments and chuckles.

a young couple barely stopped to give me their negative reaction. an elderly bearded and bespectacled gentleman approached, but didn't even break stride as he said something like, "you can take pictures of me if you'd like, but i'm not stopping!". there were another couple of rejections, i think, but they apparently weren't even worth remembering.

boulder is supposed to be one of the smartest towns in the country, so i guess i only found tourists, because i didn't encounter much brilliance today. maybe they assumed i wanted monthly donations or credit card information or social security numbers. i don't know. i'd like to say i don't care, but i do. all too much.

after quite some time and a lot of frustration, i saw this younger curly-haired, bearded guy step out of the bank near where i was standing. his plaid shorts, t-shirt, and sandals all boasted "care-free", so i figured he was a definite yes.

jared did say yes, but i'm not convinced he actually wanted to. he was polite and patient and friendly even, but didn't seem to be overly thrilled with the idea of being today's stranger. sometimes it's a tough sell.

he grew up in the area and is currently studying economics at the university of colorado at boulder. after finding out i lived in boston, he told me he really liked the red sox. i don't know much about the red sox, so i always find it difficult to add anything to that conversation. today didn't prove any different. i guess those two things were all i found out about him, but i'm convinced he had a lot more to share.

after photographing jared, i sat down with my friend and told her that the project needs to change. i think i need to meet people and then photograph them. maybe it's a barista at a café or a bartender. it could be a dude that works at a bike shop that i stop in. maybe a server or a taxi driver. i don't know exactly how it needs to work out, but i don't like meeting people just to get their photographs. some interesting relationships have come from this, but some days feel like this is nothing but exploitation. i don't like that.

anyway... jared, thanks for stopping today. i appreciate your time.

28 may, 2009

soodie . 40 years old  /  denver . colorado

"no", said the black woman on the mall street without stopping. "yes, if you buy one of my magazines", said the bearded guy that approached me on the mall street. "no", said the older white woman with the long grey hair. and yet another "no" came from another black woman who needed to get back to work. three no's and a yes weighted with a bribe stole my confidence and courage and left me feeling exhausted.

i felt particularly out of place today. i despise feeling like a salesman. i am not selling anything. i just want to meet people and introduce them to you. i want to learn more about my neighbors. and the world. so many people have their guard up. the call of skepticism rings louder to me every day and it is never easy to ignore.

i had some errands to run in the process, but i spent about an hour out on the street, watching the crowds go by, trying to find the courage to ask people to slow down, to put trust in someone else, to open up. the mall street, as per usual, was not my friend today and i really need to just stay away from it. i eventually grew tired of waiting, tired of feeling like a creep, tired of the rejections and walked away to wrap up my final errand.

i hopped on my bicycle with the friendly territory of capitol hill as my destination. as i came up to an intersection, though, i saw this lone woman standing there, waiting for traffic to pass so she could cross the street. i pedaled up onto the sidewalk and said "excuse me". she replied with a tough, "what?!". happy that she even paused to respond to me, i gave her the story. "is this for a blog?", she asked, so i kept talking.

soodie was my savior today. she was bashful and embarrassed to have her photo taken, but underneath her shyness was a warm smile and a good heart. for some reason, i immediately started to care about her like i care from my friends. her spirit met mine with the hug of a life-long friendship.

her husband is in town for a conference, so she was touring around town. they came out here from kansas city. and it is important to note that they're from the missouri side, not kansas! i'm not sure i'd want to be from kansas, either.

soodie is a fine art appraiser. she keeps a blog where you can read about her adventures at http://soodiebeasley.blogspot.com/ - you should take a look. i was immediately drawn in by the illustrations.

i can't thank soodie enough. she made me feel like i wasn't totally wasting my time with this project. as we talked and photographed, her timidity crumbled, exposing her charming personality. she told me she supported people's personal projects and understands how it feels to embark on your own. i pedaled away from our meeting feeling much better, greatly encouraged, and stronger.

thank you, soodie!

27 may, 2009

jim . 47 years old  /  lakewood . colorado

i needed to replace the exhaust on my car (affectionately referred to as 'the dash'), so i made my way towards "mighty muffler" at the suggestion of a friend's father.

jim was the guy who i was advised to speak with and he happened to be the one i spoke with on the telephone and the one who did the work on my car. he had a wonderful phone voice, very high-spirited and easy to understand. before i even showed up, i felt good about what was going to happen.

he lifted the dash up on the rack and showed me a thing or two. he explained what i needed to do to pass emissions and also told me what i should do if i wanted the exhaust to last for a while.

i gave him the reigns and wandered off to go find some coffee. mighty muffler operates on a first come, first serve basis, and i was lucky enough to get attention right away. i like that kind of service a lot.

i found a starbucks (don't tell anyone i went there) and dove into an icy coffee to ward off an oncoming give-me-some-caffein ache in my head. as i was adding a little dairy to my tasty beverage another gentleman was standing there and, after seeing my camera bag, asked me if i was out taking photos. that led into a long version of a yes.

it turns out that this guy used to have a dasher, the same year as mine. i thought that was cool. it also turns out that this guy had a very interesting story, although most of it was heartbreaking. i sat at a table outside, listening for the better part of half an hour. i had decided early on that i wasn't going to ask him to be today's stranger, but... eventually, towards the end, i figured i would go for it. he turned me down, but later wrote me an email describing how he wished he hadn't. it happens.

i eventually excused myself from the conversation to go check on the dash and when i got over there decided i would ask jim to be the day's new friend. i had thought of it before, but generally find it difficult to photograph people while they are working. he went for it, but held onto a little bit of skepticism for good measure. people are thrown off by the internet and the consent forms.

i didn't learn much about jim other than he knows how to make a noisy dash sound a lot better. he also knew where to send me to find a replacement for my missing hubcap. so, in my eyes, jim is a pretty good guy.

thanks for your time today, jim. and thanks for fixing my car!

26 may, 2009

rachelle . 37 years old  /  denver . colorado

as i was pedaling through some residential streets on my way to a bicycle shop, i spotted this woman sweeping off her front porch. i had been keeping an eye out for strangers as the blocks passed by, but i almost didn't approach her.

i sped by, but then thought twice and decided to turn around. i hopped off my bike, excusing myself, and dove into the 'i heart strangers' pitch.

rachelle was so friendly. so very friendly. she had such a warm smile and a great speaking voice, very easy to listen to. she had warm questions for me and seemed genuinely interested in the project.

it turns out that she is in the process of moving out of her home. not away, but to a different part of town. i don't know too many people who are moving away from denver. and i know i don't have any immediate plans to get out, either.

i don't think i have photographed any body else that was sweeping their porch. i've had some coffee drinkers and maybe a snow shoveler, but no porch sweepers. many people are skeptical of giving out any information, but rachelle, even at her home, didn't seem to mind. i found that very refreshing.

rachelle is an illustrator and writer. i encourage you to take a peek at her work at www.rachelleart.com and know that the artist behind it all is a very very kind person. at least that's the impression she left me with.

thanks so much for your time, rachelle!

25 may, 2009

sonny . 62 years old  /  denver . colorado

alright... i am over the weather. the rain is drowning my motivation. and it is doing a number on the crowds, too. it rained off and on again today, dying off later in the afternoon.

i walked up the 16th street mall for quite a few blocks, surveying the crowds. i finally came to an alley that i wanted to use. it was home to a doorway of some kind that would have made for a beautiful backdrop for today's photo, but it was quite a ways in the alley and i often feel a little weird asking people to follow me into mysterious and shady places, so it went unused.

an elderly black woman made her way towards me. i saw her from half a block away, so i readied myself to make the ask. she didn't even stop when i started talking to her. she gave me the famous, "i'm not interested" speech, which still sets a fire under me and stings worse than a bee.

shortly after, i saw this older gentleman approaching. as i excused myself and began telling him what i was up to, he came very close to me and looked me intently in the eye. it is rare that people will do so, perhaps because they are so often guarded, but his vulnerability made me comfortable.

sonny had a meeting to get to, but was willing to give me a few minutes. he's part of a national conference for people who work with the down and out. this may have been put on by the denver mission. i think sonny is from washington state, here only for the conference, but i may have misheard him.

he said he was out for a walk to burn off lunch and make room for dinner. he said it to be funny, but kept a straight face, which i happened to enjoy. he asked me why i am doing this project and seemed satisfied with my answer. i wish we had had more time to talk. it is always nice to talk with the people who are actually interested. sonny struck me as a very genuine person, and deeply caring. i hope i am right.

thank you, sonny. it was great running into you today.

24 may, 2009

jess . 32 years old  /  denver . colorado

the morning was gorgeous. the sun was out and it was nice and warm. i decided to use that time to take care of stuff and go for a bike ride. it was motivating weather, so i did things. i figured i would find and photograph the day's stranger later.

well... later came and with it torrential downpours and thunder and lightning like i've never seen before. i looked out the windows of city o' city, where my mother and i had escaped to during a break in the storm, like a sad child on the christmas he discovered that santa claus isn't real. it was that pathetic.

my stomach turns when i think about being unable to photograph a stranger. i have yet to resort to using flash, but i start nearly hyperventilating when i think of it coming to that. i sat down and tried to think pleasant thoughts of the storm breaking up and moving out, but the lightning flashing and the heavy rain beating against the ground were formidable reminders.

the storm eventually did pass, though. and what a sigh of relief! a dear friend of mine drove me home so i could grab my jacket and then dropped me off down near the library. i wandered around the museum and library grounds for a little while, but they were empty. everybody was still in hiding, i guess.

up broadway and over towards 17th avenue i went. i circled a block here or there, but was still coming up short. there were a few people around, but nobody was catching my eye. i finally saw a middle-aged man in rain gear and a leg cast. his cast was wrapped in plastic and he was puffing on a cigarette as he hobbled down the street. i passed by, but then turned around, figuring he would have an interesting story about his leg. when i caught up to him again, he was at the top of a flight of stairs, preparing to make his way down into what looked like a church. i let him go.

i eventually found some windows that i wanted to use for the background, so i waited around a street corner for a moment or two. before too long, this woman came my way and when she did i figured it was now or never.

jess listened to me explain the beginning of my project and then did the rest for me. "you need a picture? sure!" she had great energy and a contagious smile.

she's working at a bike shop (i forget which) and is loving it. she said she enjoys being around people who are high on life. that sounds about right and would make for a good description of where i am at right now, too - high on life.

23 may, 2009

gillian . 40+ years old  /  denver . colorado

i was walking into city o' city with my mother as these two women were coming out. i held the door for them and was immediately drawn to one of them. she pleasantly offered a warm smile and a thank you as she came through the door. i impulsively excused myself from my mom and took off down the sidewalk after her.

i interrupted her and her friend and began telling them what i was up to. there was some confusion as to who she thought i wanted to photograph and why i wanted to in the first place. when she eventually figured out that it was her i was after, a little discomfort set in. and i'm not sure she ever really understood the reason.

she wanted to know why her. i told her it was because of her hair, which i thought was pretty cool. she hemmed and hawed, but eventually agreed on a few conditions. she wouldn't offer her real age. she kept saying 40+ and laughing. i don't care how old people want to be, but i need them to give me an age. but i don't understand the idea of hiding your age. it is something we have absolutely no control over and matters basically not at all. oh well.

gillian also didn't want to sign the model release, which limits the versatility of the image greatly. i told her she was the only one who has refused aside from one other woman who was under contact, disallowing her to sign. that didn't seem to matter, though.

well, we eventually let the age and release issues drop and she agreed to be part of the project anyway. i have a hard time turning people away because i invest a lot of energy in the initial interaction. the first part of this interaction was frustrating, but, as i've mentioned before, i don't consider that an only negative thing.

gillian was hanging out with her best friend's daughter for some lunch. i guess gillian has known her since the day she was born, which must make for an interesting relationship. gillian is a professor at colorado state and her friend's daughter (forgot her name, sorry!) is also a student of hers. they seemed to have a lovely camaraderie.

gillian struck me as a warm person. she was quick to laugh and even in her skepticism had a smile in her eyes. i guess people have a long list of reasons why they do and don't do things and it often takes some time for me to come to terms with that. i suppose this is all part of the project.

thank you for your time, gillian.

22 may, 2009

nate . 26 years old  /  denver . colorado

as soon as i set out looking for today's stranger, i spotted a potential victim. this guy was sporting a very rad cyclist's cap while riding an equally rad bicycle. he ducked into a driveway/alley, so, hoping to get lucky, i followed him. i was too slow, though, and he escaped completely unaware of what could have just happened.

missing the first guy led me directly to nate, though, so i can't complain. he was tinkering with his red ducati motorcycle across the street from where i was standing. i made my way over to him and started in with the spiel.

he was a super good sport about the whole thing. he didn't have any objections at all and was happy to participate in casual conversation. and he was easy to photograph, making the whole experience very comfortable.

he was getting ready to head over to his girlfriend's place, and didn't seem to be on a pressing schedule. the two of them are heading to colorado springs tomorrow for a stay at the glen erie castle. i had heard the name before, but didn't know much about it. my curiosity is piqued now, though, so i may have to check into it soon. i guess there are also some cliff dwellings near there at a place called mesa verde and i am definitely going to need to give those some attention.

i wouldn't mind bumping into nate again. he was really nice and so easy going. i like nice, easy going people. a lot. thanks for your time today, man!

21 may, 2009

duncan . 35 years old  /  boulder . colorado

i took my mom up to boulder for a few hours today. we walked up and down pearl street, which even despite the cooler temperature and threatening clouds, was as beautiful as always.

as we were strolling, i spotted this bright blue wall. my mom was wearing purple, so i took the opportunity to shoot a few pictures of her with the great colors and then we continued to walk. eager to photograph before the storm rolled in, i dropped her off at a book store so that i could meet my stranger.

i decided to go back to the blue wall. as i neared it, as if sent from heaven, an elderly woman with long gray hair, cute black-rimmed glasses, and a bright red coat was coming towards me. the colors were going to work perfectly and i don't often have the opportunity to photograph the older folks, so i went for it. she was very sweet and acted like she really wanted to say yes, but eventually said no on account of her "hiding" and working hard to keep images of her off the internet. sad...

i stood at the end of a pathway for a while, looking for another great color to come my way. eventually an orange-clad woman walked by. i asked her, but, without stopping, she said no because she was late for something. blah.

more waiting. more looking. i started to get a bit worried because it was taking a while. i was thinking about my mom and the weather and a little bummed out that these two people said no. as i was going through an undetectable breakdown, i saw this tall guy in green ride by on a very cool yellow schwinn bicycle. i am not going to lie... i got my hopes up. but he pedaled up the sidewalk of another street. sad again!

i watched him for a little while and then, to my surprise, he stopped and took a seat on a bench halfway up the block. i excitedly darted across the street to chase him down. i walked up to him and told him my story and he immediately agreed to walk back to the blue wall with me for a few quick photos.

duncan was very nice. he had such a great look to him and a friendly spirit, which made for a lovely combination. and his eyes smiled the whole time we spoke. i told him he had great eyes and he acted surprised, but i can't imagine that he doesn't hear that all of the time.

he was just taking a bit of a break from work and was about to meet a friend of his. he seemed a little stressed from the job, but was gracious enough to give me a few minutes of his time. he told me he recently started working for himself as a website designer and i got the impression that he was pretty happy about his set-up.

well... there it is. thank you, duncan!

20 may, 2009

joyce . 51 years old  /  denver . colorado

it's difficult to give the strangers the attention they deserve when i am with someone else, so i usually end up searching for them alone. that's usually not a problem because i am often alone, but my mother is visiting this week, so i have to drop her off here or there and then venture out. although, i would probably fair better if i brought her along because people gives guys that love their moms a lot of credit. maybe tomorrow...

i wandered around a few blocks, excited about who i would run into and where it would take place. i walked through some residential streets, but they usually don't produce much and today didn't prove to be different. i made my way back towards 13th avenue en route to downtown, but stopped short when i saw this woman sitting on a stone wall.

i almost walked by her, but halted directly in front of her, excused myself, and dove into my everyday "strangers pitch". she rolled her eyes a bit, but good-naturedly, and tried to get out of it by claiming she wasn't photogenic. that hasn't worked before and it didn't today.

she pointed out that there were strangers all over the place and wanted to know why i didn't choose them. i told her she was the first person to catch my eye and that seemed to suffice. we made our introductions and then joyce told me we only had a few minutes because she was waiting for her friend. while we were filling out the consent form, her friend, dawn, showed up and brought all the skepticism in the world with her. she looked me in the eye and said, "that's creepy!" i laughed, which is probably not the best response to such an accusation, but it was because i was surprised by her forwardness. then she proceeded to explain to joyce that i was probably a serial killer.

that opened the doors for a discussion about how this isn't creepy at all, that it is just my glorified attempt at paying attention to the people around me. both joyce and dawn seemed to appreciate that and i think we won dawn over because she eventually agreed to sign the release as the witness.

joyce and i made our way around the corner of a building to find some shade. i asked her to take her sunglasses off and, for a split second, i thought she was going to say no. i've been there once before and it is heart-breaking because i need the eyes. it's all in the eyes.

and joyce's eyes reminded me of a friend from boston. when i told her so she said she had been told something similar before. she has kind eyes, so i'd guess that makes them familiar to those people lucky enough to have met another kind-eyed individual.

joyce had just taken part in a gathering in front of the capitol building in support of recovering alcoholics. evidently they had gathered enough people to fully surround the capitol building while holding hands. tradition has been to leave one space open, as a representation of those who have left and others who have yet to join the group. i liked the sounds of it and it served as a reminder that there is power in numbers.

i asked joyce what she did for work and she told me she was an artist, specializing in making jewelry (she's modeling some of her own work in the photos). i asked her if she said yes because she had an appreciation for art. she paused and looked at me and said she didn't know, but she was certain i wasn't a serial killer. i'll take compliments however they come.

i am grateful for meeting both joyce and dawn today. i figure each time i meet a skeptic, i can do my part to change their mind because i'm not trying to do anybody any harm.

19 may, 2009

lauren . 21 years old  /  denver . colorado

my mom flew into denver this morning. she's going to spend a few days with me out here. on our first walk around the neighborhood, i brought my camera gear, in hopes of finding a willing stranger.

i left my mom on a bench near the library and set out on my own for a few minutes of intense searching. i wandered around, but wasn't having much luck. at one point, i started going down a street, but then stopped, turned around, and headed back where i had come from. that decision led me directly to lauren.

just in front of the museum, i saw her walking towards me. she was very striking and had such a pleasant expression on her face, making it difficult for me to pass her by. i excused myself and gave her the routine. she listened patiently and let a pause in my speech linger a little longer than i expected. i figured she was analyzing me, trying to figure out what i was up to, so i kept talking. i guess i eventually said the right thing, because she agreed to participate.

she made me smile as i was looking at her through my camera. i told her she had such an amused expression on her face, to which she replied, "this is amusing." she had a calming effect on me and i was nothing but a big silly grin as i fired away. she seemed very poised and content, which i find to be rare qualities.

we didn't get beyond the very basics of stranger chit-chat. we did trade some information about what she's studying and what i am doing with this project. she left me curious to know a lot more about her, though. maybe we'll have another chance?

as we were parting ways, she said, "don't get caught in the rain, but if you do, dance." i liked that a lot. so far i haven't been caught in the rain today, but if i do, i may just take her up on it.

thank you for your time today, lauren.

18 may, 2009

joshua . 19 years old  /  denver . colorado

i am probably going to laugh every time i look at this photo. i've taken photographs of the sun in many different forms over the years, but never quite like this.

i had to go downtown to run some errands. it was another gorgeous day, so i was thoroughly enjoying being outside. after dropping off some film to be processed, i headed over to 16th street mall to find today's stranger.

i was on the phone with a friend of mine and had to interrupt him and hang up as soon as i saw the sun walking down the street. he and two tanned girls were parading down the street, promoting a tanning salon. i gave him my spiel and asked if he'd be today's subject.

he agreed, but i think it was just because he didn't care what he did while in that costume. i asked if this was his job. not surprisingly, he said yes. then i asked if he enjoyed it. he looked at me like i was an imbecile. i am guessing it's not that great, especially on 85 degree days.

we were conveniently standing near an alley, so we ducked in there to take some shots. i didn't have to shoot many today because it was pretty straightforward.

because he was working and for other obvious reasons, we didn't have a lot of time to talk. the only thing i know about joshua is that he recently moved here from florida. i suppose that qualifies him to wear the suit...

thanks, man. i appreciate your time!

17 may, 2009

reyna . 20 years old  /  denver . colorado

it took me quite a while to find the energy i needed to go and shoot today. i don't know why. some people are good at figuring out why they feel the way they feel. i am not one of them.

i went to city o' city to look for a boost. while i had a nice time there, that boost never came. i eventually just bit the bullet and started walking. before leaving, i asked my friend which direction i should go. she pointed down 13th avenue and said, "that way, go all the way until the bridge." so i did.

i actually thought i would meet today's stranger when i got to the bridge, if not before, but... i didn't. so i kept walking. i passed by a few people, but they weren't catching my eye. i'd like to figure out what it is about the people i choose. it's not like they are holding a sign up, advertising their intense desire to be a part of a photo project. do you think i'll figure it out eventually?

i walked down 13th for a long time, but eventually decided to trace back, so i crossed over to 12th and made my way towards the library and museum. i've seen more people down there on other days, but it wasn't exactly deserted, either. i made the rounds but still couldn't find the right person.

just when i was about to give up on the area, i saw a young black woman sitting on a bench, enjoying a cigarette. a few weeks ago i photographed a man named tim who had also been enjoying a cigarette while sitting on the very same bench. i wonder if they were the same brand.

reyna (pronounced like renee) was very sweet. she was timid, but not afraid to talk to me. she liked the idea of the project, but some shyness seemed to be holding her back. like me, she's been in denver for about 3 months, and, also like me, she's enjoying it. originally from philadelphia, she's living out here while working with americorps. i met a few americorps people while working in boston and they were all quality folks doing quality work. seems like a good organization.

reyna apologized for being awkward in front of the camera. i told her she shouldn't worry about it and i tried to tell her she was photogenic, but she wasn't having it. i think there's a world of honesty in her portrait. i am not an expert on the matter, but my guess is that she's close to coming into her own and when she does, she's going to be a force to be reckoned with.

reyna hopes to work with the peace corps when she's finished with the americorps program, but she said she needs to improve her spanish. she's in the right place for that, i'd say. i've thought about the peace corps about a hundred times, but something always keeps me from going through the application process. for now, though, it seems that i've found enough to keep me busy.

thanks for your time today, reyna!

16 may, 2009

jessica . 22 years old  /  colorado springs, colorado

i was down in colorado springs to shoot a wedding with a friend of mine. there wasn't time to look for strangers before the wedding, and while i did photograph strangers all day long, they didn't count, so after the reception, we went out searching.

we only walked a few minutes before a saw these yellow stripes on a young woman sitting across the street. she was on her telephone, so i waited until she hung up and then trotted across the street and called after her.

jessica was very sweet. she didn't take much convincing to be the stranger of the day, which was such a relief because i was exhausted from the wedding. we walked across a parking lot towards a shaded wall and i started firing away.

my camera malfunctioned (again!) after i had taken 8 pictures, so i ended up losing those first shots. i'm started to lose my patience with my camera! jessica was a good sport, though, and gracefully put up with my ill-performing equipment.

she has been studying sociology and religion at colorado college and is about to graduate on monday. i remember how great that felt, so i imagine she's pretty excited. we didn't talk for very long, but i did discover that she used to play soccer, which is another one of those activities that makes you a-ok in my book.

that does it for this day. short and sweet. thanks for your time, jessica!

15 may, 2009

joe . 52 years old  /  denver . colorado

if i were giving titles to these images this one would be either "meet joe black" or "i shot the sheriff". neither are particularly original, so i won't assign one. but, for the record, this is joe black and while he may not be the sheriff, he is the captain of the denver police force. bob marley didn't sing about the captain, though.

i made my way downtown, not sure who i was looking for or where to look for them. i haven't been finding locations first and waiting for the stranger to walk by for quite a while now. instead i've been wandering around and finding someone interesting and then making do with the surroundings. it seems to be working out ok.

i was nearing the library when i saw a uniformed man about to get into a police car. i excused myself and asked him if he was on duty. he responded by asking me what i needed. i dove into my spiel and asked if he'd be today's stranger.

i wasn't quite sure, so i asked if he was a police officer. he told me he was this week, but he had to return the costume soon. he was very high-spirited and friendly and had a great sense of humor. i saw that his badge read "captain" and he explained that he basically does a lot of paperwork these days. i asked if he had always had a similar role and he sang out a line of the johnny cash song, "i've been everywhere, man". apparently joe has seen it all in his 30 years on the denver police force.

i found myself once again pleasantly surprised. i didn't expect a police officer to agree to be a part of this project, but joe explained to me that he's been in it long enough to appreciate things like this. well, i appreciate his willingness in return.

thank you, joe black, for taking the time to hang out with me for a few minutes today!

14 may, 2009

dan . 45 years old  /  denver . colorado

after getting a haircut from katie o'shea (one of the strangers!) and shaving off my beard, i felt like a brand new man. i set out into another gorgeous denver day with an extra skip in my step to look for today's stranger.

i didn't have much of a plan, so i started wandering. for seemingly no reason in particular, i decided to walk down grant street. i made it just the length of one block and then came upon this man landscaping the garden at the masonic temple.

i wasn't totally convinced that he was going to say yes, but he looked extremely interesting, so i couldn't pass him by. he looked much more manly than i did, as i was sporting short shorts and a polo shirt and showing off my cleanly shaven, boyish face. i had already been turned down by an older woman who looked as if i had threatened to beat her. she literally cowered. that always takes a bit of a toll on me, so i prepared myself for another rejection.

as i gave him my spiel, he was very silent. he simply nodded to let me know that he heard me, but then he cracked a bit of a smile when i told him about the project. i'll always take a smile as a good sign! dan gave me the go ahead, despite the fact that he had a lot of work ahead of him today. he and another guy were landscaping all over the state, so he could only take a couple of minutes. i was grateful for that, so we set to work right away.

i positioned him in the shade and then asked him to remove his sunglasses. when he did, i was surprised to see such kind eyes. it's easy to be thrown off by one's outward appearances and i find myself guilty of generalizing people every day. dan stared confidently into my lens as if he'd done this a million times before. i fired away as quickly and efficiently as i could.

when i was finished, i asked dan if he would sign a model release for me. he had no qualms with that and began filling out the paperwork. he asked me what the date was and as i told him, i also made some chit chat about time passing my so quickly. he responded by telling me that last year was a blur because he had suffered from a serious heart attack and he's still lost in the days and months.

his story goes like this... one day last year, in the middle of a conversation, dan's heart stopped. he fell to the ground and died instantly. he was rushed to the hospital where the surgeons tore into his chest, fixed his heart, and brought him back from the dead.

while i was standing there, listening to this story with my jaw dragging on the ground, he lifted up his shirt to show me his scar. i was blown away. i suggested that he must be enjoying every day now, and he looked up at me and said, with extreme conviction, that he was living a lot differently now than he was before. and he made a point to tell me that he's definitely not getting angry like he used to.

i'm extremely grateful for my meeting with dan today. his story will stick with me long after i forget my own name, i am sure. i hope i see him again soon because i'd like to spend more time talking.

thank you, dan! i'm glad you were given another chance!

13 may, 2009

mary ellen . 72 years old  /  denver . colorado

while this might not be the most technically beautiful image that i have used for this project, the sincerity, both of her expression and of the environment, carries a fair amount of clout.

i had a number of things to do before nine o'clock this morning, one of them being finding and photographing today's stranger. i was out on the streets much earlier than usual, which, as i've mentioned before, opens up a number of backgrounds that are completely sun-covered later in the day.

i ended up walking up lincoln street towards downtown. an older woman holding a picketing sign caught my eye, so i walked towards her to see what she was advertising. as i came nearer, i saw another woman standing a bit further up the street. she looked very sweet and, noticing that her sign was promoting peace, i figured she would say yes and be glad for the chance to reach a few more people with her passion.

i introduced myself to mary ellen and told her what i was up to. she agreed to be today's stranger, so while she held her sign for passing traffic to see, i chatted with her for a moment or two. i liked her sign very much. i don't think it is necessary that i take an a-political stance as the representative of this project, so i am happy to agree completely with mary ellen and the others out there serving as reminders to us all that violence is not the answer. to anything.

they have been promoting peace since "before the war", mary ellen told me. i didn't ask what war she was referring to, but i am guessing it was one of those that i wasn't around for. she didn't have long to talk because she was on her way to her job (she's still working!) at a senior citizens' home. i asked her if those elderly people were keeping her young, but she replied with a bashful smile, "oh, i don't know."

the morning sun was just creeping around the dome of the capitol building enough so that it created too much hair light on mary ellen. she was standing on the sidewalk, so i asked her to step up into the grass, which didn't work. i asked her to take another step back, but was sad to have to make her move because she was out there with a purpose and i was taking her away from that.

after i fired off a few shots, she said, "you must have one good one out of all those." i told her i needed a few more as i scrambled to make something beautiful happen with that strong light blazing all of the detail from the top of her head.

i gave her my thanks and made my way back home to edit the photo before the rest of my day took an entirely different turn. i wish i could have taken more photographs and had more time with mary ellen. i'm struggling with not having any credibility. i can't convince people that this project is important. i don't have credentials. nothing to show. and i think the average stranger just thinks this project is cute. i need to come up with a greater plan.

anyway, mary ellen was an absolute sweetheart and i'm glad to have met her.

12 may, 2009

brian . 23 years old  /  denver . colorado

i went out for a walk to look for henry's hair salon. a friend of mine is a stylist there and i'm in need of yet another trim. i walked up and down 17th avenue, but kept missing it. when it was all said and done, i had walked by it probably three times, but in my defense, it wasn't actually on 17th.

during the search, i kept my eyes peeled for today's stranger, but didn't have any luck. after i made my appointment, though, i began the search again. i hesitated for a minute, trying to figure out which way to go. i took a left, i think, but immediately saw this long-haired guy sitting in the sun across the street. he was rocking these serious shades that matched his bicycle perfectly.

i remembered that i had seen him a few minutes before. he was on his bike and i remembered thinking how rad he looked. i figured i'd take my chances and see if he was into the project.

it turned out that he was. he was just waiting for a friend of his, so had some time to kill. just after he agreed to be today's stranger, the friend showed up. so brian and tara and i made our way across the street to find some shade. tara had brought a watermelon-flavored mexican popsicle for brian. he deserves some credit for putting it on hold while i photographed him.

he and tara were both very nice. i run into kind people all of the time out here. our conversation came naturally and they didn't seem put out in the least by the interruption. i unfortunately didn't find out what either of them "do". they ride bikes, which i think is just lovely. and brian shares the same name as an attorney, but i didn't know who he was talking about - probably because i'm still new to the area.

i like walking away from people with a good feeling. there's a lot of lousy stuff going on in the word, but everyday i am reminded that it's not all bad.

i went to city o' city to work on the photos and showed my friend, dana, the portrait. she excitedly said she knew brian. i haven't cleared this with him, so i hope he doesn't mind my saying so, but it turns out that he plays air guitar with dana's boyfriend. and as silly as air guitar sounds, it is actually very very cool. you can learn more about it online at usairguitar.com

thanks, brian! and you, too, tara!

11 may, 2009

archie . 57 years old  /  denver . colorado

after working this morning and then taking an early afternoon bike ride, i found myself dragging my feet to search for today's stranger. there are days when this feels like work, but i should know by now that it only feels that way until i meet the day's new friend.

i stopped by city o' city to see some familiar faces and to drink an iced coffee. i was hoping to find some motivation somewhere near the bottom of it, but it turned out that there was just ice and the other end of my straw. nevertheless, i made my way out into a gorgeous day.

i wasn't at all sure where to go, but my wandering was bringing me towards the 16th street mall. as i was about to cross over from lincoln to broadway, i saw a beautiful patch of shade hosting a lone man. i supposed he was on a break from working in the building directly behind him and i was hoping he'd have a few minutes to spare as i walked a straight line towards him.

i began my pitch, but he couldn't hear me. i repeated myself and asked if he would be willing to participate. his only reservation was about my website and whether or not it was "weird". i smiled and told him it wasn't at all weird. he took my word for it and gave me the ok to shoot away.

i asked archie what he felt about this gorgeous weather we were having. he's lived in denver his whole life, so he was not impressed. i guess if you see the sunshine nearly every day of your life, you start to get used to it, but i think the day i stop appreciating the sun will be the day i pack my bags and head off to look for something else.

archie claimed to not be photogenic, but i beg to differ. he's a handsome man with a warm, gentle smile. he works for the state as an insurance claims regulator. i didn't understand what that meant, so he took a minute to tell me about it. i'll let you do the research for yourself, though, because i am not sure i'd be able to adequately describe it.

i liked archie a lot. he had a very ready smile and wasn't afraid to let it shine. he had a soothing voice - deep and raspy and as he talked to me, i couldn't stop thinking about how much it resembled jack nicholas'.

another beautiful day. another beautiful stranger. this is way more fun than it is work. thank you, archie!

10 may, 2009

arlene . 81 years old  /  denver . colorado

i had the perfect photograph in mind for today. in honor of mother's day, i thought i should photograph a mom. i originally wanted to find a single mom with a couple of children. i would have taken portraits of the mom by herself and then, for the second shot, her with her children. i figured i was being a bit too hopeful, though. most people don't even like having their own photo on the internet, so photos of someone's children would probably be a long shot.

i decided i would ride my bike through the more residential neighborhoods of denver in search of a mom. i figured i would see a family climbing out of their car after having a nice brunch together. i fantasized about riding up to them, telling them my story, and them responding with enthusiasm and willingness. i would photograph the young mom on her front porch and then for the second shot, grandma, holding the new baby, would gather around for an idyllic group portrait. the porch would inevitably have some flowering vines growing around it, serving as a lovely border. i legitimately thought this would happen....

i pedaled. and pedaled. i searched. i peeked. and peered. and pedaled some more. it was grey and chilly. it looked like it might rain. my seat started to feel uncomfortable. i started doubting that i would find what i was looking for. i guess you get the idea.

i eventually pulled up to a young woman who was doing some gardening and after she recovered from the startle i accidentally gave her, i asked if she was a mom. she wasn't and no, her mom wasn't around either. sigh...

while deciding what direction to take at an intersection, i spotted an elderly woman making her way through a little park towards what looked like a large fancy apartment building. i pulled up in front of her and told her what i was doing. i asked if she was a mom and, after confirming that she was, if she would mind being part of this project.

arlene agreed to be a part of the project, although i am quite sure she didn't exactly understand what it was all about. i unfortunately just missed her daughter and granddaughter (if i remember correctly) with whom she had just been visiting. i guess i should have pedaled a bit faster...

arlene and her husband had been living in florida, but he passed away a few months ago. not wanting to be all alone, arlene figured she should move to denver to be close to her daughter. it didn't seem to make much of a difference to her where she was living, but rather who she was living near.

i positioned arlene in front of some windows of her building and started taking some portraits. i don't think she's spent a lot of time being photographed, but we did what we could. i told her i would take about twenty photographs of her, but her surprised reaction to that made me feel i should tone it down a bit. i didn't capture arlene's essence in this photograph, which, of course, breaks my heart.

from the few moments we chatted, she seemed to be a very sweet woman. i would have liked to have talked more with her, but i didn't know how to go about it. after so many days of doing this, one would think i could figure out how to pull information out of people in a very fluid and natural way, but... that just doesn't seem to be the case.

i didn't make very good photographs, so i decided i would find some flowers to use as the second photograph. i think my mother's favorite flower is the black-eyed susan, but i haven't seen any of those out here. i remembered seeing a nice bouquet of lilacs at city o' city earlier in the day, so i rode my bike back there to photograph them. i wish i could have given them to my mom, but the photo will just have to do.

arlene doesn't use the internet, so i explained that she could give my business card to her daughter and then they could see the photos and read the story together. it would be nice to hear from them, so i will keep my fingers crossed.

09 may, 2009

holly . 25 years old  /  denver . colorado

after having a wonderfully productive morning, which included a nice ride on my finally completed bicycle, i gathered my gear, and made my way downstairs to get out of my apartment. my day took an unexpected turn as soon as i made it to the front door of my building, though.

i saw these two women standing outside, definitely not looking like they belonged there, but also not looking like they wanted to do anybody any harm. i opened the door and asked if they wanted to come inside. they did, so i held the door for them. as they were half-way inside, they asked me what i thought of living in the building. considering the latest leaky ceiling drama, i thought the conversation would be better suited for somewhere else so we stepped back outside.

i gave them my opinions on the place and asked if they'd like to see my apartment. we went inside (again) and started trading names in the doorway. as holly was about to tell me her name, i stopped her short and told her about my project and asked if she would be my stranger for today. she agreed to it right away.

so, holly and stacey and i took a short tour of the building. i showed them my apartment and answered some of their questions at more length than they were probably hoping for. having two people i had never met before in my apartment didn't bother me at all. i was actually kind of excited about it, which is weird. i get excited about strange things. anyway, i felt like stacey and holly were old friends and i just blabbed away about everything that came to mind.

i think i might become one of those rambling old guys - chattering on and on about nothing in particular and retelling the same stories over and over to whoever is around to listen. eesh.... i hope not.

when they had seen and heard all they wanted, we went back outside and walked across the street to take some pictures. holly was a good sport about it. she had a big smile on her face the whole time and seemed like she enjoys laughing a lot. her friend, stacey, stood off to the side and watched it all unfold. i think they both thought the whole experience was pretty "different", but they were really very sweet.

the only information i got from them was that holly's last name is japanese and she works in the same doctor's office as stacey. and neither of them are doctors. it's rare that the stranger learns more about me than i do of them, but today they saw a picture of my mom, my bicycle, my clean underwear drying on a clothes rack, my bed, etc. i guess there's a first for everything, though.

i really get a kick out of not knowing what is going to happen next. i figured i'd walk for a while today before i found someone to photograph, but i didn't even make it outside. i am enjoying this project so much.

holly and stacey, thank you so much for your time today!

08 may, 2009

karly . 24 years old  /  denver . colorado

on my way to find today's stranger, i stopped by my landlord's office. we were in disagreement over the amount of money my rent should be reduced by because of the leaky ceiling incident. i was prepared for it to be a very stressful conversation, but i was pleasantly surprised. it ended with smiles and handshakes and a decent compromise. it seems like good things coming my way is a new trend.

as i left his office, i spotted a neon orange backpack being led down the street by a colorful ensemble of purple, blue, and red. this was precisely the kind of mood i was in, so i intercepted the body underneath it all and told her what i was up to.

"blah blah blah.... i'm photographing a stranger every day for a year". she made it very easy by responding with, "so, take my picture." i told her i needed some shade, so we crossed the street, to shoot in an open garage bay that was just beside a café i've never been in.

it turns out that karly is a tattoo artist. after spending two years apprenticing under a japanese artist, she took a job at a shop (are they called parlors?) called "brave new world". she's been doing it for about six months and seems to be enjoying it. i asked her how many tattoos she had and she had to give me an estimate - somewhere around twenty-five! rad.

after we took some photos, i asked karly if i could walk with her for a while. she was open to that, so we chatted as we made our way down 13th avenue. she struck me as being a very grounded individual. and smart. she had a good attitude and seemed to really appreciate life.

i'm was already fascinated by the tattoo world, but the way karly talked about it, made me even more interested. she's glad to be a part of the change that's taking place now - business people, government officials, moms, etc. are all getting tattoos, so it is becoming something for nearly everyone. at brave new world they do all original drawings, so whoever gets "inked" there is wearing a one-of-a-kind piece of art.

karly is tattooing until she is able to make enough money with her own art. i am a little bit jealous, though, because she is already making her own art and gets immediate gratification from it. someone comes in to get a tattoo and leaves with a permanent piece of her creation on their body.

as we parted ways, karly wished me "a good journey". i liked that a lot. life feels an awful lot like a journey and right now i am really enjoying the experience, the scenery, the lessons, and even the frustrations.

thanks for your time today, karly!

07 may, 2009

becky . 19 years old  /  denver . colorado

i saw a tall woman with long, grey hair, big sunglasses, and a bright dress putting some change in a parking meter. i let some traffic pass and then crossed the street to ask her to be today's stranger. in an accent i've never heard before she politely told me she wasn't interested.

a few streets later, i saw an elderly black man popping wendy's french fries in his mouth like they were m&m candies. he was handsomely weathered and was sporting great old man glasses. he froze stiff when i walked up to him, but then quickly managed to reject my offer. then, popping some more fries in his mouth, he crossed the street.

further on, i saw an elderly woman with white hair. i almost walked by her, but caught myself in time to not pass up a good opportunity. she was watering a garden outside of something that looked like a house, but must have been a museum or office. she listened to my proposal and then looked at me with all the skepticism she could muster and said no in a pained sort of way. i asked her why, and she gave me a very confusing answer having something to do with not even using her real name because of "former work". i introduced myself anyway and she told me her name. then i asked her in a joking sort of way if that was her real name. that was awkward, so i told her it didn't matter and wished her a good day.

after wandering around for a while longer, i began walking down colfax to make my way a bit closer to home. i came up to an intersection where becky was waiting to cross the street. thinking her dress was interesting, i excused myself and gave her the rundown. and she accepted right away.

we weren't in any shade, so we crossed the street to use the doors of the fillmore auditorium as our background. i struggled with the light in her glasses for a lot longer than usual, but becky was patient with me.

she was on her way to a friend's house to have a "beverage" in celebration of having a few days away from work. she's working in a department store, which she qualified as "alright", but is looking forward to going to art school. she is a painter and wants to become a tattoo artist. i imagine that to be a pretty fun occupation and a great opportunity to meet a lot of interesting people every day.

and that sums up today's stranger experience. thanks, becky!

06 may, 2009

heath . 21 years old  /  denver . colorado

i took to wandering again today. lately i haven't had much of a plan set in place before going out looking for the day's stranger. i prefer it that way because it leaves so much up to chance. unless, of course, you believe in divine intervention, in which case, divinity must have some serious time on their hands if they can spend so much of it ordaining my daily interactions.

i was doing my best to stay in the sunshine, which was out in full force today. not long after i left my apartment, though, i caught a glimpse of a young man sitting on the sidewalk. it took me a minute to figure out if he was talking on the phone or not, but as i got closer, i realized he was just sitting in the shade.

i told him what i was up to and asked if he'd be up for being a part of the project. he said he looked exhausted, but i dismissed that as inconsequential. he didn't take much more convincing than that, so i took a seat on the ground beside him as we made our introductions and began our conversation.

i think i simply asked him what he was doing sitting in the shade and he responded with a long, heartbreaking story. i'm not sure i can do it justice, so i think i will just touch on some of the key elements that stood out to me. i'd like to start recording my conversations with each stranger, because the simple notes i take are lacking the details and intricacies that give each conversation its character.

at 21 years old, heath just became homeless. he hasn't slept for the past three nights because he just can't hunker down on the street like the more seasoned vagrants. he can't find any work, even though he's educated as a mechanic. his girlfriend, who's pregnant with his baby, broke up with him over myspace while he was spending a few nights in jail. he was in there because he wasn't able to come up with the money to pay for a fine he incurred during an unfortunate incident with the police and said girlfriend. so, he's going to be a father in a couple of months, and his girlfriend left him for an older man.

on a positive note, heath does have some good support from his family. so he's soon heading back to california to live with his mom and restore some order to his seemingly chaotic life. he told me he's already taken the preliminary steps to join the air force. while he doesn't fully agree with the military's principles, he figures it is the best way he can provide for his baby.

we sat and talked for quite a long time. i tried to be as encouraging as possible, but i'm not convinced i said the right things. heath definitely had a sound of desperation in his voice and i could tell he was lost in thought. he said he's done a lot of stupid stuff in his life and he regrets 99% of it. then, after a pause, he said that that was really sad and it would probably be better if he didn't know he was an idiot.

he hasn't been eating much, not because he can't get any food, but because he doesn't feel like it. he's lost 40 pounds in the last few months and just feels like he can't manage to do anything right.

he was waiting there on the street to meet up with a couple of friends he just recently met in jail. he said he made more friends there in four days than he made in denver over the last year. they were just going to hang out and try to not do anything criminal.

despite all of that, he managed to crack a smile and even let a laugh come out while we were talking. i feel for him, but don't know what to do about it. i know there are people out there who are ready and willing to help, but that fact doesn't seem to matter when you are sitting there on the sidewalk listening to it firsthand.

we walked down the alley and found this wall and these stairs. i took a bunch of photos and then we talked more. i imagine we would have kept talking for a long time and i would have eventually offered to have some lunch with him, but two of his friends showed up and started talking about breaking up with girlfriends and passing urine tests. not knowing what else to do, i said my goodbyes and made my way back down the alley.

heath is a smart guy. handsome. well-spoken. thoughtful. i hope he will figure something out...

05 may, 2009

john . 32 years old  /  denver . colorado

i got off to a very slow start today. i spent a lot of time on the phone this morning. then i ate some breakfast food at lunch time. and while looking for motivation to get it in gear, a lot of time went by. when i did finally make my way out into the world, the sky was having difficulty deciding whether it was going to let it rain or not.

fully intending to dodge the rain and go to city o' city (so what if i am addicted?) i made my way around the blocks in its vicinity. just after some persistent rain drops pushed their way through the clouds and sprinkled me with a little shower, i saw a guy that looked like he'd be photogenic. i walked up to him and gave him the first few words of my invitation and then realized i had already asked him before. and he had already said no. even that short interaction technically disqualifies him from the "strangers" project. i apologized, feeling embarrassed for making that mistake for the first time, and then suggested that he look into the project anyways.

i went into my home away from home for some coffee and a cookie and some therapeutic time with the good people there. while i was sitting there, i noticed a man sitting a few people away from me at the bar. he had a great look and beautiful intense eyes. i've never asked anyone to be a part of the project in circumstances like that, so i put it off. but, the more i thought about it, the more difficult i found it to resist. i caved in and asked him if i could photograph him when he was done eating.

john said yes immediately and then we went outside together a few minutes later. it turns out that he's a bit of a local celebrity and has his irons in a few different fires around town. he's a former manager at watercourse foods and is currently working in the music industry. he just returned to denver a few days ago after spending a few years in hawaii.

he was super personable and had a warm smile and seemed to have a good sense of humor. i struggled with choosing a good background to use for the photos, but he didn't seem to mind. while talking about a former photo shoot he was in, he told me he had a very rare debilitating disease called scleroderma.

i don't understand it exactly even after spending some time researching it online, so i better leave it up to you to come up with a good explanation. anyway, john used to walk with a cane, but didn't have one today. he said his time in hawaii was beneficial and i am guessing the dry air here in denver will be good for him, too. i often find myself getting pretty irritated that my knee hurts or my armpits sweat or i sometimes can't talk without a stutter. i guess it's hard to know, but i'm not sure i'd have as good an attitude as john has if i had to deal with something more inconvenient.

what i am trying to say is that i walked away from john feeling inspired. he was a pleasure to talk to and seemed to have a lot of good stuff going for him. at one point he said, "i believe in perseverance." i liked the way he said it - with an ear to ear grin - and happen to believe in it myself.

thanks, john! it was really nice meeting you today.

04 may, 2009

jenny . 27 years old  /  denver . colorado

on a whim i decided to take a right instead of a left out of my place today. i usually walk by a house with a fenced-in yard and inside the fence is a little welsh corgi. we have a special relationship, or at least i'd like to think so. i think it recognizes me and i usually stop and play with it for a few minutes. i never know its name (or gender), but today there was a woman standing in the yard next door, so i asked her if she knew anything about this little dog. she thought her name was bri. so... that is what i am going with. anyway, i didn't even get the chance to pet bri today because she was terribly preoccupied with reggie, the neighbor's weimaraner. i didn't take it personally, though.

i parted ways with the dogs and then wandered around for a while until i eventually came up to a copy shop. i had forgotten that i wanted to go there in the first place. i guess even when my brain checks out, some part of it is still alert enough to keep me on track. i went inside and copied some model releases and then asked them to give me a rough quote on how much it would cost to print a book of these photos. they quoted me $1,000 for 10 copies! that's definitely not what i had in mind. i hope to sell the books for $20 a piece, so i guess i will have to keep shopping because i can't take an $80 loss on every book sale. i don't know much about making books, but i'm quite sure that's generally not the smartest way to go about it.

i meandered through the streets and found myself behind the museum. i saw a young woman get into her car. she was dark-skinned with light eyes and i was excited about the pretty portraits that combination would make. it took a few seconds to figure out how to open her door/window, but it didn't take her that long to turn me down. oh well.

i wound up behind the library (again) but i kept stopping and staring in different directions, trying to figure out a new route to take. i eventually went with what i know and started towards the front of the library. just as i was coming around the corner, i saw this ornately-sunglassed, very striking blonde pedaling towards the main entrance to the library. i picked up my pace a little and approached her as she was locking up her bicycle.

jenny agreed to be today's stranger without any hesitation. she didn't seem to be in a huge rush either, so i felt good about the photos to come. she took off her sunglasses and i was blown away at how bright her eyes were. her shirt brought out their color and the background wall was a near perfect match to her sunglasses. needless to say, i was a happy photographer.

after firing off a few frames, my camera starting acting up again. i fumbled around with it again and again felt embarrassed. i use this tool every day and still it messes with my head. i think it must know that it will soon be replaced and is giving me a hard time just to spite me.

jenny was getting her library card and had a list of books to check out. i didn't ask which books, but i should have. i often turn into a near mute when i should be chatting up a storm. i did manage to mumble out a few questions and it turns out that jenny is not a denver native. so many people are not denver natives! i like that a lot. i am not sure what brought her here, but she's now a hair stylist at a place called blondies in a part of town i rarely find myself. i've had great experiences with the few stylists i have photographed, so i am just going to assume that most of them are good people.

thanks for your time today, jenny! i think your pictures turned out great!

03 may, 2009

susan . 60 years old  /  denver . colorado

the chance of meeting people like susan is what pushes me to continue doing this project. my time with her today was just wonderful. and exactly what i needed. i've been feeling a bit out of sorts since i went to kentucky and it's been wearing on me. it was nice to get a new burst of energy from her today.

i took a stroll down 13th avenue with the museum as my destination and saw her making her way across the street toward the library. from a few steps behind her i called after her and dove into my quick pitch.

she agreed pretty quickly, but it was clear from the beginning that we weren't just going to take pictures and part ways. she was invested right away. maybe susan is the kind of woman who is invested in a lot of different things, but she made me feel very special while we spoke.

she immediately started asking me if i was doing this for someone else or if it was just my own thing. she wanted to know if i had applied for grants and if i planned on publishing. she had many great ideas and took the time to share them with me. not that they have to or i expect them to, but not many people have done that. i really appreciated it today.

susan is a writer. she was walking around today debating whether or not she should be a "straight writer". she's been doing some travel writing, but is feeling like writing for herself. from talking with her on the street, i imagine her work to be very interesting. she was very well spoken, but the way she said what she said spoke louder to me than what she said.

i have a hard time describing the feelings i walk away from this kind of interaction with. there have only been a few people who have passed on such positive energy to me the way susan did today. unfortunately, i think i more often feel frustration than anything else when i part ways with the day's stranger. i don't necessarily view that frustration as a negative thing, but it is so refreshing to have days like this.

i very much hope that i will see susan again. i could have easily spent the rest of the day talking with her. her eyes and smile, the way she spoke, her high spirit, the way she carried herself, the apparent wisdom she's gained over the years, and even the colors she wore spoke novels to me. i want more people like her in my life. i'd even go as far as to say that the world would be a better place with more susans.

02 may, 2009

brice . 25 years old  /  denver . colorado

i'm an opinionated guy. most people who know me would not deny that. i have opinions about most things. some are stronger than others, for example, my thoughts on the kentucky derby and horse racing in general.

i like horses. i like watching them. i think they are magnificent creatures. i like to watch them interact. and eat. and run. i even enjoy riding them from time to time. i don't like to watch them sweat. i don't like whips. i don't like starting guns. i don't support the shooting of animals because their legs are broken. i don't like the idea of thousands of people slurping bourbon and gin and tonics while wearing silly hats and spending loads of money on guessing which horse was made to run the fastest. i think it is so barbarian.

the horse does all the work and gets nothing out of it. the owner scores big time. the jockey probably does pretty good for himself, too. but the horse has no sense of being a champion. i would venture a guess that he doesn't walk away with a greater sense of pride or self-worth. he wont go tell his friends how fast and strong he is. he wont buy a maserati. basically the winning horse gets another day to live. not death... there's some incentive.

i am guessing that the only reason why horse-racing is still allowed to exist is because it makes a great number of undeserving people a lot of money. things like that make my stomach churn.

so... on that note... taking the advice of a friend, i went out in search of a woman wearing a derby hat. i walked for quite some time and didn't see one person that fit the bill.

while searching for souls, i ended up near my favorite wall in denver, but there weren't many people around and still no sign of a derby hat. it was another chilly grey day here in denver, so i guess most people were already where they were going.

i eventually saw a young guy in a pink tie, powder blue pants, and a sports jacket. i assumed he was either dressed up for the derby or had just come home from a j. crew party. regardless, i was excited about the pink tie, pink wall combination, so i walked over towards him. he was on the phone, so i stood around for a few minutes, trying not to eaves drop.

when he finished, i gave him my story and told him i was looking for a woman in a fancy hat, but i figured a man in a derby tie would be a suitable substitution. in case you haven't noticed, brice's tie pattern is made up of miniature racing horses.

i am pretty sure brice thought i was a total weirdo, but he was a good sport about it. we walked around the corner from his apartment and i fired away a few shots. he didn't have a whole lot to say as i barraged him with questions. lately people haven't been bursting at the seams with information for me.

i managed to get a few fun facts, though. he's a liquor distributor and likes what he does. he seemed to be a happy guy... his smile looks like it gets a lot of use. he was throwing a derby party at his apartment and had some money riding on the race. and that was that. i wished him luck and let him get back to the day's festivities.

as soon as brice crossed the street, a group of five people came towards me, and of course, three of them were equipped with derby hats. oh well, i guess that is just the way it works. the tie worked out just fine anyway.

if you are watching the derby, i hope you are enjoying yourself. really... i mean it.

01 may, 2009

ed . 60 years old  /  denver . colorado

i don't have much to say. the sky was threatening rain all day and i guess my motivation slipped into the grey dreariness.

i went out for a morning coffee and some quality time with some friends, but i didn't find the energy i needed. i found the energy to stay there, but i eventually ventured out to look for today's stranger. my heart wasn't in it, though.

i wandered around until i ended up on colfax street. i walked by this gentleman in a bright red jacket and thought about asking him, but hesitated. i walked a few more steps up the street and then decided to turn around and go for it.

ed didn't have much to say. while i spoke to him, he seemed like he was waiting for "the catch", but when it became apparent that there wasn't going to be one, he agreed to participate.

i asked him what he was up to and he said he was about to go into the poster store. i asked if he was buying something to hang in his house. he said yes and didn't offer more. i asked if he was from denver. yes, he was, but he lives in wyoming now. i told him i had been there recently and it had been the windiest part of my trip. i think he said something like, "that's wyoming".

i was curious what the "p" on his hat and the "r" on his jacket stood for, but he didn't seem too interested in talking with me, so i didn't find out. i suppose we'll have to make up our own stories.

well... that's that. thanks for your time, ed.