The day started early when I drove Shelly to JFK to pickup her mom. I told her mom all of her secret bad habits. Nah, I can't even make up any bad habits because living with her has been a dream!

 

I finally got around to seeing Spiderman 2 and thought it was good. What makes this film better then the first is that the villain isn't cheesy. It's a love story-Wahab take note- in the end love always prevails and finds away.

 

I picked up my prints and was very disappointed. Out of 3 rolls I liked maybe 10 shots. I'm always on a quest for the perfect roll and it hasn't happened yet. The ease and inexpensive cost of digital photography is the way to go for me right now at least until I get back in the darkroom. I'll post a couple shots soon from the rolls.

 

I spent most of the day designing my online photography store. It should be up and working either Friday or Saturday evening. I'm super excited about this! It's another step down my path to somewhere. And on this path I've undervalued the suggestions and opinions of others- so sayeth the 'sacred path' cards.

 

Shelly has a set of cards that combine many Native American traditions and teachings to aid in self-discovery. I guess you can say it is a form of Tarot reading. Before selecting a card, we burned sage around our bodies cleansing our horas. I was very careful not to burn myself cause I can be a bit clumsy at times.

 

The card I choose aka # 15 aka Talking Stick, spoke to my closed approach on this journey. It said:

 

"The Talking Stick reminds us of the validity of other viewpoints and teaches us how to listen and apply what we hear. We are being reminded not to interrupt others who are imparting wisdom. We are taught through listening that life has millions of options and answers to any dilemma.

 

If the Talking Stick has appeared in your spread, you are probably not allowing yourself any options in your present situation or have become too stuck on one idea to see any further than your self-created tunnel. Open up and listen to the opportunities that the Talking Stick says are coming your way. Remember all life signals and or options are available to those who will hear. You are being given an opportunity to grow through an alternative route. Use this gift now."

 

I can dig it. I will listen to the advise you have for me.......for the next 24 hours =)

 

Being in the zone means there is a sharp focus on the task or tasks in front of you. Once I enter the zone, I'm not thinking about food, sleep or entertainment. Today was all about that.

 

From the moment I rolled out of bed, I was designing my photo store. I really feel like a small business owner cleaning out an abandoned building and hanging the store name on the outside. The 'open for business' sign isn't on the door yet, there is still some interior work to be completed. In the meantime, Karim dropped in for assistance in designing his wedding website.

 

Next January Karim and his fiancé Chinyere are getting married in Negril, Jamaica. That's going to be incredible! His site will be ready probably by next weekend so I'll have info for everyone interested in attending.

 

Well, off to work I go.

 

I integrated paypal into the online store so that means that I'm placing more trust in this company. But, I'll have you know that you can't fool me twice. In fact I emailed President Bush before making this decision and he said: (click me)

uh...yeah exactly Mr. President.

 

Well, I completed that task and hit a mental block. Shelly and her mom invited me to have dinner with them at Two Boots, an Italian and Cajun restaurant and that seemed to clear some space on my hard drive. The gumbo wasn't all that, in fact it was more like rice and meat, but the atmosphere helped to clear the cobwebs in my brain. A country & bluegrass band from Kentucky called 'The Smith family' really lightened the air and brought southern charm to Brooklyn. Ok that was an over statement because Brooklyn is huge, but let's say to Park Slope. Cool? Cool.

 

Still in need of more mental cleansing, Shelly and I went to Royale- the local bar I wrote about a month ago with the percussionist and DJ. We danced the night away and now its time to put the finishing touches on the website. Who am I kidding; I'm going to sleep.

 

It's 6am and I'm still awake working on this darn photo site! We're getting there though. I gotta tweek a couple more items but the layout is finished.

 

A tool that I frequently use to stay awake is listening to talk radio from the bay area online. Tonight the station of choice was KG0 and the host was Ray Taliarferro. KGO is one of the few liberal am radio stations in the country and the topic of conversation was the beginning of the democratic convention.

 

I'm really trying not listen to Kerry speak because I may lose the desire to vote at all. I don't know, he just seems lame to me. There is a slight chance that I will go up to Boston this week to shoot the atmosphere surrounding the convention. Stay tuned to see if I get on the Fung Wah Bus again....

 

Wahab got married. I've been trying to figuring out how I feel about this and I'm not sure yet. I think I'll let it soak in for a day and come back to this later. In the meantime this is what he wrote:

 

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Well I let the whole Wahab marriage thing soak in and I can speak on it now. Since we are talking about soaking, I did something I haven't done in quite sometime-play in the rain. It felt so good once I got over the initial 'what the hell am I doing' phase.

 

Where was I? Oh yes Mr. and Mrs. Algarmi. Wow! I guessed that he would get married but it was still a bit of a shock. I think this will be a wonderful marriage and experience for both of them.

 

On behalf of the Harrison clan I wish you both happiness and love. Wahab, just remember that sometimes it takes many lifetimes to get to know someone, so be patient.

 

As for me. My eyes are about to fall out from lack of sleep. I have finished the photo site! The domain name is harrisonjoe.com but its not registered yet.It takes 24-72 hours to reach the servers so by Friday it will be up. Actually if you want a sneak peak you can check it out here.