From HERO to ZERO!!!!

Damnit! Ivan Basso is out of the Tour De France along with a number of his fellow ethically corrupt "professional" cyclists! I am again (Festina 1998!!!!) sickened by the news that yet another team, cyclist or manager, has been suspened for doping!

But when it's 58 freaking riders....you've got a problem!!!!!

When is this going to end? I am so glad that Lance's name hasn't come up implicated him along with the others in "Operation Puerto".

OK, it's Tour De France (TdF) time.... I will have little time for anything else for the next 4 weeks other than eating, sleeping, working, and watching the TdF on OLN every moment I can.

Meester Brown's New Ride....

Well, considering how little time I have had to myself over the past two weeks, where did I ever find the time to buy a new car (more info to follow).

Last week was totally insane, and the week before merely set up the insanity. The week before last, my storage room at my townhouse was broken into while I was house sitting at my girl friends house. The subseguent listing of my stolen items for the police report (one simple call, and one simple form, and your burglary simply becomes a statistic)and for the insurance company had me blown away that I had accumulated as much crap as I had stuffed in a small, dank 4' x 10' storage room.

The bastards merely took a crow bar to the door, popped it open, backed up a truck and loaded up the contents.

Since Tucson is a veritable cespoool with crime running rampant, the police merely had me fill out a report and I never saw an officer regardless of the fact that the itmes stolen were valued at over $6700! Thank God, thank Vishnu, and thank Allah that I had State Farm renters insurance, and now I am waiting for the check to arrive so I can start replacing some of the things!

So...to make a very long story short, two weeks has past, two weeks of work, busy days off doing projects at the parents, my girl friends house, and tech work on the side, I finally had time to breath and made the mistake of driving by my neighborhood VW dealer.

I traded in the old 2002 Golf GLS for a 2006 Golf GTI (MK4).....and I am one very happy camper. If you haven't driven a GTI....go test drive one. It's a lot of car, a blast to drive, and for the money nothing can touch it!

Pictures of the Week......

Since I will more than likely not remember, let alone have the time to post a "Picture du Jour", I am resorting to letting myself off the daily posting gig.

I will try my hardest to post some of my work each week, and yes, once I do go digital I will post the usual snapshot too.

Later today I stopping by my local pro photo shop today to check out the Nikon digital bodies since I have numerous film based Nikons and have the lenses that can work on the new digital ones. I also have my eye on the Sony Cybershot, it's just too cool not to have, and it's BLACK!

But, I have always lusted after the Leica M6. Hell, I should just sell all my Nikons and buy a M6 with a 35mm lense and call it quits.

Ok, enough photo geek.... enjoy the shots.



Girls - Trinidad, Honduras


Ship Yard - Lumber - Long Beach, CA

Quick note at 3:22 AM

Damn time flys when you can't sleep, you get on the computer, and start doing some work. Scanned more photos and got the creative juices flowing, surfed a bit, and finally hit the time when I sure as shit better get to bed. I have to be up in around 4 hours and off to work in 5. AARGH!!!

Here's a few more shots from my collection. You all can tell my style is a bit graphic in nature (design versus lewdness), and yes, I don't shoot people too much. Well, there was that clock tower thing in Texas, but I'd rather not talk about it. ;-)

Good Night!

Blue Dumpster & Wall - Phoenix, AZ

Old Chevy - Half Moon Bay, CA

Uhauls - San Francisco, CA

Trucks - San Diego, CA

more.......

More......

Signs - Mt. Lemmon, AZ

Telephone Pole - Lake near Chico, CA

Pullout - Mt. Lemmon, AZ

Hydrant - Tucson, AZ

Deseret Hotel - Tucson, AZ

Model - Portfolio Shot

Tuna Boat - Puerto Penasco, Mexico

More photos.....

Finally got the scanner to work...temporary that is. At least I got a few more from my stack of prints scanned. Most are scans from laser prints I made a few years ago, so they aren't too high res.

I haven't made the jump to digital, and still have my 35mm Nikons (FM, FE, F3HP) laying around. Recently met a photographer that gave me the impetus to throw some of my work up on my blog. So, here's more.

Drinking Fountain - Presidio Cemetary - San Francisco, CA

Ann - Photo Shot/Model Portfolio Shot

Curios Shop - Tucson, AZ

Photos by D.S. Brown

Palm Trees - Tucson, AZ


Caution - Red Rock, AZ

If I can get my scanner to fully function, and also get my 35MM sldies transferred to digital I will have many more to show. For now, enjoy the few I have posted. PLEASE critigue, make comments, order large prints (hmmmm.....maybe VB can print them on his HUGE printer!).

Yo! Container Boy!

Here's the blog I was talking about.

This lucky woman has a GREAT site, her own pier/dock, and is building a lake side bungalow with 20 foot ISO's and SIPS.

Check it out!

Hey Mester Pharrington!

Dennis the Menace's greatest statement of all times. About sums up how we all feel about government, working for the man, and the present price of gas.


Ok, bend over!

My new Hero! Ivan Basso is the Man!

Since Lance is gone, Ullrich is fatter than a Thanksgiving turkey, and my friend Sven Teutenberg isn't racing the pro road cirucuit..... Ivan Basso is now my hero!

He dominated the Giro d'Italia, and has his sights on the Tour de France. I personally think he has a real chance of dominating the TdF and making Ullrich look pathetic. I am sorry to say it, but Ullrich squandered his chance to shine and beat Armstrong.

How can you beat a man that trains harder, is more focused on the goal, and is a one man juggernaut?

You can't German Boy!! Retirement is inevitable.

Starting over....again. Rinse, Lather, Repeat....

I'm back! After a long absence, I have returned. None the worse for wear but still showing show of the scars from the past 7 years, encouraged by what lays ahead, and full of excitement (and fear) over whats around the next corner.

In October I posted some quips about what was going on in my life, and where I was headed, little did I know where the next six months would take me, and what kind of growth (spiritually & emotionally) I would see, and what needed to be fixed.

Friends have asked why I included a picture of the Dalai Lama in that October post. Well, that's all part of the story and actually the start of the long road I am on.

My dear friend Swami Goldberg (my brother from a different mother) for my 47th birthay invited me to join him to go and see the Dalai Lama while he was in Tucson.

Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick!

This was a dream come true. I have always wanted to be witness to this great man (living deity?)and the abilty to sit a few rows away from him and listen to his talk on PEACE was a life changing event.

To sum up the experience..... it was incredible!!!!

So, here I am, less than six weeks after breaking up and moving out from a 7 year long term relationship (LTR), moved into my new digs (Casa DahVeed), still reeling from everything, still raw from the loss and the new found freedom, I am literally slapped awake by a little Yoda like man from Tibet. Paraphrasing his teaching..."Open yourself to the possibilities in life, be it love, wealth, or peace. Your never know when they will be standing right in front of you. Open your eyes."

Well CRAP! First off I am blind as a bat, so the opening of the eyes wasn't going to do much for me in the first place, but with the help of my best friend (and my helping him through his breakup), my "eyes" began to open.

To not bore you with all the details, fast forward to St. Patrick's Day (3-17-06). My new girlfriend and I are sleeping, and the phone rigns at 4:30 AM. It was my Mom, and she was asking me that if Dad took a nitoglycerin tablet and his chest pains went away was that a good sign or bad? "And you are asking me this because...??"

"Call 911, and if they aren't there before I am, I will take him to the hospital!. I'll be there in les that 10 minutes!". Shit! I get to the house before anyone else arrives, even the paper boy, and I whisk my DAd off to the ER down the road. I check him in at around 5:00 AM, and they get him stabilized. He had had a heart attack, but survived thank God! Considering he has had two double bypasses and a few stents put in, he is very lucky to be alive!

Having your Dad have a heart attacked is bad enough, but my sweetie and I were packed and in less than four hours were going to be relaxing on the beaches of Baja, sipping margaritas, and just being together. Well, that didn't happen!

Fast forward to 10:30 AM, I had left the ER, went home, showered, shaved, and I am having a bit of breakfast with my girlfirend, and my phone goes off. I know Dad is stabilzed in the ER, Mom is home sick in bed with pneumonia, and my sister knows what is going on, so who would be calling me on a Friday morning (since I am on vacation).

It's my Mom..... she is feeling really bad, and thinks she needs to go to the hospital too. Hmmmmmm... maybe I can get a "2 for 1" Special? I end my breakfast, go and get Mom, and take her to the ER. She's admitted due to her dehydration (eat something, drink something Mom).

So, here I am, both parents in the hospital ER, I am running back and forth between their beds, realizing I should have broguht my roller skates, but the thought of having a third member of my family in the ER wasn't a comforting thought. Thank God for my girlfriend for her emotional support and understanding. Her being a nurse, my being an ex-EMT certainly helped too.

OK...enough for now...

TUNE in later sports fans for another installment of "Parental Units in ER" or "How I spent my Spring Vacation"....

Kick in the proverbial shorts!

It's funny how the (e)universe sometimes just out of the blue kicks you in the shorts and gives you a push to move. A gentle nudge to get you off your ass and out of your rut.

I haven't touched, viewed, or done much of anything with my blog for months. Hell, I even forgot my user name it had been so long since I last logged on to update things.

Thanks to the kind souls that gave comments to my postings, and gave me advice, and links to GREAT articles (thx to womanwandering).

Once I wake up tommorow morning (and after I have poured myself a cup of coffee (french press that is) I will update what has transpired over the last 6 months, and what is to come around the bend in the very near future.

I am off to bed........