The Narrative Image

So...some artists have been generous enough to let me hang some of my pictures in their art show this Friday (Well to be honest, I submitted four images, but I'm not sure if they'll actually hang them up). It's supposed to be a celebration of Bastille Day, and the theme is Liberty, Equality, Fraternity, and Tenacity. The show is at the Troy Laundry Studios, 222 S.E. 10th Street (Between Ash St. and Pine St.). Looking at the front of the building, you'd step through a Black Iron Gate and find Studio #1 at the top of the stairs. The show is hosted by Jennifer Lanphier, Julia Gardner and Matt Weiers and takes place between 5 & 10 P.M., Friday July 18th. I've been told there will be jewelry, paintings, prints and perhaps even bronze castings. I am not sure if there will be any beverages, so I will try to have some beers in the back of my truck. I'm always thrilled to be able to hang some of my photographs, particularly in an environment where they mig...

Out from under the compressed expectations of a short work week, I launch my kayak from Heritage Landing. The fast flowing Deschutes ejects me into the Columbia River Gorge.  I paddle into a stiff wind, the captain of my own fate...for a change. Moments before, a man with a new jet-ski tied to the shore told me the water was too 'crispy'. "You mean 'choppy?'", I asked. "Crispy." he nodded. But eventually I settle for the adjective 'spooky'. What looks to me like serpentine standing waves, the massive undulations of a barely submerged plesiosaur, are camouflaged by the spray of wind whipped whitecaps.  I ride the bucking cryptid as it sweeps me off course. "Captain of my own fate my ass." I mutter. Swept, eventually, into the wind shadow of Miller Island , I regain my bearings and make landfall at the first smooth sandy beach I find, which, because the water is higher than usual, means a protracte...