Web Date 01-23-2006

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Sorry but I have to leave town at the very last minute. I'm off to SF for a week and be back Feb 2nd. I'm shooting two models up there.

I finally got off my lazy ass and post the Joshua Tree pix. You can find them in Members / Travel Photos / Joshua Tree 2006.

xoxo Van

Web Date 01-11-2006

My friend called me up yesterday and said, "Van, it's my birthday tomorrow and I want to take you out to dinner. I always wanted go to Dan Tana's Restaurant!" I told him that I was planning to take him out to dinner but he called me first. The restaurant was only four blocks from my apartment so we walked there.  On the way, we both chat about how funny it was so close by and we never thought much about it all these year.

It was very quiet outside but inside.. it was jammed packed. The place was not very big and there were a mob of people waiting for tables at the bar. I looked on the walls and there were a couple photos of the owner Dan Tana and Robert Urich. Then, I made the connection. Robert Urich's character in his Vegas TV series was Dan Tana. I looked around and saw a mixture of Hollywood old money and the young MTV types.

We had a 9pm reservation. Around 9:30pm one table got up walked out through the thick crowd. This one guy stopped in front of me and chatted with a couple. It was Mark Wahlberg (Marky Mark). I said hello to him and he reached out and shook my hand saying, "How ya doing sir?" I just froze. Smile. And mumble something stupid. My friend next to me just laughed.

Finally, at 10pm and our table was ready. We sat down and across from me was a table of three scruffy looking guys. I didn't pay much attention to it until one guy came by their table and said something about one of them being funny on Jay Leno. I looked real close and it was Will Ferrell wearing a baseball cap.

The food was mediocre and overpriced but it was great fun to people watch.

I'm editing Bondo Gods Vol 5 at the moment. It should be out sometime in Feb. xoxo Van.

Web Date 01-04-2006

For every beautiful soul,
I meet ten a-holes.
For every glory and inspiration,
I see a mountain of hypocrisy and greed.
After a while I wonder if this is what I need.
I wonder if it's worth it after all.

Kept on dreaming about that house in the desert.
In the forest. In the mountains.
Kept on dreaming about it until it hurts.
A quiet dream about a home, some land and dirt.
But the coil of time is turning tighter and tighter.
Turning faster. Turning harder.

I'm not afraid to be alone now, you see.
Oh not me. Not me. Mr James B.
I got this man inside me.
I'm just getting to know .
It will take a lifetime remain.
We will find comfort in the wind, sun and rain.

You can't look at me in the face
And say you got here with dignity and grace... without any luck.
I'm playing life poker in my torn Levis and my pickup truck.
So damn tired of staring at all my god awful hands.
My stack is getting low... I never had enough.
It's time for me to go all in with a bold face bluff.

(Joshua Tree January 2006. Just something I wrote on a rock in the desert. The car I borrowed was acting up so I decided not to go to Nevada and went to Joshua Tree instead. It's a beautiful desert park near Palm Springs.  It was truly a magical place. I hiked for miles and miles with no one around. Will post some pix this weekend. xoxo Van.)