World Series of Poker

A friend of mine placed in the World Series of Poker in Las Vegas so I showed up to watch it all go down. The event was held at the Rio Hotel and was packed with some high-profile poker players. Sadly, I didn't recognize any of them at the time or I probably would have been able to appreciate it more. At the time, I only got interested because my friend was playing. Now I know that at the very least, I saw Humberto Brenes.

When I walked in the room where the World Series was taking place, it was eerily quiet and all you could hear was the nervous shifting around of chips. It was pretty interesting to watch as some people emerged victorious and others left upset and empty-handed. I think the initial buy in for the WSOP was $10,000. Oh... and my friend didn't win but he went out, guns blazin' aka ALL IN!

Afternoon Warmth

Warm light. Dark shadow. The reflection of the apples in the window. There's just something about this picture for me.

Click on the image to enlarge. The smaller size honestly doesn't do the details any justice.

Long Day

ThisClose

This picture of Tom Cruise is a little dated, it's from the movie premiere of "Mad Money" starring his wife, Katie Holmes along with Queen Latifah and DIane Keaton. I was actually pretty sick and had gone into Westwood Village to a drugstore to get some cough syrup and other fun stuff when I realized the premiere was going on. I usually have my camera with me. Yes, even to go to the drug store. I wanted to go home and just sleep but I thought, OK, I'll give it a couple of minutes just in case "they" arrive and then be on my way. Well, in less than 5 minutes, Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes showed up in their SUV to the sound of screaming fans.

She is skinner than I thought and very tall and you could tell he was trying to hang back and let her have her moment. I thought it was actually quite nice. You'd think a star that big would always want the spotlight but he seemed happy letting her do her thing. At one point, he came over to the other side of the street where the fans were hoping for a closer glimpse, from behind barricades. He started at one end of where the fans were and walked down clear to the other end -- at least a city block. He signed autographs, posed for pictures and was actually very calm and kind to everyone. I snapped this picture just because he was thisclose and then went home and went to bed!

Click on the picture if you want to see Tom Cruise's pores.

The Great Escape

Wispy

Become the Sky

Up, Up and Away

Hancock Place, or John Hancock Tower as it is more commonly known (or even just The Hancock), is an icon of Boston and is reportedly the tallest building in New England. The 60-story skyscraper stands at almost 800 feet and its exterior includes more than 10,000 reflective glass panes.

The Hancock Tower was designed by I. M. Pei in the 1970's. He went on to design the Pyramide du Louvre.

I just thought the shape of the building was interesting and I how reflective it is.

Did You Guess Right?

The answer to yesterday's post... it's a lampshade!

Guess What

Take a guess as to what this image is of in comments. I will reveal what it is in my post tomorrow. Good luck!

Don't Fence Me In

"A Wise Passiveness"

To read my other posting about this mosque, click here.

Time Goes On

Paris's Musee d'Orsay is one of my favorite museums in the world. Well, at least of the ones that I have actually visited. I enjoy it much more than (gasp!) the Louvre. I love the collection and I also love the building itself.

The museum replaced what was once the Gare d'Orsay, or Orsay train station, which originally opened in 1900 across the Seine from the Jardin de Tuileries and the Louvre. You can tell just by looking at the museum from the outside that it's not an ordinary building and once you are inside, you can still see the remnants of the former train station including this massive clock. And yes, it still works.

Bloody Moon

Watchful Eye

The Joy Of Music

Raging Inferno

Southern California is ablaze and the world is watching. I took this picture with my cell phone while I was driving on the highway. I didn't have my camera with me so I had to use my last resort. The sun was a bright, Crayola crayon red. I have never in my life seen the sun this color. Since the massive wildfires broke out last weekend across Southern California, the sky looks eerie and yet colorful at the same time. Some places you go, there is an orange glow while in other parts it's a blanket of black. It's disturbing and surreal. The image really doesn't do it justice but at least it's something.

Gum For Sale

This little Ecuadorian boy came up to our breakfast table outside a restaurant in Quito as we were eating. He was tiny and had a small, plastic basket hanging around his neck selling equally tiny packets of Trident gum.

Of course we bought some from him, we would have regardless, but there was something that stood out about this little boy. He had a sparkle in his eyes and a lot of personality for a person so small and I wanted to remember him. The funniest part of our interaction was whenever I would take a picture of him (I asked first) with my digital camera, he would lean over to see the instant results. Every time.

A Whole Blue World

Better Than Ice Cream

I shot this picture in Quito's Old Town, or as the locals call it, El Centro. UNESCO declared it a World Heritage Site in 1978 and rightly so. You can spend quite some time wandering through Old Town's narrow streets looking at one beautifully restored colonial building after another, people watching in one of the magnificent squares or sitting deep in thought inside one of the glorious churches.

The people milling about Old Town are just as diverse as Ecuador itself. An old-fashioned ice cream cart operator will be on the same street as a young Ecuadorian off to school or work or an indigenous woman carrying her child on her back.

Click on the image to see more details.