as you can see from this fabulous makeover, there’s changes in the air – and it’s not just aesthetical. I’m not sure that’s a word, but this wine disagrees, so we’re going to go with it for now.

for the past 3-4 months – along with finalizing the book, getting it ready for Amazon and iPads and the masses [who else is there, really?] – myself and a few others have been going back-and-forth on a little [now big] idea I’ve had for the better part of 5 years. that new title on the header bar might give you a clue…

it’s a really good idea and is in no way original, but it still just might work. there’s still not a lot I can say about it, which is tough, seeing how I’m crap at keeping exciting news a secret, but I can tell you it’s exciting news. I can also tell you that all of your wildest web dreams are about to come true – I’m about 72% sure of it.

here’s also what I can tell you:

- the OMKOS and rough sundays podcasts have all been archived and will be back here.

- I’m getting back into making little movies.

- I miss local live music.

- my current Flickr is messy.

- I am constantly blessed with meeting the most interesting and wonderful of people.

- there’s another book being worked on.

- and an app.

…

okay, so I was going to space all of that out over the next few months, but this wine is too tasty.

basically, what I’m saying is this:

check back often.

excuse the mess.

and get ready to see something pretty fuckin’ cool.

more soon.

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… are up here.

stop by and stuff.

it’s a good place.

[nyc, that is]

[and here]

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are up here.

and what a fine town it was to shoot.

more soon on the 206, but if you ever have a chance to visit during summer [read: not too rainy time], do it.

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well, thanks, little nephew of mine.

it’s been a helluva year, since my last birthday…

let’s see:

- Josie and I spent my 34th cruising on Absurdity in the South of England, if you learn to sail, you can have her [boat].

- after that, I went to go see Nico [he'll be a quasi-uncle to you] in Paris and had the time in Paris that everyone wants.

- but I got into a little bit of trouble with the U.K. government, and had 30 days to leave.

- so, naturally, I dragged Josie to Vietnam. to live.

- we stayed there for a few months, but ended up going our separate ways. she to Australia to work. me to Oregon to finish a book.

- a few months into my stay in Bend, I finally got to meet you. and that very day, I started writing another book.

- a month of so after that, I flew to Perth to see Josie for her birthday. we took a campervan around wine country. it was fun.

- a few months later, I left Bend for a month in Oklahoma and the promotional run of the book would be released. it sold out.

- a few weeks after that, I got the call that I never thought I’d get – I was about to take a job in New York fuckin City! I’ve now been here a little more than 4 months and it’s been amazing. I’ve been sending you little postcards and stuff, hopefully one day you’ll be able to check them out.

- my birthday was spent with a lot of friends. which, considering how short I’ve been here, should tell you how lucky I am.

… so there you go, nephew – it’s been a fun 34th year. you just started walking and by the time my 36th [ugh] rolls around, you might even be able to talk with me on the phone a little bit. a lot of your and my birthdays will be spent on the phone, but I’ll try and make that up to you.

so, thanks for the card and the cheeky little grin. I showed this to a lot of people here and they all thought you were amazing.

and I think so too.

love,

Uncle Aric

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anyone who’s followed this little blog for a while can testify to my complete addiction to the Eastern State Penitentiary in Philadelphia. this was my 4th time to go and it keeps getting better. hands down, the creepiest and most wonderful manmade place in all of the States, and one of my top 10 places ever. you can find out about this gem online, but it doesn’t do it justice. for a taste, revisit this scene in 12 Monkeys, as it was filmed inside here. Steve Buscemi gives the audio tour. and it’s amazing. to date, I’ve shot it on the Leica and now on my iPhone.

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… for many, many more shots, click here. and, again – go see it.

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… are up here, but there’s only a handful. a large amount of little piccies from Eastern State Penitentiary are on the way. I hope you like them, because I like you.

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are up here. per usual. take a peek? I think you might like them.

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as you may, or may not have seen, this humble little website was down over the past few days. I’d like to think that it bothered you and suddenly the realization of what a fucking amazing blog this is resonated and you now appreciate it even more.

just let me think that, ok?

anyway, it was just the start of some major things to come. in a few short months, this will stop being only a blog and turn into something much bigger. there is currently a team of people working on it and very, very soon, it’s going to be a full-fledged living site, with more stuff than you can even imagine.

I can tell you that all of your dreams will soon come true.

here’s a few of the things you’ll be seeing:

- a photo gallery of my shots, with a very easy way of buying prints. my flickr is all over the place with screenshots and ripped images, etc, so this will make it easier to buy whatever prints you might want.

- a podcast area. I have all of the old OMKOS and rough sundays shows and will be putting them up, plus launching a new one here in the next 2-3 months. and it is, to date, the most wonderful show I’ve ever put together. it’ll be a bi-weekly show.

- videos. these are things that I’ve never been able to devote enough time to, but once a month or so, I’ll be releasing 2-3 minute shorts.

- a shopping area. the amount of things I’ve accrued over the years from different parts of the globe is insane. I always said that ‘someday, I’d put ‘em up on ebay’, but why do that when I can just sell them on my own site? stuff from all over the world.

- a forum. maybe. we’re kicking around this idea. am open for suggestions on it.

… those are the things that aren’t a secret.

trust that there’s going to be some other big stuff on the way.

I’m kind of excited, except that I’m really excited.

fun.

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every time I go to write something, I usually don’t write something because writing takes effort. and I’m trying to enjoy the downtime between this book being officially released [read: on Amazon in the next few weeks, ebooks, etc.] and the next one starting. it’s a collection of short stories between Dec ’08-present. I’m looking forward to starting it, and I’m looking even more forward to being done with the first one. did you know I’ve never even read it? it’s sitting right next to me, as I had to reference it for a slight design change, but I’ve never picked it up. I should though, it’s a good book. but I digress…

this shall be the most random of catch-ups. I’m doing it more for me than you, but that shouldn’t come as a shock:

- it’s a shame we lost in the final minutes of the Women’s World Cup. it’s a shame we don’t give a shit. but well-played [for the first 108 minutes, at least], girls. you actually made female professional sports exciting. weird.

- the Vespa Saga continues. that actually deserves its own post and I will – as soon as I’m official – post the entire headache. if I do it now, I’ll just be annoyed.

- speaking of annoyed. I can no longer hide my insane jealousy for Mel and Nick’s choice to put their stuff in storage, quit their [very successful] careers and took off sailing the world for a few years. the only thing that outdoes my envy is my intrigue. and respect.

- this has been a favorite summer song for some time, and it is again this summer. hey, you should make it one of yours.

- oh! the second day in Philly I wanted to tell you about? the crazy castle [yes, castle. see below] we went to, built by the eccentric tile-maker James Mercer? one of the coolest places in the States, I kid you not. the website doesn’t do it justice. well worth a day trip from Philly. no photos allowed inside, but I got a few of the exterior.

- the hair stylist convinced me to get something called a ‘keratin blowout’ done to my locks. I’m still confused to what happened.

- the ’101 best sandwich’ attempt died out [shocking!], as they were all a] more than $10 and b] beginning to not be within walking distance from my office.

- my office is in the exact area the term ’23 skidoo’ was coined. good band as well.

- I haven’t picked up my Leica once since moving to NYC. this hipstamatic stuff is brilliant.

- ah. yes. photos and NYC – that reminds me. took a shot of this the other week and made a point of going back when it was open. one of the coolest shops I’ve ever been in. worth a trip to Park Slope. am pretty sure it’s a Dave Eggers project.

- speaking of iStuff. if you have an iPad, download this. Brother Scott did the music for it and it’s been charting for weeks now on Apple.

- while I’ve always been mildly interested in the occult, reading ‘The Serpent and The Rainbow’ has elevated my curiousity in voodoo and black magic to a point of virtual hopelessness. I’m obsessed. have never seen the film, but have it downloaded for when I’m done.

- speaking of things to watch, I get about 40 minutes a week of time to do it, but Californication is one of the smartest shows ever to come out of the States. season 5 especially.

- this also looks amazing.

- NYC is a fucking fun town. has anyone ever said that before?

- Brother Ben [remember Brother Ben?] has a new project he’s working on and needs help. am hoping to interview him before the deadline, but if not, try and wrap your head around this.

- I rarely drink beer these days. if you email me, I’ll let you in on the best kept secret in the wine world. I’m buying it by the case and would love to say ‘and I’m even dropping some weight in the process’, but no. it is good, though. and cheap.

- please stop using photos of your child for your profile picture on Facebook. Brother Cohn wrote last year that ‘I’m friends with you, not your child’ and it caused a shitstorm. why? I don’t know. photos of your kids on Facebook? of course! photos of you + your kids in your Facebook profile? sure! photos of your kids as your profile photo? no. stop it. it’s weird.

- this little blog is about to have some major changes happen to it. I’m kind of excited. I hope you like it. it’s cool. and exciting… thus, the excitement.

- a copy of my book was handed to Annie Clark [St. Vincent]. I’m totally keeping an eye out for her next album to see if I’m mentioned.

- I’m turning 35 in a few weeks and change. please don’t forget.

- this is a fun town.

- see ya later.

I’m late in writing this and now the moment’s past. but I do want to draw attention – even if it’s lazily putting up shots – to the town of Riverton, NJ. most have never heard of this place, a 20-minute train ride from Philly, but should you find yourself in the exact situation I did – a decade without an Independence Day, then spend a few nights here. there’s not a lot to do, some cafes and boutique restaurants, but what you will do is walk the streets. never have I been in a town that takes patriotic imaging to such heights. old rocking chairs on even older porches, the red-white-and-blue hanging on every possible corner. grease poll contest and box car derbies. and a parade. don’t go for the bar scene, thinking you might meet someone, you won’t. but it’s good to re-introduce yourself to the place you came from. [more shots here]

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… are – per usual – up here. do stop by!

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… I’m a horrible human being, taking this long to post photos of nyc + my long weekend in pa. I have some stories for you as well, along with a few tips. and another story about a castle in pa. and haitian voodoo. and nyc. and all sorts of stuff. it’s busy, these days – what with a real job and a lot of other exciting [mostly] things going on. maybe I’ll be able to tell you about them soon? until then, enjoy the photos. they’re pretty good.

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on Sunday morning, I arose from my celler dwellings and out to the local coffee shop for some caffiene and Advil. it was nice as I was walking back and – have I mentioned this? you can see the Statue of Liberty from our street. I had been telling myself over-and-over that ‘some week day, I’m gonna get out there’ [not on the weekend, as it's full of tourist taking advantage of the best deal in NYC], but, with weekdays comes workdays [still getting used to that] and the sun was shining and I had a wonderful case of the ‘fuckits’ and hopped on a train to the ferry. got some great snaps of Lady Liberty – might have even gotten all emotional and stuff, but will leave that for another post. I did, however, spend the rest of the day walking around the Southern Tip, Wall Street and then back around Brooklyn.

I say all of that to say this – I got some good photos.

check it.

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… are up here. waiting on you to look at them and then say something nice. photos + blog + book = a serious need to be validated. thanks. I love you. please love me.

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… are – as always – being updated daily here. stop by. say hi. and stuff.