The photos; Top Mackenzie and her physical therapist, 2nd: Mackenzie stretches during therapy, 3rd: Mackenzie greets a therapy dog in the halls of the hospital, 4th: Mackenzie's father helps her back to bed from her wheelchair after therapy.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
My Last Assignment in 2009
The photos; Top Mackenzie and her physical therapist, 2nd: Mackenzie stretches during therapy, 3rd: Mackenzie greets a therapy dog in the halls of the hospital, 4th: Mackenzie's father helps her back to bed from her wheelchair after therapy.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
Dancing for the Virgin
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Garbage Lives Forever








Thursday, December 3, 2009
Now It's Obama's War
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
A Bright Shining Hope
It’s the little things you notice at an event like this. In my case it was the music.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Tough Night for a Tough Sheriff
Friday, November 27, 2009
Black Friday
"Black Friday” is supposed to be the official start of the US shopping season that leads up to Christmas. Two of the widely held myths around Black Friday are that it’s the day that retailers start to make a profit and that it’s the busiest shopping day of the year.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Senator McCain Talks About Health Care

- We have the best health care in the world for the people who can afford it. While the richest people in the developing world, in South Africa, India, Thailand or Mexico, come to the US for their health care, working and upper middle class people in the US go to those countries for life saving health care because they can’t afford it here, and
- We already have health care rationing here. That’s what happens when the insurance companies deny life saving coverage to their customers. And then delay the appeals process so long their customers die.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Diwali, The Indian Festival of Lights

Diwali is the Hindu Festival of Lights (it’s also a very funny episode of “The Office” penned by Indian-American Mindy Kaling).
The Indian community in Phoenix marks Diwali by sponsoring a festival of all things Indian. There’s traditional Indian dance, some Bollywood dancing, lots of great food, a parade presenting the diversity of India, and Indian games, like cricket (which I don’t understand) and chess (which I sort of understand but don’t play well).
Monday, November 16, 2009
Not Your Average Joe

Joe Biden, VPOTUS (Vice President of the US) was in Phoenix this morning. He spoke at a fund raiser for Gabby Giffords and Ann Kirkpatrick, a couple of Arizona’s Democratic congress women, and then hit the airport to talk about the economic stimulus package.
I’ve photographed a lot of political leaders. In the US it usually means showing up hours before the actual event, bringing a very long lens and then a lot of hurry up and wait. (It’s different in the developing world. In Mexico, I photographed then President Vicente Fox walking through my hotel lobby chatting with his friends. In Nicaragua, I walked up to and photographed Presidents Daniel Ortega and Hugo Chavez hanging out before a luncheon.)
But Biden’s event was remarkably relaxed. It’s the difference between being VPOTUS and POTUS. We walked into the room about 30 minutes before Biden and were able to use pretty short lenses. It was a lot more relaxed than any of the POTUS events I’ve covered. For his part, Biden didn’t disappoint. He was expressive and used his hands to punctuate his points. All in all, for what it was, a good morning.
Friday, October 30, 2009
ZOMBIES!

A herd of Zombies (I’m not really sure what you call a group of the undead) invaded Phoenix tonight for the city’s first Zombie Walk. About 200 people participated in the mile and a half shuffle, which ended, oddly enough, in a bar.
They wandered through downtown mingling with shoppers, people on their way to theatre events and sports venues, attacking random “victims” gnawing on their extremities and trying to consume their brains.
Some passersby didn’t quite know what to make of the undead, but most took it in the spirit with which it was intended.
There are more photos from the Zombie Walk in my PhotoShelter archive and atZUMA Press.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

With having a gun in a place where liquor is consumed and judgement is impaired?
The Republican controlled legislature thinks it’s a fine idea and they passed a bill allowing the state’s 5,800 residents who have permits to carry concealed weapons to bring their concealed handguns into bars and businesses serving alcohol. And the Republican governor signed it. (In the meantime the state still doesn’t have a balanced budget and is nearly bankrupt.)
On Tuesday, Sept 30, it became legal to pack heat in Arizona bars. Supporters of the bill say it will make bars a safer place because if someone tries to stickup the bar the law abiding, pistol packing, patron can haul out his piece and “cap” the bad guys. Opponents of the bill counter that mixing booze and bullets is a bad idea. The catch for the pistol packing patrons is that they aren’t allowed to drink while they’re “packing.” Sort of a designated shooter law.
Bar owners, bar tenders and folks in the hospitality industry were opposed to the bill. They lobbied against it but lost. The compromise struck was that bar owners can post an 8.5 X 11 sign prohibiting guns in their bars. This sign is posted at the entrance of Mexican restaurant in Tempe. The skull is a Halloween decoration, not a misbehaving patron.
This is an example of why I carry a camera, in my case a Canon G10, everywhere I go. I made this photo on a day off walking past the bar. I made a couple of quick frames with the G10 and kept walking.