Round World Photo

Milkweed

2010-02-07T11:56:00.005-05:00

My Marvelous Meadow Milkweed..........in Massachusetts.

Musée des Beaux-Arts. Rouen France

2010-02-03T17:31:00.004-05:00

Human statue at the Musée des Beaux-Arts.

Looking Out My Window This Morning

2010-01-27T22:23:00.005-05:00

Life on the street

2010-01-26T16:22:00.003-05:00

This is Boogs Andy and Bongo, three gentlemen who spend the day conversing under the truck eating bridge in Northampton. Beneath their outward appearance , they are a delightful group , quick on the draw with a joke and up to date on current events. It was a pleasure talking with them.

If A Tree Falls

2010-01-21T14:56:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I photographed author Jennifer Amy Rose and her two daughters for her soon to be published book "If A Tree Falls". They were delightful.

If A Tree Falls: a family's quest to hear and be heard

by Jennifer Amy Rose

forthcoming, in May 2010, by The Feminist Press

After her first baby fails the newborn hearing test, Jennifer discovers a family tree riddled with deafness. When her second child is born profoundly deaf, Jennifer is forced to come to grips with the realities of raising deaf children in a world of sound and her own feelings of being unheard as a child. Thrown into the unfamiliar world of deaf politics, Jennifer and her husband find themselves overwhelmed by choices.

In an effort to understand how her daughters will cope, Jennifer embarks on an imaginative genealogical journey. She recreates, in beautiful and startling detail, moments in the lives of her two deaf great-aunts, Nellie and Bayla, who lived in a small Shtetl in Eastern Europe in the late 1800s. In this other time and place,Jennifer finds solace through establishing a connection with Nellie and Bayla's mother, Pearl, who had none of the modern options available to Jennifer and her husband.

Struggling with nagging insecurities due to a fragile relationship with her own hard of hearing mother and pressing worries of being able to sustain a healthy connection to her children, Jennifer learns, through the delights and triumphs of raising her girls and her growing connection to her own ancestry, how to let go of old grievances and how to be present and joyful in motherhood.

Where We Went: GoNOMAD Staff Travels in 2009. A year end overview

2010-01-13T10:19:00.003-05:00

Here is a link to Where We Went: GoNOMAD Staff Travels in 2009 Check it out.

Tom Petty tribute, a benefit concert for the NoHo arson victims

2010-01-07T23:18:00.007-05:00

Jim Armenti , Jose Ayerve , and Ray Mason perform at " Don't do Me Like That" , a Tom Petty tribute concert at the Iron Horse Music Hall for the victims of the Northampton arson fires.

Photo of suspect arrested in Northampton arson fires

2010-01-05T12:02:00.005-05:00

This is Anthony P. Baye who was arrested in connection with the Northampton arson fires being brought into the Hampshire county court house this morning. for more info on this story go to Northampton Media.com

Northampton Arson fires memorial

2010-01-03T08:20:00.005-05:00

Bernadette Giblin, Who's late husband was the nephew of Paul Yeskie Sr, speaks at a candle light vigil held at the first church downtown Saturday to memorialize
Paul Yeskie Sr. and Paul Yeski Jr. who died in their home on Fair street that was set ablaze in one of the arson fires that struck Northampton last weekend. Below is Gineen Cooper. For more coverage of last nights vigil go to Northampton Media.com. There will be more photos up soon.

Community Meeting on Northampton Arson.

2009-12-30T13:04:00.005-05:00

Yesterdays meeting about the arson fires was packed with over 500 residents from all over Northampton. People are scared, looking for answers and someway to protect themselves. As the mayor said this was not a meeting to solve this crime. They could not reveal information that might compromise the investigation and for all we knew, the person might be there in audience. This meeting had to happen and did give the community a sense of togetherness but the real nuts and bolts work of setting up phone trees a neighbor hood watch etc will have to be done ward by ward. DeloresMishon, who lost her uncle, Paul Yeskie, and her cousin, Paul Yeskie Jr, at the 17 Fair Street fire was one of the residents who spoke last night as did Naomi Cairns,10 Highland Avenue, who's Hawley Street home was burned in 2007, only to become a victim again in this recent rash of arson. For the full story on last nights meeting and more photos go to Northampton Media.com

It can happen here.The Northampton arson fires

2009-12-28T21:45:00.008-05:00

It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood.Snow covered yesterdays sins with a clean new white coat .In the afternoon the sun appeared melting it all away revealing a town recovering from a bad burn, still sensitive to the touch. If there is any silver lining to be found it is how strong and quickly our community has come together. Of the hundred conversations I had today 6 of them of them were with Michael Kusek and Paul Benjamin trying to figure out the best way to most effectively channel all of the good will that has sprouted. As of this writing the site Mike and Rebecca Neimark started, Friends of Northampton arson victims, have 2,504 members in two days. Out standing. Paul's site Hampshire county cares is gearing up to identify peoples real needs and facilitate the best way to distribute them. I also spoke with Mary Serreze of Northampton media.com who is doing a great job of covering and consolidating the local and national news of Northampton. Kudos to you and all the other folks of the red cross,the city government, police and surrounding fire departments,residents and media who are working over time to help. I stopped by Glenn Siegel's house to find it completely boarded up. It was not safe and I hope they were able to salvage the best of what was left. At Fair street a few lonely TV trucks were staking it out as a dog sniffing team went through the rubble. Around the corner on Pomeroy terrace a few doors down from my house I visited with Joel and Juli Robbins who's car was burned right behind their house. He said that he awoke from the pounding on his the door at 2:00 am by a Fireman who was fighting the fire on fair street and had seen the flames of his car from across the field. They were lucky. While we were talking he sat up in surprise as his voice came on the radio from an interview he had done today with NPR. He said that what the reporters and the detectives have all asked him is "can he think of any connection between him and the other victims?" He cannot, and I think that is our challenge. There does not seem to be any reason to it. It is not class or race based It is not old against new Northampton or liberal against conservative. Speculation is running wild and we all have equal fuel for a theory. Ive heard a rumor of a "heavy woman n a sedan" from three different people. some are convinced its a group. How could one person set so many fires in so short a time? Ive also heard that it is usually a fireman out for job security. Or that the blame lies with the city for never solving a problem that has plagued our neighborhood for years. Worst of all is the thought that it is one of us, someone we all know and would never suspect. I personally think that how we solve this will be based on how strongly we can put our heads and hearts together as a community in the next days week and months to come. So far so good. I love this place. I have just learned that due to space concerns tomorrows emergency meeting called by the Ward 3 Neighborhood Association Tuesday, December 29 at 7 p.m. at the World War II Club on Conz Street. is for ward three residents only. Update!!! The meeting tonight has been changed to the college church on Pomeroy terrace and is open to the public parking is in the rear.

Arson fires Northampton

2009-12-27T22:54:00.002-05:00

Northampton had 11 arson fires last night. Two of my neighbors are dead , many are homeless and we are all tense .I walked through Glenn Siegel's house with him and the building inspector today the first time he had been back inside. He and his family were in shock. The house seems to be a total loss, but somehow Glenn's record collection was intact. When I left him he was sitting with a CD in his hands, lost in thought. His son said that at around 2;00 am he happened to be awake and he heard glass breaking. He went downstairs, and when he found the fire he got the rest of family out. They were lucky, he said it was spreading fast. At the press conference the authorities emphasized that vigilance was our greatest defence. They have offered a reward of 5,000 dollars leading to the arrest of the arsonist. My heart goes out to all that were victimized last night. Lets all try to stay together and help each other through this.

Psycho Santa speaks

2009-12-24T18:13:00.002-05:00

Psycho Santa speaks, "remember shoppers, only 364 days left until next Christmas!"

How to make the perfect Caipirinha

2009-12-21T11:04:00.002-05:00

Photo lesson #1219.

2009-12-20T01:29:00.003-05:00

Photo lesson #1219. Major Household plumbing disasters are wonderful photo opportunities.

At the Altar of the Bottom Line: The Degradation of Work in the 21st Century

2009-12-15T18:59:00.006-05:00

This is the cover of my new book hot off the press that I worked on with author and labor Professor Tom Juravich. Tom was the driving force behind this project that was funded in part by the AFLCIO. He is a wonderful man who did an outstanding job on the interviews. Tom has no off switch, he doesn't even have a pause button. It was great to work with him. Our collaboration on this also produced a traveling photo show of my Portraits that was shown at the State House in Boston and at the George Meany labor Center in Washington."Based on extensive interviews with workers in four different industries, this book takes us behind the statistics of the economic collapse and into the lives of Americans who are struggling to make ends meet and support their families. Tom Juravich combines oral history with social and economic analysis to provide a vivid account of the multiple challenges presented in today s workplaces.Juravich argues that workers face a series of paradoxes in the contemporary American workplace. They can no longer assume that large established firms create good jobs. The new working conditions often resemble what was traditionally associated with marginal and low-wage employers. He concludes that we must bring a discussion about the quality of jobs back into the public discourse and that a good jobs strategy is a fundamental building block to economic recovery. Workers voices are front and center in this highly readable book. It includes striking photographs by Paul Shoul" Here is a Link to Amazon.com where you get in an order just in time for the holidays.

Greenlands melting Ice cap

2009-12-14T11:02:00.005-05:00

This is Ilulissat Greenland. Al Gore arrived at the climate summit in Copenhagen today to present a new report that the Greenland ice cap as well as other snow and ice covered regions of the world are "disappearing faster than anticipated". Here is a link to the full report in the Norway Post.

Copenhagen Climate Clown

2009-12-11T15:58:00.005-05:00

Copenhagen is one of my favorite cities on the planet. I traveled there with Max from Gonomad.com a year ago where I shot this picture in Tivoli Gardens. I wish I could be there now during the Climate talks. The next best thing to being there is to check out Amy Goodman and her coverage on Democracy Now. I send out my support to all the people of the world that have converged on the conference to make their voices heard. Thanks for your efforts. Make sure those clowns get the point!

First snow

2009-12-09T21:00:00.004-05:00

First Snow.
This Frozen Pink Flamingo is the marker of the grave of Fred, the greatest cat to have ever walked the earth. A friend of mine who spoke at his funeral many years ago said ," there will not be a mouse safe in heaven". Fred always liked the snow. He had a good day today.

The dead march to protest the war

2009-12-05T16:59:00.005-05:00

Members of the Northampton committee to stop the war staged a march of the dead today to protest the Afghanistan surge. It was a somber event. So many of us had hoped that Obama would be different. That "yes we can" meant that he was talking about peace. Here we go again.

My Kitchen in Spain

2009-11-30T20:55:00.003-05:00

Spain is on the top of my food list. A few years ago on a culinary tour of Bilbao I met cook book author Janet Mendel. She humbled me with her knowledge of Spanish cuisine. She has just started a new blog from her home in southern Spain, My Kitchen in Spain to spread the word. Check it out.

A road trip through Normandy France

2009-11-27T08:55:00.005-05:00

This is the Oyster plate served at La Couronne, the oldest Inn of France and the restaurant where Julia child was served her first meal of French food. What an honor it was to eat there. It is located in Rouen Normandy and was my first meal of many during a recent road trip with fellow traveler Max Hartshorne ,owner of Gonomad.com. I usually write for Max but this trip I had the pleasure of guest writing for the fabulous travel web site JohnnyJet.com. We had a great trip ,Here is a link to check out the full story. A road trip through Normandy France

Chateau le Val, Brix, Normandy

2009-11-23T22:31:00.007-05:00

Peter Blanchette and the Happy Valley Guitar Orchestra

2009-11-23T00:34:00.002-05:00

Peter Blanchette and the Happy Valley Guitar Orchestra Inaugural Concert, Northampton Center for the Arts.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6wcIOSC-u0

The Amazing food of Normandy France

2009-11-20T12:09:00.003-05:00