things we found in the fire http://www.20mm.org/blog/ 2008-05-16T16:30:59-08:00 missed http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2008/05/missed.html superbowl XLII - supposed to go to pizzi's place in brooklyn for the giants-pats game... no dice.

champions league final 2008 - bbq out in l.i. with will... squashed.

]]> Ben 2008-05-16T16:30:59-08:00 fall 2007 photo chops http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/09/fall_2007_photo.html autumn workshops at adorama and calumet nyc

]]> Ben 2007-09-21T19:49:14-08:00 liverpool fc 6-0 derby http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/09/liverpool_fc_60.html Aww yeah!!!

]]> Ben 2007-09-02T06:55:02-08:00 everybody loves a photograph http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/07/everybody_loves.html photo events, seminars, and workshops...

pdn photoplus expo 2007.

maine media workshops.

mentor series photo treks.

wilderness safaris.

]]> Ben 2007-07-27T09:37:00-08:00 boston terrors http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/07/boston_terrors.html Bailey & Barney...

]]> Ben 2007-07-23T22:02:23-08:00 chelsea v. club america http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/07/chelsea_v_club.html
John Terry directs in the game winning goal
Originally uploaded by 20mm The new Stanford Stadium is perfect for watching soccer [football] matches. Without the old Olympic-sized track, the fans are even closer to the pitch and the players. Fortunately, we had great seats around the 45 yard line, on the shady side.

Though I am no huge Chelsea or Aguilas fan, I had a great time watching two competitive teams play a friendly. The amount of talent on Chelsea is unreal - the club has enough depth to play two different squads each half (with the exception of John Terry who played both halves).

The only downside to the whole evening was getting out of Stanford campus and parking lots. Bottlenecks everywhere.
]]> Ben 2007-07-19T14:52:06-08:00 asian art http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/07/asian_art.html
Hayagriva
Originally uploaded by 20mm I finally visited the Asian Art Museum. Despite once living in Hayes Valley, I never once entered the museum until the other day. If you're in SF, you should definitely check it out... if only to see the Yoshitoshi ukiyo-e print exhibition.

Pictured (to the right) is the Buddhist Guardian Hayagriva - found on the 3rd floor.
]]> Ben 2007-07-06T19:17:37-08:00 henry joins barcelona http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/06/henry_joins_bar.html for $32.30 million, barca gets one of the world's best strikers.

]]> Ben 2007-06-25T22:04:56-08:00 june quotables http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/06/june_quotables.html "originality and the feeling of one's own dignity are achieved only through work and struggle."

- fyodor dostoevsky


if there is a sin against life, it consists perhaps not so much in despairing of life as in hoping for another life and in eluding the implacable grandeur of this life"

- albert camus


"there is no reality except the one contained within us. that is why so many people live such an unreal life. they take the images outside them for reality and never allow the world within to assert itself."

- herman hesse


"computers are useless. they can only give you answers."

- pablo picasso

]]> Ben 2007-06-21T22:06:54-08:00 summer cleaning uncovers puerile drivel http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/06/summer_cleaning.html the massive home cleansing has turned up a few forgotten gems and even more forgotten turds. here's one in the form of a hand-written journal entry from july 9th, 1999:

"grief transmutes the soul into certain amounts of maturity, wisdom, and aloofness. grief brings about change...nothing allows the soul to sleep and wither or perhaps even die. it's not purely a matter of choosing the lesser evil, but more likely possessing the courage one needs to go on living."

hopefully, i was drunk or immortally high when i wrote this back in the 90's... at least, i would have some excuse or way to salvage my dignity. i guess that i was thinking about the faulkner line, "given a choice between grief and nothing, i'd choose grief."

didn't descartes drink absinthe and trip out the melting wax as he formulated in his emerald saturated mind the workings of cartesian dualism? heh... back then, 8 years ago, i had no notions about figuring out the greater universe, i was mainly concerned with peeling away my self-imposed emotional restraints. well more accurately, i rediscovered my own emotional limitations. i suppose that there was a disconnect between my mind and my heart - a dysfunctional dualism - where they would act in unison, but rarely touch.

]]> Ben 2007-06-18T15:50:13-08:00 vietnam travel reference http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/06/travel_referenc.html i was cleaning out my drawers and i found a few business cards from my previous travels to vietnam - 2000-2004:

hotel 265
265 de tham st., district 1 (X-pham ngu lao)
ho chi minh city
phone: 8367512

i stayed here on and off for about 5 weeks in early 2000. back then it was a haven for european and australian backpackers and budget travelers. now, i'm sure that it is teaming with american (usa) tourists and travelers looking for colonel kurtz.


quan an 22
duong lien tinh 15, khu pho 7
thi tran nha be
phone: 8738198

if it crawls, swims, or flies, then you can probably eat it here. whether you prefer turtle stewed in its own shell or snake heart and blood in a shot glass with rice wine, this restaurant can accommodate almost any exotic appetite.


sinh cafe
tourist service office (with locations in every major and minor vietnamese city)
52 luong ngoc quyen st.
hanoi
phone: 84.4.9261568
email: sinhcafevietnam[at]hcm[dot]vnn[dot]vn
website: http://www.sinhcafevn.com

sinh cafe is one of many domestic tourist companies in vietnam. you can rent cars, minibuses, and large buses. bookings for tours, hotels, and transportation are also available. there's also a money exchange service, but you will find better rates at the banks. the best deal is the taking the air conditioned buses to and from the various cities. i've taken buses from hanoi to saigon and places in-between.


phan thai hotel
44 hang giay st.
hanoi
phone: 84.4.8243667
email: camellia[at]hn[dot]vnn[dot]vn
website: http://www.oldquarterhotels.vnn.vn

]]> Ben 2007-06-18T15:09:53-08:00 for real http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/06/for_real.html real madrid are la liga's 2007 title winners after defeating rcd mallorca 3-1. what a fantastic end to the spanish football season. unlike the 2007 premiership title, it was down to the wire for barca and los merengues. jose antonio reyes was the match hero with 2 goals, allowing roberto carlos and beckham to end their madrid careers on a very high note.

i don't know how beckham will go from playing in front of 80,400 fans at the santiago bernabeu stadium to 8,000 at the home depot center in carson, california.

]]> Ben 2007-06-17T17:47:08-08:00 nba, the "b" is for boring http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/06/nba_the_b_is_fo.html the defensive-driven (i.e. boring to watch) spurs may win the title, but they also have plunged worldwide interest in basketball to the approval level of president bush... well, maybe not that bad.

]]> Ben 2007-06-14T18:41:02-08:00 chelsea vs. america http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/05/chelsea_vs_amer.html Yeah, that's right... Jose Mourinho and the London Blues will face Mexico's Club America at Stanford University on Saturday, July 14th. This match sounds like a great way to spend your Bastille Day. =)

]]> Ben 2007-05-26T10:27:56-08:00 nba 2007 http://www.20mm.org/blog/archives/2007/05/nba_2007.html The NBA 2007 Finals Prediction? Hmm... I'll go out on a limb and say the Pistons vs. the Spurs. Result? Who cares. With the exception of the Warriors-Mavs series, it looks likes another humdrum playoffs to cap off another sleeper of a season.

Speaking of boring, the FA Cup featuring Chelsea and Manchester United had all the excitement of tranquilizer dart.

The only sports contest worth watching this year will be the UEFA Champions League Final between AC Milan and Liverpool. =)

]]> Ben 2007-05-20T21:14:36-08:00