waste o time place

eureekkkkaa actually this is shot at samoa dunes. i made this dress when i was in vienna at HW Design and i realized only after it was finished that the colours kind of reminded me of the BP (british petroleum) logo. That meant we had to do something related to the big mess that just happened in the Gulf...

Eureka was great. and so was working with MedicalToys.com.
i'll be driving up there next year - most likely February and this time i'll be able to bring someone to shoot with as well.

I was a bit apprehensive about the drive.
I really did want to go somewhere as i was feeling a little trapped from not traveling
but I wasn't too excited about the 5+ hours i'd have to sit in my car.
In the end it was really a gorgeous drive and I posted quite a few images in my moblog
(look for aug 27 dates) http://kumimonster.tumblr.com (moblog)

Unfortunately, by the time I got well up north to the Avenue of the Giants it was turning dark so I decided to make any stops on my return journey.





We did a lot on the first day.
Shot quite a bit of product sets including a super cute outfit a fan sent from Japan
we also did some really cool plastic sheeting stuff in the evening.



on the 2nd day after arrival we went for breakfast at an old whorehouse
yummy food!


then went n did some errands. i got these awesome toe socks.
(mom has decided to take them so i get the pink ones with green frogs)


that day we also went to the animal/farm supply shop. they got a huge 6ft diameter feed bin for me to be dunked in
ended up doing a white/red latex set but didn't get it right-on. spent too much time on it as well so that's all we got done that day.
that evening we headed to a local casino for dinner. yum yum.

the next day, it was back to the whore house for eggs benedict. yum yum!
and a live jazzy music too


this day we did a lot better.
we did a set where i got to wear these crazy 'boot heel' shoes.
remember that W spread with bruce willis and his wife that came out recently?
well seems medical toys supplied some of the props and these shoes didn't end up getting used.
each 'shoe' is a single piece of metal which curves from the back of the knee to the ball of the foot.
leather straps hold it against the leg and it forces the foot into a high heel position.
well, actually, they're ballet trainers so you're supposed to be in pointe position but i wore them as heels standing up.
photos soon!

the night shoots were FREEZING. did video where i got SOAKED in that COLD COLD steel tub of water!

the next day more errands n more shoots.
n more food too.
nom nom.

Well I made it up here fine.
took a bit of time because i stopped off in san francisco at Mr S leathers to pick up some j-lube.
they just happened to have some stuff MedicalToys.com wanted so i got to bring it up with me.

i also stopped a couple of times and there was some traffic.
the commute would definitely suck.
but the drive, without actually having to really be somewhere at a specific time is really incredible.
i haven't been up through napa/calistoga/medocino in ages.
i forgot how gorgeous everything is.
i forgot how fucking huge the redwoods get.
I want to leave early when i head south so i can stop off at the tourist spots and take scenic detours.
while i'm up here i might as well pick up some wine at the source for the parents.

it ended up getting dark about a 100 miles before Eureka.
awesome seeing the sunset behind the tops of giant redwoods, but as i got nearer the coast, 101 ended up getting covered with bits of fog.
it was like driving through the clouds.

took a lot of shots with my camera of the drive up.
i wonder if anything good came out.

i think i killed a crapload of bugs.
i'll have to wash the car again when i get home.

oh, and i think i got tan driving up. unfortunately it's all on my left arm.
poop.