Month: April 2007

All was well in the Center for Fun & Monkey Studies (CFF&MS). The birds were chirping, the tree in front of the window was freshly sprinkled with Miracle Grow to ensure that it grows to mammouth proportions, even OJ the Beta was swimming circles around his tank (usually he is floating on the top). A sunshine day in the land of O&J indeed!

Wouldn’t you know that in the midst of it all, a chime was heard on the door of the FunCenter, signaling that Fun itself had in fact arrived. Today’s fun was in the form of the Family Drago!

They hopped, they skipped, they straight up rocked into the studio, did their thing, rocked straight on out. Of course there was a bit of supah-dupah s-s-s-snappage that occured somewhere along the line, but it was all done with some serious vibrations; rocking, that is. MuchLove to Family Drago and to the Bloggers & Bloggerettes – Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

Boys and girls of the blog gather ’round! You might need to sit down, because this is BIG news. There is only 100 days until the fifth Harry Potter Installment hits theaters! Are you excited? Because I am. You know what else I’m excited about? Trips. No, not the kind where you get in a glitzy airplane and fly to a tropical isle. No, not the kind where you get all crazy in the head and start saying things like “Foxes are my favorite furry animal on weekends in July.” Also not the kind where you fall flat on the ground. Take this for example: You get back from lunch, feeling comfy in grey sweats, you’re avoiding a puddle and SHWAZAAM. There you are, in that puddle, as your grey swetsuit absorbs every ounce of mositure. The worst part isn’t even the fact that you became the world’s first human paper towel, it’s the fact that you landed on your knee and groaned “my patellaaaaaaa!” in front of your best friend.

Not that this situation ever happened to me, or that I had to go into school after this. This is not one of those trips.

These are the kind of trips as in triplets bloggerites! Say hello to Megan, Holly, and Riley, the jolliest of all jolly triplets that we have ever met! Take fun, multiply by three, and SHWAZAAM. you get the Schaefer Trips (yes I’ve used SHWAZAAM earlier in this blog already, I just hope it’s not to the point of ad nauseam). It’s instances like these where the FunCenter transforms into The Gymnasium of Fun. Have a look for yourselves.

Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

Citizens of B-Town hollaback! (B-Town is short for BlogTown, the capital of BlogLand, not to be confused with Bismarck, the captial of North Dakota.) Don’t fret if you don’t think you are a citizen of B-Town, you don’t have to become naturalized or anything fancy like that. If you want to be a citizen… you are! Benefits of being a citizen of B-Town include the most blogalicious of bliggity blogs, the sweetests of supersnaps, mad dance skills, blue ponies, and calendars. Okay, I might have lied, but that is one of the benefits of being a citizen: random lies. Anways citizens, some of you may be experiencing a slight case of déjà vu, saying to yourself “haven’t I seen Lanie in B-Town before?” The answer? Yes! Lanie made her graceful return to the studio not too long ago for some more snappityshots and it was a good time all over again!

If we have to say one thing about Lanie, it should be that she is a PRO. Not only was she super fun to work with, but super easy to work with too! But, if anyone needs any tips, definitely look Lanie up. We’ll just call her “Lanie, the Lady of the Hour.”

{Enjoy}

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

[WARNING: THE NEXT JOKE IS EXTREMELY CORNY] “Huston, we have a problem.” Actually we don’t, but I just wanted to say that (well actually type that, whatevs). They rocketed over to the stu-stu-studio for some snaps and it was brilliant. (Whenever I type stu-stu-studio I think of Phil Collins, anybody else?) Why was it brilliant? Because of the formula we use here at O&J, that’s why!

E = MC^2

I offically retract that last line. I was flashbacking to Honors Chem and Mrs. Trudy junior year. (I officially changed her name for no good reason.) But while I’m on the subject of Mrs. Trudy, she was the only teacher I had to use this comparison —

“You know, it always gets to end up like this. For the first three quarters you all are galloping along side me, understanding and everything. But then fourth nine weeks rolls around and you all drop dead and I have to lug all you dead horses so you can keep up with me.”

Does that make sense? Let’s just leave it there. Don’t even try to look into it. We are horses, accept it… I guess.

The formula I meant to put went something like this —

Fun Family + FunCenter = ~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~

[ ~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~!~ is the international symbol for tremendouslyterriffic all-around greatly goodness]

If you’re reading this blog, let’s try to keep the formula for brilliance on the DownLow. We can’t have everyone using this equation because then we’ll be bogged down with the science world asking us all these questions and wanting to put our formula in science books and they will want to give us nobel prizes and name an element on the periodic table after us and it would just get too crazy. We are just simple photography folk that enjoy the occasional coffee and outdoor jug band.

We are, however, glad that the Family Huston got hold of the formula. Whoever gave them the formula — thank you. Family Huston was worthy, the kids were a blast and Mom & Dad were great to work with. I think I’ll just forego another lame joke and get right to the goods — Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

Hello there, my dear friends of blog! I do trust that all of you have been doing well, and your hearts and homes have been filled to the brim with nothing but love, love, love, sweet love! Well, I haven’t come here today to just talk to you about how you’ve been doing, I’ve come here today to tell you about a visit from the absolutely wonderous Family Erck!

Now, I’ve had the goodly great fortune of knowing one of the members of this awesome family for a little bit longer than the rest. You see, I have had the good pleasure of knowing the matriarch of this bunch (and for those of you out there that don’t want to look it up, that means I’m talkin about the one that is Mother of the bunch) from her skillz as a Nurse at one of the hospitals in town here (and for those of you living here, that’s kind of a joke, as there is really only one hospital to choose from, but enough hospital jokes). Now, as most of you do during the course of these insane ramblings, I know that most of you out there in the land of blog are wondering where it is that I am going with this thing, but let me tell you just a couple of things about The Matriarch (as I shall call her, and – for those of you that do keep a copy of Webster’s Dictionary by your side as I do, it does state that a matriarch is ‘older’, but in no way am I implying that she is old, in fact, I’m about 99.9% positive that I am older than her by quite a few years, and in no way am I old…right?) that I think you should know.

The care that she provided to my father when he needed it the most was absolutely incredible, and there is no way that I could ever fully express the thanks, gratitude and high level of esteem that both Jamie & I have for her. She was an angel that provided comfort in not just his, but our moment of need, and we shall ever be indebted to her for that. Thank you…you are a beautiful person!

Well now, my people of blog, we mustn’t forget what it is that we have come here for, and this is The Family Erck! Annnnnnd…I come to you today to give you the news that every member of her family is just as wonderful to work with as she was (but really – did we think that they wouldn’t be?!) They came on into the FunCenter, and showed us again what it is like to work with what we in the industry (and, of course, I’m refering to the automobile industry) like to call ‘a totally awesome family’, and we would now like to give MuchLove & ManyThanks to this wonderful family for stopping down to Center For Fun! Well, I think that I have offered up enough words, and we should now put this one to sleep and look at happy pictures! Yayyyyy! Ohh…and – Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

Graduation. People do it. It’s what some people do when they complete something major… fifth grade… high school… or NURSING SCHOOL. And what do friends do when they graduate from nursing school? If the are the most cooliest of coolio they come down to the FunCenter for pictographs! Angie, Kristy & Dyan knew that, and I was the one lucky enough to schedule their appointment!

They knew how things went. They were so good at being pictographed, that they could tear it up not only in casual clothes, but nurse uniforms too. This may not seem all that hard to some of you, but it is. I am a huge fan of the scrubs… I would wear them 4 to 6 times a week if it was socially acceptable. For some reason though, people look at you different when you are wearing a surgeon’s top in a photography studio (apparently it’s bad enough I have a Star Wars poster behind my desk). Now that I think about it, it would be kind of funny to see some customers come in for a reorder. Old Man Otis would say “Ben… er… Milo will help you downstairs.” The happy customers would come down and be horrifically creeped out as I came toward them in scrubs, square glasses, and a scalpalish looking pen.

Okay, that seemed off subject, but it just goes to prove how spectacular Angie, Kristy & Dyan were — they could rock the scrubs — and then some. Plus, you should have seen some of their stellar Charlie’s Angels posing… I only walked through it and it was crrrrrrrrrazy. So let’s slice off a big piece of blogalicious thanks to these three lovely ladies, and… hmm… how does it go again? Oh yes — Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

Check it. I’m about to lay some dope beats down on y’all. You see, I got me a freshie dope Minnesota Twins baseball hat…you know, the kind all the kids that might be laying down dope beats might be wearin’, I got myself some sweet bippy new shadez, I’m growin’ me a sweet hipster beard, and I’m thinking about getting some spinnaz for the o&jmobile. Now, I know what all of you are thinking. You’re all sittin’ there all pretty-like in your sweet and comfy blog houses out there in your tidy and warm houses in blogville, and your thinkin’ that I’m goin’ through some sort of a midlife crisis, and I’m tryin’ to relive something that I’m never gonna be able to get back, no matter how many hats I buy or how dark my tints are.

But I don’t care. I’m still gonna lay down these dope beats, and we’re gonna start this party off right, we’re gonna start this party off with a little something that I like to call…The Family Edwards! Ahhhhhhh shucks, man…The Family Edwards is one of our old-school clients. It feels like family whenever they traverse the doors of the FunCenter, and as well it should. I don’t know what that means, or where I was going to go with that one, but what I’m trying to lay down on all you all out there that are mystfied by my ramblin’ thoughts is that The Family Edwards came down to Center For Fun, and they straight up rocked the joint down to the Foundation…just like they usually do.

Now, for my peeps that actually read these words I type, and haven’t blocked out years ago all of my foolish writing, we’re gonna take a moment to give some love to the Family Edwards for coming on down once again, and for brightening up our day! We always love working with you, and hope to always have you in the confines of the FunCenter…uhh…I guess that kind of sounds like we want to trap you here, but we promise you can leave. Well, on that note, MuchLove to the Family Edwards, a big ol’ cheesy hug to my People of Blog, and to one and all – Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography

Sometimes I sit here at my desk and wonder. What I wonder about… I’m not sure. Sometimes I count my robots… let’s see… there is Orlace Hanes [the official robot of Otis & James]. Then there is Arlace Janes [the official girlfriend of Orlace Hanes]. Once in a while there is Photis Lames [the official arch enemy of Orlace Hanes] but we don’t like to talk about him all that much. He was banished to the timebox, and for those of you that don’t know what a timebox equipped with lasers is… too bad. But there is one robot that holds an even more special of a place in my heart: The Pterydactl Firebird. Some of you out there in BlogLand may be wondering “what in the gosh golly darn world of Blog is a Pterydactl Firebird?!” (that was the PG edition of what was going through your heads). It is for that reason that I am here — to enlighten you on the Pterydactl Firebird.

MMPR S1: Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers Season 1. Of course you all know that the five teenagers Jason, Zach, Trini, Billy and Kimberly were all chosen by the old sage Zordon to protect earth from the evil witch Rita Repulsa. What you may not know is that whenever Rita’s monsters weren’t strong enough to defeat the Power Rangers, she would get this look in her eye and cry out “Magic Wand! Make my monster grow!” And then she’d throw it towards Earth (she was on the moon) and the wand would open a crevace in the ground and fog and magic would rise up and the monster would grow. SO, the Power Rangers (almost every single episode) would have to call upon their Dinozords. Dinozords were colossal assault vehicles that when mounted together, all became the Megazord. Season 2 came along with a new arch enemy, Lord Zedd. He was much more powerful a villain than his predecessor, so the Megazord needed an upgrade. (Some have said that the MegaDragonzord would have been powerful enough, but Dragonzord wasn’t even around so that debate is for another day.) Thus, the Thunderzords were born. Details are sketchy, but a bolt of lightning would zap each zord and it would shift shapes into a Thunderzord. For example, the Red Ranger would yell “We need Dinozord power, now! (dramatic pause) Tyranosaurus Red Dragon Thunderzord Power!” The original Tyranosaurus Dinozord would appear walking toward the battle, but then the lightning would strike and it would become the Red Dragon Thunderzord… more powerful and such. All the Thunderzords would combine and create the Thundermegazord. As you can probably guess, the Pterydactl was zapped into a Firebird and therefore was the Pterydactl Firebird Thunderzord. Well, you probably think that it is the coolest thing in the world and will be proud to know that I have a replica of the Pterydactl Firebird on my desk.

Whoa. I love it, and as you can tell I wonder about it a great deal.

Anywho! One thing I don’t have on my desk is a tractor. Tractors are neat and green and good. Luckily, our new friend Clay TOTALLY BROUGHT a tractor with him when he came for snaps! Let me just say that I was impressed, and nobody can drive a tractor like Clay. We probably should give a shout out to Mom & Dad too (they most likely bank rolled the tractor). With that said, there is only one word left —

Enjoy!

All Content ©2007 Otis & James Photography