...or "Are you happy where you are?"

We were off to the beach, finally! After a couple of hours getting there and finding the best bus to leave by, we bought our tickets and had to sit at this crappy station for at least another couple of hours. Those damn kids would not stop screaming while they played with a red balloon and the station was packed and hot, and we were tired and could not wait another minute for the sight of the ocean. Just to think of the hours on the road ahead of us. Of course we all know music saves, so we turned to this oh-so-wonderful resort and pumped up the volume in our respective mp3 or cd players.

This is Naz at the Tralapa bus station in San Jose at around 9:00am of Saturday July 15th this year.

5 months have gone by and I haven't updated. No excuse for that one. I was thinking something along the lines of "Nobody said it had to be constant"... but that's lame. Nobody said I'm not a procrastinator, though, BUT! I have taken more pictures. All I have to do is put them up. I'm not going to back-date the entries, but I will tell you the real dates, of course. Let's go one by one.

This was a night of schoolwork at Deny's. Laptops, lot's of coffee, coke, design, music, pictures and, of course, good company. We plugged our headphones on to opposite computers and DJ'd each other, so this one is my responsability.

This one reminds me of this image I love from a T-shirt called "A day in the life of a decadent designer".

Although it's missing something very important: headphones. Well, it has the cassettes, so it implies music.

This is Leo at Deny's on May 20th at around 11:00pm. "This night's not even begun, yes yes oh yay".

If you have friends that constantly hear music on their headphones but you are never with them in such situations (buses, walking alone, etc), they must be part of the collection, so such situations might need to be slightly induced. Besides, we had cartoon furtniture. That can never go to waste. She was also hearing this a while before, right when we met.

Too bad the flash got shot, I didn't mean it to, and it doesn't look so good. It wasn't even dark.

This is Fus at Multiplaza del Este while we were chatting and biting time until they picked us up around 9:45pm

Other possible subjects for this entry:

"Como se llama, bonita, mi casa, su casa"
"Baila en la calle de noche (Baila en la calle del dia)"
"Fugees from a 3rd world country"

There's different implications to all, but a musical transaction beats mostly everything.

This time I wasn't so nervous. Like (I think) I said before, when there's not much people around, it's easier to approach someone else (and take out a huge, noisy, photo-spitting camera and flash it all over the place). I got on the bus, took a quick glance to spot anyone with headphones and went straigth to sit across him. I didn't think about it much and just asked. Do you think it has to do with the day or mood you're in?

This is an important asset to the collection. He has actually been the first person to ask why the picture and what it was about (not in an "I don't trust you" kind of way, but as an interest to be informed further). I knew somebody would eventually have to ask what it was about, I didn't think it would take so long, though. Everybody says yes and carries on with their automatic functioning.

I went back to my seat and wrote the URL to the project on a piece of paper and held it the rest of my ride. I gave it to him as I got off the bus, said it was for him to check it out and thanked him. This gave me the idea to make small printed cards with nothing but the URL on them and hand them out to the people whose picture I take. That way they can come in and see their picture.

*First issue for this being written in English.

I swore he was getting off at my school's stop, too, but he didn't. On my way from work to class on the bus to Zapote, 3:00pm

This bus was so packed and I thought about it for so long before I could come up with the "courage" (yes, it takes courage from me) to turn around and ask whoever I found to be behind me what they were listening to. He was bursting his ears, I could hear all the way to my seat infront of him, but I couldn't see him or know how he was. I actually had to hear the words in my head: "Go, now, do it!". Why do I get so nervous? I turned around and saw this kid, and it was just so predictable that he was going to be hearing something like this, I guessed before he said it. And to think I was almost starting to get dizzy from the "stress" trying to convince myself to ask.

I like this one because it's a front shot.

He's got an "I miss you" face, said my brother. Someone else said: "how come they never look at the camera?".

Almost home on the bus to Moravia, around 3:00pm.

when and if I'll be alright. But that's just a thing that takes time...

My last day of training at the Payouts department. I was showing him The Rocket Summer, I knew he'd like it. A couple of minutes into the song, I realized he'd (of course) put headphones on! And so, one more picture for the project. I specially like how everything is centered in this picture. The bodog.com sign and the tattoo in the lower corner. Nothing got cut out.

This is Seb, one of the bosses, over at the same place you already know, working at around 3:00pm.

Nobody said I had to take the pictures myself, either; it's a collection.

This is a really special entry with a special mention. Taken and sent to me for the project by a dear friend, directly from Nebraska.

This is Nicholas working on his final architecture project at the Arch. Hall Studio on a Saturday afternoon around 1:30pm.

She only hears music on headphones at work, so I didn't wait any longer to take the picture. As always, Ms. Titannia Brick discovering new and interesting bands, I knew this would be an important asset to my collection.

This is my great friend Ana Laura studying at Bodog during her Friday A shift at around 12:00pm

Nowhere much to go with these lyrics for the subject. At least it makes sense because every time I'm about to do this I get so nervous and it's as if my body heat rises to worrying levels just the second prior to talking to these people. Especially in this case, that the bus was full; so full that I was standing, so I also had to worry about taking out the camera without dropping it or falling myself. I always knew it would be easier to do it in empty buses. I still had to 'cause he was close and the picture would be easy to take to capture the image. Plus, he really seemed to be enjoying his music and that makes it much more worth it.

He was riding with his buddy and when I first saw them, they were wearing an earphone each. The guy in the pic was apparently showing the song to the other one and he seemed to be passionate about how he explained it. I wanted to take the picture of both, but he soon took his earpiece and put it back on. When I asked him, his friend asked "Aren't you afraid the camara lens will break with such an ugly subject?". I took the pic and two pieces of film came out together, ruined of course; -"See?"
Not to mention I lost the two pics there... I didn't think about that cost when I decided not to do this with my digital cam.

There is something that bothers me about all the previous pics I've posted, but couldn't quite put my finger on it, till today: I had written the names in lowercase and my lowercase severely blows. When I wrote this one in caps (without really noticing I was), it just seemed so much better.

Again, riding back home from work on Sabana Cementerio at around 5 25pm.

Yes, I am aware that my routine is becoming quite repetitive. I shall take a road trip to have more variety in locations.

"Kali, if he sits, I'll have to ask him and take his picture. Being with someone makes it easier to go up and ask".

Nobody said it had to be just one a day (or one each day).

This guys made me think of all those people that are sleep-walking through their waking state. Not letting themselves be amazed by the world and all the beauty in it. The fact that he sat alone made it easy to approach him and try to flash my camera in his face.

Sitting in Sabana Sur waiting at around 6:00pm

Do you hate the way you feel?

Nobody said it had to be strangers. The good thing is he wasn't looking when I took it. Music makes a tiring job easier to do or can take you away from it for brief moments.

This is "Doggy", training me for Payouts at the 'ol Bodog office, just a Monday shift at around 2:10pm.

This is how my project starts. I took the first picture. She was the only person in the bus wearing headphones (except for myself). The bus was pretty empty and she sat in front of me. I stared at her for a while trying to make sure she had headphones on and making up my mind to finally shoot the pic; figuring I don't wanna be an ant I took it... and the damn flash went off and burnt the picture on the first plane. You can hardly see the earphone but it's there.

Riding on Sabana Cementerio on my way back home from work on a Sunday in april around 5:45pm.

Where was she going hearing reggaetton on the radio?

Every single time I see a person with headphones I can't help but wonder what they are listening to. So many different people: from metal-heads to old ladies, and they all have something to hear. I just figured I could know what it is they are hearing... if I'd just ask.

One day I was sitting behind some guy around my age in a bus and the angle, light and his headphones made for a great image that made me want to take his picture. Inmediately I imagined naming the picture after the song he was hearing (which I'd have to ask about) and in my head I could picture a Polaroid with the song he was hearing hand-written at the bottom.

Next step: buy a Polaroid camera. That was the birth of my "collection of pictures of people wearing headphones".

Everybody has something to hear... 'cause "there is comfort in the sound".

Michelle
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This first one is my own. I don't think I look anything like myself on this picture. Then again, I'm just walking.
Nobody said Polaroids take good pictures. If you want good image quality, this is not what you're looking for.

Taken by Kali an afternoon of april on our way back home from work at around 5:50pm