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Queen Mary
The Queen

The Queen

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The other week, a group of us went to the 10th Annual Dark Harbor at the Queen Mary, because, you know… Halloween. The RMS Queen Mary has quite a history, so a quick backstory for those out of the loop: maiden voyage May 1936, converted to a troop ship during World War II, flipped back to a transatlantic cruise ship and eventually retired to Long Beach, California in 1967, where she’s been ever since, supposedly haunted AF.

Since becoming a permanent fixture at the port, she has become a bit of an icon for Long Beach. I remember taking the tour of the ship with my family when I was kid [and like many people, being completely traumatized by the “propeller room”… and yes it still creeps me out].

Back to Dark Harbor… last year they added “secret bars” as part of the haunted mazes. In order to get into the bar, you need a token, which gives a clue of where to find the bar in the maze. This year, we happened to get a token for the “Lullaby” maze, which of course plays on the story of the ghost that haunts the pool area of the ship. I wont tell you what the clue was, but we did find the “Six Fathoms Below” secret bar.

Queen Mary Six Fathoms Down

Honestly, the best part of this secret bar was that it took us down into the gutted bowels of the ship. A massive open space of rust covered walls that once held the machinery that ran the ship.

Queen Mary Textures in Rust

There were so many gorgeous textures below deck. A place where time has been allowed to run unchecked.

Queen Mary Below Deck

I can’t explain why, but I’ve always loved rich textures of rust and time. I find it to be quite beautiful while simultaneously leaving me feeling a bit melancholic.

Anywho, thanks for entertaining my random tangent, let me know what you think in the comments below… in the mean time, here is a bit of Catherine Wheel that sorta hits to tone on the head.

Uneeda Biscuit Mural
Deep Thoughts

Deep Thoughts

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I was digging through the closet when I stumbled on something that I hadn’t really looked at in quite some time.

Picture it, Long Beach, 2004. My husband Robert’s work was hosting its annual Christmas party. The coveted door prize that year, airfare for two anywhere in the US. When they called his name, it is said that everyone in attendance heard him excitedly exclaim “YES!” When he returned to his seat after claiming his prize, he turned and whispered to me, “we’re going to New Orleans!” He had lived there for a spell, and its a place that I always wanted to see. So win, win.

St Charles Street Car

We arrived in New Orleans on May 12, 2005. The weather was hot and humid, but with Robert playing tour guide, I was able to see the city through the lens of a former resident. Of course we walked all over the French Quarter, but we also took the streetcar out to Camellia Grill and got over to Vaughn’s to see Kermit Ruffins play [and got to eat beans and rice between sets]. We were only there for a little over a week, but it goes without saying, there is something about New Orleans that will get in your soul.

American Paint Works

Fast forward to August, when the city was struck by tragedy when the levee system failed, resulting in major flooding of the basin. As the waters receded, it was heartbreaking to see and hear the stories from people in a city that I just visited a few months before. 

I decided that I wanted to help in some, however small, way. Pulling from the negatives of the photos that I took on our trip, I made a slew of prints and enlargements. Then we set up a booth at the monthly art walk in downtown Long Beach where we raised money for the New Orleans Musicians Hurricane Relief Fund and the Louisiana SPCA. Granted, it wasn’t a lot, but we were able to raise a couple hundred dollars for both organizations.

Bacci Supervising
Artwalk Display

Having recently returned from what is now our eighth trip back to New Orleans, it was a funny coincidence that I should re-discover several leftover unsold prints tucked away in the closet. Though I haven’t decided what I should do with the prints, it was still nice to take a moment and reflect on those photographs taken during my first trip to NOLA.