5AM on the 4th of July

Copious amounts of Redbull and Vodka made the night leading up to my favorite holiday very long. I tried in vain to sleep at 1:30. After three hours of rolling over, drinking water, and frequent trips to the bathroom, I climbed out of the crowded bed, grabbed my camera and went on a four mile walk.

Record rainfall in June raised water levels and created the perfect breeding conditions for mosquitoes. A cloud of twenty potential carriers of the West Nile Virus followed me around like a lingering fart.

I really liked this stone wall. It had to be a few hundred years old.

On my four mile jaunt I digressed from buzzed to hungover and covered in flattened mosquitoes. Despite a throbbing headache, the beautify of the red dawn kept me smiling and inspired.

Two hours and hundreds of mosquito bites later, I crawled back in bed exhausted and thoroughly satisfied after seeing one of the most beautiful sunrises of my life.

Here are some more links,
5 AM on the 4th of July,

Summer Leave

Two weeks ago I packed up my belongings and made the 280 mile journey from Maine to New York for a summer internship at Polo Ralph Lauren.

I started blogging last fall as a vehicle to learn about photography, writing and fashion and connect with like-minded people. Over the last nine months I have learned a tremendous amount, met dozens of interesting people and refined my aesthetic taste considerably. Blogging is a way to document my creative process, not a perfected medium for my "work." For the last nine months blogging has been my largest passion and creative outlet.

Dressed up for the first day of work at Polo. I tried to cover all of my bases; Danner hiking boots, Rogues Gallery Bag , LL Bean Chambray, and RRL Jeans.

In order to take full advantage of this opportunity at Polo, I am going to take a break from blogging. Thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read my blog, comment on posts and send me supportive emails. I hope that I have some how inspired people to have fun and try new things.

I will continue to post images on The Fat of the Land throughout my summer leave and will resume posting on ART in early August. Go play outside.

Here are some more links,
Summer (Picasa),
The Next Generation (Urban Outfitters Blog).

A Sneak Peak at LL Bean's Norwegian

Last week I stopped by LL Bean's headquarters in Freeport and met with Don Rogers, a project manager and expert on all things Norwegian, to chat about bringing back the Norwegian sweater for the next issue of the H(Y)R Collective. The Sweater will be made in the exact same factories as the original sweater. Kudos to LL Bean.

A few years ago, LL Bean experimented with a Norwegian style sweater made in China out of a blend of cotton, wool and nylon. Look at the difference between the sample of the Norwegian sweater on sale this fall and the made-in-China Norwegian style sweater from the archives.

Here's a first look at the 1/4th zip version available only in LL Bean retail locations. Its a classic alternative to a 1/4th zip fleece. Be sure to check out the issue 13 of the H(Y)R Collective for more on the sweater and the resurrection and updating of a forty year old design.

Here are some more links,
Sneak Peak At LL Bean's Norwegian Sweater (Picasa),
LL Bean Bringing Back the Norwegian Sweater for F/A10 (ART).

Five Minutes of Sunrise over Great Pond

I woke up to catch the sunrise on Great Pond hours after returning empty handed from an hour long fishing adventure at dusk. Normally I hear the birds chirping and witness the intensifying glow in the east with the same shock and anxiousness of a vampire.

For five minutes I watched the sunrise before retiring my camera and picking up my fishing gear to continue my hunt for a brown trout.

I will never forget the still morning air and fog resting on the lake.

Here are some more links,
Fishing at Sunset on Great Pond (ART),
Sunrise on Great Pond (Picasa).