self portrait- reflection- zermatt- 1.13.09

[c] 2009 doug duffey

walkies- zermatt- 01.13.2009

i decided to get out of my hotel today and take a walk. i needed some sunshine and exercise... so walked up the hill into the town center, had a whole wheat bread from a bakery, walked, shot some pix, then came back. i stopped at a antique/junk store, which had some great things, but it was overall too expensive. i did buy some reproduction antique postcards and an old photo book from 1953 of mountain life, by willy wagner; which has some great photos. below various shos of zermatt:

morning matterhorn shot

beautiful downtown [empty] zermatt

beautiful downtown [empty] zermatt 2

very old barns

another shitty day in paradise - w/reflection

landscape

poster board zermatt

[c] 2008 doug duffey

zermatt- 01.09.2009

one of the little electric trucks here- only electric cars are allowed in zermatt

in the entrance of the hotel style- having a smoke and coffee

morning finger exercises

at the piano in the bar

my morning shot of the matterhorn from my balcony

january 9, 2009/zermatt- we're back... we got here 2 days ago but due to the unforseen lack of nouveau riche russians throwing their gazillions about, the town is empty; which is very unusual for zermatt at this time of year.

we begin playing tonight, after 2 nights rest and acclimation, here in the hotel; it was good to have those 2 days rest, as the thin dry air and this high altitude makes everyone tired. i was ready for sleep at 9PM last night but forced myself to stay awake until 3AM, since we normally start playing at 10PM. i wanted to get my body clock set.

it's nice to be back. everyone here is 'tres gentil'; it is also not as cold as it was last time [-12 below zero] and today the sun is shining, and the streets are clear of snow and ice. hani, sebi and i are going into the town center in a while to "faire le commission" or "make the groceries" as is said in new orleans [direct translation from french] - i need 'room food'

fotos from later:hani & the matterhorn- on my balcony before shopping

beautiful downtown zermatt

happy sebi w/burger- mcdonald's lunch after shopping

happy hani w/fish sandwiches & veggie burger- mcdonald's lunch after shopping

happy dougie w/veggie burger- mcdonald's lunch after shopping- thank you, america!

eric in the streets

street shot

horse & man leg shot

rauchen frau mit pferd shot

schweizer polizei shot - maybe giving the man a ticket for driving too slow?

later:
hani, sebi, and i walked to the town center and got food/goods for the room, then hit mcdonald's for lunch. thank god, they had veggie burgers. normally i dont eat white bread [or food] and would have not have had mayo on mine, but forgot to tell them "ohne mayonnaise, bitte"- and WTF, i won't burn in vegan hell for a dollop of mayo! so had that and a salad. sebi and hani had about 3 sandwiches each; we were ALL happy campers.

poor hani schlepped my grocery bag for me, because of my recently arthritic right arm which is killing me; nothing seems to help. my new pain meds knock me out, then wake me up. if i take them at bedtime, forget it! my others wire me up; but... dragging & schlepping luggage onto and off trains 2 days ago didn't help. but i'll survive this like i've survived everything else in my life...or not... c'est la vie

there seem to be people in the town today- so maybe tonight- our 1st night to play- will be good. i KNOW the band will be good. i just hope there's a crowd to enjoy this special magic we make together.

i got some cute little paper tubes of instant coffee while out, and since the tap water here is boiling, it beats going downstairs every time i want a coffee. it w/some soy milk, and a cigarette on the balcony while the sun is still shining and it's somehwat warm [so i dont freeze my cajones off] will be good... life aint so bad; nothing but luxury problems...

[c] 2008 doug duffey

smoke & coffee break

i'm packing to go to Zermatt for 7 nights, and am already kaput; so i'm taking a smoke and coffee break. i go tomorrow morning but want to get all my merde in a pile. as my friend Luella always said, "its the dribs and drabs that kill ya" -in my case camera cables, computer & external HD cables etc.

traveling light has never been one of my virtues or in my vocabulary. i have however decided to leave most cameras [i never go outside there anyway- too cold] so what's the point? i am taing a nice Minolta 35mm point and shoot with a zoom which should be good enough; and a few digitals.

i'm also taking all my files from all my cmputers and HDs at home on one, to try and organize some of the files, and possibly find enough fotos for a show i am doing in april. the gig is at night so have the day and some of the night to do this. last time i had jet lag and didnt do any of it; as Liza sang "maybe this time"

[c] 2008 doug duffey

general rant - january 4, 2009- switzerland

I've been house bound ever since new year's eve, because it's been below freezing every day, and i don't give good freeze. i'm trying to stay in and stay warm and avoid catching a cold or flu if possible; considering that would not be so good for the tour. we begin a 7 night stint in zermatt starying wednesday... plus we have dates booked through to march. so i have to stay healthy.

J & i went to an oriental food store, yesterday, which sells all kinds of good [and weird] stuff, like curry paste, tofu, fresh mushrooms, bean sprouts, and unusual vegetables, which is good for making 'hot as hell' soup- which is always good medicine against colds- especially if it's filled with a lot of fresh garlic, onions and red peppers [the holy trinity of louisiana cooking]

i wanted to go to the 2nd hand shops yesterday, but after doing some shopping, i didnt feel like it. i came in to take a nap and ended up sleeping about 4-5 hours! so maybe all this cold/flu paranoia is validated; my head feels fuzzy.

i haven't been posting many fotos; especially considering that every time i go out, or we go do a show, i make about 200+ fotos. i made a lot at the new years eve gig, but havent posted- and probably wont post- them. there were a few that could be edited in photoshop and might qualify as art- but then, they would be on my "foto-mondo" blog.

i began doing some collage a day or so ago, but havent really gone into the frenzy i need to. zermatt might be good for that. i will take about 1/2 the drag & cameras & computer crap i did last time, and instead take art supplies. it's good therapy; any of those will be on my "art, etc." blog.

[c] 2008 doug duffey

to engelberg- for new years eve

on/from the train from grenchen to baden 12.31.2008- took the train from grenchen to baden to meet everyone and drive on to engelberg with the van-for our new year's eve [silvester] show

strange angels in baden

shots from the van -to engelberg [angel mountain?]

et voila: engelberg

[c] 2008 doug duffey

happy 2009

[c] 2008 doug duffey