Hobbies and Interests
PLAYING GUITAR:
Ever since the 4th grade, I have been playing the guitar. I took music lessons, once a week, at a music store in Allentown, PA called West End Music. I still remember the first song I learned how to play; it was “Yellow Submarine” by The Beatles. After that day, I knew playing guitar was going to always be a hobby of mine. 12 years later, I am still playing and practicing every day. My ability has increased significantly from the time I started to now, but there is still plenty more that I have to learn. My biggest influences are Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin, and more recently, Nick Reinhardt of Tera Melos. About a year ago, I had the pleasure of meeting Nick Reinhardt at a Tera Melos concert played at The Fire on Girard Avenue, PA. I even got to talk to him and get him to sign my Tera Melos album!! Currently, I jam with my roommates who play drums and bass (while they are not practicing in their own band that is). Their band New Unison actually just came out with their first EP, so check them out on bandcamp.com by clicking on the following link: Sundays EP
PHOTOGRAPHY:
In addition to playing guitar, in my free time, I like to go around Philadelphia and take pictures of the graffiti that is present all over the city. To me, graffiti is an underappreciated art form that is part of a new wave of nontraditional expressive art. Sometimes it even speaks to me more than traditional paintings and sculptures, etc. do. Unfortunately, I am not the most artistically gifted person, so I do not do graffiti myself. This is why I try and capture, on film, as much as I can, so that I can share it with others who are not particularly familiar with it. I have also used this as a springboard to starting to photograph other scenes around the city that interest me. Here are a few pictures of the kind of graffiti that I take pictures of:
LONGBOARDING:
Since I do not own, or know how to ride a bike (fun fact about me). I enjoy longboarding around; for fun and as a means of transportation. My favorite is the morning ride from my house over to Temple’s campus. Especially in the summer, it is a beautiful ride that sometimes I wish would never end. Check out Temple University Longboard Club’s Facebook for more information if you are interested in starting to longboard, too! I am not part of it, but I hope to join, once I start having a little bit more free time.