Title: July 16th - 13:51
Medium: Super-8 film
Aspect Ratio: 4:3
Resolution: 2880 x 2160
File Type: H.264 Codec / MP4.
Comments: After a long hike in the deep trails that connected our second tree house to a State Park we embarked on an outing to the High Museum of Art. Every time we visited a new major city we went to the museum to understand what kind of art they collected and championed. In America there was always a common theme of the "must haves" in American art History, although each museum always had a special unique piece from the artists we see in every building across America which made things novel and interesting. We roamed the museum a while and decided to go on one of Ethan and Justin's famous food tour. I searched for a vegan place and randomly found this happy hippie joint, which is closed now, and found ourselves at the Chattahoochee Food Works. It was a haven for two hungry stoners after skipping breakfast and walking around the woods and museums all day. I can hear Ethan's belly rumbling while I was coughing up a lung in the car, telling myself it was time to stop smoking and start eating vegan again. Both failures at this point. We arrived to the food hall and decided to skip the vegan meal as we followed a scent of fried chicken, black eye peas and lobster mac with cheese. We can't pass this up in the south, its the cuisine and we are cultural connoisseurs wherever we go we eat like the locals do! That was one of our rules for the entire trip. Ethan and I shared a bite and decided to smoke one more and eat from another spot since we were here and were planning on skipping dinner to get to bed early for the next ride all the way to Florida. I saw a Vietnamese stand and the sandwiches looked pretty damn good. There we met Kanai & Curtis at the counter. They were the kindest folks and helped us order their specialty. Beef rib Bahn mi... man that was good, and I said to myself, fuck why am I eating Beef again when I was trying to go vegan! We stood at the counter talking to them for a while about music in their hometown and quickly became friends. Then it hit me like a jolt, and I asked if they would like to be the portrait of the day. They said absolutely! The owner was in the back slapping together our Bahn Mi's and said it was cool for them to stop working and shoot, he was slightly in the shot too, which was also pretty cool, since it was his business after all. The order was up! Curtis brought us our sandwiches in the film with a proud smile on his face. He knew we were in for a treat, but the real treat was getting to meet this crew. How food can bring people together. To see people as they are and their souls shining bright. Even at work we can make something beautiful. The lesson was that if you slow down, even in the moments we take for granted waiting in line and waiting to eat. There is a person behind the counter with a story, with their presence. This project allowed us to "see" them truly. Not as our servers, but as our friends. If we can approach every one with this mentality and not with entitlement that the service industry creates. Treat people with dignity and respect, no matter the job and no matter where you are. People are people and that is the beauty of life. Food brought us together. Kanai & Curtis shared that moment of creativity with us and we broke through just another day at work. It was meaningful to them to be seen, as it was for us to see them. Next time you go out to eat, just remember one thing. Be kind to the man or woman behind the counter, because they are our mirror, and they are the ones feeding us with nourishment. There is no rush or urgency, no reason to not ask them how they are doing or how there day is before you order, because they too are human with feelings who choose to be there night and day to provide to their community. So be grateful for that person, that moment, and that meal they cooked for you, and enjoy! And enjoy we did.
