I’ve been working on the Americans Elect “Crash the Party” bus tour since mid-January, so the ignoring of my blog is unintentional. It was a last minute assignment, and so far, worth every moment. We only have a few days left. I’m sad. I mean – I’m happy to be heading home soon and getting back to real life, but tour life is pretty darn sweet, too. The people I’ve been living and traveling with for the last (almost) three weeks are fantastic, and I am very happy to have met them in this way. If nothing else, these new friends are wonderful.

This frame was one of my favorites from the Gasparilla Festival in Tampa, Florida. Think Mardi Gras on a smaller scale and full of pirates. We were so out of place there, and yet, so perfectly placed. While this is a typical scene for the tour of people signing up to learn more about AE, these kids were likely wasted. Almost all of the people we met that day were wasted.

Long live the pirate. Or whatever they’re dressed as.

A few weeks ago, I heard about a White House Tweetup (a gathering of White House Twitter account followers for a specially planned program) from a friend of mine that included talks from some administration officials and then a tour of the White House to see the holiday decorations. I may not celebrate Christmas, but I certainly would not turn down an opportunity to take Scott to see the White House. So I applied. And lucky us – we got selected to go! (So did my friend, Elliot.)

We spent the morning at the presentation, listening to a wide range (very wide) of officials talk – from the First Lady’s chief of staff, to an economic policy guru, to the heads of the technology and public engagement offices, and ending with the White House pastry chef and florist. But I have to say, the highlight of the day was most definitely touring the White House. There are signs everywhere in security that say NO CAMERAS, but for the holidays they waive that rule for visitors.

Thank you, to whomever made that decision.

I heard a commotion on Sunday afternoon, and saw some people across the street all staring at the intersection a few houses down. In the middle of the street was a loud protest with yellow signs. I didn’t have a picture of the day yet, so I ran to my room, grabbed the camera and my keys, and proceeded to follow the protest for a few blocks for pictures. From what I could tell, it was the Vietnamese community from Seattle-Tacoma area protesting against China. when I got in, I took a look on Google and found out that it was planned in solidarity with rare protests happening in Hanoi. Wild, huh.

This is what I saw coming through the intersection near my house.

This guy spent much of his time shouting into the megaphone. I don’t know exactly what he was saying, but he was emphatic.

A lot of the participants were shielding their faces with their signs from the photographers/videographer.

SPD was there and was very helpful in keeping the protest safe from drivers. The intersections can be nasty in my neck of the woods.

Best part of the Homecoming parade – Robin Carnahan almost taking me and my camera out while I was trying to take some fun photos of her marching and interacting with the crowd. Well, actually, I believe she ran the entire route. This is the result.

“Oh, hi!”

The FinalCut presentation of the photos and audio interview for my character on Kelly Schultz will go here shortly. It’s rendering on Vimeo.

In the meantime, here’s my favorite photo from the entire project.

Ahha! The video is finally done. Please note – this is NOT a final but a work in progress. I do not like this presentation as completed here. The audio will be re-edited, and maybe the photos will be re-sequenced. It is only posted because it is a class requirement.

Kelly Schultz: The Triple Threat from Erin Schwartz on Vimeo.

I had the pleasure of photographing the U.S. Senate candidate debate today out at the Lake of the Ozarks, featuring Democrat and current Secretary of State Robin Carnahan, Republican and former U.S. Congressman Roy Blunt, Constitution party candidate Jerry Beck, and Libertarian candidate Jonathan Dine. Needless to say, Carnahan and Blunt stole the show.

This was my first national race debate, and I can’t wait for the opportunity to photograph more. Come 2012 election, I’ll be ready.

(Click on the pictures for captions.)