History in the making + Huge MLK Weekend Update!!

(c) tony karumba / gettyimages



A few things have happened since i've last updated that deserve much attention. first and foremost, WE HAVE A NEW PRESIDENT. thank you Lord! second of all, for the first time in history, we have a black president. but more important than his skin color, is the fact that he is smart, inspiring, and trustworthy, and we, the American people, actually stand by this leader. its about time. by this hour today, all of us have either watched Obama's inauguration live on tv, or read the news articles; either way, we have all seen the photos of the estimated 1.5 million people that swarmed together in freezing temperatures in the early morning to witness firsthand this momentous historical occasion. but did you know there are celebrations going on world wide for Obama? its amazing! can you remember the last time any photos were taken of people celebrating when Bush was voted into office eight horrid years ago? exactly my point.

i wear this shirt today as a proud American:



oh and do you know what else is dope about that first photo? his paper hat has a photo of President Obama and underneath it says "We Have Hope". and he's a kenyan. for more photos from celebrations around the world, click here.


Onwards, ho, to the weekend update!
......................

MLK Weekend Update

okay, seriously? this was an amazing weekend. i'll show you why in chronological order, but this is going to be image-heavy, so just be patient for all the loading.


SAT 11AM: E'KWEL PHOTOSHOOT / ALBANY SKATE PARK

For the second part of their premiere, the e'kwel staff enlisted the amazing photographer and homie of mine ricky afuang. e'kwel is a brand new clothing label created by sisters tati and kai (see previous post for reference), and it is a clothing line truly for the cultural conscious connoisseurs and the individuals empowered to maintain and promote social justice. blend that with the eclectic fashion, dance, music, and artistic background of the two and you get the amazing concept of e'kwel.

for this particular shoot, we shot at the skate park just outside of berkeley, and prepped at donna's house in san carlos. thanks to the ladies for letting me get my zoolander on. i can't really post photos of the clothes, because that would just be ruining the surprise when the look book is released, but here are some of the behind the scenes shots to give you a taste of the day:




the brain behind the e'kwel operation


sade and george prepping for shoot


e'kwel x truc uno


rockin' the vintage L.A. Gears that i found in my garage


in mid-smoothie (homemade just for me by donna d!)
tasted just like caribbean passion


in the midst of following donna and getting us lost, i found this beauty.


dalek custom decals!


el's legs + my mini cruiser get some camera time too!


g x g on set.


(skater) boy george


ricky working his magic


his weapon of choice

there were so many young skaters there


no idea what this trick is called

and some of them were ridiculous good, like this one:


waiting for his turn in the bowl

after he gets in the bowl, he's pumping his legs so hard and i swear he's just carving through with so much style its almost ridiculous seeing how young he is.


a lot of air up there


i will post links to the e'kwel photoshoot once its released, i can't wait to see the results!


GEORGE'S 21ST BIRTHDAY!

Sunday was my boo's 21st birthday, so we spent the entire weekend celebrating it.... here's a photo recap of it all:


SAT NIGHT: DEZ'S BDAY PARTY / THE BRUCE HOUSE

saturday marked dez's 21st bday, and midnight was the start of george's, so there was no better way to celebrate this coming-of-age occasion except drunk with 200+ beers, a table full of food, and in the company of friends:


happy birthday desiree bruce!









































For more photos, go to my Flickr.... there's too many to post!

SUN DAY:

Gave george his gift although i really couldn't give him his gift yet. i ordered him a new Mercier online but because of MLK weekend it wasn't going to arrive until the 20th, so i had to give him a gift that would let him know what his gift was. make sense?







to my relief, he loved the cupcakes and loved the fact that he was getting a fixed gear finally after months and months of debating. it just arrived today actually. he's stoked.


SUN NIGHT: BENIHAHA + THE DARK ROOM























p.s. i think i gave him the best birthday balloon ever!









































More photos from this night also on Flickr.



All in all, this weekend was more about celebrating with George and being with all our friends... thanks to all the folks: Since'88 / RMA / NK / TheCompany / E'kwel / U.F.O. Movement.... and Happy Birthday baby, i love you. we love you.