Thank you from Dante & Me!

Thank you to everyone who Read, Loved and Followed!

Hope you got to make it to the show, it was a great turn out and as an artist, I love showing my work first hand so thank you for coming out!

Also, thank you Cru for hosting yet another successful show on Nov. 6, I ended up selling 7 pieces and 16 Lohomatic Posters! If you or anyone you know is looking to purchase a part of the Dante Polaroid Series feel free to contact me.

Day 30

Standing

Yesterday I was in a dark place and quite honestly today isn’t that much better... I am trying to be positive... looking around me and seeing everything seem to be going good for the people around me so why not let the darkness roll off my shoulders... if it were that easy so many things in this world would be so different.

You know the movie Garden State (click here for the scene) where he takes the starry eyed smiley pill and everything slows down and then speeds up all while he is sitting there letting the time pass him... that’s how I feel, only I’m not under the influence. I’m just standing... standing and letting the people and the time pass me by, I feel like I am watching everything happen for other people as I am in a stand still... I am tired and a bit lost...

Anyway, needing to find a positive outlet Killah K and # came over and as I felt as if I was standing, I had her stand in my place... yeah she’s topless and inked and it made me smile which was a nice getaway. A bro, her girl and me, the best friend.

Jesus : TITS!

I know I have a lot going for me and that I am creative... I think that part of being a creative soul is the darkness... not only the fortune but the misfortune... the extremes bring the intensity that forces the creative flow and probably why so many artists are/were fucked up and so called crazy. I’m not saying this to scare people... I’m just saying this because I just want to be apart of something worth something... I want to be wanted and not just because I take pictures or create a beautiful world around me... Who knows if this makes sense and I feel like I’m rambling so I will leave you with this: Thank you for continuing with me through Oct. 30 Days 30 Photos. I truly appreciate all the comments and feedback. I hope that through this, I have connected with you on some level and let you know that the world is full of both chaos and beauty. Best wishes and see you for the next series.


Today:
Song: Zero 7 - Waiting Line
Quote of the Day: “I’m not telling you it’s going to be easy, i’m telling you it’s going to be worth it.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: Chicken Alfredo w/ broccoli
Craving: Combos
Drinking: Diet Mt. Dew
Random Fact: Finding happy isn’t always easy but I have hopes that tomorrow will bring sunshine. Anche nel buio a trovare la luce.

Day 29

A Mess

Do you ever look around you and see the world turning and wishing to could either one, stay with it or two, catch up? That’s where I am at... My world is full of crap, full of wanting to catching up... I am forever going, I want to succeed, I want to do something great in life... I feel that I work so hard, that I try to put things out there and that I always end up at the buffet line grabbing way more than I can actually take on.

I wish things weren’t so hard sometimes. I wish you could say what you wanted or where you wanted to go and things would fall into place... but recently I feel like as everything is coming together, everything is falling apart. Everyone has their own demons, everyone has their own struggles and today I feel lost. I know things will be ok and that I will move forward but yes, not everything is rainbows and butterflies.

I guess in being a free spirit I can get lost in the moment, in which the big picture is taken away, my focus can go astray and in wanting to do everything and being that “YES” person, can actually make me want to scream inside my head. Don’t get me wrong I will never live any other way or want to change, I just have to remember to breathe and refocus.


Today:
Song: The XX - Sunset
Quote of the Day: “Never get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: LoHo’s cosmic turkey creation
Craving: Carrots
Drinking: Gingerbread Eggnog
Random Fact: As much as I put out there, I still live in my head... a lot...

Day 22

Missing kitty

As I walked in my casa around 5am I wasn’t greeted by my little man... in fact when I called out, there was stillness instead of his little purr-rawr and dog like run up to me... this is weird because Mr. Squinz is like a dog always waiting at the door when I get home, he is a very social, personal kitty.

Disheveled, I shook treats and walked all over my apt building. When I didn’t hear his loud meow or see his spunky little-self I went inside and handmade little signs and putting my info on them. Not knowing where he was and being emotionally and physically exhausted, I fell asleep. When I woke up someone on the third floor texted me saying they saw 2 guys from the forth floor take him in a give him food. I walked up and down the forth floor but being that most people work in the middle of the afternoon, I was shit outta luck. Around 2pm though I got a call asking if I was the one who made the signs. I said yes, and was told that they found him roaming around the bridge to nowhere near the mailboxes but weren’t able to keep him because of their cat not liking other kitties so they left him with the girl in 203. After thanking them I hung up and ran down to the girls apt. She came to the door carrying my little guy! She said that she was happy that he had a home and that he was the sweetest little guy. I thanked her a 100 times or at least it felt that way and took him in my arms, squeezed him extra tight and gave him a handful of treats.

I was so scared that I lost my little man, he has been with me since 2008 I bought him as a b-day present for myself. We have been through some crazy situation, lived in many different homes and traveled all up and down the eastern US. He loves me unconditionally, drives me up a wall at times but none the less he is always there, right where I need him, so the thought of him not coming home crushed me. I guess I could say, while everyone else is a revolving door Mr. Squinz is my constant staple.



Today:
Song: Bill Withers - Lean On Me
Quote of the Day: “All I need is someone who can be there, who can stay no matter how hard it gets.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: Lo Mein
Craving: Pita w/ hummus
Drinking: H2o
Random Fact: Squinz and I have been to 7 different states and have lived in 6 different places since the day we came into each other’s lives in fact he use to walk on a leash when I lived in Savannah and I also use to zip him up in my sweatshirt and carry him around during my daily activities... Crazy Cat lover!

Day 16

Adventure Time!

Who knows if it’s because I’m an aries or the fact that I love the sparkle, the light, the excitement of fireworks and getting up and going but anytime I hit the road I find myself pulling off at exit 164 in Tennessee with the glowing firework sign... I feel like this place is actually a flea market because once you step inside you can find almost anything or anything you never thought existed plus everything but the snap crackle pop is dated with a quirkiness about it. It's funny because sometimes with old places like this I get really creepy vibes or a caution feeling but this place has been my pull off spot to pick up a few things and hit the bathroom since my random adventure to Chattanooga where a friend and I drove up to grab dinner and find oddly enough fireworks... :)

See here's the beauty of hitting the road and finding adventure, somedays I get antsy and want to get away from everything... I find myself in the car a lot of the time... sometimes I just sit and daze off into my music not moving staring off into space all while creating a world in my head or forgetting everything and sometimes I just keep driving with no direction in mind... I drive until I get somewhere, whether it be new or old. I crave adventure and the art of always going until you find that moment in which you can breath and say "okay, I can turn around." I've been finding myself wanting to get away a lot lately, so, when my family said come on up and take some photos, I said give me 2 weeks and I will see you... in this case my trip was planned but sometimes just getting in the car and seeing where it can take you is the best medicine... at least for me.


Today:
Song: Elton John - Rocketman
Quote of the Day: “Life is about using the whole box of crayons.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: Pork Sandwich
Craving: Apple Pie w/ Vanilla Ice Cream
Drinking: Diet Coke
Random Fact: When I feel the need to leave... I go.

Day 15

Chip Monster

Dave’s Cosmic Subs where everything is cosmically delicious! With a menu that stretches out across the whole front wall and where we create specials based off our taste buds or creative customers, there really is no better place for a sub sandwich when it comes to this hole in the wall wonder... at times I can honestly say it help save me... they took me in when I needed extra money and 3 years later I do it all right along with my crew.

Dave’s isn’t just a sandwich shop to me... it’s what I call family... we work together, we laugh together, we goof, joke and cry, we eat, we dance, we party, we spend holidays feasting and we have a love hate for each other as if we were all related because trust me if anyone messed with anyone of us we would all have each others back. Over the years we have greeted and waved goodbye to employees but the truth is once you are in the crew, burns and all it’s like a secret society and Dave’s blood is the best blood.

Sure I work at a sandwich shop in which I could be doing something else, making better money, with benefits and not slicing meat for a living but because of Dave’s I get to set my own rules and life... If I worked behind a desk for someone else making designs or taking photos I would loose my creative... I would hate that I was making someone else’s dream/vision come true while putting mine on the back burner... I am an artist, a creative soul, I have dreams and goals and I will work for them because I do not want to loose what I love about myself... I know that working behind a counter isn’t what I strive for but with the people I work with, getting to be creative with food and making people’s tummies smile and then getting to build myself as Hoffmeister is worth it.

In life all I’m looking for is to inspire, to create success, to find happy... I do want a family and I want to be able to take care of things so that they can live comfortably and I hope I can do that along with keeping true to myself because I want them to know me the way I see myself and the way I would want to see them live... as themselves.

So to Dave’s and my crew, I Love You and know I have your back like the perfect sweater, even when the day comes that I throw away my gloves for the last time!


Today:
Song: Joe Cocker - With a Little Help from my Friends
Quote of the Day: Keep Calm and Eat a Sub Sammie
Fav Food Consumed Today: LoHo Special: Turkey, bacon, japs, bp, let, mustard, cheddar, prov on wheat dunked in jap oil!
Craving: Beef Lo Mein
Drinking: H20
Random Fact: There are almost 20 Dave’s throughout the US... Dave’s ATL is the only one in the southeast region and we still got that Mom and Pop shop feel!

Day 14

Park Parade

As my newly found friends picked me up with lunch and fireball in hand, my body felt sour but my heart beat proudly. We found our way to 10th and Myrtle and set up camp for the Parade. I watched the streets full of people showing their pride and support making me happy to be apart of the gay community.

I sometimes hate the way we are portrayed, how people can see gay and think about the dirty underwear almost pornographic ads of David and other Fag Mags and discredit us or think that’s how we always are. It’s sad and unpleasing, because that is far from the truth. I want people to look at us and think no other, to not just think “Oh there’s Fun-Fabulous” or “Watch what you say they may have a crush on you”... Bullshit... I was born this way, I know it, just like you know if you like boys or girls... I didn’t choose this... because trust me I would much rather be a straight man and caring out a so called “normal” life where society welcomes you open handedly, then again if that was true, I wouldn’t be the one and only LoHo. But. seriously, I guess I just hate ignorance and stereotypes... specially when it comes to people because I am a person of values and morals, I know I am good, I know that life is so much more than what I do and who I love.

Pride to me is a way of showing love. That you are proud to love, straight, gay, whatever as long as you stand up and do it whole heartedly. And that is why I was proud today, because people of every race, age and size were lining the streets of Midtown and Piedmont park, showing curiosity, love and support. To me there is no greater feeling then love and being loved and if you get the chance to have it why should it matter with who.


Today:
Song: Lykke Li - Little Bit
Quote of the Day: "People should fall in love with their eyes closed. Just close your eyes. Don't look and it's magic."
Fav Food Consumed Today: Jalapeno CornDog
Craving: Funnel Cake
Drinking: Fireball
Random Fact: Wanting to be straight, I once tried to have sex with a boy... I felt so morally wrong that I threw up before it could happen, grabbed my clothes and excused myself. That was the moment I knew, I would forever love women and to stop lying to myself.

Day 13

Be Free

Have you ever looked up at the sky and felt like time stopped and as the world kept spinning you stood still? Today as I hit up Pride, I laid in the grass feeling the warm sun on my skin, looking to the sky and making shapes with the clouds and taking deep breathes having the world come in slowly. This was a mental pinch to myself saying yes, I’m alive, I am me and I am free.

I am thankful for the wonder of the world and for the fact that when I wanted to venture away from home to find my niche, to find myself that I had enough guts to pack up and go. In life we are given so many opportunities, so many chances to face our fears, our dreams and to find our reality of ourselves. Yes, I was scared, nervous and unsure but like any great adventure or life moving moment, it will be... for it is the unknown and that is beautiful... getting to start clean or start something, having the knowledge that we can do anything as long as we believe in ourselves. I loved where I grew up, it helped mold me into me but there were things that held me back and being here in ATL (a little more gay friendly) I had the chance to go out and find my fun fabulous-self, to try new things and to be openly happy about who I am and what I want. I can honestly say that I am molding into the person my cat and I myself am proud to be.

So, I challenge you to look around, to get lost in the clouds, to find what makes you happy and go after it.


Today:
Song: Motorcycle - As The Rush Comes
Quote of the Day: “If it scares you, it might be a good thing to try.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: Fellini’s Pep Pizza
Craving: Lava Cakes
Drinking: H2o
Random Fact: If I could go back and tell myself something, I would tell myself to not hold back and be so scared of what people think and their opinion on how/who I should be.

Day 12

I Love Fishes Cuz They’re So Delicious!

Oh how I wanted to go to the Aquarium party.

I put in my interest of wanting to shoot the Pride party and held out by putting my eggs in a baskets thinking I would shoot this party but sadly, I missed out on the general admission tickets... I was somewhat upset not being given enough time in if or when I was shooting what events. But the day of the aquarium party really wanting to go (specially since I took the weekend off to shoot and not work at Dave’s) I put a blast out on FB asking if anyone knew how I could get tickets and to my surprise and luck someone sent me info on how I could get VIP tickets! I jumped on it and drove out to Alpharetta to grab the tickets and quite honestly I was more than happy to be paying to enjoy myself then to be paid to take pictures. I not only got to go with my attractive LA but my two friends Killa K and #Hashtag came along after winning tickets from the pole dancing contest at LeBuzz (aka. LeBusted)!

The drinks were flowing, the lights were shining, the animals were swimming and life was a perfect puzzle piece. The whole night was like a dream and I was a kid in a candy store with an unlimited supply of happy. I drank till I was stupid silly and smiled till it hurt, it’s nights like this, with people like this that make memories and adventures outstandingly fabulous!


Today:
Song: Cherub - Doses and Mimosas
Quote of the Day: “Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: Cocktail Meatballs
Craving: Coconut Shrimp NOM
Drinking: Tidal Wave
Random Fact: I’m not really a seafood person but I do love sushi and going to Red Lobster for the endless Shrimp out!

Day 11

I now Pronounce you:

Every now and then we are given small tests to find out our true nature and character as a person.

Almost a year ago in January I did a photo shoot with an amazing friend and mentor and in late March / early April she was contacted by an Urban Outfitters rep who ran across my photo on a fashion blog and asked about the hair makeup, wanting to know if she would be interested in starting a line. For the next few months she worked her bones to the grind and sure enough her product hit and in 3 days was sold out online. Urban was so excited that they decided to have a launch party in NYC at their Soho location, where Ellie Goulding would be singing her new solo. She asked if I wanted to go and that she would pay for it since I had been there from the start! I was jumping for joy, the fact I would get to go to NYC, to be surrounded by amazing people, to meet Ellie (who I’ve been listening and swooning over for the last 3 years) was such a rush I could of had a boner... but then it hit... What day, I asked “Thurs” ...Thurs, what?! “The 11th” ... And my world went spinning... I felt like I was falling a 1000 feet without a parachute... A wedding FML! I was contracted to shoot a wedding... now in the contract it stated I could cancel at anytime but they had found me months in advance and it was 2 weeks away, I was recommended by a friend, they had already paid and they loved their date of 10/11/12.

I wanted to be in New York so bad but I didn’t want to leave these people hanging for they told me they couldn’t see anyone else shooting their wedding. I called my dad... being a strong man in ethics and in life I asked his advice. Wishing I could clone myself and be in two places at once I knew what I had to do, I had to keep my promise. I hated myself but I would have hated myself even more if I would have been selfish and chosen to go to NYC. I know that in time I will get another chance to shine and to have my cake and eat it too but in that moment sticking with my word and shooting someone’s most memorable day was what I needed to do, even if it meant missing out on one of my most memorable days.


Today:
Song: Ellie Goulding - Lights
Quote of the Day: “Create the kind of self that you will be happy to live with all your life.”
Fav Food Consumed Today: Roast Beef with Horsey Sauce
Craving: Rainbow Sherbet
Drinking: H2o
Random Fact: I look forward to finding the girl I want to spend the rest of my days with, who I can laugh with, share with and be the person I see myself to be.