Migrant workers at home.

Today was a nice day off from work. And how did I spend it? By "working." Anyone who lives here in the golden state knows that farming is a huge part of our state's identity. And for tenss of thousands of people it is a way of life. On East Harney Ln. outside of Lodi is a fairly large immigrant housing project. So tonight I decided to head out there and see if I could document some of the people living there.

Once I got there I immediately approached the first person I saw. Francisco Martinez. He spoke very little English. Just enough to get a basic idea before finding someone else to translate for us. His neighbor was a big help. So once she explained to him what I wanted he welcomed me into his home.

I was welcomed by his parents right away. They were incredibly nice despite our inability to communicate. They even treated me to dinner. It was horrible tasting, but I smiled, had seconds, and said thank you.

I was stunned by their home. It was so bare. So plain.

Not much happened while I was there. Berta, the mother, spent 3 hours cooking, Juan, the father, watched television, Marco, the brother, slept, and Francisco went out and played soccer. Not too terribly different from the typical American family(that is except for the soccer bit).

Francisco Martinez watches a small television in his minimally furnished living room.

Francisco Martinez stretches before going out to play soccer with other residents of the migrant worker camp.

Berta Martinaz serves dinner after 3 hours of preparation.
Brothers Marco, left, and Francisco Martinez rest in their shared room in the early evening.
Berta Martinez prepares a mole sauce was her husband, Juan, watches television nearby.
Berta Martinez tastes a small dollop of mole sauce on her hand while preparing dinner for her family.
Francisco Martinez looks through photos a relative sent to the family in the mail.
Crucifixes hang from a nail near the door of the small Martinez house. Small religious trinkets are all that decorate the bare walls of the small home.

That's it for now. I still have some photos to go through. I always find another one to use.

-Dan

Just a couple more shots from the strawberry farm. The lady there loved the photos so much she asked me to take some more of her. They really aren't as good, but I was running out of angles to shoot from. They were basically doing the same thing over and over.

This week in photos

This weeks "This week in photos" consists entirely of photos taken today. This week flew by. I don't feel like I've worked at all. Nevertheless, this is Friday night which means I must have worked at some point.

Anyway, today I finally got to photograph a harvest. I've had trouble with getting this done because it seems nobody is willing to let me in their fields. I promised I wouldn't report them to immigration services but even that didn't work! *Please note I didn't actually say that.

It took some smooth talking but I finally got a guy to let me in his field.




And the last shot came from the SJAA swim meet at Bear Creek High School this morning. I know, sports shots should be in color. But I've said it once and I'll say it again; B&W is better.

Well, that's not normally true in sports, but it is true in this case.


And that's this week in photos. Remember to check out the blogs and websites I have link on the right side of this page.

-Dan