Matthew Lee Dyer

About a year ago I was presented with the opportunity to accompany my friend Andy on his last Cross Country road trip completing his move from LasAngles to Chicago. Andy has lived in California for the past eight years and I've been able to visit him on multiple occasions, each trip bringing about its own unique adventure. So with the thought of an epic week with one of the best people I know, paired with the fact that I've always wanted to make such trip, I agreed quite speedily.
The Planning took some back and forth and I imagine that most of it was pretty ambitious, but we hacked out a plan to follow the southern route, camping at a few spots and staying with a friend in Oklahoma before heading back up north to Columbus, Ohio.

What is a series of Rubber Duck Photo-Documentary without shots of them doing what they're made to do- Taking Baths! This was a really fun shoot for me and the Troupe and I hope you enjoy it too!

I was able to acquire a new lens a few weeks ago - a Sigma 20-70mm f/2.8 macro - and I couldn't wait to try it out. I love the close-ups I can get with its very short focusing distance. Anyway, here are a few pictures that I was able to get while visiting my parents' house. Nothing fancy and no bigger idea to go along with these images. I just like them and wanted to share.

My Mother-in-Law Heidi has this thing for Noah’s Ark. She has at least three different models displayed through out the house. Her favorite Ark sits atop the entertainment center. It’s a large handmade wooden model that’s about 2feet long. There is a walkway leading up to the bridge of the Ark that hand-carved, wooden animals are walking up in pairs. For a long time, when Tabitha and I were dating I would go over and move her animals around putting monkeys with lions and giraffes with hippos and whatnot. Sometimes she’d notice, others she’d be completely oblivious. When she did though, she would get mad and yell at me for it-- and if you knew how much I like to mess with my mother-in-law, then you’d know that I got a huge kick out of it. Once, when walking through Target, Tabitha and I came across these wonderful hand painted toys buy a German company called Schleich (they still make Smurf toys…Awesome). Anyway, they make a full line of dinosaurs that happen to be the right size for this Noah’s Ark set …do you see where I’m going with this? We bought this Raptor and put it up with the other animals, right on top of the walkway next to Noah, looking like it was about to pounce. We waited in excitement for Heidi to notice. Days, then weeks went by…nothing. Finally, when we were visiting a few weeks later, she was dusting the Ark right in front of us and we thought, “This is it, she’s going to notice, flip out and it’ll be great!” . . . Nothing! She dusted right over it! Tabitha, her father and I were all flabbergasted! When we finally pointed it out to her she was aghast and embarrassed at her obliviousness which made it all the funnier. We all laughed until we cried. The Raptor has been stalking that man ever since.

For day two of our adventure, we had decided to rent a car and head up the coast on the famous Rt. 1. The last time I was out in Cali. this was the main thing that I did- the only difference being that I was alone. This time I had someone who knew the landscape a little better. After acquiring the car, a newer-model red Chevrolet Capri, our goal was to make it up to PismoBeach by lunchtime to eat some Clam Chowder at Splash Cafe. The day was beautiful, except for the fact that it was raining lightly off and on. We made it up to PismoBeach around 1pm, where we stood out in the rain and waited in line to order our chowder. This place was busy! When we finally sat down, I was able to experience some of the best food to ever come from the sea and to be served in a bread bowl . . . . Ever.


The rain had broken a little by the time we finished eating and we strolled the beaches at Pismo. Most of the people had left when the rain came so we had most of the beach to ourselves. There wasn’t much to do so we didn’t stay long, but I was able to find some small objects to photograph while we were there. This particular rock stood out because of its odd placement in the whole landscape. Carefully placed with no foot prints around to give away who left it there.

The next day we planned on heading out to see the Redwoods, something I’ve always wanted to see but haven’t had the chance to. This trip would be no different. I would miss them yet again, except this time it was completely out of my hands. At the time of my visit, the latest bouts of wildfires were demolishing Southern California. All of the forests were shut down in case the fire was spread in their direction. The rangers and park service employees were also pulled to those areas in need of the help…in short- no Redwoods. After discussing what to do we decided on the desert- Joshua Tree National Park. I wasn’t all that thrilled to be heading to the desert. I’d never been there and thought it’d be a bit boring with all the sand and rocks and lack of wildlife. I was obviously about to be proven wrong.

Sometimes, when I get the chance to go on a trip or adventure, I don’t always get the immediate opportunity to reflect on the experience. I find that I’ll put it on the back burner and it is some time before I am able to sit down and sort through all that might have happened. My trip to California late last year is one such occurrence. Recently, though, the whole thing came back to me as I saw a copy of the Columbus Dispatch. Tabitha and I were walking into a diner to grab a quick bite to eat and we happened to walk by a newspaper stand. The headline read “Skybus Folds”. My first thought was not knowing how I’d be able to get back out to California again (without the aid of such affordable airfare). We bought the paper and while we were eating our wonderfully greasy burgers with fries, we talked about my trip out there and how much I wish I could experience it again. Since then, I have been thinking non-stop of the post that I intended to complete upon my return.

My friend Andy called me sometime in early October 2007. He had the idea that he could fly me out to California and back for a quick weekend later that month because Skybus tickets were still very cheap for those dates. I quickly checked my calendar and agreed. I hadn’t been out to see Andy since before I got married and it was high time for me to spend some much needed time in the sun. By the time we got off the phone, it was decided that I would fly out on a Friday into Burbank, California and come back the following Monday. The amazing thing is that all of this was accomplished for under $150, all thanks to Skybus.

The flight out was non-eventful and before 11am “West Coast Time”, I was getting off the plane and into the car with Andy. The flight had no food service and by this time I was very hungry. We parked the car back at his house in Glendale, I threw my junk inside (except for my camera) and we headed off to a small breakfast diner down the street. We pigged out on bacon and eggs, waffles, toast and hash browns. Nothing makes me hungry like being 30,000 feet off the ground for four hours. After breakfast we took a stroll around his neighborhood. We also went to his local Trader Joe’s (they’re everywhere out there) so we could stock up on provisions for the rest of the weekend.