environmental portrait assignment.

Jerry Hruska, 65, gets ready to close his candy shop “Sweet Art” for the day but not before selling some last minute chocolate to customers. Hruska has made and sold chocolates and sweets to the community for the last 13 years from his store on Railroad Avenue in downtown Bellingham. His passion for the craft started back in his high school years. “I ordered a 10 cent candy book my senior year of high school and made every recipe. I lost it and tried finding it. I went to all sorts of antique stores and bought about 50 books but I never found it.”

icebreaker assignment.

Question: What is one thing you would never consume again and why?

Michael Chen, 40, walks the streets of downtown Bellingham in search of a coffee shop on April 17, 2010. Chen is in the process of road tripping throughout the United States and hopes to eventually meet up with his family on the east coast. When asked what he would never consume again, Chen responded with the answer cooked whale meat. “I was in Iceland and they can fish whale there and it’s prepared into sushi. It had a very strong mammal flavor to it. It was just too much.”


David Hart, 59, walks alone down Railroad Avenue on April 17, 2010. Walking in somewhat of a hurry, Hart didn’t have to think long about his answer to the question “What would you never consume again and why?” Hart confidently said that he would never eat squid again. “I was at some fancy place and everyone ordered them as appetizers. I was just drunk enough and I picked it up and put it in my mouth and it was just horrible. Chewy, slimy, horrible thing.”


Jacqui Shaffer, 18, stands on a street corner in downtown Bellingham on April 17, 2010 wearing a sign advertising fish. For Shaffer, peanut sauce will not be incorporated into any of her meals anytime soon. “I ate a bunch of Thai food and I ended up puking that night and my vomit tasted like peanut sauce. I like peanuts and peanut butter; just not peanut sauce.”


Kenneth C. Gates, 47, leans against a wall while chatting with a friend outside of Captain Hansen’s bar on April 17, 2010. While lighting a cigarette, Gates confidently states that he would never consume rum again. “I drank it on my honeymoon a long time ago. It was a bad night. I almost didn’t stay married.”


Anne Thompson, 52, walks her Yorkie down Holly Street on the evening of April 22, 2010. Thompson picks up her dog while she contemplates what food she would never consume again. “It would have to be a hamburger,” said Thompson. She believes that the land used to raise cattle on is a big waste. “I think it’s ridiculous to pollute and use up that same energy that can be used to feed more people. Plus I think they’re just really bad for you.”


Annie Morris, 22, meets up with some friends outside of Little Cheerful on April 17, 2010 after getting off from work for the day. While retrieving her bicycle, it didn’t take Morris very long to figure out what she would never consume again. “Semen, because it tastes horrible and I’m mostly into women now. Yeah, it would definitely have to be semen or chocolate covered raisins.”

disposable camera assignment.

Victor Vendervort, 43, sits on a curb next to the downtown Bellingham bus station. Vendervort has been homeless for the last 11 years and says he will never leave Bellingham because he is a political prisoner. He feels that George W. Bush caused a lot of his problems. When asked if he felt that President Obama was going to help his situation, Vendervort responded saying, “I don’t even know if Mr. Obama is still alive. I kind of have my doubts.” Vendervort strongly expressed that he believed that no one in a position of leadership or authority can be trusted in this town. “The last thing they care about is some girl with a camera. Get yourself some mace and a whistle.”