Guadalupe Water Fiesta!

Last weekend while I was in AZ, I had a really fun day with my Uncle Sal. We started the day at 6:00 AM... (the morning AFTER my wedding which went till midnight!) and ran up the tallest mountain in a hiking/mtn biking area called South Mountain. Then we visit Nonnie, I got to hang with my cousin Nick, and the day was just action packed. On our way back, my uncle drove us through a short-cut through a town called Guadalupe. It's not a resort town. The people there are pretty poor and I think the majority of the population is hispanic. We saw a sign...



...and saw water flooding the following street. When we drove by, we saw this:

So basically the water festival of Guadalupe is a firetruck, hosing down the residents. There's no way I wasn't interested in stopping for photos! It was so hot and these people were having the times of their lives! It looked painful to me, so I didn't join them, but I did get some cool shots!

In my own little fantasy world, this shot reminds me of something you'd see by legend photographer, Henry Cartier Bresson. I'll never be the next Bresson, but I feel like sometimes I relate to his style. His style, by the way is just totally random. Images that sort of tell a story. SORT OF... :)

Getting hosed is also a spectator sport. I feel kind of ashamed of myself, actually because my first reaction to this scene was me laughing at these people. But when I got up close, I was overcome by all these people just having a great time. To some people, getting hosed by a firetruck on a hot Arizona summer day is like a simple pleasure. I'm an advocate for simple pleasures... although I don't count being hosed by a truck as one of them, but potayto, potahto...

Here is one spectator. He looks like he's been out working construction all day. Now he's just chillin, watching his neighbors, and maybe even his own kids, having fun in the water fiesta...

I love this shot of my Uncle Sal. Just like the guy above, he's not worrying about work, or money, or getting old, or whatever. He's just enjoying the moment. It doesn't get any better than that!