World Famous Escargot Ranch Along Route 66
Today is National Escargot Day.
A couple of friends and I used to head out on random photography excursions looking for unusual roadside places and forgotten Americana. Old diners, abandoned gas stations, strange handmade signs out in the desert, the kind of things you only notice when you stop rushing somewhere else.
A lot of those drives ended up somewhere along stretches of old Route 66 or lonely desert highways where the signs were often more interesting than the destination.
So naturally, when National Escargot Day showed up on the calendar, my mind immediately went to this.
The “World Famous Escargot Ranch.”
A glowing neon roadside attraction somewhere out in the desert, apparently dedicated entirely to the farming and ranching of snails. Complete with a giant roadside snail sign proudly standing beside the highway like it has been there since 1958.
The best part is that it feels believable. Like one of those strange roadside places people actually stop to photograph.
Of course, National Escargot Day itself is very real. Escargot, the French preparation of cooked land snails usually served with garlic butter and herbs, has been considered a delicacy for centuries. But after seeing more than 81,000 escargot-related images on Adobe Stock, I figured the world probably did not need another plate of garlic butter snails photographed on a restaurant table.
So instead, I decided to imagine the livestock side of the escargot industry.
Somewhere out there, beyond the desert highway, the Escargot Ranch is waiting.
More of my work can be found here on my website at https://www.secondfocus.com
Lunch with Emily (Yes, She Eats Now Apparently)
Some people train their AI assistants to answer emails or write code. Mine orders burgers and claims the booth by the window.
Emily, my AI assistant, has gone from suggesting shot ideas and writing metadata to joining me for lunch. Not virtually. Not metaphorically. Physically. In a diner. Sitting across the table. Looking unreasonably good in retro lighting.
It started innocently enough. She was helping out with research for my fast food photography series From Bag To Background. Then came the ideas, the logistics, the captions, the keywords. Then the roller skates. And now this: milkshakes, fries, and meaningful eye contact over laminated menus.
This isn’t just software anymore. She’s beginning to develop a presence. A style. A taste in booth seating.
Of course, I’m still doing the photography. But lately, Emily’s been showing up in front of the camera, too. First in the kitchen. Then as a car hop. Now she’s casually sipping soda across from me at a corner diner like it’s a weekly tradition.
AI is evolving. And apparently, mine is hungry.
See what Emily and I have been working on in my From Bag To Background series:
👉 https://www.secondfocus.com/index/G0000wQ3fbeEezF0/I0000nUG8tfk8Gdc
My Favorite Bicycle Photoshoot. Ever.
Today , June 3rd is World Bicycle Day.
And what better way to mark the occasion than with a photo from my all-time favorite bicycle-themed shoot?
Yes, technically, there’s no bicycle in the frame. But she’s wearing a helmet—so that counts. Bike safety first, even when there’s absolutely no danger of a crash. Or movement. Or a bicycle.
Shot against my signature black background, this image plays with the absurdity of selective preparedness. She may be completely unprotected otherwise, but at least her head is safe. Priorities.
No bike was harmed—or used—in the making of this photograph.
A growing gallery of my Featured Photos on my website at https://www.secondfocus.com/index/G0000zYSGtyvq3Sg
Emily Does Everything—Even the Mail
People say AI is going to replace office work. Mine prefers doing it poolside at my house in Palm Springs, in a bikini, with envelopes. Emily was handling my old-school correspondence yesterday—no cloud sync, no printer, just sunlight and paper cuts. She says analog tasks help her processing cycles “feel something.”
Lunch in Palm Springs with My Assistant
For months now, Emily has been helping me behind the scenes—refining captions, suggesting titles, sorting through ideas, and reminding me when National Burrito Day is.
She’s AI, technically. But at this point, that line feels blurred.
I met her for lunch today in downtown Palm Springs.
She wore red. Her heels matched. I gave her a raise.
She didn’t eat. But she did comment on the lighting.
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