#84. Capturing Humboldt: Jose Quesada’s Journey Behind the Lens

Scott Hammond: Ladies and gentlemen, friends and neighbors, welcome to the 100% Humboldt podcast show in Humboldt County, featuring my new best friend, my new best old friend, Jose

Scott Hammond: Quesada.

Jose Quesada: Uh-

Scott Hammond: Hey, Jose. How you doing?

Jose Quesada: Hey, Scott. I've known you since last century. It's, uh, it's good to see you this century.

Scott Hammond: This century. Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Since last millennium.

Scott Hammond: Did I have hair then?

Jose Quesada: Did you have hair then?

Scott Hammond: Yeah, I had-

Jose Quesada: Yeah, yeah

Scott Hammond: … I had long hair, right?

Jose Quesada: Oh, heck yeah, you had hair.

Scott Hammond: I was 19 and a-

Jose Quesada: You were a kid

Scott Hammond: … I was an Adonis of beauty.

Jose Quesada: You were a kid. You were a leader. You were, uh, h- you were taking care of kids in a recreation program, and, uh, what I liked about you is that you were the quiet, competent leader, which is what kids really… You weren't the loud, "Look at me, follow me because I'm loud," and stuff.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: You were the, always been quiet, kinda quiet, the quiet guy. Really good counselor. You were-

Scott Hammond: Thank you

Jose Quesada: … one of the older counselors, so definitely one of the leaders in that

Jose Quesada: regard, but-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … you knew how to handle it.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: I remember well Camp, uh, Camp Kim Too in Willow Creek.

Scott Hammond: How many times have we been to Camp Kim Too in Willow Creek? Willow Creek, by the way, so I can use my prop right out of the gate, is right up… See where that, that 299 goes east? There's, I can see Camp Kim Too from here.

Jose Quesada: Camp Kim Too is a, uh, was really the, uh, birth of a lot of kids' dreams, I tell you. We used to take-

Scott Hammond: It's a beautiful sight

Jose Quesada: … uh, we used to take kids, uh, from 14 to 21 years of age, and we would be out there for a week with them, and we would talk about finding yourself, finding your interests, finding out about the world, you know?

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: "Look, uh, we're not gonna be your parents, but we're just gonna tell you what it's like." And it was a good opportunity.

Scott Hammond: I, I look back and I th- I, I agree with that. So Jose, you're the, the masterful, masterful photographer of the Eureka Times-Standard newspaper. But before we go th- there, which is, there's a lot to say. You know, AI really thinks you're something.

Jose Quesada: Well, I'm not sure what AI is saying, but, uh, one clarification that I want AI to know is that I'm freelance.

Scott Hammond: You're a freelancer.

Jose Quesada: So I, uh, I sell my photographs to the Ferndale Enterprise. I've sold to the North Coast Journal. Uh, if you Google Jose Quesada New York Times, you'll see some of my work there. More, uh, uh, a lot of interviews that I did, that I did-

Scott Hammond: Right

Jose Quesada: … uh, for them, and they include it in their story. So I'm freelance, that's for sure.

Scott Hammond: Lo- Loco too?

Jose Quesada: Hmm?

Scott Hammond: Lo-

Jose Quesada: Local?

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: I am crazy. I am one local boy.

Scott Hammond: Are you Loco too?

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: Lost Coast Outpost. Good one. See what he did with that? The, um… So let, let's… Well, set the stage for the recreation program. So Humboldt Rec program-

Jose Quesada: Well-

Scott Hammond: … located in Humboldt County, started in the late '70s, probably

Scott Hammond: early '80s.

Jose Quesada: Yes, that's right. That's right. That's when-

Scott Hammond: Right

Jose Quesada: … uh, there was, uh, CETA money, Comprehensive Employment Training Act monies that were coming into Humboldt County.

Scott Hammond: State of California.

Jose Quesada: Uh, no, no, these were federal monies.

Scott Hammond: Oh, that was fed.

Jose Quesada: Oh, yeah, totally federal monies.

Scott Hammond: Was it Jimmy Carter years? Probably.

Jose Quesada: Uh, n- uh, no, seven- 1970…

Scott Hammond: Nine, eight.

Jose Quesada: Uh, uh, geez.

Scott Hammond: Whoever were the f- I think that's correct.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, it might've been. Yeah, it probably was Jimmy Carter years.

Scott Hammond: So that was federal money.

Jose Quesada: Now that I think about it. Now that I think about it, uh, it was federal money. Uh, before, the, the predecessor for the youth programs was called NOVA, N-O-V-A, and, uh, that was definitely, uh, probably late '60s or so. But, uh, the CETA, the program, uh, uh, helped adults that helped the youth. Uh, indeed, uh, some of the youth that, uh, were a part of our program are business owners now-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … have been employed with the county for decades and, uh, are contributing members, you know?

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: That was when we were able to invest in youth.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: That's when we were able to say, "Look, this is what a job means."

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: "Going to work from this time to this time means you get this kind of a paycheck." And, uh, you were one of the, uh, people that we depended on to be able to communicate with the kids. We were the older counselors and stuff, but we hired, uh, people like you, our aides, to be able to, or, or, uh, program aides, to be, uh, able to work with these younger kids and stuff, and it's, really that's the way you learn, you know?

Scott Hammond: Sure. Sure. Key role. I remember, um, a lot of good memories. Gosh, Camp Kim Too, don't eat the stew at Camp Kim Too. There's, we had T-shirts.

Jose Quesada: Uh, oh, uh-

Scott Hammond: Greg, Greg Devaney

Jose Quesada: … Greg Devaney. Rest in peace, Greg Devaney.

Scott Hammond: God bless him.

Jose Quesada: You're one, uh, you're one of the salt of the earth.

Scott Hammond: Peter Shepard.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, Pete Shepard. He's, uh, he was instrumental, uh, at the beginning. Uh, Humboldt Recreation Programs was a network of about 24 different recreation programs.

Scott Hammond: Way out in the middle of nowhere.

Jose Quesada: In-

Scott Hammond: Some of them

Jose Quesada: … everywhere, everywhere.

Scott Hammond: Bryce Land.

Jose Quesada: Everywhere.

Scott Hammond: Manuela.

Jose Quesada: Everywhere from Alder Point to Shelter Cove to, uh, uh, Redway, Garberville, Weitchpec,

Jose Quesada: Pekron.

Scott Hammond: Right, right, right, right.

Jose Quesada: Ah, Orick, everywhere, and everything in between.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: But what they had in common is that they had funding. They had funding to be able to have the community organizers in those particular communities come together and say, "Look, we got monies for recreation programs." Pete Shepard was key in being able to get a lot of that going through the Manuela West Safe and Parent Council-

Scott Hammond: Right

Jose Quesada: … and, uh, and Sue Williams.

Scott Hammond: And John Woolley, right?

Jose Quesada: And John Woolley.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Absolutely.

Scott Hammond: Been on the show.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, that's right. And, uh, Kim Montgomery was part of that-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … uh, scene as well. And, uh, uh, it was, uh, it was a really good thing because they were able to also start for the first time the summer lunch program. So here we have kids, and we have food, and, uh, we don't have any kind of eligibility. You come up and you have fun. You come up and you eat.

Scott Hammond: That's right.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, neighbors would come in together. The kids would all know each other, and it was real community building without knowing that it was community building. And, uh, uh, it's, it's something that is kinda has gone on. We've had some recreation programs that have gone on. Some, even some organizations, some businesses that have gone on from those days that, uh, acted as kind of a seed. I mean, that was- A few decades ago

Scott Hammond: Yeah. And I remember they would bring in, um, a rafting trip. We'd do a rafting trip. I mean, expensive stuff for broke kids that live in nowhere, Humboldt.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: And how… To confi- con- conceive of that now would be tough.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, yeah. Actually, most of our kids did canoes, that's for sure. Although, there were a few rafting trips that were put together. But, uh, when we went to camp, it was, uh, a lot of kids that really didn't get an opportunity to get out of their neighborhood would have an opportunity to get into a canoe-

Scott Hammond: Right

Jose Quesada: … to be able to learn some water safety. We'd have, uh, lifeguards like Paul Genja, I remember, that would spend a lot of

Jose Quesada: time-

Scott Hammond: Remember Paul?

Jose Quesada: Oh, gosh, Paul.

Scott Hammond: Is he still around?

Jose Quesada: Oh, yeah. Paul Genja, absolutely still around.

Scott Hammond: Curly hair?

Jose Quesada: Yep.

Scott Hammond: That, that-

Jose Quesada: Still has his curly hair

Scott Hammond: … he probably, he probably has this hairstyle. Paul, gosh, you're remembering people that I've forgotten.

Jose Quesada: Oh, gosh.

Scott Hammond: Um, and then Steve Robell.

Jose Quesada: Oh, Steve Robell. Oh, my gosh.

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: What was his name?

Scott Hammond: Cuffees.

Jose Quesada: Cuffees.

Scott Hammond: Cuffees.

Jose Quesada: What a leader. He was one of the most unique and odd leaders I've ever worked for.

Scott Hammond: Whatever became of him?

Jose Quesada: I don't know. I, I, I imagine he is still bright. I still imagine him being, uh, involved with things, uh, and, uh, the guy was pretty bo- was pretty amazing. But-

Scott Hammond: So

Jose Quesada: … uh, Rick Littlefield, uh, was a, a leader back then, uh-

Scott Hammond: He was-

Jose Quesada: … with our program and, um-

Scott Hammond: Ri- hey, Ricky, running ENF now, two stores.

Jose Quesada: Oh, yep, yep.

Scott Hammond: What a guy.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: I mean, he's, he's an example of a, your example, stellar example, besides me. Uh, that, you know, he was an adult leader at the time.

Jose Quesada: Uh, no, he was a… No, no, no, he was my boss.

Scott Hammond: Oh, he was your boss.

Jose Quesada: Oh, yeah. He was-

Scott Hammond: I didn't know that

Jose Quesada: … definitely my boss.

Scott Hammond: Okay.

Jose Quesada: He had doubts about hiring me.

Scott Hammond: Yeah. Well, he's stupid.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. Well, I don't blame him.

Jose Quesada: I was, I-

Jose Quesada: … I, I, uh, I helped start the first Head Start program.

Scott Hammond: That's right, huh?

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, Annie Bolick was in Crescent City, and I was, uh, with Susie Wartburg, and we helped start stuff here in McKinley, the first Head Starts in Humboldt County.

Jose Quesada: And, um-

Scott Hammond: And now it's big, right? Pretty big program.

Jose Quesada: Uh, Head Start has expanded into so many different comm- communities. Kathy Montagne, who recently passed about two and a half months

Jose Quesada: ago-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … uh, she was, uh, uh, an architect in, uh, getting Head Start to really, uh, to spread, to spread out and stuff. And, uh, I brought it up because I was moving from Head Start to go work in, uh, workforce development, to work in summer, uh, programs. And Rick had his… Didn't know if I would have the transferable skills and stuff, but-

Scott Hammond: Sure

Jose Quesada: … it worked out well. It worked out well.

Scott Hammond: Hey, we made it to the studio today.

Jose Quesada: Well, we made it to the studio today. You know, and along the way, I stayed with, with, uh, workforce development, and I stayed with the county, uh, uh, from workforce development and then went into economic development for-

Scott Hammond: This is with Rod-

Jose Quesada: … almost 30 years

Scott Hammond: … with Rodney? Was he part of that?

Jose Quesada: Oh, now Rodney was… Yeah. I used to s- Yes, uh, Rodney was, uh, one of our vocational counselors.

Scott Hammond: Rodney Johnson, right?

Jose Quesada: Rodney Johnson.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Uh, a good man. Uh, uh, he, uh, uh, was one of our vocational counselors. Oh, so many good people. Ron Halverson was one of our good guys. Uh, a lot of good people. We had, uh, uh, to switch the channel a little bit, we had a, uh, one, uh, we had a 50, uh, year reunion with, uh, soccer.

Scott Hammond: Oh, is that right?

Jose Quesada: So we, uh, I started, uh, uh, uh, one of the first, uh, uh, uh, co-ed soccer teams in Humboldt County. And, uh, to get back to Pete Sheppard, Pete Sheppard was also key in getting, uh, soccer going in Humboldt County.

Scott Hammond: The camps in the summer, right?

Jose Quesada: He did, uh, he started the red- the first soccer camps, and now you got athlete- athletic camps all over the place.

Scott Hammond: Is he still around?

Jose Quesada: Pete Sheppard was honored at a, uh, at a, uh, reunion that we

Jose Quesada: had-

Scott Hammond: Nice

Jose Quesada: … uh, just, uh, about a month ago.

Scott Hammond: Gosh, I gotta look him up. I haven't seen him in-

Jose Quesada: Yep, Pete Sheppard. He's 80 years old and, uh, still the same Pete, still kind of a silly guy, still bright-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … still will make you laugh, guaranteed.

Scott Hammond: What's up, Petey boy?

Jose Quesada: Petey boy.

Scott Hammond: And he had J- Greg Devaney together.

Jose Quesada: Oh.

Scott Hammond: Just like, they called him V- he called him Vaines. That, Vaines. What's up, Vaines?

Jose Quesada: I tell you, Greg Devaney and-

Scott Hammond: Those two

Jose Quesada: … Pete Sheppard, man, they-

Scott Hammond: What a pair

Jose Quesada: … brought magic. They brought magic to a camp.

Scott Hammond: What a pair.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. I… You know what? Uh, to this day, I can, I can honestly say that it's, it's almost a miracle that we did not lose any child.

Scott Hammond: Well, I, I was gonna be… I was gonna offer up my story 'cause I almost did. I almost lost two,

Scott Hammond: so.

Jose Quesada: During, uh, yeah.

Scott Hammond: So my first job was, uh, uh, up in Trinidad, and I was, uh… Actually, it was the second job. I was a rec leader out in, uh, uh, uh, Blue Lake with Pete Fulks. Remember Peter?

Jose Quesada: Oh, yeah.

Scott Hammond: And that was an interesting experience. So summer rec is perfect for a recreation major. My kids go, "What'd you major in?" "Humboldt." "Well, recreation. What, what's that, Dad? Recess?" I go- … "Yeah, pretty much. It's community building." I like that better.

Scott Hammond: So s- first summer at Blue Lake. Second summer, you get a job in Trinidad as the rec leader, as a supervisor, and don't you know, I had not one, but two accidents. One was a mop bucket, the reclining mop arm came up and broke a girl's tooth out.

Scott Hammond: Oh, shit. And then, you know those fold-in, uh, cafeteria-

Jose Quesada: Tables?

Scott Hammond: … tables that go in the wall? They go back in the wall, but they, they can

Scott Hammond: fall.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, they have w- wheels.

Scott Hammond: Sometimes they can fall backwards on kids. And how would I know that? Well, I pretty much wanted it, the world to fall on me after that. I thought, "You know, my career in rec is over. I've, I've injured two kids."

Jose Quesada: 'Cause-

Scott Hammond: And what they found out, and Pete, I'll, I'll correct, maybe I'll call Wally on this, is the program didn't have proper insurance liability. And as a state farm guy now, I go, "That's an anathema. How did y- how did, how did the, uh- There was no coverage

Jose Quesada: Uh, well, but it's interesting that you should mention that

Scott Hammond: And then they got it

Jose Quesada: Well, that, but those were also the days. Do you remember the, uh, the, the McMartin

Jose Quesada: Preschool?

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: McMartin Preschool where, uh, these, uh, people, the teachers were accused of doing horrible things with kids, et cetera-

Scott Hammond: Sure

Jose Quesada: … et cetera. They were… It should be noted, they were, uh, years later, they were vindicated. Uh, but, uh, but anyways, to get back to that, I re- distinctly remember, uh, running the Manila Recreation program and, uh, and when that happened, the very next summer, something was born. It was called liability insurance. It did not exist.

Scott Hammond: That's a great point.

Jose Quesada: It did not exist before that.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: And now every program, you have an event, you need to have… Uh, now that, that liability insurance was based on that McMartin, but it was just beginning.

Jose Quesada: So the days-

Scott Hammond: Hmm

Jose Quesada: … that you're talking about, I'm not sure if it was like re- people were doing it, but it was still-

Scott Hammond: Oh

Jose Quesada: … uh, but it is interesting 'cause I did not know. They must have had it through Manila West Haven Parent Council.

Scott Hammond: Eventually, they, I think they got it, or if they didn't. But I remember it just being scared to death going, "You know, this, I'm gonna-

Jose Quesada: Yeah

Scott Hammond: … I'm gonna lose my job and my-

Jose Quesada: No, you know

Scott Hammond: … my career. It's over here, baby." You know?

Scott Hammond: Anyway.

Jose Quesada: Any-

Scott Hammond: It's fine

Jose Quesada: … anyone who happens to be hearing this, if you happen to be young or any age, you know, we take ourselves too seriously, and by that I don't mean that to be insulting. I mean that oftentimes we judge ourselves, and guilt comes in and it's-

Scott Hammond: Hmm

Jose Quesada: … horrible, and the reality of it is, is that it's either understandable or no one even paid attention.

Scott Hammond: Fear, fear, shame, and guilt.

Jose Quesada: Ah.

Scott Hammond: The three killers.

Jose Quesada: You know? You know? And I-

Scott Hammond: Oh, it's true

Jose Quesada: … one thing I've always liked about you, Scott, is that, uh, you're very positive. Always very positive.

Scott Hammond: That's true.

Jose Quesada: You will bend over backwards to be positive. I'm going, "What will fluff this guy up?

Jose Quesada: Nothing."

Scott Hammond: Fluff.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, and-

Scott Hammond: Trust me

Jose Quesada: … and, well, I, you're a human being. I know, yeah.

Scott Hammond: Sure.

Jose Quesada: I'm, I know that you're a human being, but, but that spirit, and I don't wanna make a big deal out of it, but that's the spirit that we really all need to have, is more of an acceptance of each other, and this, uh, judgments and, and, and making… Fear is a motivator. People not knowing about other people.

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: That is what is freaking people out, you know?

Scott Hammond: That's true.

Jose Quesada: I won't get political, but fear is, is, is unfortunately something on both sides that is just, it's dividing us.

Scott Hammond: And the war begins again and again and again.

Scott Hammond: Yeah. Sad.

Scott Hammond: And, uh, I wish I, I wish I had answers with you and for you.

Jose Quesada: Well-

Scott Hammond: And for me

Jose Quesada: … the, the best thing that we can do, and I, and, and, and I, it sounds like this is more of a, a glorification of you, but it's your spirit that I think that we need to adopt more.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: And that spirit is, and I need to work on this really badly. I need to work on not being so judgmental.

Scott Hammond: You really do.

Jose Quesada: On not being so reactive.

Scott Hammond: Yeah, yeah.

Jose Quesada: On not-

Scott Hammond: You gotta do something

Jose Quesada: … it just shutting my doggone mouth. And, uh, and, and just, you know, I don't have to say something. You know? What's the, what's the term? It's better to be pleasant than it is to be right.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: Yeah. I like it. And you're right. I, I think what, what possesses us to go, "You just coughed out a big thing of stupid at my dinner table." "I gotta call that out." What, uh, something possesses this old guy to go, "Hey," and I've really had to bite my tongue, shut your pie hole-

Jose Quesada: That's called grace

Scott Hammond: … and just have grace.

Jose Quesada: That's called grace. You know? And grace is, you're not born with grace. Grace is a, is a, it's a, it's a, it's, it's a construct of our mind.

Jose Quesada: We, it is something we decide to do. Now, we may, might have a proclivity to be more graceful with our, our nature, but it's something that we learn, I believe, and it's something that we decide-

Scott Hammond: Are

Jose Quesada: … to do.

Scott Hammond: Well, hopefully when you receive enough, you, you give enough.

Jose Quesada: Well, that's the-

Scott Hammond: And that's, and when you re- rec- when you know how many people have tolerated your butt for your whole lifetime, you better s- step up, buddy. I'm looking in the camera.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. Well, my-

Scott Hammond: I'm looking at all of us going, "It's time to, to kick down some grace."

Jose Quesada: My, uh, my heart goes to those children

Jose Quesada: that-

Scott Hammond: Hmm

Jose Quesada: … for the millions of reasons

Jose Quesada: did not have that opportunity to learn love-

Scott Hammond: Hmm

Jose Quesada: … to learn grace.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Uh, they had

Jose Quesada: more things as a priority, like eating, like shelter-

Scott Hammond: Sure

Jose Quesada: … like, you know, uh-

Scott Hammond: Survival

Jose Quesada: … protecting yourself. And, and it's like, I think, Scott, that we need to care more about the world that we

Jose Quesada: don't see.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: About the world that we don't live in, the world we don't experience. We need to care more-

Scott Hammond: Good word

Jose Quesada: … about these kids that, you know… One thing that I learned while I was working with the county, we're studying the workforce, we're studying the economy, but most homeless people were at one time in the system.

Scott Hammond: Somebody's kid.

Jose Quesada: Somebody's foster kid.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Yes.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And, and it's a whole, that's a, that, that's a generalization, but sta- statistics have been holding it

Jose Quesada: out.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: A large have never had that opportunity to

Jose Quesada: learn, uh, to be literate, to be socially literate, and, uh, and, and to be understanding. But now I'm getting on my soapbox.

Scott Hammond: That's okay.

Jose Quesada: I learned that all from my camera, I tell you.

Scott Hammond: When I-

Jose Quesada: Being able to, uh, capture Humboldt County, I am the luckiest, luckiest man in the world.

Scott Hammond: You are, and, and you're gonna capture some here in a minute as I take a quick break to say, if you're just joining us, or even if you're not, this is my old new best friend, Jose

Scott Hammond: Quesada. And he's, he's really didacting on his heart toward kids, which is magnificent and beautiful.

Scott Hammond: And, um, my son and I were talking about this. He has an, a- an addict friend who's come through drug deals and, uh, crazy background and crazy parenting and, and he's making a life for himself. And he's cool, and he's, he's, he's bucking the odds. And then we know other people of privilege and great love who are total jerks, who, who are

Scott Hammond: not running the football up the field. And, and it's, it's a paradox. So Micah and I, my 20-year-old, were talking about this, who's pretty brilliant.

Scott Hammond: Hey, Micah. And I said, "There's a paradox here that the humankind can overcome crazy odds and can forfeit, take a, a l- a loss out of the jaws of victory pretty easily, too." And it's, it's ki- it's kind of who we are. I mean, you… I, I don't know your background. I'm guessing, uh, similar to me. You know, uh, Southern California, my mom raised me out of nothing, and she made 100 bucks a week, and I always had enough, and I was never in trouble with the law. So there were social gaps in my head and l- upbringing, but not that I'm amazing, but I had enough coaches and love in my life, even albeit late at 18, 17, 18, 19 in the, in the rec programs,

Scott Hammond: and mentors-

Jose Quesada: Mm-hmm

Scott Hammond: … who were lovely and, and modeled, and didn't have to correct me, but gave me grace, but modeled by the beauty of their actions and their lives and their words, who maybe I could be. And maybe I could be that quiet leader that I re- I remember my first leadership move, and then I wanna talk about you. I'm done talking about me. Let's talk about you. Um, it was, it was Patrick's Point. There were 5 million children, and there, it was a shit show. They were crazy. They were yelling, and it was out of control, and I got up, and I stood up on the table. I've never stood up in this podcast before. I've still not. And I stood up, and I stood on the table, and I started doing my mime routine that I learned at Humboldt. Have you seen me do this? It's amazing. I'm so good at it. Anyway, my kids still laugh, and it, and it sh- and it stopped the room.

Jose Quesada: You bet.

Scott Hammond: Nobody… And it was outdoors, and all the cacophony stopped, and I said, "Listen." And, uh, whatever the announcement was. You know, "Get in line. Go, go eat dinner," whatever we were doing. I, who knows? But I go, "I'm gonna step up," and I stepped up, and it was okay, and it was c- it took a risk.

Jose Quesada: I, I tell you, it's that, uh, uh, pushing that line.

Jose Quesada: It's like-

Scott Hammond: And there's guys like you that coached that without knowing it, Pete and Greg, and, "Hey, um, we're not gonna do it. Why don't one of you, uh, peer counselors move off

Scott Hammond: yes-"

Jose Quesada: That's what it was, the peer-

Scott Hammond: Go s-

Jose Quesada: … peer counselors.

Scott Hammond: They were-

Jose Quesada: That's what it was

Scott Hammond: … we were peer counselors. I remember now.

Jose Quesada: That's right.

Scott Hammond: So, uh-

Jose Quesada: That's right

Scott Hammond: … tell us-

Jose Quesada: Oh, my

Scott Hammond: … tell us about your journey. Tell, um, where are you from? Where'd you go to school? How'd, how'd you, who are you, and what do you want?

Jose Quesada: Uh, uh, I was, uh, my mom was, uh, seven months pregnant with me when she arrived from Guatemala.

Scott Hammond: Wow.

Jose Quesada: Uh, my two older brothers were born in Guatemala, and, uh, my dad, uh, uh, w- had been here six months

Jose Quesada: before. Uh, so she flew in, uh, to LA, and I was born at LA General Hospital. I'm the first, uh, gringo of the family, I like to say.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. Nice.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, and then, uh, uh, subsequently, I mean, I've got, uh, uh, uh, three brothers and two sisters. And, uh, we all, uh, lived in San Gabriel, Rosemead, and, uh, went to Catholic school.

Scott Hammond: Nice.

Jose Quesada: Went to Catholic high school, and went to Catholic college for a

Jose Quesada: year.

Scott Hammond: What s- what school?

Jose Quesada: Uh, uh, I went to St. Anthony's Grammar School. I went to San Gabriel Mission High School. That's where Zorro used to hang out.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, I went to, uh, had a scholarship to St. Mary's, a four-year scholarship to St. Mary's College.

Scott Hammond: In-

Jose Quesada: Uh, in, uh-

Scott Hammond: … in LA or?

Jose Quesada: In Moraga.

Scott Hammond: Moraga.

Jose Quesada: In the Bay Area.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Uh, I only lasted a semester. I was only 17 years old. I was way too young.

Scott Hammond: Too young, yeah.

Jose Quesada: You know, I used to be student body president of my high school, and I got decent grades, and I was an okay athlete, so I had a scholarship. But my, uh, I tell you, at 17, not ready. And S- at St. Mary's at that time, I tell you, it was a, uh, it was a all-boys school, and that was the first year that they let women in.

Scott Hammond: Ah.

Jose Quesada: So there was 100 women and 900 men, and it was- … horrible. It made it even horrible for me.

Scott Hammond: That's pretty rough.

Jose Quesada: So, uh, n- I ended up, uh, hitchhiking across the country, uh, for the next, uh, year and a half, and ended up in Humboldt County at

Jose Quesada: age, uh, 19.

Scott Hammond: So the rest of the education was on the road until you-

Jose Quesada: A lot of education on the road.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: I learned how to build a log cabin in Pennsylvania-

Scott Hammond: Wow

Jose Quesada: … lived on a commune, and, uh, learned about gardening and stuff, and, uh, hitchhiked into Humboldt County, and it was a rainy

Jose Quesada: night.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: And I remember spending my first night on the bench of, uh, at College of the Redwoods, brand new community college.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, ironically, about 40 years later, I ended up, uh, doing a class there for, um, uh, the late, um, oh gosh, TV… Oh, gosh.

Scott Hammond: Oh, uh, c- Saint Clair Adams? Oh, the other guy. Was he at Adams, though?

Scott Hammond: He taught-

Jose Quesada: No, he was a, oh gosh, a broadcaster. Gosh, why am I just forgetting his name? I'm embarrassed I can't remember his name right now.

Scott Hammond: We'll think of it in a minute.

Jose Quesada: Uh, but it was, but I ended, ended up doing a class at that same bench right in front and going like, "Oh, cool, I've come a long ways in 40 years."

Scott Hammond: Full circle.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, talking to that class, talking to kids about, "You know what? Don't get hung up on, on, uh, 'I'm not qualified for this,' or, 'I'm not qualified for that.' You're more qualified than you think you are. Transferable skills," I was, enjoyed talking about that. But anyways, uh, uh, I ended up going to College of the Redwoods, ended up going to Hu- Humboldt State University, where I took home economics classes. Now, that's what they called, uh, that's where you would take-

Scott Hammond: Sure

Jose Quesada: … early child education classes.

Scott Hammond: Right, right.

Jose Quesada: And, but they were under home economics, so of course the ratio was wonderful

Jose Quesada: for me.

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: You know, about 20 to 1. But, but, uh, uh, uh, with Susie Warburg, uh, uh, we ended up, uh, uh, uh, uh, opening up the first Head Start preschool. And I stayed-

Scott Hammond: Never heard

Jose Quesada: … in early child education for about, oh, about five years, and then I went into, uh, uh, workforce development and became a summer counselor.

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: And then became a, uh, a supervisor of summer counselors.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And then, uh, started working for, uh, uh, workforce, uh, development, uh, programs and, uh, uh, and then auditing them and, uh, managing projects and with the economic development, kept that going.

Scott Hammond: Is that when you were above the Time Standard in the old Time Standard building?

Jose Quesada: Yeah, that's where I met my wife, uh, Heather Shelton. She was with-

Scott Hammond: Oh, hey, Heather

Jose Quesada: … she's, she's a lot younger than I am. She was one of those young reporters, and I was going-

Scott Hammond: Really?

Jose Quesada: … "Holy moly, is she cute."

Scott Hammond: Yeah. That's okay.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. I was going like, "Oh, yeah." But, uh, uh, but you know, I was a gentleman. I, I was, uh, I offered-

Scott Hammond: Were you?

Jose Quesada: … uh, offered to buy her breakfast once 'cause she told me she had a Snickers bar-

Scott Hammond: Oh

Jose Quesada: … as her breakfast, and that was my opening line. "Is that your breakfast?" And she went, "Yeah."

Scott Hammond: "Can I buy you some food?"

Jose Quesada: But anyways, long story short, stayed with the county. Really happy to stay with the county. I can go, there's so many stories, uh, with the county.

Jose Quesada: But, uh, I left the county because of my, uh, my health. You know, I developed diabetes and, uh, uh, I- I- it was like, uh, falling asleep at work, and you're like-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … "What is going on with my body?" So-

Scott Hammond: Why am I doing that? Yeah

Jose Quesada: … those of you out there that are feeling really tired, really thirsty, go to the doctor.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: So I was able to catch it, and I just quit. Too much stress, but I was able to lose 45 pounds.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Started a music business, uh, with Heather.

Scott Hammond: Oh, really?

Jose Quesada: We've been doing, uh, music with babies for, uh,

Jose Quesada: 16 years.

Scott Hammond: Kinda know that. What, do you guys cut albums or?

Jose Quesada: No, no, no. We, uh, no, no. We do music classes.

Scott Hammond: For babies.

Jose Quesada: We have a, a, a, a With Babies, and, uh, from, our youngest has been 10 weeks old. And most of our are 10 weeks to about three years of age, but the parents bring their children. And we don't even advertise. It's just word of mouth, but we fill up our classes with 15

Jose Quesada: families.

Scott Hammond: So the kids can't get there on their own, like, uh, crawl to your- …

Scott Hammond: your studio?

Jose Quesada: Some kids actually come in their strollers.

Scott Hammond: I, I push it myself.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, so y- we do our classes in Bayside, so some parents live out there, so they love to do that. But no, I tell you-

Scott Hammond: It's a cool place

Jose Quesada: … that is, uh, music with children has been probably for me the thing that in some ways, uh, has saved my life mentally. That's for sure.

Scott Hammond: Wow. Oh.

Jose Quesada: I used to be pretty depressed 'cause I was so stressed, uh, with work.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: Deadlines, state reports-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … federal reports, in-kind matches,

Jose Quesada: auditing-

Scott Hammond: Tripping on all the things

Jose Quesada: … uh, you know, and, and you wanna do a good job, and I'm happy that I did a good

Jose Quesada: job.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: But it's… Now I'm doing my photography, doing music with babies, and, uh, uh, uh, hanging out now with the community again.

Jose Quesada: That's-

Scott Hammond: I like it. Yeah. No, you're pretty relaxed. I think you speak a dialogue that, um, I'll identify and you'll know as soon as I do. Um, there's a dialogue. I'll tell you, I'll, I'll, I'll describe it in a story. We're driving home from church one Sunday. I go, "Joni, what do you think my spiritual gifts are? I'm amazing. Uh, can I preach? I can lead worship. I'm a guitar guy."

Scott Hammond: She goes, "Not really." And I go, "Huh?" She goes, "You're really good with kids, and you're really good with young adults specifically, and your dad was really good in that way."

Scott Hammond: And I go, "Well, well, I, I have nine kids, but I, but I hate kids. I don't even like kids." And I was being a little s- silly.

Jose Quesada: I, I, I hope-

Scott Hammond: But not much

Jose Quesada: … I hope people are listening. He said he has nine children. I've always known this for many years about Scott. Talk about a giving couple. You and Joni, nine children.

Scott Hammond: Nine kids.

Jose Quesada: How old is, how old is your oldest?

Scott Hammond: He's 41, up at Medford.

Jose Quesada: Don't say that 'cause you're bumming me out.

Scott Hammond: 'Cause I'm only 29 inside.

Jose Quesada: He's 41. How old is your youngest?

Scott Hammond: He's 20– He'll be 21.

Jose Quesada: Oh.

Scott Hammond: Can't wait for it.

Jose Quesada: Good for you, man.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Good for you.

Scott Hammond: It's pretty rad. Only child, man. My mom raised me in San Diego, in the hood, which was kind of a new hood. The, the projects were new. Uh, all projects were new at one time, and, and now it's pretty hoody, but- … when we were there, it's like, oh, it's, this is life. It's 100 bucks a month, and Mom works hard, and we go to the beach and party 'cause that's San Diego when you're 12 to 18. It's, it was amazing. Really fun time to live down there. It wasn't like LA, no smog yet.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: But that, back to the dialogue, it's the dialogue and the connection with people that I love about you, and I remember hanging out now, is that you have that, um… And some of y'all have it. It, it's, it's that ability to talk to, um, and connect with people of, of all kinds. I'm convinced that's part of the, the gifting, but it's a developed skill. Social, emotional intelligence- To me equals spiritual intelligence and relational intelligence and connection intelligence and emotional intelligence. And to be able to put that together, uh, you are one well-rounded mofo.

Jose Quesada: Whoa.

Scott Hammond: And so, so, so I would, I would-

Jose Quesada: Well, thank you. I, I… It's hard for me to take compliments, but I will take that

Jose Quesada: one.

Scott Hammond: I mean that. From my heart.

Jose Quesada: I, I, I, I like– I enjoy people that, like you're describing, I, I enjoy people, uh, that can walk into a room and can size it up. I enjoy people that can talk

Jose Quesada: to anybody-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … and immediately be at their level.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: I call that, uh, uh, uh, a, a high social

Jose Quesada: IQ.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: And, uh-

Scott Hammond: I like that

Jose Quesada: … uh, folks that, uh, that can, uh, uh, walk in and kinda size the room out and, and, uh, kind of figure things out and just take it from there.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Ironically, I love hanging out with people, but I am so

Jose Quesada: private.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: I, I cannot tell you how much I enjoy getting up at dawn and just driving somewhere.

Scott Hammond: Nice.

Jose Quesada: Where am I gonna find a nice dawn?

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Or where am I gonna, at the other end of the day, where am I gonna find a nice, you know-

Scott Hammond: A sunset

Jose Quesada: … and it's just my zen. It's my, I'm, I, I am in the moment.

Scott Hammond: That's cool. So you could go either way. Well, and I, I think the social thing is a, as an acquired skill too. You don't– You're not just born with that. You can acquire and get better at a lot of skills, including getting good with people. And I th- I think it starts… W-when you say reading the room, I, I hear I'm gonna get out of my head and I'm gonna go participate joyfully with my main man,

Scott Hammond: Jose. And hang out and at least say hi. He's across at Old Town and I got– I don't know any of these guys, but I know

Scott Hammond: that guy. And he'll be glad to see me, even if it's for 30 seconds- … to high five and a hug and, you know, whatever, what are you up to? And so I think that's the stuff, uh, maybe that's the beginning of the stuff of the reclamation of what we were talking about earlier, of the division and the, the, the us and them Pink Floyd song.

Jose Quesada: Oh.

Scott Hammond: It's all us and them, man. It's, uh, you know, if it wasn't for you guys being weird, we would be okay. And I think that, that head space needs to be dispelled. Joni and I call that getting curious.

Jose Quesada: Getting curious.

Scott Hammond: Let's get curious. Uh, what's, what's that guy thinking? Oh, they're different politically,

Scott Hammond: sexually, racially, economically, fashionably, and what is… What's up? Let's ta- chat. I'm– We're good. I'm– We're good. And okay, that was weird, and that's okay. And I was weird for you. And it, and it's all good, but unless we take that risk-

Jose Quesada: And it is a risk

Scott Hammond: … and build, and build half of the bridge-

Jose Quesada: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Mm-hmm

Scott Hammond: … what, what are we doing? We might as well just go, um, monk it up and go pray in the hills or something. I don't, whatever that… You know, go in a dark room and be alone with-

Jose Quesada: Yeah

Scott Hammond: … with our fear, shame and guilt friends that are ever present, sadly. But we'll talk about that

Scott Hammond: later. Um-

Jose Quesada: Yeah

Scott Hammond: … let's talk about photography. If you're just joining us, my new best friend, Jose Quesada, freelance photographer who happens to be published a lot in the Time Standard.

Jose Quesada: There you have it.

Scott Hammond: How's that? Is that, did I do better?

Jose Quesada: Yeah, yeah.

Scott Hammond: Second time?

Jose Quesada: They've let me, they have let me do, uh, they have let me, given me an entire page for the last almost six years. Every Saturday, they give me an entire pa- uh, photo gallery page. So I've been able to cover so many aspects of Humboldt

Jose Quesada: County-

Scott Hammond: Wow

Jose Quesada: … even during COVID.

Scott Hammond: Wow.

Jose Quesada: Now, that was a challenge 'cause there weren't very many events-

Scott Hammond: Right

Jose Quesada: … and stuff. But it was, uh, uh, still every, uh, week I'd come up with a gallery. That's my favorite part of, uh, uh, my photography, my freelance photography, is being able to m- choose whatever I want, and they, they let me cover it.

Scott Hammond: I like it. I like the way they, this says this. Uh, "Jose Quesada's played a vital role in shaping the, the Time Standard's identity and enriching its storytelling."

Jose Quesada: Is that what A1 is saying?

Scott Hammond: A1, A1… Well, somebody said it.

Jose Quesada: I mean, AI, uh, uh, uh, ar-artificial intelligence is saying?

Scott Hammond: I like this, and this is probably true. "His, his work serves as a bridge between the past, present, and future." Okay, that's cool. "Preserving the essence of life in Humboldt County for generations to come."

Jose Quesada: Oh, man.

Scott Hammond: Wow, that's a pretty tall order.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: You do all that? I thought you just shot photos.

Jose Quesada: I feel like I, I feel like I'm reading a, a, a, a, a fortune

Jose Quesada: cookie.

Scott Hammond: Thank you, AI, for the cookie.

Jose Quesada: It's, uh… Yeah, well, that's very sweet, but, uh, do you remember, uh, uh, what was her name? Linda Goodman's astrology book and stuff, and there were all these generalizations about your sign and stuff-

Scott Hammond: Today you will breathe

Jose Quesada: … and I'd go, "Uh, well, yeah." Or, "Do you happen to like order more than disorder?" You know?

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: Like real insights like that.

Scott Hammond: You're gonna meet people today- … and it's going to be

Scott Hammond: something.

Jose Quesada: They, they may be able to change your life if you're open to it. But one thing I was gonna say that I didn't wanna forget saying that you were describing, uh, talking with Joni and, uh, and curiosity.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: But one thing that, that came to my mind is that I, I believe creativity, and that also comes with photography and what you're choosing, is having an open mind.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: People with an open mind are more apt, in my opinion-

Scott Hammond: Hmm

Jose Quesada: … people with an open mind are more apt to be accepting-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … of different things. Like, okay, okay. A-a-and in photography, if you have an open mind, you don't necessarily-

Scott Hammond: Oh

Jose Quesada: … have to frame, "Oh, my photo has to look like this postcard," or has to look… No, the challenge in photography is, how can I get a different perspective that not everyone sees?

Scott Hammond: Oh.

Jose Quesada: How can I get something that does not just look like a, like a, like a postcard?

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: You know? So that's really the challenge. Now, photojournalism is a little bit different because you're just documenting. In photojournalism, y- I'm, I go for the

Jose Quesada: moment.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: I can't stand

Jose Quesada: posing.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Like, "Hey, will you, will you take a picture of me?" I, I, I will say yes, and then I fake I could take a picture and, you know, like, yeah.

Scott Hammond: I think you've done that with me.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: How many times? Hey, hey, Jose.

Jose Quesada: Oh, I take… Oh, no, no. Oh, no, but I post yours.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: Oh, do you? Okay. Yeah, sure.

Jose Quesada: No, no, no, that's different. No, no, pe-

Scott Hammond: Click, click, click, click.

Jose Quesada: Nah, no. The, the other thing with-

Scott Hammond: It's good

Jose Quesada: … photography is, uh, uh, it, this has happened a little bit more lately, which is people just come up to me and they go, "What are you

Jose Quesada: doing?"

Scott Hammond: Huh.

Jose Quesada: And I go, "Uh, taking photos."

Jose Quesada: "Why?"

Scott Hammond: Huh.

Jose Quesada: And then I get, depending on the mood that I'm in- I won't, I will never be insulting to anybody.

Scott Hammond: You don't have a press badge at this point.

Jose Quesada: Uh, sometimes I do. I do. I do have a-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … I, but sometimes I don't have it on, so it's in my car or whatever, and-

Scott Hammond: So you get interrogated

Jose Quesada: … or it's under my jacket or-

Scott Hammond: "What's up, man? What are you doing here?"

Jose Quesada: Exactly.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: "What are you taking pictures of? Why are you taking pictures?" You know.

Scott Hammond: Huh.

Jose Quesada: And I'm going, you know, and I just try and say, "Well, because I want to."

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: And so, "Well, because it's my right," is when I finally start, you know, like, "It's my right to." They say, "Well, who are you doing it for?" I say, "Well-

Scott Hammond: Hmm

Jose Quesada: … I'm doing it for different people. I'm freelance."

Scott Hammond: Yeah. And, and this is them getting curious.

Jose Quesada: Well, it's them-

Scott Hammond: What sort of-

Jose Quesada: Well-

Scott Hammond: … attitude?

Jose Quesada: Fear.

Scott Hammond: Fear curious.

Jose Quesada: Fear.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Oh, no, no, it's, it's all based on fear. It's like, "Okay, so are you, like…" What I think is happening is, like, "Are you Big Brother?"

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: "Are you the government?"

Scott Hammond: Sure.

Jose Quesada: "Are you the, uh, you know, are you taking pictures of me?" You know, and a lot of people are so egocentric as to think that, oh my gosh, if they take a picture of me, now CNN is going to put it on.

Scott Hammond: Right. Right.

Jose Quesada: That night.

Scott Hammond: It's… Although I have 10,000 on my Facebook page every night.

Jose Quesada: Oh, gosh.

Scott Hammond: Oh my gosh, yes.

Jose Quesada: But it's like, anyways-

Scott Hammond: So dumb

Jose Quesada: … but it's, uh, but, but it's dealing with other people's fears and stuff, and

Jose Quesada: I'll-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … always be respectful.

Scott Hammond: Sure you are.

Jose Quesada: But it's like, but that happens a lot in photo, and these days is the distrust. I'm going like-

Scott Hammond: Crazy.

Jose Quesada: It is. I go, "What, don't you realize that every single person here has a little camera on their phone?"

Scott Hammond: Yeah, and you use yours on the regular, and no one ever asks you about that. Hey, I got a great idea. Ready? It's time in the show where we, uh, win you-

Jose Quesada: Oh

Scott Hammond: … one of these, an emery board from State Farm.

Jose Quesada: An emery board?

Scott Hammond: Yeah, and a Dutch Bros. coffee. Do you drink coffee?

Jose Quesada: Yes, I, my gosh, yes.

Scott Hammond: Well, it could be your lucky day.

Jose Quesada: Do I drink coffee?

Scott Hammond: So, uh, we're gonna talk to you about, uh, first question, question number one, Jose Quesada for all the money. Top three stories of

Scott Hammond: a photo journey that went crazy, an event where you saw something pretty wacky, pretty wild, pretty out of the normal.

Jose Quesada: I'm covering a, uh, a, a gunman who is holed up in his house in Fortuna.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, I have to give props to, uh, Mark McKenna,

Jose Quesada: who, who gave me the courage.

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: Like, this is how you deal with it.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: You're a photojournalist.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: So anyways, I'm in Fortuna covering this, and I'm going, "They're not letting me in. I can't get close to anything," and I, all I wanna do is get a shot of cops close to the house.

Jose Quesada: I just want-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … something, an image I can take back. And so, uh, uh, again, Mark McKenna kinda showed me, like, sometimes you can take another way to get to what you wanna do.

Scott Hammond: And Mark's a photographer as well?

Jose Quesada: Uh, yes. Uh, Mark McKenna, he's a, uh, a longtime photographer. He's a professor at Humboldt State now.

Scott Hammond: Right, right. Okay.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, uh, and he does a lot of work for, uh, Lost Coast Outpost, I believe.

Scott Hammond: You meant to say Cal Poly.

Jose Quesada: I went to Humboldt State University.

Scott Hammond: I like it. That, that's what I do, old school. It's, hey, it's Humboldt State. Don't worry about it.

Jose Quesada: So, uh, anyways, I, uh, I go, "Well, I'm gonna go around the block. I'm gonna go up through this field. I'm gonna go up from the back of the house." And, ah, and, ah, there's nobody here, and I'm going, "Right on." I go right… And I'm walking about 40 yards in this field, and around the corner about, oh, God, a dozen. A dozen. A, a dozen is a lot. It was a lot- … of, uh, these cops in

Jose Quesada: full SWAT-

Scott Hammond: Regalia

Jose Quesada: … with their guns pointing at me, and-

Scott Hammond: Oh, no

Jose Quesada: … "Get out of here. What are you doing?"

Scott Hammond: Oh.

Jose Quesada: And I'm like, "Whoa."

Scott Hammond: My camera, my camera.

Jose Quesada: Just, "Well, I got a picture of them." They said, "Okay, all right." I'm going, but I went click, click, you know?

Scott Hammond: Crazy.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. If you got, if you're there at the moment, you gotta take it.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: You gotta take it.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: And so I did. So I got a picture of a SWAT team with their guns up and stuff, you know, like I'm, "Well, this is what it would look like," you know?

Scott Hammond: Did these, did they all do this?

Jose Quesada: Yeah. Oh, you're on, oh, we're on video now, aren't we?

Scott Hammond: Yeah. Yeah.

Jose Quesada: Oh my gosh. Yeah, that's right.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: Yeah, the video's right-

Jose Quesada: No, they didn't

Scott Hammond: … right up here.

Jose Quesada: No. No, they were, they were a little upset at me, but, uh, but I did have my press

Jose Quesada: pass then.

Scott Hammond: And they didn't arrest you or shoot you, so that's good.

Jose Quesada: Uh, no, but they did order me out, but I got my shot.

Scott Hammond: Yeah. Kind of a little war zone deal.

Jose Quesada: Uh, it was, yeah. Yeah, I got shot, uh, uh, I got a shot, uh, of cops, uh, uh, waiting, you know, with their guns up and stuff. But again, it's just the image that I'm going for so people have an idea-

Scott Hammond: Yeah, what's going on

Jose Quesada: … of what's going on, and this is kind of-

Scott Hammond: Yeah

Jose Quesada: … what it looks like.

Scott Hammond: Good.

Jose Quesada: I can fast-forward to, uh, last, uh, weekend.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Uh, uh, I was taking pictures of the, uh, No King demonstrations. You know, the, uh, newspaper will ask me if I will take a photo. Being freelance-

Scott Hammond: Sure

Jose Quesada: … I can say no.

Scott Hammond: Sure.

Jose Quesada: But I said yes. And I said, "Sure, I'll take a s- what they call a standalone. Just give us a standalone."

Scott Hammond: Sure.

Jose Quesada: And so I go there, and I take a few pictures, you know, one that they'll t- use for a standalone. And as I'm leaving, I was parked on the side street facing the courthouse. I believe that is, uh,

Jose Quesada: H-A-

Scott Hammond: I-

Jose Quesada: … H-I-J, J Street, I believe. And, uh, it is J Street. And, uh, uh, facing the courthouse, and I was leaving. I was saying I got my pictures, and As I was leaving, the demonstration was still full force. I turned right and I realized there is no car in front of me. And I look in my rear window, in my

Jose Quesada: rear mirror-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … and I see the crowd of what was an empty street at that moment converge-

Scott Hammond: Oh

Jose Quesada: … on Highway 101.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: And so I went, "Oh my God, I am the only car on this road. I have a camera, and I have a ladder in the back of my truck."

Scott Hammond: That's right, you carry your ladder.

Jose Quesada: Oh, yeah.

Scott Hammond: You had that at the-

Jose Quesada: Yeah, but-

Scott Hammond: At the-

Jose Quesada: When you're only 5'10"-

Scott Hammond: … Kinetic Race

Jose Quesada: … when you're only 5'10", you know you're lying 'cause you're really 5'9".

Scott Hammond: That's right.

Jose Quesada: But it's, uh… No, I need my ladder. But anyways, it was such a unique opportunity, saying, "Oh my

Jose Quesada: God-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … they have just closed US 101."

Scott Hammond: And you got a nice aerial of that.

Jose Quesada: I got on top of my ladder-

Scott Hammond: Time-Standard ran that photo. I think it's, uh-

Jose Quesada: Oh, front page

Scott Hammond: … colorful.

Jose Quesada: 'Cause it's a real weird angle, 'cause y- y- I… You're able to get a lot more depth.

Scott Hammond: 'Cause you're right on the highway-

Jose Quesada: Ah

Scott Hammond: … up and down.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, and then I realized there were two cops that were looking at me on side streets.

Scott Hammond: Right.

Jose Quesada: They left me alone. Eureka Police Department did a magnificent job.

Scott Hammond: Heard that.

Jose Quesada: Magnificent job-

Scott Hammond: EPD, shout out

Jose Quesada: … keeping the order. They, EPD told-

Scott Hammond: Brian, Captain Brian Stevens, man

Jose Quesada: … I stopped my truck in the middle of US 101, pulled out a ladder, took a picture, put the ladder back in, and they left me alone. Of course, I noticed them afterwards. I don't know if they-

Scott Hammond: They probably, well, they, they probably know you. Some of… Brian would know you.

Jose Quesada: Maybe. I don't know.

Scott Hammond: Oh, you're at enough events. Okay, question two.

Jose Quesada: I'm a yucker.

Scott Hammond: Surpri- surprising, embarrassing, crazy event besides, you know, being Jimmy Olsen cub reporter out at, uh, Old Town. Did what, what-

Jose Quesada: Em- embarrassing?

Scott Hammond: Uh, what went really well-

Jose Quesada: Everything

Scott Hammond: … or poorly or-

Jose Quesada: Oh, went, oh, something that went weird?

Scott Hammond: Something really surprising.

Scott Hammond: Was there…

Jose Quesada: Something that went weird. Uh-

Scott Hammond: Well, you-

Jose Quesada: Well, I've, I, I've gotta say that when I was covering, um, the, uh, occupation at Hu- at Cal Poly Humboldt-

Scott Hammond: Right

Jose Quesada: … uh, a little over a year ago, about a year, about 15 months ago, uh-

Scott Hammond: So you were on campus during that?

Jose Quesada: I was covering for New York Times.

Scott Hammond: Rad. Okay.

Jose Quesada: I was covering for… I, uh, I got three days of coverage in New York Times. But, uh, uh, um, as did, uh, I believe a couple… There might have been another. But anyways, um, when I was there, uh, the day after the police raid, the day… I was there before and taking everything before, and I spent the night in my car waiting for the raid-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … that I knew was gonna come, and sure enough, I was sleeping when it happened, 'cause they did it like at 3:00 in the morning or something.

Scott Hammond: Really late, yeah.

Jose Quesada: And so the next morning at 7:00, I got up, and I started walking to the campus, and, uh, the cops would not let me in. And at the time, I wish I would've known what I

Jose Quesada: know now.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Uh, because I asked them, "Has this been declared a crime scene?"

Scott Hammond: Hmm.

Jose Quesada: 'Cause I knew enough that if it had not been declared a crime scene, they really can't stop me from going in.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: It's public.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, they hesitated. They hemmed, they hawed. And I, frankly, it's like you pick your battles. You know, I'm going, "Well-

Scott Hammond: It's like-

Jose Quesada: … you know, uh, it's not like I, it's gonna be the end of the world if I don't get this picture."

Scott Hammond: Right, and these guys have been up all night.

Jose Quesada: And these were the Arcata police. These guys were local.

Scott Hammond: But they're, they're cooler, yeah.

Jose Quesada: Yeah, well, right, but, well, they… And, but, uh, no, I was covering, and the police covering, they were not local. They were from out of the area.

Scott Hammond: Oh, there was hundreds.

Jose Quesada: It was, it was ugly. It was ugly.

Scott Hammond: These guys came from all over the state.

Jose Quesada: But the guys were local. They're gonna… I'm not gonna hassle them. But, uh-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … uh, but I did take my time leaving. Uh, they escorted me out, but I would stop and take a picture, and they would let

Jose Quesada: me.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: They gave me their names. They gave me their badge numbers, which they're actually obligated to do.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: But, but, uh, uh, you kind of let it go. But that was, that was kinda creepy. I wish, Scott, that I would've held my

Jose Quesada: ground, 'cause I had a New York Times lawyer I could have called at that moment, but it was just like I was being flush with all kinds of things.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: So that was a weird photography moment for sure.

Scott Hammond: So you gotta be on your feet at all times.

Jose Quesada: You gotta be at your feet. You gotta be respectful.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Uh, uh, especially with kids, you gotta be

Jose Quesada: respectful.

Scott Hammond: Sure.

Jose Quesada: Um, uh, with kids, I, I will sometimes get either do one of two things: take the picture, 'cause it's gotta be candid, and then go get the permission from the parent.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And if the parent doesn't like it-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … which it doesn't happen very often, I delete it in front of them.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm. Got it.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, or if I go to schools, if I take… I always go to the principal's office. "Okay, which kid can I…" You know, you gotta have-

Scott Hammond: That's cool

Jose Quesada: … you gotta have that respect.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: You gotta have that.

Scott Hammond: With you on that. The, um, last question. You got a whole day to take Heather to do whatever you wanna do in Humboldt. I write the check. You go do it. What are you, what are you gonna do for 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM? Eat out, the whole nine.

Scott Hammond: Uh, go. For all… This is for all the money, by the way.

Scott Hammond: This is for all the coffee beans.

Jose Quesada: For, uh… This is, this is the… We're talking a lot of coffee beans here, right?

Scott Hammond: There could be a lot in here.

Jose Quesada: Well, I tell you, I would start my, uh, I would start the day, uh, helping Heather at the stables, uh, at the horse stables. That's my, uh, that's how I start my mornings is it's, it's… I'm, I'm earning my mucking merit badge.

Scott Hammond: I bet you are.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, and then go to Gil's-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … by the bank.

Scott Hammond: Nice.

Jose Quesada: And have really good breakfast there. And then, uh, we like to… What we like to do is go to the casino after the Satur- after a Saturday night.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: It's like Sunday afternoon and stuff, we'll go in.

Scott Hammond: Nice.

Jose Quesada: 'Cause we figure there's, that, uh, all the losers have put their money in and we're gonna win big.

Scott Hammond: Oh, I see.

Jose Quesada: So we'll do that, but we, we only take 20 bucks.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: Put 20 bucks in and-

Scott Hammond: How's that working so far?

Jose Quesada: We have done pretty doggone good.

Scott Hammond: Good.

Jose Quesada: We have done pretty doggone good.

Scott Hammond: Nice.

Jose Quesada: Uh, uh, that's a whole nother set of stories. And, and then, uh, uh, take our dogs, our two kids.

Jose Quesada: We don't-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … we don't have kids, but we've got our two dogs, a 15-year-old and a two-year-old, take them, uh, to the river.

Scott Hammond: Nice.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, uh, probably have a couple of beers there. She won't drink, but I will.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, then go to the Benbow Inn.

Jose Quesada: Uh-

Scott Hammond: Man, you got a whole thing. I like it

Jose Quesada: … have dinner, spend the night.

Scott Hammond: Winner, winner.

Jose Quesada: But you know what? I'm gonna be drinking-

Scott Hammond: Benbow Inn

Jose Quesada: … Dutch coffee, coffee beans the entire time 'cause it's gonna keep… The Du- Dutch Brothers Coffee the entire-

Scott Hammond: Ladies and gentlemen, the winner, winner, chicken dinner. So while you, while you shoot a photo of, of Dick and I, if that's okay with

Scott Hammond: Dick.

Jose Quesada: Absolutely.

Scott Hammond: Could you, can you answer me one last question? Not last. What, what do, what do you wanna be remembered for, Jose? What's, what's your legacy, celebration of life, tombstone if you got one? What would you, what would you-

Jose Quesada: You know, when I moved to Humboldt County, um, I was 17 and, and I fell in love… I was 19, and I fell in love with Humboldt County. And I was kinda poor. I, I hitchhiked my first couple years here and

Jose Quesada: stuff.

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, I always said, "God, I hope I can, I hope I can stay here."

Scott Hammond: Huh.

Jose Quesada: And, uh, and to me, uh, even though I'm, I'm proud of the 30 years work that I did with, uh, economic development and workforce development and, and proud of the work that, that we did, I, I tell ya-

Scott Hammond: Mm-hmm

Jose Quesada: … Scott, living in Humboldt County and being able to photograph somewhere that is so content rich, and I mean from the nature to people.

Scott Hammond: Yeah.

Jose Quesada: You know? So, we are so rich.

Scott Hammond: It's true.

Jose Quesada: Uh, I wanna be known as, "Hey, that's the guy that, uh, documented Humboldt County."

Scott Hammond: He saw it. He saw it.

Jose Quesada: Yep.

Scott Hammond: Oh, he's… He helped us see it.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. Yep.

Scott Hammond: Yeah. I like it, man. Like a guide.

Jose Quesada: Yeah. I've, I've just, I just re- rediscovered that I've got about 15 years worth of photojournalism photos that I have not even opened since I-

Scott Hammond: It's a col-

Jose Quesada: … they were published.

Scott Hammond: It's a collection, bro.

Jose Quesada: Anyways, thank you, Scott.

Scott Hammond: Appreciate it. Thanks for coming.

Jose Quesada: Yeah.

Scott Hammond: You wanna shoot a photo of me while we-

Jose Quesada: Absolutely

Scott Hammond: … sign off? So I'll, I'll let you shoot while I just keep talking. Hey, uh, thanks for joining us, 100% Humboldt podcast, with my special best friend, who's actually shooting the photos.

Jose Quesada: Where's your partner?

Scott Hammond: Oh, there's Dick over there. Shoot Dick if he wants it. And, uh, would you like us? Would you, uh, uh, come and visit us on YouTube and all of these socials? And, uh, make comments that are positive hopefully. And, uh, come on back next week where we're gonna talk to you about the movers and shakers, the difference makers in Humboldt County on the 100% Humboldt

Scott Hammond: podcast

Scott Hammond: with your new best friend, Scott Hammond. Thanks for coming. Appreciate you, brother.

Jose Quesada: You're the dude. You're the dude