Not done
Sign – in 14 languages. Are there universal signs? You know, signs that will start a fight in any country? What’s with the glass skulls? – healing, psychic abilities, and power over death. Oh. Aha! Old phone, old clock, gotta have one. Got one?!
And, Ruth Lyons? Never heard of her…the owner of the booth gave Colleen a long rundown on her career. Longgg…explanation. Who’s Ruth? The group album – in the middle – duh! But I found another album with just her a few booths later. Hmmm, popular in her time, so quickly forgotten.
Old stuff
Patience. If you are patient and wait antiques will present themselves at a “right” price. Old camera? Argus C3, my mother had one. It was the first camera I used when I won the Golden Horseshoe in West Virginia and took utterly bad BxW photos at the event. I had no clue how to use the camera. So old, the camera is not worth much, hence it must be bargain priced to consider purchasing.
Just about anything old can be found. A gas pump? Thank goodness we never collected rolling pins. Old violin. Our granddaughter has begun playing… Tea pots, beer steins, Santa, old European phone…?
Typewriter?…looks like elephant ears. I have to admit I like a bargain. I like the thrill of the find. And I am thoroughly bemused that one might wake up in the morning and say, “Let’s go out and buy an old gas pump today!” No no, Budweiser steins are not particularly collectable. West German steins are more commonly admired. Everything has an audience and a buy it would seem. Yes, there was a booth with many empty beer cans. Ugh!
Typewriter? I have never seen one the likes of this one. Ebay? Internet? Sure, probably easy to find. Ha ha. They are called “bat wing” style – two, right now, on Ebay. Don’t miss out!?
Indulge
Antique stores are indulgence. You don’t need anything. And heavens knows we do not! We are not minimalists as our kids are. It’s embarrassing. Beer steins? We collect them. We adhere to a price point. A low price point ensures that we go home with few steins. And yet, we still have to many on the shelves. Typewriter? No! I got the one that I typed my college term papers; it’s enough! Nope, room for one more… A clock…how quaint. It works! Empty or full, no Coke bottles. Nope! Perhaps it’s better if we do not walk into an antique store. It’s sport. There is an element of gambling. There is the thrill of the “find!” Sometimes you win. Often you don’t. It’s nostalgia. There is no admission and no cost to “look.” And then…be careful of indulging a whim.
Signs
Context. It gives me orientation of location without going to the database. It amazes me that I can take so many pictures and not have a keeper among them. Oh sure there are some nice ones. You delete? Go ahead. I don’t. Memory is cheap. All that clutter? It’s the price I pay. Looking back this is the reason Lightroom gives you rating stars. And my “0” stars are still there to be puzzled over. What was I thinking? Why did I take that shot? And why did I not get a better one?
Got baskets?
Colleen likes baskets. Practical. They hold things. Duh!
As art, they can cost a pretty penny. Decorative? Utilitarian? Yes.
We started with one, two, and…. it grew. It’s way better for the environment than plastic bins. Yeah, we got (plastic) them too. Here’s a new one we have not seen before. A lamp. It was clever. But it was fully purposed as the hanger was from metal rod made with a lamp in mind. No, we did not buy it. Yet. Nooooo! Too many baskets!
Friendship cake
Colleen recalled an old recipe that she had had a lot of fun with many years ago. It is called 30 day cake on the internet. It takes 50 if you have to make the starter. And so we embarked on a 50 day cake after our trip to Maine. We bought a crock. It was the container that triggered Colleen’s memory recipe. The mashed fruit was stirred once a day for…and finally we had a starter and two cakes worth of fruit. Fruit cake? Nope! Different! Good?! Hmmm, emphasis on good!!
And, of course, ya gotta have a friend. Friendship? After 50 days you have the fruit ingredients plus starter for future cakes. You share the starter and hence the term friendship. Lovely. It’s good to have friends.
Whoa!
Sometimes?! We are at the Christmas chorale and the choir lines up in the right and left aisle to sing the finale. The auditorium is dim. I glance right and do a double take. Did my eyes deceive me? Ok! I’m impressed. I’m puzzled. What is it? A speaker? Some device for hearing? What!? The internet says it can be done but give no comparable example. I would guess it is a wooden ring. Ok! To each his own.
Street photography. I got a shot. I never saw the guy on stage. I do not know if there is a matching disc on the other side.
Acquisition
Since we are only recently found and married together Colleen and I have a lot of decades to make up for. We both bring things to the marriage and we both are still in the acquisitive stage. For instance: Christmas.
Thank goodness we do not collect everything. But at about this time of year we haunt antique stores for Santa figures. Recently Colleen admired carolers. Too expensive $$. Then we got some in an estate sale. Cheap! And now we are acquiring them. It seems they jump out and the price is too low to resist. We do not collect nutcrackers. Nativity scenes? Nope. Not them either. Vintage mixing storage bowls – would you believe the price? Hundreds of $$ for a set. No way!! Too expensive for us. Ha ha! We do not like nor need them. Blue Willow pattern porcelain – yup. Music Christmas boxes – on occasion. And our home? It’s cozy and getting more cozy after each trip to the antique store. Ah! And it is always a photo-op.
How many
You would think I am obsessed with numbers.
At an event, my attention is upon the action. I try to capture the event as it unfolds. I do not know the order or what will come next. I am alert to random movements and out of the ordinary motion. I am looking at color and composition putting it all together to try to capture a “winner” “keeper” of an image. Editing comes later. Which one? We love all of our children. Eh?
How many is enough? And, “you already have that shot….” Subtle differences. One shot would have been enough. Sure! But, which one?
Digital memory has given me so many options. I could certainly afford all the film I needed. But these days digital memory is so easy. Yes, there is some skill involved in knowing when to press the shutter. I am happy to say that I consider myself above average. Not great. Not bad. Does it matter? It’s for me. And my most adoring audience, my muse – Colleen – loves my posts.
Fill time
It is a rare day that goes by without me taking pictures. Subject? Ah! Cats and flowers… they are available and do not object too much. Seven cats – only a few are cooperative. The rest avoid me.
Take a picture just to take a picture? Umm, I consider it a challenge. Get a technically sound image with some wrinkle in detail – water – that is a bit out of the ordinary.
Busy time activity? Boredom? Warding away the doldrums of retirement? Ha! Colleen fills her time with reading. For me, there are only so many times I can hit the refresh button on the NY Times.
Subject
It’s a hobby fer cris sakes! It’s pretty simple. I shoot what is around me. Family, birds, flowers, cats…. Easy. Edit. Choose. Blog and then post. You have no doubt guessed that I have/had a lot of cameras. I do not much collect old ones. I have lost cameras in various ways. I managed to “fry” on underwater even. Note: salt water is bad for camera electronics. There are even some times when Colleen uses my camera.
Subject? The only caveat to note is that I have cameras in multiple rooms and drive with one in the pocket or on the dashboard. And, still we miss opportunities now and again.
Muse
I wonder why I blog? Not too much. But… ego? Show off? Do I need to share? Am I needing accolade?
It started a while back as a suggestion from cousin Amy. It has lasted. Occasionally, there are mentions from my family and friends. “Likes” and “comments” here are appreciated. Of course!
Colleen! Yes! My muse. She is the current driving force. Ginny commented that things got a lot more personal when Colleen entered my life again. Sure. It was always in me from freshman college English. I could/can always write. But the personal side… that is/was guarded.
Meanwhile, beauty and wonder are all around. I marvel at the images my camera will produce. I do not consider myself an artist in the “drawing/painting” sense. But I enjoy documenting my life. I am creating a legacy while capturing life as it unfolds for me and for Colleen. Lately, I’ve begun to wonder how legacy carries on. Not too many people use telegraph or horseback these days. Do you still have a hard line phone?
As ever, I remain fascinated at the detail my camera lens can capture.
Quick
2019. Three years. It ain’t over. There are still statistics for deaths and hospitalizations. We are largely unmasked. Some places persist. Our vet. Our doctor. Halcyon Yarn store, Maine. Olsen House, Farnsworth Museum. Not much else. We are fortunate not to have had Covid though many family and friends have not been so lucky.
Over? Not so quick. Shots?! They worked for us so far. Colleen and I had the worst colds in years after our recent trip to ME and CA. Related? We cannot be sure. It took a long time to eat out again but we are not worried to much at the moment.
Quick? It took a few moments to find mask pictures in my catalog. Gee! I take a lot of pictures… most without masks.
Mixed memories
Old slides. On her 40th (b’day), I took lisa to London. It was a grand gesture. I had recently left my group medical practice to go on my own. It was a scary time. And about that time we were in Disney as the slides indicate. Apparently, I was mad at the mother in law – a sweet lady who had done nothing to deserve… lisa had always had issues (Freudian). Lila was traveling with Ann who took the picture explaining the group shot of the family in London. Confused? Me too.
Aside from the horse guards, the London bus is pretty assuredly a London tip off. An aside – Dave carried around a pig, a stuffed pig, everywhere we went on that trip. He spoke to the pig. I never did figure that one out. And he has never mentioned nor told me what was in his head. I never saw the pig again when we returned. I am puzzled to this day over the fact that my usual generosity was absent and we did not share a single meal with Lila or Ann when we met in London. It was a most strange encounter of the family kind.
Ski
I’m cheap. I have money. The reason? I spend it wisely. 200. $200 a lift ticket? Per person per day?! And lines! How about waiting an hour on the lift line? No parking in the parking lot? Ummmm….if you are a skier, you know what it is to…
No! No one I know would do it. And still. it looks like millions get on long lines and pay for the lift ticket and a $20 burger. Awful! Improvements are coming. No lines. Plenty of parking. Right?! Two lift tickets – you gotta have a buddy – $400. Ah! Free parking. I think I will pass.
Back up
Describe in a few words how you back up your photos –
Ha ha. Multiply redundant hard drives. I currently use five. Count ‘em, five! Hard drives fail. Cloud? Nope. It could go away tomorrow. It goes, you are outta luck. Database. Ya gotta keep a written record of where what is. Funny? Try Scotland, we were there when? Yes, you can search Scotland and find out “when” in a few seconds after typing in the key word. It’s not hard. It doesn’t take long. And I thank myself every day for keeping track of where my stuff is. And then, it still ain’t easy. Back your stuff up. All I did was search “copy a.” Look what I got!?
Religion
We are neither of us religious, Colleen nor me. We are lapsed Presbyterians. Yes, we attended the same Sunday school in the same church in different classes. (Somewhere back around the sixth grade.) Girls and boys were separate – different stories, lessons? We are in churches all the time. I pray: “Oh God, get me outta this one…” Colleen meditates. Church is good for birth, death, and marriages, Lisa once observed. I was married by a judge, and then, later, by a Presbyterian minister. Go figure. I am scheduled? to be buried in a ghost church cemetery. Don’t ask. Dead is dead. I don’t much care what is done. Let my loved ones be at peace with their decisions and wishes. I wish them serenity in their thoughts. Symbolism, beauty, grace… all are found within a church.
Antique
Antique – older than 100 years old. Vintage – older than 1999. Antique – anything old…
Hey, we are old! Antiques?!
Ladies Home Journal 1898 issue, that would be old, vintage, and antique. I’m impressed that it sold for as little as we paid. But, then again, who’s heard of the magazine, much less who wants an old copy?
I remember mine. Colleen remembers hers. Each other’s parents. They were born after 1900. 10, 20’s? It’s a number. It is abstract. And we approach the same relative to our grandchildren. Sadly, my brother has not yet seen his grandchild. Life is never simple. Age is not just a number. Hug the one you’re with.
Strictly speaking
Diving is an activity limited to a few fortunate people in Saudi Arabia. Once again it occurs behind closed gated compound walls. It is the Red Sea for goodness sake! Nope. Not allowed! Somewhere else I described my encounter with the police and the order of the blue thumb.
Women are distinctly a minority. They must be covered at all times – unless you are behind closed doors outside of the view of the religious police. Lessons. Our surgical assistants all received lessons compliments of the orthopedic chief surgeon. There is much beauty and wonder beneath the sea. My friend/dive buddy related to me recently that much of the reef has been destroyed. Once again ignorance – lack of common respect for the fragility of nature was in play. His beloved reef was gone.
Disconnected
Myelomenigocele. It is a neurosurgically treated birth disorder that is largely preventable by Folic acid (vitamin) taken during pregnancy. I had not seen a case in decades until I worked in Saudi Arabia. I lived in a walled compound with guards. The poverty rate? The government hides its data but estimates of 30% unemployment are noted.
Needless to say it was shockingly sad to be treating a condition that was preventable by simple measures taken early in pregnancy.
In this land knowledge mixed with ignorance. I lived in a walled compound separated from the very people I treated in so many ways more than the mere presence of a wall. Yes, it came with a pool. My hospital was no clinic. It was an upscale hospital in busy downtown with a well to do patient population. It meant the general population had poor health care knowledge.
Madhouse
Chinese New Year – New York City. Venerable Chinatown is located in a warren of narrow winding streets. The parade will meander thru crowds held back by metal barriers. Claustrophobic! Indeed! Colorful! For sure! It’s a spectacle. No Macy’s sponsorship it is a local event. Out in the hinterland of Flushing Queens there is a similar parade along Union Street, a wide venue lacking the charm and character of downtown Chinatown.
Copy
I
went
back
Look up – search – “copy” on the hard drive. Hmmm. Hole in the head, not hole in the wall…. It seems that we shot a lot of group shots of our cats. Brilliant?! The years are different but seem to be annual more recently. I get the idea to do it again in November. It works. I guess I shall do it again and again. Meanwhile, the shots are ever more precious. They remind us of love found and love lost. Cats may come and go but they are ever in our hearts. We are so lucky to be together, one and all.
About a year
Three. Five. Seven. Six. Seven. Eight. Seven. We have gone thru many iterations of the number of cats in our house. Numbers five and seven were pairs. They grabbed me in the pet store and latched on to my sleeve until I relented and took them home. Yeah, softie! We lost Patch. Tillie came home until Colleen discovered the next day that Peas was her sister left behind. Eight! Following me? And, then we lost Ray. No more cats. I am used to feeding seven cats. Seven is a lucky number. Don’t ask. I have litter boxes on three levels of the house in four spots with a wooden gated barrier to separate warring factions. What have I/we done? Happy family? Oh yeah!!
Seven cats. Count ’em. Tillie and Peas got extras (pics). It’s their birthday. Our merry band has changed… wish that it weren’t so. Confusion reigns. Try to remember, who got fed, where?
Gee
Sometimes I surprise myself. I did that?!
Vent cover. I never heard of them. I took them for granted. I never look at them. You can buy them. It’s better than the old metal one. Ah! Finish?! You gotta do it yourself. Really?! I did that?! Yup! I finished it to match. Myself. Not bad. Yes, the cats were curious at every step. There is some skill involved. Ha! Undaunted. Edges, sill, vent, nail gun, oh my! Easy! Right! I gotta say… don’t try this at home. (Wink!)
I also gotta say that I took pictures as I went along. Gee, everything deserves a picture….
photobackstory 