A Scenic World

Day Seven: “The Christmas Song” by The Raveonettes

I told you I was decorating in brown this year.

Day Six: “Valley Winter Song” by Fountains of Wayne

Today…

Today I took photos.

Today I sang at the top of my lungs in my car and my friend in the passenger seat didn’t object.

Today I had an unexpected lunch with an old friend.

Today I had an expected drink with an older friend.

Today I laughed so hard I’m sore.

Today I drove down dirt roads.

It was a good day.

Some other photos:

Day Five: “Winter Wonderland” by Phantom Planets

After a few nights of restless sleep, I knew I should go to bed early last night, but I had reached an enthralling part of Philip Roth’s The Human Stain. So I stayed up until I’d finished the tawdry episode. The last lines I read before turning out the lights proved to be telling: “He thought the same useless thoughts - useless to a man of no great talent like himself, if not to Sophocles: how accidentally a fate is made…or how accidental it all may seem when it is inescapable.”

It was apparently inescapable that I would not get some sleep. I awoke early this morning to my phone ringing. One of my friends had dialed me by mistake! Unfortunately, once I wake up, I’m up. But luckily I immediately remembered that Mike had let me borrow his IR filter yesterday, and I hadn’t had a chance to play with it! The day was saved.

I brushed my teeth and set off immediately to see if I could get any good light before the sun rose too high. I criss-crossed the streets of my too charming neighborhood with an “oldies” mix playing on my trusty iPod. Let me tell you, there is no better way to spend a morning than to stroll down a sun-dappled street with the scent of magnolia trees in the air and Etta James in the background.

I ended up at the park I always go to, and it was amazingly empty - not even the usual shirtless homeless guy was there (after yesterday’s fiasco, I really wasn’t looking forward to explaining what I was doing, particularly since I didn’t know what I was doing with the IR filter). I tried the filter on all my lenses and took some laughably bad self-portraits. Of course, I did have one I liked. Thank God that’s all I need!

Day Four: The Ventures’ “Frosty the Snowman”

I had a great plan for this photo. It’s been around 80 degrees here the last week or so. So I was going to get a chocolate snowman and take a photo of him melting in the foreground while I frolicked in summer clothing in the background. Brilliant, right?

Regardless of the plan, it was completely and utterly thwarted. First, as soon as I woke up, I heard that the heat was on. When I went outside to see what the temperature was like, I realized that not only was it NOT in the 80’s, it was cold enough to need a sweater and a coat.

I donned both and headed for the convenience store down the block to purchase my chocolate snowman. Of course they didn’t have any. I opted for a marshmallow one and walked back.

I REALLY wasn’t looking forward to going outside in summer gear in the cold, so I procrastinated for as long as possible. Finally, I forced myself into the cold, carrying snowman (obviously), camera, tripod, a box of stationary to set the snowman on in the grass, and some bubbles (the frolicking part).

I commenced to set up the shot with the camera on the ground. While I was in the process of doing so, no fewer than EIGHT PEOPLE walked away from the sidewalk and into my yard to ask me what I was doing. EIGHT! No one had ever asked me before, except for my next-door neighbor, who comes outside to talk to me any time she hears my door open, and the little three-year-old across the street, who usually just yells at me from the window.

Who are these people who would WALK INTO SOMEONE’S YARD to talk to them while they’re obviously busy doing something? Seriously! I walk a good bit, and I see people in their yards, and I JUST KEEP WALKING.

I was pretty annoyed by the last one, plus I was freezing, so I just went inside. Of course, I still had to take a shot and post something, so I went outside and took this rather silly photo. It has none of the original elements I’d planned and none of the artistry. Ah, well. Time for work!

Day Three: Princeton’s “Where’s My Christmas Morning”
*Note to Mom and anyone else easily offended [no offense, Mom]: You might want to skip the audio. It’s hilarious, but definitely irreverent)