Shutter Speed

Sometimes I feel homeless. I mean, yes, I do always have a place to sleep and someone to talk to, but that doesn't always make a home. It's like instead of trying to find the home I left behind, I just want to start from scratch and make my own home. A new, different home that is my own. Maybe that's why I am going to college. Maybe that's why I feel the need to segregate myself from my childhood and adolescents.


Everyone is always talking about how you only have one life to live, but I don't think that's true. I am not talking about reincarnation or heaven or anything, I am talking about the various phases of your life. Most people seem to follow the three phase process. Childhood, work, old age. We can branch out from this. One could probably have as many different phases as they want. Or maybe not. This straight line, this time line, doesn't sit well with me.


The pictures that I am using for today's blog are from a kind of photography series I am working on. What I do is lower the shutter speed on my camera and take picture of bright lights as I move the camera in different directions. It is almost like spin art, maybe. Although I don't enjoy the pictures as much as the ones that I took of Brad with his corn cob pipe, I still think they're pretty cool.

Speak easy,
Neil

Old New Years

This is Jim's new rat, Bruiser. Jim received him for free from a pet store because the little guy has a skin condition. Bruiser is a great rat.

I previously mentioned the holiday season in Moldova that I experienced last year, but did not talk at all about New Years. For the most part Moldovans celebrate the holiday in the same fashion. They drink champagne, they eat a large meal, they light off fireworks, they gather around the television. However, the celebration does not end on January first. Two weeks later, on the 14th, is another holiday, which is known as Old New Years. This consists of children going door to door throughout the day and asking for candy and money. There also may be some sort of tradition that involves dressing up like a bear but I don't remember the specifics.

The other day I was heading to Hyannis (the town where the fountains are frozen and the streets are paved with dirt and salt) with money in my pocket and no real obligations. I told my brother that I wished every day of my life was like that. He said basically what I described was the life of a drug dealer.

There are so many good films out right now. Within the last week I have seen Benjamin Button, The Wrestler, and Slumdog Millionare. I would recommend all of them.

I took this picture of the Christmas Tree and it kind of ended up looking like a tangled bunch of colored wires.

Speak easy,
Neil