The Year in Between

  It's weird how the little things can make a difference.  I have been having a CRAZY long week, very busy and very tiring and very stressful.  It's left me in a blah mood recently.  But today in the mail, I got the calendar I worked up of random shots from '09 (in lieu of an SMG calendar...  RIP, awesome photo project).

  After showing it around (because I am a narcissist), I hung it on the wall and got back to the billionty things I had to do.  But every few minutes, I would find myself glancing at the New Year's Masquerade collage I picked for January.  And those familiar faces, done up all pretty and aesthetically arranged, made me happy.  No less stressed or tired, but it literally brightened my day every time I looked up.

  This is point one.

  A few days ago, my talented friend Angie started her own blog.  I highly recommend you check it out, but in the meantime I want to quote a part of it-

A "belief window" is basically an invisible "window" hanging in front of a person's face and through which he or she perceives the world. Each person's window contains written statements of their own beliefs, and those statements are created by that person's own experiences. For example, if I had been bitten by a dog when I was small, the words "dogs are dangerous" would be written in my window, and I would view all dogs through it. Whether or not the statement is true doesn't matter...

When I read that, I had an actual flash of inspiration.  I should mention that I always have a photo or three floating around in my head; but this idea was different.  I felt compelled to photograph Angie through that 'window', and instantly knew just how I wanted it to look.  Not only that, I instantly knew why I wanted to create that picture.  It wouldn't be the first time I've photographed something intentionally emotional, honest, maybe even painful.  The last such project was hard on me, and although I still get a pang of nerves every time someone sees them, I'm proud of the non-traditionally beautiful results.  It was cathartic. 

  And that's point two.

  Thus ends my official hiatus of my un-official obsession.  Not only am I planning a way to get to Houston and photograph Angie and her window, I'm working on a personality-specific version for some of myself as well.  Other ideas continue to pile up in my head of course, but I want to do this one project first.  I think a little open expression is probably just what I've been craving.  But after that, who knows?  I'll need another whole years' worth of perfect shots, once 2011 rolls around...  If only to liven up my desk when I have two mondays in a row.

P.S. Special thanks to my wonderfully eccentric friend who took the quirky New Year's shots used above.  Love ya, Raighe!