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As someone who lives and walks this city daily…my blog is all about delving a little deeper, seeing what it has to offer, and capturing the true essence of New York City. Whether you live in Gotham, or just visiting…feel free to look around my blog. Bet you might find something new to do!
P.S. As of the end of April 2013 my more personal postings will now be at The Next Few Years.
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Category Archives: Books
new york city public library
prometheus – ceiling mural at mcgraw rotunda
You know, I’ve been in the New York Public Library many times, but it wasn’t until a friend was visiting that we decided to take one of their free tours at the main location at 5th Ave and 42nd Street. You can find out more about the tours here. There’s so much to learn about the library. Rooms that you’d never know existed, if you didn’t take the tour.
original winnie-the-pooh from 1921
Never knew that the original Winnie-the-Pooh, the inspiration behind the popular children’s classic, is located in the Children’s library. Loved his little sewn up nose…
cloud mural in the main reading room
But, if you’re visiting and miss out on the tour, take a look here for some of what we learned. Also, if you’re familiar with Poet in New York…there’s a great exhibition on Federico Garcia Lorca’s work there until July 20th of this year.
Also posted in Local sights
Tagged Federico Garcia Lorca, New York Public Library, Poet in New York, Winnie-the-Pooh
4 Comments
fifty shades
In the right light, at the right time, everything is extraordinary.
Aaron Rose – director, producer, writer, artist
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In a split second this capture in my living room whisked me away to the Fifty Shades trilogy…
“Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever.“
Oh my, how true. Have you read it yet?
a summer read
tonto national forest, arizona
At age 15, Lily Casey left home to teach in a frontier town in northern Arizona – riding five hundred miles over 28 days on her pony, alone, to get to her new job. She survived tornadoes, droughts, floods, the Great Depression, and the most heartbreaking personal tragedy. She even learned to drive a car and fly a plane. Looking for a good summer read? Look no further…A fascinating, inspirational true-life novel, HALF BROKE HORSES, by Jeannette Walls. You’ll love it!
photography as a healing art – chapter ten
washington square fountain in nyc
God is at Eye Level
(This is a series of posts on Jan Phillips’ book, God is at Eye Level, Photography as a Healing Art.
For an intro check out the first post here.)
God. From birth until leaving home at the age of 18…going to church every Sunday was very much a part of our family life. I grew up learning about Jesus and God and all the things that came with it…from the early days of bible school to my teenage years of doodling on the church bulletin and eagerly awaiting the end of the sermon to take that first cigarette puff to end my nicotine craving. It had been an hour you know. Surely some of you have been “there.”
Like Phillips’, my perception of God has changed dramatically over the years. Do I believe there is a higher power? Absolutely. But as years passed, my beliefs are more spiritual in nature and perhaps that’s why I’m drawn to Buddhism. (Isn’t it really all about leading a moral life, being mindful and aware of one’s thoughts and actions, and developing wisdom and understanding? But hey, that’s for another post!) But this chapter isn’t about whether you believe in Christianity, Buddhism, Catholicism, or any of the others, but as Phillips’ puts it… it’s more about “understanding our relationship to the Whole.” “God, to me, is the universe unfolding, the power and potential within all life, the Oak within our acorn selves. Not one bit separate, but fused with us like salt and sea, ever-present in the faces, the scenes, the feelings that pass through our lives day to day.”
Her last sentence in this chapter is powerful - “Each of us listens to a different voice within, but if we are true to the voice that speaks in our hearts, the images we make will heal our wounds, mend our brokenness. If we think clearly and carefully about the power of our images, and in our looking, see past the barriers, the walls that have been constructed between one person and another, we may one day stumble upon the Divine we’ve been trying all along to find.”
To me, if we are really observing or “seeing” when we photograph…it’s those moments of waiting…whether it’s for a person to removed themselves from the scene (or to appear!)…for the lighting to provide the perfect tone or contrast…or as Phillips’ describes…”waiting for the fawn to rise up from its cozy bed of green.” (Oh, if I could only write like that!) Not to just take a picture (which I think as a photographer most of us go through this stage) but to capture a scene that has meaning; one worthy to share, to make a difference in the world, to heal.
It’s been three years now on my photography journey, and oh how I can totally relate to the message in this chapter. Looking back, it was click, click click to document, document, document my experience. But I didn’t necessarily have the feeling. It’s only this past year that feeling the moment, feeling the intimacy in this new awareness…has it come front and center. And it’s only the beginning of this new chapter in my life’s journey…
Curious. Have you had this experience with your photography, your art, your writing? Would love to hear.
Next up: Chapter Eleven – The Thin Curved Line
Joining in for the very first time? Catch up on the previous chapters!
Chapter One – Through the Eyes of a Child
Chapter Two – Seeing Our Way Clear
Chapter Three – Shifting the Focus
Chapter Four - Looking Like No Other
Chapter Five – Portrait of a Soul
Chapter Six – Speaking our Peace
Chapter Seven – Mindful Seeing, Mindful Being
Also posted in Photography
Tagged buddhism, God is at Eye Level, Jan Phillips, NYC, photography
11 Comments
the long road ahead…
The Road goes ever on and on down from the door where it began.
Now far ahead the Road has gone, and I must follow, if I can,
pursuing it with eager feet, until it joins some larger way where many paths and errands meet.
And whither then? I cannot say.
J.R.R. Tolkien, author of the epic fantasy, The Lord of the Rings.
~~~~
(This is a series of posts on Jan Phillips’ book, God is at Eye Level, Photography as a Healing Art.
For an intro check out the first post here.)
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New Images for a New World
Chapter eight of Jan Phillip’s book talks about how our images are teaching tools. Honestly, I hadn’t really thought about the root meaning of the word document (docere) is “to teach” so this is a timely chapter as I continue my quest to document my father’s battle with Alzheimer’s. Often when I tell people that I’m working on this project the immediate question is “How do you photograph something that’s happening inside their brain?” The above photo was captured on one of our walks on the farm, and when I saw the gravelled road laid out in front of him through my lens, the thoughts of his life ahead of him spoke volumes to me. What does he think as he walks on the land that he’s loved and tilled for over sixty years? Or when he sits in the sun in the living room and looks out the window for hours in total quietness? Or at night when he sits in his lazy-boy chair and says…Can we go home tomorrow?
To me this is the true meaning of photography; the ability to create an emotion. An image that can change the way we think, move us to tears or laughter, or to action. Jan phrased it perfectly for me. “When we set out to document something, we are tasked with revealing the essence, the true spirit of it, as we see it and feel it in our bones; for the more truth a photo contains, the more potential it has to touch the heart.”
She closes the chapter with a profound statement that all of us can use in our photography… “Every time we ‘load a roll of film into our cameras’ we can choose to contribute something valuable to the global family album or add to the stockpile of meaningless imagery.“ Wow.
Next up: Chapter Nine – Life Seeking Life
Joining in for the very first time? Catch up on the previous chapters!
Chapter One – Through the Eyes of a Child
Chapter Two – Seeing Our Way Clear
Chapter Three – Shifting the Focus
Chapter Four - Looking Like No Other
Chapter Five – Portrait of a Soul
Also posted in Alzheimer's, Family/Friends, Photography, Virginia
Tagged alzheimer's, farm, God is at Eye Level, Jan Phillips, photography, Photography as a Healing Art
11 Comments
the love of books
captured at grant's tomb, upper west side, nyc
”There are many little ways to enlarge your child’s world. Love of books is the best of all.”
Jacqueline Kennedy
photography as a healing art – chapter one
Through the Eyes of a Child
Were you fascinated by photographs as a child? I can remember looking at photo albums time and time again growing up. There was a certain comfort, a feeling of being safe, the warmth of family.
I’m so thrilled that my mother and grandmother loved to take family photos. What would I do now without them? The one above provides so many memories for me now. My twin sisters with their identical clothing, my mom’s sense of fashion, the dinnerware on the bar that I now have today, the violets my mom grew prolifically on the window sill, the bar stools that we sat on for every meal together as a family. It takes me right back to that time…a time I’ll never forget.
During my corporate years I rarely took photos. But I did have one picture that went with me to every office I occupied throughout my career. One of a small sail boat on a body of calm water. It had a Monet feel to it. Whenever I had stressful days (and boy there were lots of them!) I would go into my office, close the door and just gaze at that picture.
Now I find myself capturing moments like that with my camera. Whether it’s a scene in Central Park, dried grasses on the farm, or cacti in the desert, it’s looking through the lens and having similar feelings like I did when I looked at those photographs as a child. There’s a wave of comfort and warmth that comes over me as I try my best to capture those feelings to share with you.
Next week: Chapter Two – Seeing Our Way Clear
(This is the beginning of a series of posts on Jan Phillips’ book, God is at Eye Level, Photography as a Healing Art. You can visit the first post here.)
Also posted in Family/Friends, Photography, Virginia
Tagged central park, desert, farm, Jan Phillips, photography, Photography as a Healing Art
3 Comments
labor day by joyce maynard
captured at columbus circle, nyc
Love, sex, adolescence, Kate Winslet, Josh Brolin…need I say more?
Just finished Joyce Maynard’s novel, Labor Day. Taking place in a small town in New Hampshire, at the beginning of Labor Day weekend, the story is told through the eyes of a young teenager. His divorced, emotionally fragile mother is his only company and life changes drastically when a mysterious man asks for help. Over the course of a long weekend, some of life’s most valuable lessons are learned.
How exciting to learn that her novel is currently being developed as a motion picture that Paramount Pictures will distribute, directed by Jason Reitman and starring Kate Winslet and Josh Brolin. Production is scheduled to begin this summer in Massachusetts.
Oh, and what do apples have to do with it? Well you’ll just need to read the novel or wait for the movie to find out! A great read!
Tagged Columbus Circle, Joyce Maynard, Labor Day, NYC
2 Comments
