It seems impossible that a year has passed since I was in the US to assist with the shooting of documentary footage for the “Along The Fall Line Road” production. The image I took as I left the US seems to evoke the mood the entire world has one year later. As I wonder when I will be able to travel again, I am thankful that my Flickr feed allows me to bot time travel and globe-hop during these #StayAtHome COVID-19 days. Should you be needing an escape, my Flickr feed may offer a slight reprieve from the stresses of the day and our current times. Here’s to better days!
What a year these last few weeks have been
During this very weird month, a month that at times felt like the end of the world, a month that at times has felt like a whole year, my trusty iPhone and Sony cameras were never far from reach. Initially, things were more relaxed as our schedules were moved around and Spring Break was moved up by a few weeks. We mainly stuck to the house during the week and on the weekend headed out to remote locations so the kids could get some fresh air and stretch their legs a little. Having an 8-year-old and 3 1/2-year-old twins (all boys) cooped-up at home 24/7 is no fun for anyone.
The semester moved online for a 2 week trial period and will now remain so for the rest of the academic year. We are now staying home 100% of the time to help do our bit to #FlattenTheCurve. While none of us knows what the future holds, it feels now, more than ever, much more precarious than at any point I can ever remember.
As we all have more time on our hands, and probably need some time away from Netflix, Disney+ and more. My personal faves are Westworld, Ozark and Star Trek: Picard - do you have any must-see TV shows for me to add to the list?
Looking for other things to do to fill your time? May I suggest that you check out more of my non-portraiture images on either my Instagram or Flickr accounts. You may even find some fun video clips over on my YouTube and Vimeo channels.
Hopefully, I will see you all next month. In the meantime, stay safe!
California Dreaming
Life is moving at the speed of light.
I am not sure how it is possible that 11 years ago today, I was preparing to leave my life in Cincinnati and head to my new career at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. Many thanks to those who attended my leaving do that night at the Hofbräuhaus Newport. What an unexpectedly international journey the past 11 years have been. Thankful for all the friends I have met along the way.
The Night Watch
The world is being asked to stay home for the foreseeable future due to the ongoing risk of COVID-19. It is hoped that staying at home will help flatten the curve. Social distancing and school closures are all part of this important process. These measures are not only in effect here in the UAE but in many corners of the globe. Some days one looks out the window and everything seems quite normal, other days there is a dread as to what is taking place. It is as if we are living through the early chapters of a science fiction novel. I am reminded of this quote from War of the Worlds.
“No one would have believed, in the last years of the nineteenth century, that human affairs were being watched from the timeless worlds of space. No one could have dreamed that we were being scrutinised as someone with a microscope studies creatures that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. Few men even considered the possibility of life on other planets. And yet, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to o”And yet, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours regarded this earth with envious eyes, and slowly, and surely, they drew their plans against us.” - Richard Burton as The Journalist in Jeff Wayne's War of the Worlds
Like the rest of the planet, I am hopeful that this terrible disease gets tamed, that our scientists and doctors can develop an easily accessible medication to fight in the war against this dreaded virus and that we take this time to re-focus, to get our priorities right and to plan for a better future. A future that will assuredly be different in ways great and small.
Stay safe!