mr. glover...

In keeping with my resolution not to put things off till later, I took the time to go meet Mr. Glover. He lives on Davis Highway just as it turns into MLK Drive. Mr. Glover was sitting in a chair on the sidewalk when my friend and I drove up. He asked if he could help me. I told him I was terribly curious about his home and wondered if I could take some pictures. He said I could... for a dollar. I gave him a five (it's all I had). He said I could take as many pictures as I wanted for that five dollars and offered to let me take his picture as a bonus!

Mr. Glover is a junk man. He collects anything and everything but actually has a sense of order about all the odd pieces he tucks here and there. He lives in a shed on the property and pays his 89 year old father $100.00 a month for rent. He also told us that he had been in Vietnam and came from a family of 11 children, 3 of whom had already died. Mr. Glover was a bit anxious and concerned with us knowing that he had already paid his property taxes, he repeated this statement a number of times.

He was kind man, albeit a bit off, who eagerly shared in conversation. This is the "everyday" stuff I don't EVER want to miss!

seeing...

This chimney on Scenic Highway has been there my whole life. I stopped only last week to look at it. I have driven by hundreds of times and each time, if I really gave it notice, I thought, hum, wonder what that is about? When I did stop, it was more of an opportunity for silliness with Stella, and don't get me wrong, I LOVE shooting that girl, but something bigger happened. I realized that I was ASSUMING that the chimney would always be there. It would stand until I decided to take notice. Like the white sand beaches, or the naval museum, or blackwater river, or, or or. Most likely they will be here but will I? I am also assuming that I will always have my sight, my ability to freely move my body, and have a clear mind.

I made a commitment some time back to become purposeful in seeing and smelling "the roses".Having done so, I feel I take more time than the average person, YET, even I lag far behind in REALLY seeing all that is to be seen in my everyday life. It is the everyday experience that we are taking for granted. We usually wait for vacations to see any sights and how often is that?

What in your everyday life are you missing?

rebellion...

Stella. What can I say, she is such a tom boy. She told me she hates that dumb ole dress she is made to wear, says she can't do what she wants to do because it is not "lady like" in a dress. It is a constant tug-of-war to keep her presentable. The virtues of being a young lady do not impress her. I said, "but Stella, you can do all those rough and tumble things and still be feminine while doing them". She scoffed. I have my work cut out for me.

Homeless...

Meet Mark and John. I met them while walking through Ferdinand Plaza on a Saturday afternoon. I first noticed the luggage; it wasn’t your typical backpack for storing cool drinks and a snack. It held everything they owned. I asked them why they were there. They said they had no place else to go, they were homeless. They actually said the word homeless. But where do you sleep? I asked. “Wherever we can, until someone runs us off” they said in unison. John, the black man came here after Katrina. He needed assistance from the VA. He was wounded years ago while serving in the army. The funds were not coming quickly enough. No car, no home, no money, homeless. Mark had already drank his fifth of something by the time I met him. His story was similar. I asked if I could take their picture. Mark immediately became suspicious and accused me of being with the media. I told him I was not and he wanted to know why I had “such a big camera”. He won, and continued to hide his face while I snapped away. They were kind, I believed only a bit of what they said, seems I would have spun quite the tale myself if I were in that situation. I gave them what I had; only a few dollars each, it would buy lunch.

dumpster art...

Rust. It is my new found love, but only in dumpster art.

With time, gouges and scrapes become rust,

transforming parts of a plain, utilitarian container

into art that could be showcased in a gallery.

It truly delights me to find such beauty in an ordinary place.

cars...

These photos were taken in downtown Pensacola on Saturday.

On Thursday I gave the photos a new look.

On Friday I shared them with you. :)

fish and chips...

Southern style, goooooood eatin!