75: In the Basement

Okay, this one is not quite the basement. In the laundry room, which leads to the basement.

Still not there. This is at the top of the stairs.

Now we're in the basement. Interesting lighting to contend with. Not something I had taken into consideration but seems obvious in hindsight.

74: A Few Milestones

It's always something of a relief when I come up with something for the project early in the day.

I took this shot, then suddenly realized I was running extremely late. So it was a  huge, pleasant surprise at the end of the day to discover it was not a bad shot! I think we can call this my first official Year in Blue self-portrait.

Finally got a chance to revisit these chairs. Much happier with the results. I'm working on fostering patience as a photographer. Many moments are ephemeral and you only get one chance to capture them. That is one of the primary lessons for me in photographing my children. But many other scenes, such as these chairs, last longer. If I don't get it on the first try, I can try again. If I don't like the lighting, I can come back another time. If my schedule is hectic, it will still be there tomorrow.

These flags are hanging at the Lamplighter Roasting Company. I was hoping to find some info online, but there's not much about the coffee roasters beyond one old article. I realized I was feeling more comfortable owning myself as a photographer out in the world when I parked my car at a funny angle (because there were no true available spots), walked right up to the coffee shop, and positioned myself near a couple enjoying their morning coffee at an outdoor table to take this photo. A few weeks ago, I would have been too intimidated by the idea that somebody, anybody might be watching me and wondering what I was doing to even stop the car. The image would have stayed with me, the photograph captured in my imagination, regret poisoning my mood and my self-confidence. I set out to learn some lessons about photography and myself, but I'll admit I expected it to take more time. What a very satisfying experience this has been, and I still have most of the year to go!

73: Rugs

72: Chimborazo

My son asked me to "help" him make this ball from his Flexeez yesterday. To be fair, he makes lots of other cool stuff from them, and this five pointed star takes a few minutes for an adult to figure out how it works.

I decided we needed another outing today and took the kids to Chimborazo Park. 

After we explored the historic area of the park, we checked out the community garden founded by Tricycle Gardens. This project has inspired a new admiration of lawn ornaments for me.

I expected we'd spend some time on the playground, but the kids were excited by the bike riders and basketball players taking advantage of beautiful weather during spring break. So we spent most of our playground time watching them on the basketball court-cum-skate park.

Treehouse on the walk back to the car.

We parked next to this beautiful house. Wouldn't you like to see these windows from the inside?

71: 22nd St. Rocks

I wanted to hike today, and my son wanted to visit a playground. So we settled on the 22nd St. entrance to the James River Park, as there is a playground across the street from the park entrance. Perfect to hit the trail for a short hike, then spend some time on the jungle gym, right?

Not exactly. There were too many stairs and long stretches with nothing much to see. And today the river was the highest I have ever seen  it on a clear, dry day. The combination of short legs, lack of interesting sights, rushing water and a solo parent hoping to photodocument the event led to a remarkably short hike.

At least these guys planned their afternoon well. They look so absolutely relaxed.

Apartment building near the playground.

Bench just outside the playground.

I don't know if anyone ever questions this, but there is blue in every single photo I post as part of this project. Can you find it?

70: Trip to the Big Box Hardware Store

Trying to capture some of the full moonlight last night. Of the three windows facing in the right direction, this was the most interesting view. I really like how it worked out. The way the shadow falls over the box is just right, and the white circle over the laundry even looks like a full moon.

Our decrepit kitchen faucet finally bit the dust earlier this week. The replacement we chose is basically the same as the old one. I keep thinking we should have been more daring and tried something new, but I liked the old one and it fit our budget. So there you go.

I like all the reflections here and could have spent a lot more time working out this shot. But between the kids and the store employees, I felt rushed.

I cannot begin to tell you what joy it gave me to see these carts so neatly arranged. Although I was a little surprised to see them still in this position late morning on a spring weekend.

69: In the Alley, or Motorcycle Repair

I spent a little time exploring the alley behind my regular Saturday job this morning.

The shop next door is a motorcycle repair shop.

As much as I have loved the last week of mosaic-making, motorcycles was a nice change of pace.

I haven't worked full-time for six days in a row since long before my son was born, four and a half years ago. Looking forward to reconnecting with my family tomorrow.