Ok. It’s 16° F.

There is no way I’m walking around outside to take street snaps. So I’m standing in the kitchen up against the radiator and looking out the window. Classic man and dog against white snow and ice. Hum, what else is there? Light and shadow on a white park. Interesting.

I’m reading an engaging book called Zen Camera: Creative Awakening with a Daily Practice in Photography by David Ulrich and published by Watson-Guptill. Those of you who know me can appreciate my feelings when considering anything “Zen” however Ulrich has impressed upon me (so far in my reading) a number of important additives to make life more dynamic:

• Take a lot of pics, some will be good,
• Have an open mind on how we communicate with what we see.

He states regarding creativity;

“since the world is always new — no moment ever repeats itself — you must flexibly adapt behind a camera”

As I try to manage the newness of each day, with varying degrees of success, I learn that I must approach the struggles with an open mind and love the flexibility I need to get to the other side. As the saying goes “we’re not in Kansas anymore”.

The snap above is of an old apartment building used by the railway department. Railroad management and staff would have individual and shared apartments. If I understood correctly, there were 7 or 8 buildings of this type in the early day of Balyaeva Str. It currently has normal apartment dwellers residing there. I tried to do a painting of this building, but with little success.

I bet it holds alot of mystery. It sure looks like it.