Had it been a weekday...

...children all across Charlotte would've celebrated the Snow Day. Half of the city would've been shut down and hermitude would've soon followed. Growing up in Chicago there was no such thing as a Snow Day. School was never canceled because of inclement weather. Two feet of snow? Go to school. Sub-zero temperatures? Go to school. Onslaught of a blizzard? Go to school. New Ice Age ushered in? Go to school. I remember many mornings bundled up at the bus stop angry because it was so cold. If my face were not frozen solid, the look on it would've almost certainly conveyed that anger.

Since this particular Snow Day was on a Saturday, I wondered how the people of Charlotte would embrace it. My wife and I went to the park to find out. After about two hundred feet into our walk through park, I was abandoned by said wife who decided to wait out the 28 degree weather in the car. I gave up walking on the sidewalk because of all the ice accumulation and just decided to walk in the adjacent snow-covered grass. I made it to the hill towards the rear of the park, and sure enough, there were sledders. I was glad to see some people actually embracing this Charlotte winter rarity and decided to document the event. Here are some shots. This was not really for photographic artistic purposes, just some good ol' fashioned point and shoot.

These pictures were taken...

...in a New Orleans cemetery. I love cemeteries in New Orleans. The above ground tombs and mausoleums are so beautiful. I snapped these shots during my Thanksgiving trip. It may be a bit morbid, but it was a great experience. The quiet reverence that emanates from cemeteries is so humbling. The acknowledgement of past lives, the reminder or mortality. It really makes you take things into consideration and ponder how you'll leave your mark on this world.

My opinion of death has been a varying one over the years. I've never fully embraced the religious view set forth by the big three spiritual practices, yet I do feel that there is some kind of afterlife. The odd thing is, I don't accept that belief as an absolute. I think there is validity in the "heaven/hell" concept. I also think there is validity in the reincarnation concept. Still, there is even the possibility that nothing happens. I've accepted all of things as possible after-death scenarios. That doesn't stop me from my spiritual practice. I still believe there is a power/energy greater than ourselves and I do my best to acknowledge it. My most domineering belief is that while we spend our lives trying to figure these things out, we die as soon as the epiphany hits us. I just hope by then I would have done some stuff in between that someone remembers.

True Story...

...She was a wife and a mother. A home maker who gave love, wisdom, and discipline. Each when necessary and all when needed. She was the rock, the cornerstone of her family. Her husband was the head. He was the provider and protector. He worked everyday to make sure his family was fed, clothed, and warm. He also had another aim. An aim to improve the future for his children. He knew that being black in southern, rural Mississippi was not going to provide the best of opportunities for his progeny, so he sought to change that.

She knew what he was doing was risky, but she also knew that what he was doing was right. He wanted his people to take control of their circumstances. He wanted them to shape their own destinies. And he wanted them to do that in the simplest and simultaneously riskiest ways. He wanted them to do what they were legally bound to do but were socially restrained from doing. He wanted them to vote. In an age where being literate was enough to bring bodily harm, attempting to insert your "nigger" influence in the white man's institution was suicide. He could not read when they met. She taught him how to sign his name. But it doesn't take a well read man to know when wrong is being perpetrated and when change is paramount.

He was the only person of color with a car and it was with that humble medium that he would escort NAACP members around the county bringing change one house at a time. Most were hesitant, some were embracing. None of them were resistant enough to make him quit. Often times, word travels faster than works and word soon got out of about his works. He was warned to stop his agitating. He refused to heed. He would keep on with his work. She would keep on with her praying for his safety and her family's protection. She never stopped nurturing, providing, loving her family. There is a quote that says that if a man does not have something he would die for then he is not fit to live. Herbert Lee died for his cause. A martyr to a movement that would send ripples of change throughout the fabric of time. His name along with others would be invoked by the likes of Martin Luther King, Jr. who also gave his life for his public work. Without struggle, there is no progress. Without sacrifice, there is no reward. Without the past, there is no future. She lived it. She remembers. She wants us to remember, too. I do.

Today's weather...

...was warmer than it has been this frigid January, a whopping 58 degrees. At first, I wanted to grab the speedos and hit the beach, but I settled for grabbing the camera and hitting the park. Whenever I get home from work and feel like snapping some shots, I always head to the park first. I figured since it was a Friday and the weather was nice, there was bound to be some opportunities for shots.

I think my eye is becoming a little more discerning. In this first shot, I noticed (I say that like no one else noticed) the still partially frozen pond with the ball resting in the ice. I wanted to get the contrast of ice and water with the ball adding to the effect. Not a great shot, but it has some intricacies of spotting the scene. The second shot was a reflection shot. I always look for that if I am shooting a subject near some body of water. There was no rhyme or reason to the third shot, just a dad playing with his son. That's always a good picture.

It felt good to get out and hold the camera again. It's been almost a month since I took my last photo. I think this year (although I'm not attributing it to the new year) is going to bring in new things in my photography endeavors. It will be a year in March since I bought my camera. I may even try to start shooting people...on purpose...with my camera. So many opportunities, so many twists and turns. I am the author of my own story and even I don't know what's coming next or how it's going to end.

I think I'm only posting this...

...because I feel like I have been neglecting the blog as of late. I only had one post for December and the most recent post was this past New Year's Day. At this juncture, 2010 is barely a week old and I already the signs of change manifesting themselves. I feel like my life can go in so many different directions by the end of this year that it seems nearly impossible to nail down all of the possibilities. It's going to be very interesting to see how it all plays out.

I haven't picked up my camera to take a picture since Christmas. I don't know what that means. It has been unseasonably cold here in Charlotte and that may have something to do with it. I don't feel like I've been neglecting photography; I just feel like there's nothing drawing me to photo opportunities. I also think that with all this potential change in air I am waiting for some dust to settle before I try to start tackling things again. I love this crazy ride called life.

Here's to...

...new birth, beginnings, and blessings in 2010.