After I left the teaching profession in 2016, I began working for myself as a photographer. This is something I’d always wanted to do, but for a variety of reasons excuses, I didn’t do it. In 2016, I finally took the plunge and opened Sharp Photography. I loved being a full-time photographer! It was a…
Month: October 2022
Abandoned Buildings
Old, abandoned buildings catch the attention of my photographic eye. I’m unsure if that’s part of my pathology or if I just like thinking about the history of these old spaces. I took this image in December of 2005. I haven’t been to this area since I took this photograph, so I’m unsure what’s there…
The Trial Balloon
A few days ago, I posted a short narrative from my upcoming memoir. This was the first piece I wrote when I started the project over a year ago, and I see it as a cornerstone of the larger work. But I posted it early for a couple of reasons: how would readers from various…
High School Graduation (May 1977)
My father brought a handgun to my high school graduation, and he threatened to kill my mother’s boyfriend if he attended the ceremony. Earlier that spring, my mother had left us, as she was having an affair with her best friend’s husband. By May of that year, she wanted to bring her boyfriend– the friend’s…
Why Write a Memoir
“Memoir isn’t the summary of a life; it’s a window into a life, very much like a photograph in its selective composition. It may look like a casual and even random calling up of bygone events. It’s not; it’s a deliberate construction.” –William Zinsser For the past year, I’ve been writing a memoir. …
Memoir (an introduction)
My life has been a challenge. Sometimes it’s been a challenge of my own making. Other times, others had power to direct my life in ways that I did not choose. I’m writing a memoir about these choices. Overall, though, my memoir is not particularly focused on the parts that still hurt, but the text…
Clarification Needed
Yesterday, I wrote about human interactions and their complexities. I also mentioned that I would walk away from a questionable interaction with another person with absolutely no qualm, and I would not second guess myself. That’s true. I understand that another’s actions and words are not my responsibility, and I feel no compunction to hang…
Complex Human Interactions
Human interactions are complicated. We misunderstand each other. We miss clues to another’s intent. We might misinterpret what another says or does or needs. Others might misinterpret what we say or do or need. We can be unclear, vague, duplicitous. Others can be just as unclear, vague, or duplicitous. When there is a misunderstanding, we…
What I Have Learned from Tik-Tok
Over the past couple of months, I’ve found myself viewing Tik-Tok videos. In fact, I spent quite a bit of time (<cough> hours </cough>) scrolling. (OK, don’t judge. I’ve been stressed, and this is an interesting way to relax.) Anyway, I’ve learned some things that I didn’t know, and I’ve spent quality time thinking about…
Starting Again (Again) (Again)
I was once a prolific blogger. I had a couple of blogs under the pseudonym “PartsnPieces,” and I once wrote a collaborative blog (ProfHacker) for the Chronicle of Higher Education. I return here again today after a six-year absence because I miss this form of writing. I write on other forms of social media, but…