As a long-time blogger, I regularly notice how there's something about translating thoughts into letters that makes the brain slow down. It's a form of meditation, where the object of focus appears in black and white as fingers depress computer keys. On really good days, I enjoy a flow state from the time I click "start a new post" until I click "publish". Those days are rare. For the photo blogging challenge, the process lasts a month!
I have a bit of a thing for notebooks and have several on my desk at all times, a variety of spiral bound, sewn, glued, stapled, small, large, soft-covered, hard-covered, lined and unlined where I jot down ideas, make lists, take notes on things I read or find interesting and do my best to keep organized. But I didn’t photograph any of my current set of notebooks for this post. Read on to learn why...
To a greater or lesser degree, COVID-19 has triggered change for pretty much everyone. Since we've been working (and working out) from home for well over 10 years now, we're coping with fewer changes to our world than many people are: mostly lower level challenges, like figuring out how to order groceries for pick-up when then next pick-up window is 10 days to 2 weeks out, how best to support elderly neighbours and extended family members, adjusting to virtual choir rehearsals and wondering what the 2020 hiking/biking season will look like.
It's quite a coincidence that with the world "at sixes and sevens" and so many of us now required to spend seven days a week at home, this month's photo blogging challenge theme is seven.
According to a song from the 1966 hit musical Cabaret, money makes the world go 'round. While not scientifically accurate, money does affect our daily lives like few other things. It's one of the most challenging topics of conversation and can really put a strain on relationships. We work for money. We exchange it for food, housing, transportation, clothing, taxes, utilities, insurance and more. We try to save some for retirement. We may to get creative in the kitchen or when shopping, to make sure money out doesn't exceed money in. This post doesn't include any genius tips for balancing your budget; instead, I applied imagination to photograph money in a few ways that aren't strictly representational.