Slow Food

Most everyone is use to the concept of fast food, but from my experience most people don't think as much about slow food. I find it very refreshing that there is an organization out there trying to promote the idea of something as simple as sitting down to a meal that is cooked from quality ingredients.

I've been thinking about this alot lately since I read the book Coming Home to Eat, and also because one my favorite things to do with friends here in DC is have dinner parties. When I stop by the farmer's market to buy a loaf of bread, some vegetables, or cheese, I am surrounded by people who have taken time out of their day specifically to visit the market; these are mostly people who are there not because food was a last minute thought on the way home, but because they took time out of their day to look for ingredients.

Some how it just feels right to be picking your food out of baskets at a booth under the open sky. It's nice to be able to ask questions of the people who grew the food you are about to buy instead of asking a sales clerk whose job it is to stock cans and make sure the zuccini gets sprayed down at 10:30, 12:30, and 2:30. It's also nice to know that the food you're buying was grown and produced within a short driving distance of the market. This isn't food that was grown halfway around the world, packaged across the country and shipped in a train to your city. I still shop at grocery stores for some of my food, truth be told I still shop at grocery stores for MOST of my food. I'm simply trying to describe the difference in feeling I get from shopping at a farmer's market versus at a grocery store.

When I turn the oven on and put some bread in to toast, when I heat up a skillet with oil and butter to sautee vegetables, when I start soup stock simmering in a pot there is a feeling simplicity associated with it. I know that people have been doing this for thousands of years. I know that people have been using these same ingredients and same basic techniques forever. I can't really explain why that feels good but it does. And when you add other people to the mix it becomes even better.

We all have to eat. There was a time when extended families, all living under the same roof, would set aside what they were doing and come together to break bread. This communal sharing of a necessity such as eating became the basis for many celebrations and festivals. The Israelites were told to commemorate the sparing of their first born in Egypt with a very special feast, when Jesus sat down with his disciples for the last time it was during this same feast; here Christ once more consecrated the simple acts of eating and drinking. We breath all day without ceasing, when we sleep we are alone with our thoughts, the one other physical requirement we have is an activity that we do at set times throughout the day and may be shared with brothers and sisters. It seems that because it is the one absolutely essential activity in life that happens at discrete times throughout the day, this one has been given special prominence, this one can be done in community.

The next time you have a chance, sit down and really SHARE a meal with those you care for. Take time preparing the meal, letting the aromas of food draw everyone present into the anticipation of the eating. Really be present with the other people around the table. Be a part of each other's day. Slow down for a minute.

A Photo For You

I decided to take some more photos in the series I'm tentatively titling, "On the Street Where You Live". The pictures below are from around my neighborhood one crisp fall evening. I had to put on a long sleeve shirt and the sweater to keep warm as I knelt down for minutes at a time crouching in front of the tripod, waiting for the right combination of traffic, clouds, and lighting. Then another 30 seconds for each as I cued a 2 second self timer (to minimize camera shake), waited for the 15 seconds of exposure, and another 10 seconds for the image to save.

I was pretty happy with the end results. I have "accidentally" captured photos as good as these before while doing night photography (long exposures), but up until now it's mostly been experimentation. The difference here was “intentionality”. Being able to set out with certain images in mind is, I feel, equal important as spontaneously recognizing a moment.

I hope you enjoy!

One of my favorites. I just love how the color of the house plays off the color of the sky. I tried to get one with more clear sky showing but was getting impatient. 

Not sure if I like this one or the one just above it better. At any rate these are two of my favorites. 

Along T street I found this bright yellow Xterra. i liked the way it looked agains the trees and thought I'd try to get a car passing in front of it. This was the result. I wanted to bring the Xterra up just a bit in the shot (rule of 1/3's) but felt it eliminated too much of the skyline (wanted that dark blue to play off the yellow). Unfortunately my lens wasn't wide enough to let me zoom out any more. 

Intersection of 18th and T. Feel free to disagree but I really enjoy the way this shot makes NW DC look like a ghost town (about the furthest thing from what it is). All that blue/black sky, the single lamp post. The short building. 

Side Shot of Lauriol Plaza emphasizing the roof deck. I love how it makes the restaurant look like a tree house. I had several others but liked the "profile" effect of this one. 

Another View of Lauriol Plaza, I'd probably play with the saturation on this one a bit before I tried making a print. Also, happens to be my least favorite of this grouping. 

In an Alley just off T Street, by Mi Casa 

Same Alley by T Street 

Rain Drops Keep Falling on My Head

Acquiring an umbrella and retaining it throughout late summer and early fall is of critical importance to urban dwellers. The consequences can be mild in the event of a light sprinkle to disastrous in event of a late summer storm. Especially vulnerable are those particular urbanites whose commute to work involves not the usual 45 minute bumper to bumper but the 15 minute sidewalk hike.

I had misplaced my umbrella several weeks ago, only to find that the very time I chose to lose it was the very time nature decided to return some overdue water the much appreciative ground. I intended to purchase a new umbrella but in keeping with a disturbing trend I’ve noticed lately, the urge to purchase the umbrella was only high when it was raining, at which time the purchasing of the umbrella was of less importance than the rushing home as quickly as possible.

Several days ago while leaving for work at the same time as my roommate, in the rain, I noticed that while she had an umbrella in her hand, an umbrella remained under the table by the door. I asked her if she would mind my borrowing her extra umbrella, at which time she informed me that the other umbrella wasn’t hers. I looked and, sure enough, the umbrella was that very one I thought had been lost.

It turns out the umbrella must have been left around the house prompting someone, other than myself, to relocate the umbrella to a place more fitting for storage of such items. However, since no relocation notice was given (and owing in large part to my own laziness I suppose) I was rained on more times that I ought to have been.

Having said all of that, there is something refreshing about walking in the rain when it isn’t overly cold and you aren’t risking damage to some precious bit of electronics or clothing.