Now what? I always wanted to make a contribution. Now, all I can do is survive. Can’t go out. Cannot volunteer. Don’t have all that much money to donate. I just have to not get sick, er sicker. I have been reading and writing, wondering what the meaning of life is. A lifetime learner, what will my knowledge mean to anyone other than me?
Category: art
Sharon and Theodore
So, some of you may know Theodore, Sharon’s bear from childhood. He used to come to court with me, riding in my brief case. Judge Archie Gorfinkel signed the adoption papers at our wedding. He always has a positive attitude and strong opinions about life, love and the pursuit of happiness. He has been a part of Sharon’s life, forever.
HAZARDOUS TO HEALTH
DO NOT INGEST CLOROX or RUBBING ALCOHOL or BEAMS of LIGHT
That idiot TRUMP can get US killed in so many ways that have not even been contemplated. He lies cheats and steals and fools from the South and impoverished zones who hate intelligence and feelings for others believe him. I almost wish that some of his follows would take his advice and try these cures. After all, some of them believe that GOD will save them.
Many of them dress differently so you can identify them and avoid them and their thoughts. They don’t do vaccines. Others were red hats which suggest that America was great at some unidentifiable time.
Cezanne Stieglitz and Van Gogh
My favorite artists, at least for today. Human and productive. Sensitive, maybe too much. Very much alive. Much of what I know about art comes from studying them.
Stieglitz “contributed not only scientific and artistic photographic studies, but also introduced modern art to America and furthered the theory of photography as art.” In his time, the greatest photographer living.
Van Gogh was mentally ill, an affliction that didn’t interfere with his love of color. Prolific and introspective, he cut off his ear, because of some problem he has a a bordello. He was checked into a mental hospital, got better and did a self portrait which he sent to him mother. Bold, emotional, impulsive. No mystery in his work.
Cezanne, the father of all modern art, somber tones, geometric shapes. Tried to shock the staid salon members with his nudes and ambiguous forms. Acted out. Didn’t observe the rules of human interaction or painting. Didn’t like photography, but may have used it to copy from. Preferred his studio where he could produce more orderly organized images to the outdoors. Always had a story which he didn’t tell.
Back to my work, whatever it is. Like Van Gogh and Cezanne, no one will appreciate my art during my life. Unlike them, I will have no after life. But, then, I am not them. But I will leave a few self-portrtaits just like they did.
Duckman Fights CLL and Corona
I fight the battle of Corona and CLL from all fronts. Keeping my mind active as a photog, my body strong by walking and biking and my system enriched. Who do the voodoo that you do so well. We all be human, mortal people, whose life spans happen when they happen. Keep the pills coming and the vodka chilled.
Ron Baraz, Valencia Reserve Neighbor
I see many people walking past my house in Valencia Reserve whom I don’t know. The other night, as I looked at a full moon shining through the trees, a man walked by. Compositionally, he made the frame. Three shots. Moon moved. He moved. I needed to adjust the exposure. I got it.
What’s your name, I asked. Ronnie, I live at 9163, around the corner. Printed the image. Put in his mailbox after wiping it down with my card. He called to thank me. I don’t remember ever seeing him, other than as he drove by and he lives 4 houses away.
There may not be many positive things to say about living in lockdown.
Mano Mano Manischewitz
“At 11 percent ABV, it’s the kind of sticky sweet wine that gets glugged like juice at the dinner table, resulting in a collective morning-after headache for everyone involved. All the same, Manischewitz is ingrained in Jewish culture.” People still drink it.
At Publix, the well stocked bar didn’t seem to be attracting many customers. Surprising, since FL is the home to many aged Jews who can still remember their first Passover. But then again, we are in the midst of a plague and no one wants a hangover to compete with symptoms of the Corona virus.
Duckman No Beard
So, it was time, time to get rid of the beard. I cannot remember how long I had it or how many shapes it has had, but enough. I hadn’t seen myself, except for my eyes in years, which isn’t a bad thing for a studio portrait photographer. And, in addition to having to clean after every meal and dealing with underlying skin problems, I thought it would be healthier in the Covid epidemic to not have a virus catcher near my eyes and nose.
Sharon waited patiently as I shaved. She said I looked more handsome than ever and then we did the shoot.
First In
Tennis keeps so many fit and connected. It’s both a skill and an art. You can play it when you are young and when you are old. You can even have physical maladies which prevent you from running, but allow you to cover the court, slicing and dicing, hitting them where they ain’t. It has lines that never change and rules, except for the scoring, which are easy to learn. The net, old mr. net, the nemesis hangs tautly to control height and distance.
Sometimes, people make rules up, to make the game more friendly. First serve in to start a game the first time around. But the ball only gets to bounce one time, has to go over or around the net and it cannot be outside the lines.
We worry that jobs won’t be coming back. Maybe tennis won’t either. We feel for our friends whose livelihoods depend on maintaining the courts, the schedules and the skills. Who knows? But can you name another game where the person with no points says they are at Luv?
