Overcast now as it's been most mornings, the sun breaking through between ten and noon if experience holds. Not sure what to do with the day other than continue with this image database and backup process. I'm good with that. We're looking at framing two prints over these next three days, a first here in SoleProprietorLand. An excuse to celebrate with a little sake this evening I'm a thinkin’.

You've bought the necessary matting board for you prints? The pre-cut frames?

Well, no, I need the dimensions before I can order them, but I looked at some sale prices for mat board online this morning. Got an email from a mail order operation I've used in the past to buy frame kits. I've got a lot of prints in frame kits up on the walls. If anything, I need more. Custom frames this time, cut by moi. Cut by moi with a smile and a head full of sake. We're doing “out of the box” excitement here this week, folks, can you tell?

Later. The lungs seem to be holding, they're behaving, and overall the world has returned to some sense of normality. Now to get outside for the daily walk, now that I've missed these last two days. It's eleven, still overcast, nice photography weather.

Later still. I've spent some time the last two days working on my miscellaneous Oakland photographs on Art & Life, adding one or two from the Art & Soul outings. There aren't very many and many of those aren't very good. At least for someone who lives in Oakland. I haven't put any of them up yet as I want to move those remaining Sistah's Steppin’ in Pride parade photographs out of the Miscellaneous section and into the Sistah's Steppin’ section and have both of them done by the time I shoot this year's Sistah's Steppin’ parade on Sunday. But again, Oakland resident: why do you not have many more photographs both shot and posted? Should your ego not be bruised from this revelation? Oakland photographer? Is there anything better than a damaged ego to get you up and going? The gift of another project, a second one for the list after you complete the database and frame those two pictures. (Hup! Hup!)

Ha!

Laughter lightens the atmosphere around here, don't you think? We are in our new retirement mode now, we are cooking! Ha indeed.

Later than later still. A bus ride downtown, a coffee mocha at a table out in front of Starbucks at the City Center, a walk back to the apartment carrying a camera with a standard 50mm lens to make me “see” a bit differently. Entering the City Center I shot this up above the open air entrance to BART, thinking it would be interesting if I could isolate this construction from its surroundings for its shape and shadow. If I were more energetic I'd consider rearranging the table and chairs for a proper photograph.

OK, walking back, just crossing over the street to City Hall, I noticed this guy humping the street and took the camera off my shoulder and took this picture at the last minute. It would have been nice to have a telephoto at that instant as the cropped image is but a very small portion of the picture, but better yet, to have had the camera at the ready. Perhaps I should have cropped the picture at the top too?

Lesson learned, I took the camera off my shoulder and carried it in my right hand, the camera strap wrapped around my wrist. I didn't take a single photo thereafter, but I think it gave the right arm and hand needed exercise that will be useful later in other outings. Be prepared. The Boy Scouts marching song, “be prepared”. Perhaps that's good advice, do it from now on as I walk. Exercise on the cheap. The two mile walk back home was a breeze, but the right wrist is aching a bit. Feels good. I feel good if a bit tired, the lungs behaving. I'm happy to have the lungs behaving.