Under an angry sky

Ruh roh
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The skies were especially angry the other night, so I did what any logically-challenged human would do: I went outside as the thunder intensified.

Because who doesn’t want to be outside in the middle of an electrical storm?

My childlike idiocy notwithstanding, it felt strangely comforting to be standing on the lawn as the atmosphere above churned itself into varying shades of unsettled grey and threatened to unleash Noah's Ark-class levels of rain.

The sky felt alive, with a texture that made me wish I could reach up and touch it. Maybe the tree branches in the corner of the frame felt the same way.

The planet can be an entertaining place if you’re in the right place at the right time. And if wandering into an approaching storm is the biggest risk I take on any given day, I lead a pretty blessed existence indeed.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #weather #wx #storm #onstorm #sky #clouds #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

On finding the truth

"Always go too far, because that’s where you’ll find the truth."

Albert Camus

The shadowed bicycle

Always with me
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

So I’m standing over my bike just before a ride, and I catch sight of its shadow on the pavement below.

And as is often the case, I end up staring at it, wondering about this ephemeral companion of mine. It's never really far from me - either leading the way or following in my wake.

Sometimes as I spin along a country road, I'll catch a glimpse of it and smile at the notion of painting a highly temporary scene along the road, gone as quickly as it arrived.

It makes me wonder: is this shadow even real to begin with? Does its ephemeral nature make it any less real?

I'm guessing it's a lot more real than we might think. Like reflections in mirrored glass, or rainbows in the sky, or fog that paints the landscape a translucent grey in the early morning murk, they're as real as we want them to be, less a "thing" in their own right, and more something for us to play with in our minds and make very much our own.

So the bottom line, to me, at least, as I hold the handlebars and prepare to power myself far from here, is that this is very much real, very much part of the story that got me to this spot over the pavement, and the story I'm about to write with each push of the pedals.

We all leave our mark, after all. How long it hangs around for is no indicator of its worth to us. That part is entirely within our control.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #abstract #sun #shadow #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #bikelife #instabike #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

A Hornet burns a hole in the sky

Set burners to stun
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Every once in a while, it does the soul good to plant your feet on the ground, stare at the skies, and watch airplanes do their thing.

I did just that yesterday, hanging out on the tarmac of London International Airport with a camera in my hand. Which is my way of warning you we may be a bit heavy on aviation photos over the next little while.

This one's of an @rcaf_arc #CF18 dancing among the clouds. The airframe may have been in Canadian service for nearly 40 years, but she showed she still has moves, and can still inspire the rest of us.

I said a quiet thanks for their continued ability to protect our skies, but the afterburner drowned me out.

#nikonskydrive @airshowlondon @nikoncanada #ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #SkyDrive #AirShowLondon #aviation #boeing #mcdonnelldouglas #hornet #fighter #flight #aircraft #avgeek #aviationphotography #planespotting #instaplane #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #Nikon #nikonphotography #photography #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Wheel meets grass

A sunny lesson in geometry
Bowood, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Impromptu roadside photo shoot #42: ditch edition.

Because photographic visions can pop into your head pretty much anytime, anywhere.

And it simply wouldn’t be right to ignore them when they do.

#bowood #ontario #canada #farm #corn #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #bikelife #instabike #orange #devinci #hatchet #gravelbike #wonderland #road #abstract #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Riding the rails in Thorndale

Baking in the midday sun
Thorndale, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Ribbons of endless steel crisscross this vast land, connecting communities and fueling economies.

We may grumble when we have to sit at a level crossing and wait for a freight train to cross, but chances are that many of the things we use in the day-to-day found their way to us via rail.

It's funny how that works, the invisible forces that power society yet somehow lurk so far below our personal radar that we never fully appreciate their value to us.

We'll routinely complain about the 18-wheelers on the highway without considering who drives them, how hard they fight for their careers, often far from home and family. We'll yell at construction workers who close entire roads for days, weeks, or months, blithely ignoring the fact that without them, our cities would literally crumble into chaos.

So when I'm pushing the pedals far from my own home, I'll often stop near a crossing to remind myself of the things too many of us choose to ignore. Appreciation is a funny thing - and we don't practice it as often as we should.

So on a scorching afternoon in Thorndale, I took a break behind the animal feed store in the very middle of this picture-perfect town and reflected on the role these rails played in building this community and so many others like it.

And as I got back on the bike and turned for home, I said a quiet thanks to all the unseen heroes whose work enriches our modern existence. And I resolved to no longer take them for granted.

#thorndale #thames #centre #ldnont #london #thames #centre #ontario #canada #rail #railroad #train #history #landscape #landscapephotography #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Chasing the sun at the end of the day

Storm's coming
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Tonight's mission was to chase the sun before it disappeared for good.

Not so easy to do when the planet is moving at ridiculous speed through space, and the best I can manage on the bike is around the sprint speed of a cookie-motivated Labrador Retriever. With a tailwind.

Never mind the physics of roadside smartphone sunset cycling photography - it was worth every sweaty, air-so-thick-you-could-eat-it pedal stroke. It may not be the most convenient way to get the shot, but I'm fairly certain it's the most rewarding.

Maybe I'll ride tomorrow, too. Who knows what I'll find at the edge of the planet on my next adventure.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sunset #blue #sky #clouds #storm #hydepark #road #farm #country #light #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Our daughter the artist

Sunflowers by Dahlia
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

This one of those good news/bad news kind of deals. So let's get into it...

Good news: our daughter is madly, giftedly creative. She painted this, just because, and the first time I saw it, I couldn't stop thinking about the texture. It just pulls you in and sticks with you.

Bad news: you can't have this one.

Good news: because she sold it. Which, as a parent, is another in a long line of moments where we feel nothing but pride for her, for who she's becoming. I remember selling my first creative works - in my case, articles - and being amazed that something I created from nothing possessed value to others, to the point that it could generate revenue. It was amazing then, and it's amazing now.

I'm sure she'll paint others. In fact, I'm counting on it. There's something joyous about being surrounded by things that got their start as spontaneous visions in our daughter's mind. This kid - our kid - has got serious game.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #parenthood #art #paint #painting #stilllife #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Related:

Dahlia Levy Design on Instagram

Dahlia Levy (personal account) on Instagram

Google vs. Sesame Street - a Best Buy story

Fun with technology in public
Boynton Beach, FL
December 2019
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I miss a lot of things about pre-pandemic life. Having a little bit of innocent fun with the display computers in big box stores definitely ranks high on my list.

Exhibit A: The Best Buy in Boynton Beach, Florida, the day after Christmas 2019. If memory serves, I needed a cable. Or maybe that was just my flimsy excuse to visit the computer section - it's like a candy store to me.

After I found what I needed, the demo machines loomed like beacons of giddy opportunity. As background, I've been attracted to these display units like a moth to a flame ever since I was a child. I'm just old enough to remember the earliest machines, and spent many afternoons messing with whatever the local Radio Shack happened to have on display that day. TRS-80 Model III for the win, kids! Yes, I'm ancient.

We're way beyond impromptu in-store BASIC programming - 10 PRINT "something only a 10-year-old would say" | 20 GOTO 10 - these days, but you can still have fun with the Google command line.

As you can see here, apparently the algorithm has a drug problem with Sesame Street, and I'm betting it's Ernie's fault. He always seemed a little shady.

#boynton #beach #boyntonbeach #florida #fla #throwback #road #trip #travel #travelphotography #travelgram #vacation #explore #towncenter #mall #retail #shopping #bestbuy #store #random #abstract #photography #google #pixel2 #teampixel #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins

Painted cloudy sky

Light and water
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Every once in a while, it helps to stop what you're doing so you can simply look up at the sky.

Maybe it'll be spectacular. Maybe not.

But you'll never know if you don't at least take the time to figure it out.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sunset #blue #sky #clouds #light #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

6 feet apart, please

Still necessary
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The other day, I noticed the supermarket with the shiny orange floor had removed the circular stickers from the ends of the aisles that for much of the pandemic tried in vain to point shoppers in the right direction.

In their place were ghostly residue-flecked circles with a lot less shine, and shoppers who cared even less than they had previously about which direction they walked, or how far they remained from others.

Let's be honest with ourselves: no one followed those lines anyway. Well, I did. But most days it felt like a losing battle.

The funny thing about the timing of this change is that it comes just as vaccination rates stall and the Delta variant surges. You'd think we'd need more distance between us, not less.

So when I came across this worn-but-still-functional floor sign at another store, I hovered over it for a bit and pondered the sheer futility of public messaging throughout this historic event, and the inability of ordinary people to follow simple instructions designed to keep us from getting sick.

Whether or not a given stretch of floor has stickers, I'll continue to put as much distance between myself and strangers as I possibly can, because you just never know.

And if I've learned anything since March 2020, it's that you can't trust anyone but yourself to navigate global - or local - turbulence.

All I want is to fetch my stupid groceries so I can get home without catching something deadly along the way. That isn't too much to ask, is it?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #shopping #retail #store #covid #pandemic #kindness #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

When wildflowers shrivel in the shadows

Past its prime, but still...
Elginfield, ON
July 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

You can find beauty anywhere, even in the post-sunset gloom among a stand of plain-looking, largely-shrivelled wildflowers in a ditch beside a busy regional highway.

So let's look harder.

#elginfield #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #country #farm #rural #roadside #flower #nature #naturephotography #stilllife #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

On moving mountains

"The man who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones."

William Faulkner

 

The compression effect

Lots going on
London, ON
May 2014
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Oh, the fun we can have with long lenses and a tiny bit of free time.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #throwback #urban #street #photography #road #traffic #zoom #compression #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #dslr #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Related:

Waiting for the train to cross, July 2021

Standing on the corner, April 2021

Standing in the middle of an endless road, April 2020

When radio studios go dark

Where magic happened
London, ON
May 2017
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Years ago, I got to live out a childhood dream - namely where I got to be the voice that came out of the radio.

The studios where I got to do this were located in an unassuming building on an unassuming stretch of one of London's busiest arterial roads. Four-plus lanes of traffic zipped past all day, every day, barely aware of the magic going on in the brown brick building behind the overgrown hedges.

The place goes dark for the final time this week as the radio stations move to the CTV London facility a few kilometres away. It's the right move for the right reason, of course. In a declining media landscape, you consolidate your resources wherever possible so you can keep the lights on just a little while longer.

And when the Giant Media Conglomerate that bought all these properties years ago says it's time to move, you fetch your boxes and start packing.

I took this photo at 6:36 a.m. on a Monday morning in May of 2017. I don't even know why I was there that early - probably an early morning interview or editing session. The back studio was unoccupied, and I paused for a moment to take in the delightful moodiness of a place most folks never see.

CKSL final signoff
August 16, 2016
11:55 p.m. ET

Right behind my long-since-trashed laptop, an ancient desktop computer that ran the remnants of onetime powerhouse CKSL (1410 AM) once sat, but had been removed months earlier as the zombie-like station-on-a-hard-drive was finally put out of its misery. I could almost feel the sense of history here, of a time when radio dominated local communities and these places were like licenses to print money.

Of course, those days were, and are, far behind us.

I deliberately kept the main lights off and let myself work by the light of the backlit controls. I couldn't bring back the glory days, but for a few minutes before the rest of the world awoke, I could sit in this hushed, resonant place and wonder what it must have been like.

Thank you, 743 Wellington Road South. You served your community, and your people, well.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #throwback #radio #studio #bellmedia #media #photography #blackberry #priv #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Related:

Newstalk 1290 CJBK

Virgin 97.5 (CIQM)

Pure Country 93 (CJBX)

CTV London (CFPL)

More signs in the waves

Find the poodle
Grand Bend, ON
July 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The sad truth of shooting waves is that they're gone in a blink, never to be seen again.

The happy truth of shooting waves is there's always another one set to roll in next.

The unvarnished truth of life is we can choose which of the following statements to heed first.

So let's choose wisely.

See you in the surf. I'll be the idiot with the camera.

#grand #bend #grandbend #ontario #canada #beach #great #lake #huron #sun #sunset #summer #nature #waves #water #landscape #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Lean into the curves

A journey you can feel
St. Thomas, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The geometry of a curved road never grows old.

You can look at it from the perspective of an observer, but if you really want to have fun, do so as a participant, one who carries momentum through the bends, feeling the creases of the road beneath, the invisible energy of a stretch of the planet that only comes alive as we move through it with purpose.

Some things, after all, are best felt.

I haven't yet ridden this particular stretch, but looking at it from above reminds me why I need to change that soon.

The Chevrolet ad campaign encourages us to find new roads. I think I just did.

#stthomas #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #elevated #park #railway #train #bridge #landscape #green #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

When hood ornaments ruled

I've got the entire world ahead of me
Thames Centre, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Once upon a time, hood ornaments were a thing.

Evolving safety rules have consigned them to the same historical dustbin where pop-up headlights now reside. Efficiency also helped doom them, as they’re not terribly good for aerodynamics.

But they still make hearts skip a beat, and take us back to a time before a more rational world started to rein in the designer’s pen.

Today’s engineering is obviously light-years removed from this 1940s-era example. We live in a golden age of reliability, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness, even if modern vehicles don’t quite move our souls as their ancestors once did.

I think it’s a reasonable tradeoff for most of us, especially when we just want to get the harvest in, or our families home.

Not going to lie, though: this one gave me goosebumps. You can almost imagine what it must have been like to design and craft this tiny piece of mobile sculpture.

The world may have moved on, but history still whispers to us if we care to listen.

#thames #centre #arva #thorndale #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #instabike #farming #fargo #trucks #history #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Related:

Mater lives just up the road, August 2021

Historic grab handle, August 2021

Historic grab handle

If this door could talk
Thames Centre, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Grab on.

Get in.

Let’s go.

(If she starts.)

#thames #centre #arva #thorndale #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #instabike #farming #fargo #trucks #history #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Mater lives just up the road

Meeting up with an old friend
Thames Centre, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Today was a lousy day for a bike ride. I’m not a fan of heat and humidity, especially when they show up together.

But I went out anyway, because we never get enough days. That life thing.

And on the flip side, I think I may have found Mater chilling out in an old-farm-equipment boneyard not far from Thorndale. Lightning McQueen was nowhere to be found - I believe he may be on tour with the little forklift who installs his whitewall tires - but I’ve always had a soft spot for low, slow, and patina-covered, anyway.

The wannabe-Mater was parked amid a bunch of old equipment just sitting in a clearing beside an aggregate quarry, and as luck would have it, I needed some shade and water right as it appeared around a sweeping curve. Funny how that works.

I wasn’t here long, but these ancient machines stuck in my mind as I got back on the bike and continued pedalling through the countryside. These trucks were built right around the time the Greatest Generation headed off to war, and they’ve probably been oxidizing quietly into oblivion for as long as I’ve been alive.

And all it took was a few cranks of the pedals to get out and see them. We really are surrounded by wonders, and I’m rather surprised that I was so profoundly moved by a bunch of long-abandoned agricultural machines.

On second thought, maybe the ride wasn’t as miserable as I first thought. Maybe I need to keep looking for other slowly rusting gems hiding in plain sight.

#arva #thorndale #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #bikelife #instabike #farming #fargo #trucks #history #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Third time lucky, now in red

The things we find in the shadows
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

They say good things come in threes.

I’m inclined to believe them.

Thanks for indulging my mini leaf jag. I’ll give it a rest for a bit. But autumn lurks just ahead on the calendar, and I make no promises for when it blankets the land in earnest.

Y’all like lots of colours, right?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #tree #trees #red #leaf #leaves #blue #sky #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Related:

Not-quite-so-plain green leaves, August 2021

Green leaves against a blue sky, August 2021

Green leaves against a blue sky

See-through life
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

If one photo of backlit green leaves is worth a spot in an Instagram feed, then logic might dictate a second image from the same series deserves to be shared, as well.

Truth be told, I couldn’t decide which one made me feel warmer and fuzzier, so you’re getting both.

I could get used to this new world of limitless pixels.

You?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #tree #trees #green #leaf #leaves #blue #sky #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

On hearing, seeing, doing

"I hear, I know.

I see, I remember.

I do, I understand."

Confucius

 

Not-quite-so-plain green leaves

Life, translucent
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Every year, the forests and trees here in the Great White North turn all kinds of incredible colors, so I do whatever any good Canadian does and take a few photos to remember the experience.

With the color festival set to begin in earnest in a bit more than a month, there isn't a whole lot to see in the interim.

Or is there?

See, we've been conditioned to look for the bright, the spectacular, the shining stars. And while they are all indeed worth waiting for, we often ignore everything else while we're waiting for those celebrities of the forest - or celebrities, in general - to appear.

In doing so, I think we're missing out on quite a bit. Because there's intrigue in the everyday, beauty in the subtleties of life, compelling stories below a radar most of us can't be bothered to pay attention to.

So here's an ordinary shot of ordinary green leaves from a tree in our friends' back yard. It won't make the autumn-colors list, but that's not the point. Here and now, it's arresting in its own way. And in ignoring its beauty, we miss the opportunity to hear its story, and the stories of so many like it.

Indeed, the more I ponder these ordinary leaves, the more I realize this is another one of those lessons first discovered in the forest, but applicable in anything we do after we return from the woods.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #tree #trees #green #leaf #leaves #blue #sky #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Celebrating #WorldPhotographyDay with a tree

Someone barked up the right tree
St. Thomas, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Today is #WorldPhotographyDay.

EVERY day should be World Photography Day, of course, because there will never be enough reasons to not tell a story or four through imagery. But it's nevertheless a blessing to be gifted a set day on the calendar to celebrate the joy of our craft with other passionate creators.

So I've chosen to celebrate with a simple photo that takes two dimensions and seemingly converts them into three. It reminds me what a crazy-cool world we live in, and how much fun it is to tell its story.

Seriously, this photography thing is sheer magic. I believed it when I was a child dreaming of taking my own photos on my own camera someday, and I believe it now.

Happy p-day, gang. Now go out and trip your shutter.

#stthomas #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #elevated #park #railway #train #bridge #nature #tree #trees #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Dump truck photobomb

Build for the future. Nod to the past.
Parkhill, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Strange composition, isn't it? A dump truck parked in front of an historic stretch of buildings on #Parkhill's main street.

I probably could have waited for the truck to leave the area. In fact, a few minutes after I took this, it slowly drove off to wherever it is that dump trucks go.

I probably could have taken another picture then, this time without the annoying truck belching diesel fumes into the brilliant summer afternoon sky.

But for some reason, this is the only photo I got, and I think it tells the better story. Of activity in a normally quiet little town nestled in the middle of similarly quiet farm country. Of life in a place that sometimes forces you to look in the margins to find it.

While composing scenes through the lens, I often wrestle with whether I should wait for things to change. For a car or truck to move. Or a pedestrian to walk away. Or a cloud to dissipate. Or move into position.

And I always fret after the fact, because I'm never sure if I shot at the right moment. Or if I was too early. Or too late.

This dump truck serves as my personal reminder that I should stop fretting. Because while timing will always be one of the little tools a photographer keeps in the toolkit, it's hardly the only one.

And far be it for me to be so arrogant as to assume that my sense of timing - or composition, or right and wrong - should be the metric by which others measure the worth of a scene.

Or anything else, frankly.

I should just tell the stories as they play out in front of me. Besides, the dump truck is a lovely shade of blue. And it offsets the ancient facade rather nicely. And the scene makes me smile.

Which in the end is all I'm trying to accomplish.

#north #middlesex #county #ontario #canada #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #bikelife #instabike #orange #devinci #hatchet #gravelbike #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

#IfYouReadOneThingToday - On missing people

Have you ever sat on an exercise bike and wondered about how that experience of spinning your legs alone can change you? If you're a Peloton person, do you ever think about the communities we join through the screens in front of us?

Devin Kelly has, and his brilliantly, often painfully written first-person piece raises the kinds of questions many of us are asking as COVID restrictions once again tighten and we return to the bubbles that (hopefully) keep us safe.

I'm not a runner like he is. But I ride, and being out on your own for hours on end gives you lots of time to think about the connections we make, how we maintain them, and how that influences the trajectory of our lives.

A fascinating, important read.

I Miss it All

Against the commodification of community.

Devin Kelly

Longreads

July 2021

The warm mug of happiness

Salvation in glass
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The next time you make yourself a mug of coffee, tea, hot chocolate, or whatever else it is that brings you comfort, I hope you’ll try something.

Stop.

Seriously. Whatever you’re doing, just stop.

Put the mug down on the table or counter. Then stare at it.

Don’t look at your phone. Don’t check the notifications on your smartwatch. Don’t ask Siri for the weather forecast. Don’t talk to anyone. Don't multitask.

Just take in the simple pleasure of a warm mug of something, radiating through your fingertips.

Why the hell am I rambling on about mugs?

Because we don’t reflect enough anymore. We don’t set boundaries between the demands of the outside world and the quiet spaces within us. Indeed, it’s getting harder to find those quiet spaces in the first place.

But it doesn’t have to be. All you need is a kettle. And some time.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #breakfast #table #spontaneous #coffee #mug #glass #stilllife #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Related:

The blue mug of happiness, February 2021

My beloved green mug, January 2016

I've been mugged, January 2014

That was the day that was, September 2012

Thematic Photographic 41 - Drink, March 2009

Thematic Photographic 39 - Transparent, March 2009

Turbulent tea, March 2009

Morning necessity? February 2006

On the definition of soul

"The soul is the voice of the body's interests."

George Santayana

Rolling into Parkhill

Flowers on main street
Parkhill, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The road beckoned, so I listened.

I’ve been ranging ever further from home on the bright orange machine, and it was time to stretch my legs just a little further. #Parkhill popped into my head the other morning as I got ready to head out, and I couldn’t come up with any rational reason to say no.

This picture-perfect town 40-ish kilometres northwest of home has long been a place we drive through, not to. The road to the beach at Grand Bend rolls right through the center of this historic place, and for years I’ve been telling myself I need to stop in someday.

This Saturday became my someday. And soon enough I was pedalling into a stiff headwind, the tall corn stalks singing loudly in the fields on either side of the arrow-straight regional highway that connected here and there.

Kayak-topped SUVs on their way to the beach gave me ample room as they sped past. Horses and cows grazed quietly in their pastures, and every second farmhouse seemed to have its own barking dog to add to my road trip soundtrack.

Somehow, the new bike makes rides like this feel effortless - just gear down, spin, and feel the road in your fingertips - and before long, I coasted onto the tree-lined main drag and looked for a quiet place to stop and recharge for the back half.

The historic storefronts reflected the snippets of life playing out up and down the street, families fetching groceries, dogs being walked, kids taking their first steps. I couldn’t stay long before I had to turn for home, but I was here just long enough to plant the seeds for my next visit.

Some places just get into your blood that way, even when they’re far from home.

#north #middlesex #county #ontario #canada #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #bikelife #instabike #orange #devinci #hatchet #gravelbike #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Watching the storms roll in

Water, light, and energy
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

It's 10:45 p.m. on a deserted street not far from home.

Severe thunderstorms have been rolling through the area all evening, and the dog and I are trying to catch a break before the next one hits. The horizon looks ominous, with fast-moving clouds barely covering the stars above, the rising winds creating their own music through the trees.

The clouds seem particularly reflective tonight, as if they sense that the world below needs an extra shot of light. So I stop to take in this unusual scene, and end up lingering on the grass for a while, feeling the wind through my hair and the gentle tug of the leash in my hand. Calli is perfectly happy to follow her nose at my feet as I stare up at the sky.

I probably shouldn't be standing in an open field while storms threaten to unload at any moment. But sometimes the planet feels a little different for reasons that may not be immediately apparent, and we owe it to ourselves to slow things down and appreciate the moment for what it is.

Indeed, when you open your eyes up amid the looming darkness, you never quite know what you'll discover.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #night #sky #clouds #light #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Windows on the Vegas Strip

So many stories yet to be told
Las Vegas, NV
November 2018
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Everything's bigger on the Las Vegas strip, even the facades.

#lasvegas #nevada #throwback #road #trip #travel #travelphotography #travelgram #building #architecture #architecturephotography #facade #design #buildingporn #architectureporn #steel #lines #monochrome #photography #google #pixel2 #teampixel #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Peachy!

Bet you can't eat just one
Talbotville, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

When you live in the middle of some of the most productive agricultural lands on the planet, you’ll be stopping at farmers markets alongside more rural roads than you’ll ever be able to count.

Which explains how we found these peaches on display not far from Talbotville, where they used to make Ford Pintos.

It was a hot and humid Sunday afternoon, and we needed a change of scenery. It’s been a common theme since the pandemic began, this ongoing need to bust out a little - safely, of course - and spend a bit of time somewhere else than home.

These escapes don’t last long, nor are they terribly consequential to the trajectory of Planet Earth. They aren’t remotely life-changing, either.

But they are essential in their own way. And somehow, staring at a perfect bunch of peaches, surrounded by some of my favorite people, becomes the most important thing I can do for my, and our, mental health on this sultry afternoon.

We’re witnessing history. And it is changing us. One fruit, one afternoon, one random wander through the countryside at a time.

So let’s wander.

#talbotville #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #talbotvilleberryfarm #store #farm #farmer #fruit #peaches #fruitography #shopping #retail #random #stilllife #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

On glory

"Glory is fleeting, but obscurity is forever."

Napoleon Bonaparte

 

Patio door glass on a rainy day

From the inside looking out
London, ON
July 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

We can either lament the fact that it rained, or celebrate what's been left behind.

The choice is entirely ours.

I think you already know where I stand.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #patio #window #spontaneous #water #abstract #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

The deep end of the lake

Waves at the end of the day
Grand Bend, ON
July 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Depending on how you look at it, the water is either crystal clear, inky black, painted by the sun, or none or all of the above.

It's all a matter of perception, then.

Of where we choose to stand. When we choose to stand there. Which way we choose to look. What lens we choose to look through.

Hmm, maybe this is more than a simple Lake Huron sunset photo, after all.

Maybe I need to stop thinking so much and just enjoy the view.

#grand #bend #grandbend #ontario #canada #beach #great #lake #huron #sun #sunset #summer #nature #waves #water #landscape #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

The grid

It's all about perspective
Lambeth, ON
Jule 2019
This photo originally shared on Instagram

You can find something to play with wherever you happen to be, even on a Sunday morning outside an otherwise ordinary-looking arena/community centre tucked away at the edge of a sleepy hamlet.

I use the word "play" deliberately.

Because that's what photography is. Or, at least, should be. Play. Creative, colorful, always-at-the-back-of-your-mind play.

Because what is life if we can't allow ourselves the luxury of a little playtime whenever the inspiration strikes?

#ldnont #lambeth #ontario #canada #throwback #community #centre #public #architecture #tile #square #geometry #straight #lines #early #sunday #morning #monochrome #photography #google #pixel2 #teampixel #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

#IfYouReadOneThingToday - On the speed of life

Sometimes you come across a piece of writing that reads like poetry, that seems to reach out and not so much touch your soul as gently graze it.

This is one such piece, a first-person perspective by New York Times contributing opinion writer Margaret Renkl on the speed of life, and how we might want to reframe how we choose to navigate it.

It's an easy five-minute read, but for some reason it sticks with you long after you've finished it and moved on to something else.

Some writers are just gifted that way, I guess.

Enjoy.

I Don’t Want to Spend the Rest of My Days Grieving

By Margaret Renkl

The New York Times

August 9, 2021

Alternate link here.

Indeed you are loved

When strangers care
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

There's a valley that winds its way through our neighborhood, kind of like a natural spine that turns city into country for anyone looking to unplug for a little while.

At the bottom of one of the stairways that connects this magical, quiet gift to the real, noisy world, someone decided to leave a little message in the shadowy concrete that's usually covered by random fallen leaves.

It's a simple message, really: "You are loved." But on this day, it stopped me in my tracks.

I'll never know who decided to leave this behind, but whoever they are, I hope they know their random act of publicly messaged kindness wasn't in vain.

It rippled out to me, and I'm certain to the countless other folks who pass by here on any given day. For I'm sure I'm not the only one who felt the weight of these words that are designed to heal.

We are indeed loved. It's up to us to believe in the power of that simple phrase, to allow it to drown out whatever other noise we may hear at the top of those literal or figurative steps. Back in the real world.

Small things. Significant impact.

Where else should we be looking for them? What other messages should we be leaving behind for strangers to randomly come across?

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #signs #messages #random #suburban #street #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

On pragmatic necessity

"Necessity dispenseth with decorum."

Thomas Carlyle

 

She's pawriffic

Beans
London, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

I have a strange admission: I find our dog’s paws fascinating.

Frankly, everything about Calli the Wonderschnauzer is fascinating. Indeed, every dog is fascinating, a uniquely complex package of behaviors that magically complement any family lucky enough to have them. If they’re lucky enough to have the right family, of course.

But this one’s ours. And she is, to put it bluntly, insane. Delightfully insane, but insane all the same.

And when she sleeps - which is often, because dogs who play hard need lots of recharge time - I’ll often just stare at her. No real reason why.

But no one ever said reason ever had anything to do with owning a dog. Random moments like this one are more than enough for me.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #calli #callitheschnauzer #dog #dogs #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzergram #schnauzers #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Rest stop at the old rail crossing

Eastbound
Komoka, ON
July 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

The rail line serves as a border between a sleepy exurb subdivision and pristine farmland, a steel dividing line between quiet lives far from the city and the fields that conceivably feed them.

I've stopped here because it's hot, and I need to refuel before I turn the bike toward home way too many kilometres thataway. I carry my own water and snacks, and as I munch away next to the crossing signals, I take note of the tracks beside my front tire.

They're old, their weathered, splintered ties disappearing into a mess of grit, gravel, and weeds. This is not a glittering high-speed rail line - just a tired stretch of track in the countryside that seems like an ideal analog to Canada's historic ignorance of its railway heritage.

Yet I still find myself drawn to places like this.

Maybe they echo what it took to pull this geographically-vast land into an economically feasible network of communities.

Maybe they reflect the small communities from coast to coast to coast that still rely on them to keep the lights on.

Maybe the romance of life on the rails still flickers amid the crushed railbed and rusting spikes that anchor the track.

As is often the case, I have no real answers to the silent questions posed by this too-often-overlooked place as my mind firms up the route for the ride home. And soon enough, it's time to get back on the pedals.

But part of me wonders what it might be like to ride a freight train back to the city at the other end of the line.

Part of me wonders what the future of rail travel will look like in places like this.

Part of me wonders why I wonder about things like this at all.

#ldnont #london #komoka #middlesex #centre #ontario #canada #rail #railroad #train #history #landscape #landscapephotography #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #random #roadside #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Related:

The orange machine heads west, July 2021

The protectors around us, May 2014

Rolling out, rolling on, April 2014

Salt, pepper, or both? April 2013

Grey path to nowhere, March 2013

After the fall, January 2013

Tractor beam, September 2011

Where Po craves ice cream

Someone's got an ice cream headache
St. Thomas, ON
August 2021
This photo originally shared on Instagram

We discovered something this weekend: Po the Teletubby* likes ice cream.

And cherry milkshakes. Specifically from Shaw’s Ice Cream, that magical place between the cornfield and the farmhouse that I strangely insist on photographing every time we’re here.

We had no idea she was fan of frozen confections, either. Now we know.

* Po has always been my favorite Teletubby, likely because she's the smallest and the youngest one. I have a thing for the underdog.

I’ve had her for a very long time. Decades. She was a Happy Meal toy when our kids were young enough for Happy Meals. Our son soon tired of Po, so she migrated to my camera bag, my backpack, whatever I was carrying at the time. She’s been everywhere, always up for a new adventure.

She’s become rather frayed over the years, but every one of those random strings of worn fabric represents a smile, a spontaneous conversation, a moment of connection with a stranger. I can’t imagine hitting the road without her.

Joy from a tattered castaway child’s toy. It’s a thing.

#stthomas #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #po #teletubby #shaws #icecream #milkshake #food #foodie #foodporn #random #photography #apple #iphone #iphone11 #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Tracking a Talon

Smooth history
London, ON
September 2019
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Behold the T-38 Talon, the primary (for now) jet trainer for the U.S. Air Force.

It's the plane that teaches pilots how to fly supersonic jets, and it's also how NASA astronauts get around when they don't want to fly commercial with the rest of us proles.

I've loved this plane since I was a kid, primarily because its design is so insanely clean, and it telegraphs perfectly what it is. It first flew in 1959, yet for some reason it still looks like the future.

I captured this one during its demo at last year's airshow, and while I don't think it'll be back on this year's manifest, I hope the future-fighter-pilots who fly them stay safe wherever they may be.

#ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #throwback #SkyDrive #AirShowLondon #aviation #northrop #t38 #talon #flight #aircraft #avgeek #aviationphotography #planespotting #instaplane #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #Nikon #nikonphotography #photography #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

A Raptor generates its own clouds

Corner velocity, visualized
London, ON
September 2020
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Some folks just like to make their own weather. And when they do, the least we can do is take their photo.

Thanks, @f22demoteam, for painting the #ldnont skies with vapor last year. Fly safe.

#london #airport #ontario #canada #throwback #SkyDrive #AirShowLondon #aviation #lockheedmartin #f22a #raptor #stealth #fighter #flight #aircraft #avgeek #aviationphotography #planespotting #instaplane #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #Nikon #nikonphotography #photography #lifeinthemargins #family #everything

Viper over London

Demo day
London, ON
September 2020
This photo originally shared on Instagram

Since we're in a plane-ish mood*, here's a throwback to the day last September when we sat beside our cars alongside the runway and watched a very special Viper do its thing.

Pay extra close attention to the red-and-white sticker on the side of the engine intake, just behind the anti-collision light.

It pays tribute to Capt. Jenn Casey, the public affairs officer of Canada's Snowbirds team, who died the previous May when her plane crashed just after takeoff from Kamloops, B.C.

Mad respect to the good folks from @viperdemoteam for this touching gesture.

* The air show is coming back to London at the end of the month. COVID being COVID, we'll once again be parked in our cars, properly socially distanced from other attendees, as the aircraft do their flyby displays. Nothing on static for a second straight year.

The blessing is we get to have this event in any form. So as I gear up for another photographically epic day, I thought I'd share a few fun snippets from last year's show. Hope you enjoy.

#ldnont #london #airport #ontario #canada #SkyDrive #AirShowLondon #aviation #lockheedmartin #f16 #fighting #falcon #viper #fighter #flight #aircraft #avgeek #aviationphotography #planespotting #instaplane #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #Nikon #nikonphotography #photography #lifeinthemargins #family #everything