Monday, July 31, 2023

Little Man turns 23

Future's so bright
Old Woman Bay, Lake Superior Provincial Park, ON
June 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


This is 23.

Noah, our youngest. Driven, brilliant, creative, funny, kind. He is the kind of child every parent wants, and we’re incredibly lucky to have.

May this year be the brightest yet, filled with all the rewards he works so hard to earn, and so richly deserves.

#LiveLaughLevy #oldwomanbay #throwback #ldnont #london #ontario #canada #birthday #life #parenthood #family #everything #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins

Where rubber meets wood

Curves and lines
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


When faced with a choice between stay and go, always go.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #cycling #cyclist #cycle #bicycle #bike #cyclinglife #bikelife #instabike #kingstreet #bridge #random #streetphotography #monochrome #stilllife #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins

Sunday, July 30, 2023

They park differently here

Under the golden Sun
Sault Ste. Marie, ON
May 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


At the end of a long day on the road, we pull into a hotel far from home and step out into a crumbling parking lot.

In between unloading and heading inside, I notice the parking structure next door and soon enough find myself wandering over to get a closer look.

It’s an unassuming, also-crumbling concrete block structure, worn down after decades of exposure near the northern edge of a Great Lake. A car badly in need of a muffler barks to life on the other side of the facade just as a ship’s horn wails in the distance.

My first inclination is that this forgotten piece of architectural mediocrity really isn’t much to look at. Yet here I find myself doing just that, unable to move away from this spot. My fingers trace the giant blocks, almost feeling the quiet harshness of the life they’ve led.

I think it’s the golden hour Sun, and the way it bathes the otherwise unremarkable building in soothing light. I can feel the warmth through my fingertips.

I’m reminded of why the plain and ignored are never really plain, and don’t deserve to be ignored. Because their entire story is never really told until the influence of others is allowed to wash over them.

Perhaps this moment was about a parking structure. Perhaps it was about all of us, as well.

#saultstemarie #ontario #canada #throwback #roadtrip #travel #travelphotography #travelgram #architecture #architecturephotography #design #perspective #geometry #buildingporn #architectureporn #urban #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Saturday, July 29, 2023

Eaton's last Viking says goodbye

The (cold) journey ends
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


It was the first appliance we bought together. Not long after we got married, we found a deal on a giant chest freezer, and soon enough it found a home in our shoebox apartment.

In the ensuing 3-plus decades, we shlepped it across town into our first house, then entirely out of the province when we eventually decided to leave our homeland for good.

It sat at the back of our garage ever since, quietly and faithfully keeping everything a growing family needed in its preferred frozen state. From burgers and briskets to Passover orders and ice cream, it was always just there.

Until it wasn’t. Last week my wife went to get something and realized it wasn’t working. Nervous text messages were exchanged. Plans were drawn up. Serious conversations were had around the kitchen table about what needed to happen next.

It might seem more than a little weird to be writing about an ancient banged up appliance from an iconic Canadian store - Eaton’s, emphatically with the apostrophe - that no longer exists. But here’s the thing. Two things, actually:
  1. I’m weird to begin with. I thought we had this discussion already.
  2. I won’t argue the point: it IS weird. But life is filled with all sorts of strange little rituals, touchstones, and milestones that we hold onto. These memories, like the pool of brackish water that formed at the bottom as I removed the ruined food and tossed it away, form the stories of us, the narratives we toss around in our minds when we need reminders of just how wild and precious this life thing can be. Of who we are. Of how far we’ve come.
In that respect, our Viking chest freezer defined so many chapters of our married life, from its earliest moments in a freshly furnished apartment, to today as our kids take increasingly bold steps into the world and make it their own.

I’m not a “stuff” person by any means, but when a humble piece of the everyday, one that somehow connected us to a time decades ago where everything we now treasure was still a dream, goes dark, it feels right to mark the moment in some way.

The least I could do was take one last picture of our dented, filthy stalwart before it was lifted into the delivery truck and disappeared for good.

We bought a new freezer, largely because I enjoy ice cream more than I probably should. I’d like to imagine we’ll craft some memorable stories around this seemingly humble appliance, too.

#ldnont #eatons #life #family #everything

Storm's coming

Watch the skies
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Storms don’t just show up unannounced.

On occasion, the skies might give us subtle clues of their impending arrival.

Like clouds that bubble up, puffy and white, out of an otherwise perfectly azure canvas, then slowly, almost imperceptibly build into something more.

Like when Winnie the Pooh feels a rumbly in his tumbly.

We may not always notice, likely because we’re too busy with all those earthbound things - like doomscrolling and rageposting - that we’ve deemed critical to our very existence.

But we might want to take the occasional time-out to look up and read the signs.

Sometimes they whisper things we really ought to take note of.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #blue #sky #cloud #clouds #storm #onstorm #weather #wx #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Friday, July 28, 2023

Twitter, X, and a critical rebranding lesson

As Twitter's blue bird fades away and the monochrome X brand takes its place, lessons are being learned about how to rebrand your organization.

My latest blog article for STEP Software Inc. explains the 6 things developers can – and must – do to ensure #rebranding success:

Developers take notes as Twitter rebrands as X – and kills the bird for good

#marketing #softwaredevelopment

Acceptable sidewalk vandalism

Message from a stranger
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram

  
I normally don’t condone wanton vandalism of public infrastructure. Or of any infrastructure, for that matter. Infrastructure has feelings, after all.

But I think I’ll make a bit of an exception this time out. Because we could all use an encouraging word or three on occasion. And we’d do well to stop and listen when those three words randomly show up just under our feet.

Please remember this message from a stick-wielding, misdemeanor-minded stranger. You indeed are amazing.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #random #road #street #sidewalk #message #youareamazing #texture #stilllife #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Thursday, July 27, 2023

Purple and proud

Soft textures
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Wherever possible, find the color. Then play with it.

Because we all need more joy.

And play comes in any color.

And limitless forms.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #purple #flower #flowers #flowerstagram #flowersofinstagram #flowerphotography #nature #naturephotography #garden #art #plants #macro #stilllife #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #picoftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Sailing symmetry

Four-ways
Grand Bend, ON
September 2022
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Sailing: good.
Sailing with friends: better.

#grandbend #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #throwback #greatlake #huron #sailing #sailinglife #sail #boat #sailingphotography #sky #water #waves #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Tuesday, July 25, 2023

Threads will steal your data - and your soul

To no one’s surprise, Meta's new wannabe-Twitter-killer, #Threads, has a healthy appetite for data – and a new privacy policy to match. Should you be worried?

My latest article for the STEP Software Inc. blog walks through the software development lifecycle risks - and the opportunities

Threads privacy policies reveal need for better development best practices 

#privacy #dataprivacy

Protector of the stairs

What's the password?
London, ON
April 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


We should all be guarded by someone so loyal.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #calli #callitheschnauzer #dog #dogs #actofdog #schnauzerpuppy #schnauzersofinstagram #schnauzergram #schnauzers #dogsofinstagram #instapuppy #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #ınstagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Monday, July 24, 2023

Where the Sun likes to hide

We know you're there
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


We may not always be able to see the Sun directly, but evidence of her brilliance is never far from view.

Look to the brilliant red sky as evidence that the fires still burn even if they’re hidden.

I hope those very same fires burn within us all as we shake off the weekend and prepare for whatever the new week has in store for us.

Shine brightly, friends.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sun #sunset #sky #tree #trees #cloud #clouds #cloudspotting #weather #wx #jaycee #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Sunday, July 23, 2023

Far into the lake

Cooked
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Empty pier on a blisteringly hot day.

#portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #sun #sky #water #waves #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Saturday, July 22, 2023

Only in a (rain-soaked) Jeep

Scene from a driveway
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Grab on. Get in. Let’s go.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #water #white #car #carporn #automotive #night #driveway #photography #nature #naturephotography #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Friday, July 21, 2023

Sunny kaleidoscope in a cloudy sky

Wonder
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


When we were kids, we stared up at the clouds and imagined the wondrous stories they could tell.

We may not have fully appreciated the forces at work high above, but still we spent countless hours craning our necks as they painted the sky in ever-changing kaleidoscopes of shade and texture and light.

It seems to be a different story in adulthood. I don’t know how many hours most of us spend with our necks craned skyward, but I’m willing to guess the number is smaller now than it was then. Pity that.

The view? Still wondrous. So are the stories.

If only we allowed ourselves to look up with childlike curiosity. If only we took the time.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sun #sunset #sky #tree #trees #cloud #clouds #cloudspotting #weather #wx #jaycee #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Thursday, July 20, 2023

Smudgy sunset

Painfully beautiful
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Red skies at night, thanks to wildfires spewing smoke that crosses continents and even oceans.

I feel both awe from the sheer beauty and despair from the root cause.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sun #sunset #sky #tree #trees #cloud #clouds #weather #wx #jaycee #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Wednesday, July 19, 2023

Sunset test shot

Painted sky
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


We’re back to chasing sunsets again. Because we’re only given a limited number of them to play with.

More to come…

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #sun #sunset #sky #clouds #cloudspotting #weather #wx #silhouette #forest #tree #trees #jaycee #park #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Mezzanine mall scene

Look out below
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


I call these in-between moments - those few seconds of quiet in between the otherwise frenetic back-and-forth of everyday life.

This one happened at a nearby mall. Our fam jam had come here to run a few errands, and after I had completed my assigned domestic task, I had a bit of time left over before we all reconnected.

So I headed for the second floor and looked for railings around the edge of the mezzanine to play with. Eventually I found one I liked, and out came the smartphone.

It didn’t take long to capture this blink-and-you-miss-it scene of an anonymous family doing what so many other families do in this transient place. What originally started out as a vision in geometry evolved into a silent think-fest as I pondered the scene far below and realized it could just as easily be any of us.

As a kid, I often wondered what my life looked like, and whether or not it looked like anyone else’s. A snippet of time in a public space may not get me any closer to that answer, but it motivates me to keep my camera close by whenever I’m out and about.

Because we learn something about ourselves if we stop and look and think when we’re not otherwise rushing through our day-to-day lives. Because I can’t imagine not having in-between moments to begin with.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #masonville #random #retail #street #streetphotography #geometry #monochrome #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Monday, July 17, 2023

Sailing with strangers

A day on the water
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


We might think we’re all alone as we get further away from shore. We might be wrong.

#portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #greatlake #erie #sailing #sailinglife #sail #boat #sailingphotography #sky #water #waves #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Sunday, July 16, 2023

Messages in the driftwood

Washed up
Old Woman Bay, Lake Superior Provincial Park, ON
June 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


A piece of driftwood lies, forgotten, on a windy beach at the desolate edge of the world's largest lake.

No one is here to share its tale, where it’s from, how it got here, or anything about the lives whose paths it crossed along the way.

We might assume this is where it ends. But a tiny voice whispers in the winds that rush across the time-worn wood that its next chapter could be its most compelling.

Lesson for the rest of us, perhaps?

#oldwomanbay #algoma #lake #superior #ontario #canada #roadtrip #travel #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #driftwood #wood #texture #stilllife #bokeh #sunset #beach #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded #lifeinthemargins

Saturday, July 15, 2023

QOTD - On ships, harbors, and safe shelter

At rest
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


"A ship in the harbor is safe, but that’s not what ships are built for."
John A. Shedd


#portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #greatlake #erie #sailing #sailinglife #sail #boat #sailingphotography #sky #water #waves #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Friday, July 14, 2023

Where I steal my wife's phone...for work

Duelling logos
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


I often use stock imagery in my professional writing, as it’s a fairly quick and efficient means of matching up the right photo or graphic to the story at hand.

But sometimes I just can’t find what I’m looking for. So I’ll pull the camera-camera out and have a little spontaneous photo session on my living room floor.

My wife’s phone is on the left. Mine’s on the right. I was rushing, so I let Mother Nature provide the gentle light and shadows.

I love this photo not so much because it’s groundbreaking. It isn’t. It’s just a couple of logos artfully arranged in the available light by the patio doors. But it emerged from a fun family moment where my personal and professional lives collided, and my family shrugged and smiled as I did my thing and cobbled together something from nothing.

In the end, my article - here - had just the right imagery to accompany it, and my peeps were left with another weird story from a memorable day.

Creative life. Words. Photos. Whatever. It’s what we do.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #random #stock #shutterstock @stepsoftware #stilllife #photography #meta #threads #twitter #stepsoftware #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Thursday, July 13, 2023

STEP blog: cybersecurity budgets

By virtually every measure, #cybersecurity budgets are failing to keep up with a fast-evolving threat landscape. As risks and costs soar, CIOs and other technology leaders find themselves fighting for attention – and budget.

My latest blog article for STEP Software explains why this is so problematic – and what to do about it:


#technology #it #budget

The last umbrella - for now

Never leave home without one
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


The beach umbrella series continues.

I’m still not sure where this weird little obsession of mine comes from, but I think it’s fair to conclude that not everything in life needs to be explained.

#port #stanley #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #umbrella #sun #sky #water #waves #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Related:
Caption This 133, August 2009
Cover me with warmth, November 2007
Cover me, January 2007
Burned sky, October 2006



Wednesday, July 12, 2023

Let's get tanked

Step up
Port Stanley, ON
May 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


According to conventional wisdom, an old petroleum storage tank isn’t usually something worthy of a second look, much less a first photo.

But if you’ve followed my feed for long enough, you’ve doubtless noticed I’m hardly conventional. Which leads us to this scene, tucked away, largely ignored, at the edge of a popular beach.

As this is a working port, with fishing vessels coming and going almost constantly, it makes sense that these giant structures would be here. There used to be three such tanks, with a sea-themed mural splashed across the corrugated steel.

Eventually the murals faded, and were painted over with a sobering black. Certainly less festive, but still worthy of a second look.

Because conventional wisdom isn’t always the wisdom we were destined to follow.

#port #stanley #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #architecture #engineering #black #yellow #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Tuesday, July 11, 2023

Find color in a colourless place

Vision in concrete block
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Always look for color in the margins, in the places where no one else would expect it.

Always remember you’re not anyone else.

You’re you.

Colorful.

Curious.

Unique.

At least this is what I tell myself as complete strangers stare at me for taking an interest in the concrete block building that houses a bunch of washrooms.

Their eyes scream, “Why?”

I’d like to answer that not everything needs a reason. Instead, I smile and find another sliver of color to explore with my lens. #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #building #architecture #architecturephotography #buildingporn #architectureporn #concrete #block #color #colour #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Monday, July 10, 2023

The umbrella theme gathers steam

Blue like the sky
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Some days have themes. On this particular day at the beach, it seemed to be umbrellas.

I’m not sure how or even why that happens. You’re out and about and something catches your eye. So you shoot a photo and decide you rather like it. Before long, your brain is seeking out similar scenes, as if repetition brings some form of comfort.

There was no plan to begin with. The day didn’t start out with umbrellas floating through my head. They just wandered in, I guess, and now I’ve got a bunch of umbrella pics to mark a memorable day.

I’d like to think that each person under each umbrella was forming their own indelible memories, as well.

I’d like to think we all have our own way of looking at the world, and our own safe shelter from which to do the observing.

#portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #blue #white #umbrella #sun #sky #water #waves #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Sunday, July 09, 2023

Pondering life outside safe harbour

Perspective
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Stare at a harbour long enough and a few things become apparent:

The sea - or in this case, the Great Lake - can be unforgiving.

So everything here is designed to shelter, to protect, to signal safe haven.

But it all depends on your direction: head toward the horizon and there’s a line where you leave it all behind.

The danger is always just out there.

So we build great things to keep it at bay: piers, breakwaters, lighthouses.

We dredge the water to keep it safe and functional.

We work the waters and the shores to keep it alive.

A community’s way of sheltering from the storm, of creating jobs, of driving opportunity.

Of telling the waters just beyond that we revere and respect them just as we recognize their perils.

But we also need to carve out a bit of a life for ourselves, too.

#port #stanley #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #sun #sky #water #waves #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Saturday, July 08, 2023

Mackie's picture window

Inadvertent reflective selfie time
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Scene from a beach.

Say it 10 times fast.

You’re welcome.

#port #stanley #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #mackies #restaurant #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #archirecture #reflection #window #selfie #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Shared by Tourism London

Honoured to have one of my photos shared by the good folks at Tourism London.

Tourism London Instagram link here.

Friday, July 07, 2023

Meta launches Threads. I write.

Meta's wannabe-Twitter-killer app, #Threads, is already setting social media records and spawning lawsuits. But will it stick around for the long haul?

In my latest article for the STEP Software Inc. blog, I break it all down:

Is Meta Threads a Twitter killer? The answer may surprise you.

#socialmedia #twitter

And in case you're still Twittering, I tweeted it here - only to have Twitter's algorithm bury it deeper than the Marianas Trench. Coincidence? Sure. 

Protection from...everything

Cover me
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Protectors are everywhere.

We just have to look for them.

#port #stanley #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #umbrella #sun #sky #water #waves #nature #nature #photography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #canon #canonphotography #canon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Thursday, July 06, 2023

Straight lines at the end of the pier

Geometry lesson
Port Stanley, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


The scene: Port Stanley’s main beach. We’ve come here for the day because it’s our anniversary and it’s become an anniversary tradition to get sand between our toes whenever we mark another year together.

Weird, I know. But that’s us.

Inevitably, I’ll wander around with a camera for a bit, and yesterdays’s trip was no exception. The winds took me to the pier, then after I negotiated an epic field of geese and poop and arrived at the very end of the structure, the winds disappeared and left the shimmering heat to bake the white painted concrete to a delightful crisp.

Which means between the sweat pouring down my egg-shaped head and the brilliant, hazy sun bleaching the entire scene, I couldn’t see a thing. Great conditions for a photo sesh, apparently.

Still, I wanted to remember what it felt like to be there, so I blindly stumbled around with the camera while I silently cursed the weather. At first glance, this photo is a simple study of straight lines. But nothing - in photography as well as life - is ever really that simple. There’s always a story leading up to the moment, a journey, an experience that is often very much yours and no one else’s.

Indeed, anyone can shoot straight lines - even these. But we all follow our own path to get here. And we all have different, unique, important stories to tell.

#port #stanley #portstanley #beach #ldnont #ontario #canada #great #lake #erie #sun #sky #water #waves #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Wednesday, July 05, 2023

31 years of us

Always find the funny
Laval, QC
July 5, 1992
This photo originally shared on Instagram


31 years ago today, she married me.

31 years ago, we were both very different people - so very young - yet who we are to each other, everything, hasn’t changed one bit.

31 years ago, I pinched myself that I had married up in the world. Still do. Every day.

31 years ago, the future seemed so limitlessly bright. It still does, only in much more vibrant tones.

31 years ago, we had only just begun to write our story. Today, we often like to reread the parts of that story that we’ve since created. That’s why we smile so much.

31 years ago, we hadn’t met our kids. Hard to imagine a world without them.

31 years ago, we had our entire family around us. Today, we’ve lost some of them. That time thing.

31 years ago, “Sickness and health” were just words. Today, we’ve lived them.

31 years ago, we were just figuring out who we were. We still are - and always will be - but we’ve learned how to do it in lockstep.

31 years ago, she finished my sentences. Still does, only more precisely.

31 years ago, the world was a very different place than it is today. But we’ve navigated it together, which is the only thing that matters to me.

31 years ago, she laughed with me. To this day, every day we find excuses and opportunities to laugh together. Even if the days themselves can sometimes be hard.

31 years ago, I worried about being enough for her. Part of me always will.

31 years ago, I made a promise. Every day since, I’ve done my best to keep it.

31 years ago, we knew we were bashert. Fated. Destined. The universe hasn’t let us down on that one.

I love this girl and all we are and all we’ve built. If I knew then what I know now, I’d change nothing.

Happy anniversary, my love. Thank you for just being you.

#montreal #ldnont #blink #LiveLaughLevy #family #everything

Tuesday, July 04, 2023

Flowers for Algernon

In perfect bloom
London, ON
July 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Long weekends rule. Until they’re over.

So here’s a fiercely pretty flower to stare at while we wait for the caffeine to do its thing. Our dear friends grew it - they’re magically gifted that way - and they kindly allowed me to go nuts with my lens.

Which is my way of saying you’re about to be spammed with more flower photos.

Sorry.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #flower #flowers #flowerstagram #flowersofinstagram #flowerphotography #nature #naturephotography #garden #art #plants #macro #stilllife #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #picoftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Monday, July 03, 2023

When paths cross in the sky

Strangers passing overhead
London, ON
April 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Hundreds of people on two separate aircraft fly at near-supersonic speeds toward faraway destinations, tracing near-perfect lines across the equally perfect blue sky.

Thanks to fate, weather, and an unseen algorithm buried deep in scheduling software, their paths momentarily cross.

Even if they’re never aware of it.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #blue #sky #weather #wx #cloud #clouds #cloudspotting #contrail #aviation #flight #flying #aviation #avgeek #plane #planes #photography #apple #iphone #shotoniphone #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Sunday, July 02, 2023

Play with the leaves

Natural texture
London, ON
June 2023
This photo originally shared on Instagram


Always take the opportunity to play with leaves and light and texture.

And anything else, for that matter.

Because autumn is inevitable.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #tree #trees #green #leaf #leaves #texture #light #nature #naturephotography #landscape #landscapephotography #stilllife #photography #nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded

Saturday, July 01, 2023

Canada Day for some

Don't worship me
London, ON
April 2020
This photo originally shared on Instagram


The calendar says it’s July 1st. Canada Day. Our country’s 156th birthday.

Cue the fireworks, the wearing of red and white merch, the flag-waving, and the annual jingoistic proclamations of national pride.

There, we good?

Now, let’s get real.

Canada is a wonderful country, full stop. It ranks highly on too many global lists to count, and outsiders generally like us. More realistically, it’s a pretty decent place to raise a family, grow a career, and live the kind of peaceful, opportunistic life that citizens of other countries can only dream of.

But we’re far from perfect.

Canada’s history of treating its Indigenous peoples with contempt and cruelty is well-known. We haven’t always been as welcoming to outsiders as we should have been, and the undercurrents of racism and white supremacy run strongly from sea to shining sea.

So forgive me if I don’t join in the blind flag-waving in equally blind support of a national ideal that has never existed. Those who thump their chests and brand themselves patriots, after all, probably never understood the meaning of the word. And likely never will.

I worship not the flag, but the ideals inherent in everyone who lives and/or comes here in search of a better life. I cheer not the rote words of the anthem, but the sentiment they represent for those of us who sing the song, however ignorantly.

This notion of naked pursuit of empty words - constitution, nation, liberty, freedom, whatever - as a free pass to do whatever we want to anyone who gets in our way, damn the consequences, will never feel right. It isn’t who we are.

So while I celebrate the day, I choose to do so not because of some flag that waves in the wind, but because of the people who will, hopefully over time, work toward a better country that treats everyone as they deserve to be treated.

We’re not there yet. So we keep trying. As we must.

#ldnont #london #ontario #canada #canadaday #ohcanada #madeincanada #iamcanadian #fêteducanada #holiday #mapleleaf #photography #Nikon #nikonphotography #nikon_photography #photooftheday #instagood #nofilter #nofilterneeded