In the Planning

Like I said, I didn't think I'd be able to post every day. There are too many factors, none of which need to be discussed here.  Not many.  Not much.

I get tired after too much exertion which usually is simply going places, riding and getting in and out of the car, walking among people, sitting in public.  I have done enough of that these holidays, and I come home and crash like a baby.  I still need rest.  People I know see me and say I look good, and I do for someone run over by an SUV, but I am still rotten inside.  It hurts to move.  If I'm standing still, however, I can fool a crowd.

Some nights I worry about it, but who doesn't worry at night?  Most days I am able to be strong.

I take two cameras with me whenever I go out now, the Leica Monochrom and the Leica M10.  They are fun cameras that get a lot of attention.  Once in awhile, I even make a picture.  They are mostly snapshots or pictures out the car window, but occasionally I try.  A little here, a little there.  Nothing book worthy.  Just stuff.

I have been enjoying pictures as they come out of the Monochrom.  They are more filmic than other digitals.  The vintage Canon lens is not at all sharp, so everything has a bit of a glow.  I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I am letting it work for me for now.  The picture of the shoeshine is made with that combo.  Can I say "shoeshine"?  No, I am sure I shouldn't.

I do not like New Year's Eve.  It has no meaning for me.  I have rarely been out at midnight, and when I have been, I have regretted it.  In all likelihood, I will be asleep long before the calendar turns.    Ili says that's good with her.

But there will be champagne.

There are many worlds "out there."  As much as possible, you choose which one in which to travel and to live.  I am selecting a gentler world than I have hitherto explored.  Ili and I have been planning trips we wish to take, and we have tried watching travel videos about these places.  YouTube is full of them.  The newest ones seem done for Instagram.  Pretty girls in makeup and outfits walking past a 1,000 year old door in some exotic city.  Lots of vicious smiling and party screaming for the camera.  We've taken to watching Rick Steve's videos.  Nope, I'm not kidding.  They are more informational than Diane and Dave's Adventure City.  But I am convinced that travel is useless now, that anywhere you go, there will be more tourists than locals.  Everything is a photo op.  It's not wrong, I think.  That is always what travel has been unless it was for trade and wealth.  There are just more people who can afford it now.  Everywhere you go you can get a professional guide.  And there is Facebook and Instagram.

But as my friend said to me after going to Africa on his own--"It looked just like the t.v. shows."  I know it is lame, but I understand what he means.

It will be awhile, though, before I am able to hit the road.  For now it is all planning.