Inspiration from Unlikely Sources

Seen on local fire department sign yesterday: PHISH PHRY PHRIDAY. Hee! Phabulous!

I've decided that it's been too long since I indulged my creative side. Yeah, I know, technically writing is a creative thing, but I crave more than that. At one time I dreamed of being a photojournalist. I spent hours behind the lens of my trusty camera and even longer hours in the darkroom slaving over the perfect print. My camera now rests on the top shelf of my closet, where it has been for the past two and a half years. It's easily accessible, and every once in a while I catch a glimpse of it and feel a pang of guilt. It begs to be taken out of its case and out into the glorious springtime sun. I'm not sure what's stopping me at this point. Maybe it's the fact that if I switch back to my beloved film-eating SLR, I'll have to leave the developing and printing to someone else, since I'm sans darkroom these days. Handing over that much control isn't in my nature.

So, for the time being, I've made a deal with myself to keep my digi cam well charged and ready to go. I'm going to document spring and possibly summer in my part of the world and see what happens. I'm going beyond the standard pics of my daughter and pets. Not that I don't love taking pictures of my daughter. The three CDs from her first year alone would tell the truth on that one. I want to capture the spirit of southeast Kansas, or at least try to show a piece of this country that so many people never see. Pasture fires (no, not ones that I have personally set, tyvm Lushes), corn so tall you can hide behind it, my nephews joyfully reeling in catfish from our lake, the perfect golden color of wheat just before harvest, traveling harvest crews, maybe even (but hopefully not) the look on a farmer's face in August when it's 103 and the pivots just pumped the last drops of water from the lake onto a soon-to-be-wilted field of soybeans. Maybe, if I get brave enough to jump headfirst back into the world of photography, I'll steal a corner of our new shop building and invest in the equipment for a darkroom. Then I'd have no excuse but to free my favorite old camera and lenses from their padded prisons. Watch out world, I'm re-armed and dangerous!