Back in the saddle

All right. So we're back and it is not easy: after experiencing all the Wichita goodness we'd been hit hard this week: first there was a fire in our building, and now it's raining cats and dogs. Only in new York, as they say...
It wasn't that big of a deal, fire in Lower East Side - at least not for us, that is. It ate up half of the apartment on third floor of our building, where a young guy had lived, and it just so happened his mom was visiting from Michigan, staying with him. Talk about the ultimate New York experience, huh? But without being over-dramatic, I feel unsettled by this, and the three hours of waiting for firemen to first locate the fire, and then put it away kinda made me realize how fragile our lives are. Here's what I mean: we can write great symphonies, make beautiful movies, create perfect images, and here it is, one spark, that can take it all away.
Reminds me actually of the visit to UN headquarters in NY last June. There was an exhibition of artifacts that survived the Hiroshima attacks. There were coins, a few sturdy, hand-made glass bottles, piece of church sculpture and... that's about it. Here they were, silent witnesses of what had happened. No human remains, not even a piece of cloth - just things we made with our hands, little irrelevant when you think about it. So is that all there is, essentially? And then I thought again, looked at the other side of the coin: if that's all there is, then we should stop being so lazy. Correction: I should stop being so lazy, there's not so much time. (sorry for being a little catastrophic, it must be the rain's impact) I need to DO, instead of thinking constantly. That's my New Year's resolution. Also, it made me think: how is it that New Yorkers love firemen and despise cops? Is it that the first save our lives and the latter make it more difficult? I remember walking in Chicago a few weeks ago - police were all over the Greek neighborhood there - and they were nice! They said "Hi, how are you doing today?" With a smile! Shocking.


On a different, although kind of similar note: first I read about it on drudgereport.com, but thought it was a spoof, cause nobody had picked it up. Only yesterday Cary had pointed out this NYTimes article. Please, read it if you have a minute, had read this post and found it even slightly scary. It's an issue that should I think concern not only photographers, not only filmmakers or even reporters. It's important for the First Amendment, which I was learning about studying journalism in Warsaw, admiring accomplishments of American democracy. I don't like big words, but situation calls for them. Anyhoo, I'll leave the big words for Picture NY. Even if you're not reading this, you're doing a great job. Thanks!