by jad

Why is Photography Interesting?

Why is photography interesting? The number of people who might care about what I have to say has almost doubled since I took it on as an intentional practice, so that question might be better posed to the people who took interest, instead. But why *is* photography interesting to me? I have often said that I am an inherently visual communicator, but those of you who have been here from the start know that I picked up the craft as an object of discourse or matter of concern first. Words came before light, in an isomorphism of what Dane Rudhyar … Continue reading “Why is Photography Interesting?” →

by jad

Sound Concepts

“Silence is such a great concept. There is no silence, unless in a vacuum; it’s that great mystic world which cannot exist in our world. Also, in music, the time between the musical events is as important as the event itself.” (Robert Henke) x FOR ANY INSTRUMENT OR COMBINATION OF INSTRUMENTS I TACET II TACET III TACET x “A good drone is highly complex under the surface. It is like a view over a city, which can be perceived as just a grey mass of buildings or as a very complex set of small parts where each part is complex … Continue reading “Sound Concepts” →

by jad

The Harrowing

I’ve been co-convening a little get-together of 20/30-something church types who are into “questioning” and “wrestling” with matters of faith. Yesterday’s topic was empire and power, and someone raised the question of whether Christianity lost its ability to speak back to power after 313, when Constantine made it a state religion. I rambled a response about the paradox and scandal of incarnation – how, in an abstract and philosophical way, things took a turn towards human corruptibility the moment the Word decided to become Flesh (which got a laugh from the room) – and, at some point, I used the … Continue reading “The Harrowing” →

by jad

Transit Equity Day: RR x TRU

I want to use this last post of a gorgeous bus stop from my time in California as an opportunity to ask for your financial support of @RidersRightsLB. Next Saturday is #TransitEquityDay, and, to coincide with this occasion, the #Seattle Transit Riders Union has launched a crowdfunding campaign to support a mutual aid initiative that RR is coordinating in #Lebanon. I’ve put a link where you’d expect to find it on my profile. Please consider supporting mobility justice in Lebanon during an extremely difficult economic and political time there. The parallels we are drawing between our two very different contexts are deliberate. Rosa Parks and … Continue reading “Transit Equity Day: RR x TRU” →

by jad

#Route101: San Francisco / Jenin

The air feels heavy with many things today, so I thought I’d share this, from Clarion Alley, as a reminder of sorts, or maybe just a laugh, if you’re in that mood, instead. x San Francisco himself at the Mission Dolores Basilica, right next to the original Misión San Francisco de Asís. The Basilica and a nearby park get their name from the “Arroyo de Nuestra Señora de los Dolores,” or Our Lady of Sorrows Creek. x x x x I haven’t posted anything political in a very long time, and the awful thing is that I’m moved to post … Continue reading “#Route101: San Francisco / Jenin” →

by jad

#Route101: Napa Valley / SF

If there’s any stretch of this road trip that I’d do all over again, it’s #Route29 through Napa Valley. This region, with its wineries and whistlestops, is obscenely picturesque, and had way too many photo-ops to fit into our schedule. Here are two pit stops and one drive-by through the car window. I love that this combination gas station & burger joint says: “welcome to wine country.” x I keep mentioning #SanFrancisco without posting anything from there, so how about a little nibble on this sugar cookie of a building to whet your appetite? We were so very lucky to arrive here on the … Continue reading “#Route101: Napa Valley / SF” →

by jad

#Route101: Shelter Cove / Eureka

I’ve already posted about this place, but the journey here and back was so poignant, there’s still more to say. We decided to come here by looking at the coastline on a map and choosing somewhere that could break up the drive down to San Franscisco. Christine thought it sounded like the sort of place pirates would go, and that was good enough for me. Little did we know how right her intuition was. The road was labyrinthine and steep; the rain was unrelenting; we lost our phone signal, and as the other cars thinned out the further we drove … Continue reading “#Route101: Shelter Cove / Eureka” →

by jad

#Route101: Klamath / Coos Bay

This little Paul Bunyan-themed #Route101 attraction is a perfect apéritif to this vast stretch of Redwood Highway wilderness, especially if you’ve never seen or touched a Redwood before, like me. I’m not a fan of heights either, but the skyways were absolutely breathtaking in the best kind of way with just the right amount of “adventuring” for my tastes. I don’t want to come across as California-woo but just being around and breathing in these giants felt soothing to the soul. x  Our New Year’s Eve morning actually started here, and it actually started a little rocky too. We’d pushed ourselves quite … Continue reading “#Route101: Klamath / Coos Bay” →

by jad

#Route101: Florence / Crescent City

The first stop on our #Route101 road trip was supposed to be the famous Sea Lion Caves, but when we arrived, we were told that the tours had been cancelled because of the storm. We were a tiny bit disappointed because the weather seemed fine at that point. But, sure enough, by the time we were done circling the gift shop, it started getting a little uhhh blustery out there. By the by, does anyone know why #FujifilmSusperia400 often has a pronounced green tinge in the shadows? I really like it but I’m curious how and why it happens. Total matrix vibes in these. … Continue reading “#Route101: Florence / Crescent City” →

by jad

#Route101: Reedsport / North Bend / Mapleton

We stopped here on our way to Portland on December 30, purely to take that photo in the last slide, but ended up leaving with some mini cakes and a big ol’ jar of blackberry High Country Honey from Lakeside, OR. It was a little sad to see all these shuttered and vacant stores lining both sides of main street, sandwiched between hokey MAGA wood art and a cute little “bakery & coffee shop” that didn’t sell coffee. It felt like a poetic aperçu of this place. x This was where we spent most of the morning of New Year’s … Continue reading “#Route101: Reedsport / North Bend / Mapleton” →