Gratitude Journal
November 2020 - January 2021
This gallery was inspired by the National Institute of Health’s recent
study on Gratitude awareness. This two part study was divided in its
approach: a written journal, or a photo project.
I decided that I’d rather produce a hybrid a snapshots with text work.
After a month or two of post production I present it here.
11/21/20
"up"
Gratitude #1
Like so many things that I see everyday I sometimes find myself captivated by its beauty
or perhaps its strangeness.
Recently I found myself looking up and wondering what the hell is all of that stuff?
I don't even possess a vocabulary to describe the crap hooked, dangling, stretched,
or nailed to telephone poles.
for 11/21/20
"up"
Gratitude # 1
And sometimes I don't have to look very far up!
for 11-22-20
the way back machine
Gratitude #2
Mr Hector Peabody has very few peers that are her own age.
She was born during a 10 year period when seeing an American
Woman that was pregnant was truly an oddity. Hmmm.... I wonder....
perhaps she’s a bit on the odd side because.....nah, she’s just delightfully odd.
I love her. Happy birthday Mr Peabody.
11/23/20
"down"
Gratitude #3
Look up, look down, look left, look right.
While I was looking up I was also looking down. In my neck of the woods it seems
that wherever our Hispanic folks hang out you'll find a slew of bottle caps.
Sometimes decades worth. When I stopped to inquire if this was a 'thing' no one
seemed to know what I was talking about. Bottle caps? Where?
11/24/20
"sky"
Gratitude #4
The sky above the coffee bar this morning was so unusual. How could this not make me smile with joy?
11/25/20
"small robot"
Gratitude #5
Today I photographed a small painting of a green colored robot. My friend Don painted it
and he used his 3 year old daughter as the model. So every time that I see this work
it makes me smile.
11/26/20
"KJ's birthday"
Gratitude #6
I asked Don to send me a photo of his daughter Kae on her birthday, he did.
KJ. the little robot, is pictured here holding one of the gifts that
my wife had me drop off to her this morning. Kaelie is 4.
I gave her two $2 bills. Next year I'll give her a 'fiver'.
11/27/20
"Hammonton mural"
Gratitude #7
I watched Delfino work on this mural for several weeks. He worked alone. The painter
is a locally known artist primarily through his involvement
with comic books.
I really enjoy the complexity of this image but sadly it's
a bit to "modern" for the town.
11/28/20
"World Art Day"
Gratitude #8
I found four handmade necklaces hidden throughout town our town today. I have no idea
who made them but they are extremely well crafted. I'll give them to my
friends as Christmas gifts.
11/29/20
"free books"
Gratitude #9
"The Little Free Library" is a community book box exchange. There are
over 100,000 little libraries registered worldwide: including
the one located on the geographic South Pole. So far, I have
only found two and they are near where I live.
I've used them both taking one, leaving one.
11/30/20
"trolley"
Gratitude #10
Years ago Sam and I met in Mt. Holly for Lunch. Afterwards we stopped into
a giftshop to look around. There Sam spotted a plastic electric trolley.
He instantly told me to let Hanne know that this would be
an excellent Christmas gift.
After we parted for the day I swung back and purchased it.
Later I called Sam's wife and told her about "her" purchase.
I now own that piece, its sits in my library.
for 12/1/20
"Rose"
Gratitude #11
Rose is my best friend, has been now for over a decade. In that time I have
taken hundreds of photographs of her. I have two favorites
and
both have risen to the level of fine art. One is public one is private.
And she gets to see who see what. Well sort of.
12/2/20
"Atlantic City, NJ Mural"
Gratitude #12
Atlantic City is a mural friendly town. A project was started in the late 2000s and has
blossomed into a 48 block tour. I drove into the city specifically to find and photograph
this wonderful mural.
12/3/20
"banana"
Gratitude #13
Who knew that a banana was botanically a berry? That fact alone
ought to make you smile. I looked down and I
thought "how beautiful is that?
12/4/20
"Scott"
Gratitude #14
Scott has been my handyman for over 30 years. Talk about someone knowing your house
inside out- he has mostly rebuilt the whole place. Scott is both a
very skilled worker and a very sweet man. He is a friend.
12/5/20
"EM"
Gratitude #15
She used to be an extremely thoughtful young woman. But, she was
often very angry.. Now after not seeing her for much of this plague year
I think that EM has finally achieved contentment.
That make me happy and extremely proud of her.
12/6/20
"Lucy"
Gratitude #16
Lucy the Margate Elephant has been given a new role to fulfill in her old age.
No longer is she just a tourist attraction and a national landmark
but a full-fledged part-time Air B&B.
12/7/20
"billboard"
Gratitude #17
"I hug her twice, in case it's the last time". That's what the sign says and that what I now do. That gives me great joy.
12/8/20
"mother of god"
Gratitude #18
I encountered a husband and wife wearing identical face masks, that was a first.
Soon I realized that the image was of Mother Mary. I ask them about it.
"I'm hoping that these will get us to the front of the line". He didn't mean,
I presumed, to the front of the grocery store checkout counter.
12/12/20
"Jen"
Gratitude #19
It's 10:00am and Jen has been here since around 8:00. She is nearly
done cleaning the upstairs of my house. Downstairs ought to
take her another couple of hours. I am So grateful that
she is here to help me this year.
12/13/20
"tree"
Gratitude #20
It took us three days to finish decorating this years Christmas tree,
that is a record that I hope we never repeat. This is
the 11th year that Rose has been here to be
a part of our little yearly celebration.
12/14/20
"antique German clock"
Gratitude #21
One of my top 10 possessions is a clock that once belonged to Hanne's mother,
Elizabetha Zanger (nee). I view this table top timepiece as
a household treasure.
A year or more before Hanne's death she asked me what I would like to have after
she died. Without hesitation I pointed and said "that". She was pleased.
for 12/15/20
"patch"
Gratitude #22
Every night that Rose is here, and that is at least 6 nights a
week we have a tender moment. She'll be ready to go home for the night.....
12/26/20
"barista Anna"
Gratitude #23
Anna is 17. She is a 5'5" 100 pound ball of Cool. She dresses so interestingly,
it's her art.
Anna describes herself as a curator of Wardrobe. She latterly
means that. Her clothes are stored as though they are a part of
a museum catalog. Wonderful!
12/17/20
"purple"
Gratitude #24
Even WalMart can bring me joy. Today I met a purple haired clerk
named Hiley, encountered a large masked man, and spotted
a White-throated Sparrow; all inside the store.
12/18/20
"woodland shark"
Gratitude #25
Bob dabbles in ironic public art. For the past few years he has been
adding a tin wildlife collection to his local wetlands. A Black
bear, heron, and an alligator are just a few of his
delightful works.
Today I chuckled once again when I paused in front of his woodland shark.
for 12/19/20
"kiwi"
Gratitude #26
I met Rachel through my postcard exchange group on
January 13, 2015. She had seen a card that I’d sent
and she wanted one “bad”. (see Boffo below). Ah, but I didn’t
have another though, but I’ve been looking for one ever since.
That request started our six year correspondence. I so much enjoy her
spirited exchanges.
Rachel is one of my two penpals. Both I consider to be friends.
12/19/20
"kiwi"
Gratitude #26
This is the postcard that introduced me to Rachel in January 2015.
It is fro the painting Buffo by William Hawkins a renowned self-taught American painter.
1895 -1990. Kentucky
for 12/20/20
"Chief Executive Officer"
gratitude #27
I knew that something was wrong when I hadn’t
heard my typical morning greeting “HI YA KID”.
Afraid to do so earlier I finally asked ‘did Joe Rodio die?’
A member of a local old guy coffee klatch, he fell easily
into his role as the unofficial mayor of the town. He was a lovely man who
lived a gracious life. Joe was always a delight to be with. And for a really
old guy he had a great and infectious sense of humor.
I miss him.
12/22/20
"Mr bones"
gratitude #28
Are there more images of skeletons about because of this
year long Plague OR am I just noticing them more? Half a million
deaths nationwide can sure conjure up a lot of bones. It’s kind of like which
came first - the pasta or the sauce?
Of all of the skeletons that I’ve noted I like this one the best. I
smile every time I drive by this billboard.
12/23/20
"middle finger gone"
Gratitude #29
Make America Grateful Again was a little used Presidential catch phrase
that was designed to
mock Don Trump’s Make America Great Again slogan.
I assume that the middle finger was removed from the design
to assure that no future leader would be able to tell the rest of the
world to Fuck Off ever again. It’s nice to believe that we, as a country, could learn to be grateful again.
12/24/20
"mosaic"
Gratitude #30
I’ve seen a few decorative tile mosaics on some of the older buildings in
Atlantic City but I don’t come across many in my inland corner of southern
New Jersey.
The Hammonton mosaic is a reflective glass and mirror work that decorates
the entire entrance way of the recently defunct Moerder Tattoo studio.
While it is not one of my favorite pieces of public art, its uniqueness is
what draws my attention to it.
12/25/20
"petal"
gratitude #31
Sharon and I have been buying cut flowers these past few month. Orchids, mostly
because they are long lasting. This bouquet is about two weeks and
it just about exhausted. I picked up one of its petals that
had dropped and took a close look at it before tossing it.
It was both interesting and beautiful.
12/26/20
"slippers"
Gratitude #32
Rose was given two pairs of slippers this year as gifts. She keeps them
in her room at our house. Today I walked into that bedroom
and saw both pair stacked atop one another.
I tossed them up on the bed for a photo; I'm getting to old
to lay on the floor to take a snapshot.
12/27/20
"ground"
Gratitude #33
I stumbled upon a still life with chalk and grinding stick in front of
the former whorehouse across the street form the Hammonton
police station. Beautiful.
The four young kids that live there are quite creative at times.
12/28/20
"air deer"
Gratitude #34
My brother-in-law purchased Santa on his sleigh with eight balloon-like reindeer.
They were deflated as though Adam's house was the last stop of
the night. And it was there that they all died.
12/29/20
"smoking"
Gratitude #35
A green, glass marijuana pipe. Enough said!
12/31/20
"too cool for a pool at the school"
Gratitude #36
Murals have recently become one of the best tools found to help combat graffiti.
Philadelphia has more than 3600 such works of public art
to boast about. Atlantic County, NJ not so many - perhaps a hundred.
Most of the mural that I’ve seen are well done and worth the effort to
track them down. This work found on the outskirts of Hammonton
is enjoyed by the students of the Read Pre-school.
I am grateful that we have such talented people who are willing to
put such an effort into creating something beautiful for the community to share.
1/1/21
"weed"
Gratitude #37
Every News Years day I go out looking for a dandelion in bloom. Since I
started this ritual two decades or more ago I have found at least
one every year. This year was no exception. In fact not
only did I find this weed in bloom but there was one next to it in seed.
1/4/21
"teal"
Gratitude #38
She is a beautiful woman, she has teal colored hair. Do I have to spell out everything?
1/6/21
“Public library “
Gratitude #39
Finally an inside place to be, to write, to read.
I am truly happy.
1/7/21
“still life with pig”
Gratitude #40
There is just so much going on here, this was supposed to be just a normal snack but it
turned out to be an exploration.
The piggy board belonged to Hanne, the knife a Lagioule was given to me by my
wife Sharon. The Apple a new variety called ‘Lucy Glo’ is beautiful ;
It’s red inside. Finally the sourdough bread baked by Freya and Matt
from BreadHeads Bakery.
1/8/21
“ underdog”
Gratitude #41
Scott’s under the sink work resulted in my declared joyful moment of the day.
The handle to the old faucet assembly has to be removed. This was
done by unscrewing the thing - you know, the underneath thingy.
With hose still attached to the nozzle, an
‘Underdog” cartoon character like thing came alive. It was dancing,
twisting and bopping
up and down and round and round.
1/9/21
“Girl with gun sticker”
Gratitude #42
Tamara sent me a birthday card which arrived a few days early. I called to
tell her that there was a slight problem. I didn’t quite know how
to open the envelope without ripping apart the
assassin’s ass.
1/10/21
"me as a beatnik girl"
Gratitude #43
Facebook encouraged us to build our own meme. Offered the choice of eyes, hair, facial features, and body type, I ended up with this.
Whoever it was that said that I didn't have an ounce of creativity in my body has never seen me shake my BOOTY!
for 1/11/21
"she's a girl too"
Gratitude #44
My friend Freya posted this on image on social media. It is a self-portrait. I think
it a damn good one. I especially like the Peanuts-like neck shadow that she incorporated into her masterpiece.
1/13/21
"Roting 600"
Gratitude #45
I have a handful of mechanical drafting pencils. I like the simple machined
metal ones. They feel good in the hand and you can twirl them
around when you're frustrated. Sharon found me a
"mechanical" pen and gave it to me for my birthday this year.
It is just perfect.
1-14-21
“juicer”
Gratitude #46
Dani is a great and colorful character; she is also an animated
conversationalist. This is why I stop in to see her a few times a week.
Never shallow, never dull...
for 1/15/21
"Tufted Titmouse"
Gratitude #47
Sharon was admitted to the hospital for a ruptured appendix today. When I got
home I noticed a common year round bird at our feeder, the tufted titmouse.
It is one of Sharon's favorites. It made me smile.
for 1/16/21
“fellow Postcrossing friend ”
Gratitude #48
I received a postcard from my Austrian pen pal today. I am always delighted
to see what exciting new things that she is doing.
Dani is a wife, mother of two, student, and has a new position in Human Resources
for a Dutch company.
We’ve been corresponding by postcard and
text messaging for over 5 years now. I never thought it possible
that someone that I’ve never met
could find a way into my very small circle of
Friends.
for 1/16/21
“fellow Postcrosser friend
Gratitude #48
https://www.postcrossing.com
1/18/21
“barista Dani”
Gratitude #49
I’ve known this high school senior for about two years now. She
is one of baristas at my local coffee bar.
Dani is smart, Calc. 4 smart. Recently she told me that she want to
travel to France to study. This lovely young woman want to be
a pastry Chef. Wonderful.
1/19/21
"toynbee"
Gratitude #50
While I was in Atlantic City today I revisited one of the Toynbee tiles on
Atlantic Ave. But even before I reached the intersection I feared that the tile
had been destroyed. The crosswalk had been improved. It was bricked.
To my surprise the road department workers took, what looks like,
great care to preserve this nationally important work of street art.
If this was a deliberate action of the city council then I am really proud of them.
1/21/21
“infusion nurse”
Gratitude #51
Gretchen showed up at our house late in the evening on Sharon’s
first night home from hospital. As a well trained ICU nurse she had
an easy time changing the surgical dressing, replacing the
IV catheter, and then teaching me the procedure to infuse
Sharon with antibiotics via the IV line.
I am so thankful that this wonderfully calm, bright professional
was here for us.
1/22/21
“robot“
Gratitude #52
Before I met Don I probably hadn’t seen a single work of fine art
that was robocentric.
I now know of at least four artists using these lovely models.
I especially like this broken ‘bot’ on this get well soon card.
Robots, they’re everywhere.
1/23/21
“barista in bloom”
Gratitude #53
I call Jessie the orange haired girl one day only to find myself
calling her the green haired girl a few days later.
Now it’s .....
I so much enjoy seeing this extremely thoughtful and
Colorful
young woman.
1/24/21
"a walk through town while looking down”
Gratitude #54
After I fell in the woods a few years back I changed my venue. Now
I basically only walk in town. I’m really not keen on the idea of another fall
that might result in death and an eventual transition to a
menu item for a Gaze of Hungry Raccoons.
Walking in town can be rewarding. Besides someone always being around to call
the police should I take a dive, there are lots of great things to see. Interesting things
like tiny whiskey bottles tossed about, coins, telephone poles and fire hydrants ....
oh, and bottle caps from exotic drinks and the list goes on. It’s exciting.
1/26/21
"recovering"
Gratitude #55
Basically Sharon spent most of January in and out of the hospital. She
was admitted three times which resulted in two surgeries to repair damage
from a ruptured appendix.
I took this photograph minutes after she returned home for the
3rd and hopefully last time.
I am extremely grateful that she was given an “all’s clear”
And that she wasn’t KILT.
1/27/21
Nurse Anonymous
Gratitude #56
Tina was the second infusion nurse that came to our house. That was during
Sharon’s re-release from the hospital. We would never see her again though.
See, there is little need for an at home nurse when you keep getting re-admitted;
hospitals have their own nursing staff.
Nevertheless, I was extremely grateful for Tina’s help.
1/28/21
"critter"
Gratitude #57
Our friend likes socks. She has close to a hundred pairs I would
guess. So I think it obvious that when she finds something
with a great color or design, perhaps a material or its blend
she'll pounce on them. That’s how Sharon ended up
with this exquisite pair of raccoon socks for x-mass.
for 1/30/21
"GRATITUDE"
Gratitude #59
If I were completely honest there would be 60 copies of this
photograph in this project. I have been grateful for Sharon's
presence in my life for a very long time now.
J. D. Salinger said it best when he wrote:
“It is a simple, nagging, humorous fact that my independence
is skin deep.”*
1/31/21
"old geezer"
Gratitude #60
Sometimes it is just flat out fun to make an ass of yourself.
I was going out on a really cold morning for my walk around town and
I picked my giraffe hat as the perfect tool to keep my head warm.
It also helped to muffle all of the car horns that
were beeping as a sign of approval.
