Earlier this month, I decided finally got around to signing up for the "Olympus Test & Wow" program.

As far as I can tell, this promotion has been running for quite a number of years now, without any regard for the shifting landscape of photography or the sale of Olympus's camera division.

The Test & Wow program works thusly: if you are lucky enough to live near one of the ten or so retailers who are in the program, you can fill in a form and then borrow some nice Olympus kit for four days free of charge. Obviously, I decided to borrow the most expensive thing possible: the Olympus 300mm f/4 Pro.

You're prohibited to use the equipment for commercial purposes, and your sole goal should be "testing." As a consequence, I have elected to host these photos on Flickr at maximum resolution under a Creative Commons Non-Commercial Share-Alike license, rather than to host them privately.

(Side note -- the code that embeds the Flickr images here is janky and not totally bug free, so if something doesn't display, just click the link on that image to see it.)

What could I do?

(Warning: a bajillion, zillion, quadrillion images follow)

Oh yes.

As I mentioned in my January 52 Frames post, I finally caught that dastardly coronavirus.

Fortunately, it was a mild case of the Omicron variant, and with time and social distancing, I recovered quite quickly. I am very grateful to have been vaccinated and boosted, which I believe helped my symptoms be as mild as they were.

One of the questions I got asked a fair amount was, "where did you catch it?" Given the nature of the ultra-contagious virus that may or may not show its symptoms for days... who's to say?

My best guess is a coffee shop in Tilamook, Oregon, where I may have sipped a beverage whilst admiring a blackboard, home to cafe goers' communal musings.

The topic: your New Year's Resolution.

The answers: generally a range from "put myself out there more," "support indigenous/black/trans voices," and "more Jesus."

Mine was probably, "to continue being COVID free," but alas...

I visited Lebanon for a mere four days in October 2016, and I had a fantastic time that I can't help but want to reminisce about...

If you're staying in Hana, and looking for something to do in the afternoon, say if you're working remotely and don't want to travel far, then I highly recommend a walk up to Fagan's Cross.

I enjoyed my walk up there, but that's not really what this post is about, now is it?

I started writing this contemporaneously, i.e., while I was crashing in weird airbnb's in Queens in early 2020. In a time when I didn't yet wish to share that I was planning to leave New York City. In a time when I was loving it more and more.

It has since been revised for clarity, readability, and parenthetical asides about death and tragedies. Y'know, the stuff of our present historic moment.

So, this then, is the New York City that I love...

So begins another year of weekly photographic challenges, which I intend to keep doing on a week-by-week basis for as long as I can keep it up, or am motivated to do so.

A few of these are similar to some challenges from last year, and in my opinion, I have bested myself at nearly every turn. 😊

Let's see if you agree!

I wrote this post a fair while ago (2020), as part of an elegy to my stint in New York City.
It is part of my answer to the age old question, ‘How could you leave New York?’ (pandemic notwithstanding)

You stop to catch your breath inside the shoebox you call “a New York City apartment,” arriving again at the realization that the city is unspeakably lonely.

You scarf down two pizza slices on paper plates, thinking back to your near run-ins with Empire State Building ticket hawkers and tourists who suddenly stop in the middle of the sidewalk, and you shudder.

Some days it feels like it's only through advance planning and effort that people connect with anyone at all. Your breath is caught, but maybe it wishes to escape again. You think to yourself, “what's it all for?”

At least you have your neighborhood?