Speeding along

Nightshots'200801 072
Originally uploaded by Chasten

I took this picture on a cold night near my home. Its a difficult process getting a picture like this. You set the shutter speed around 1 to 1.3 seconds, and set the flash to reverse synchronization and then you ATTEMPT to click the shutter just as the subject enters the frame, and hope that 1.2 seconds later, the flash goes off and the shutter closes. That's how the bus shows up...although ghost-like. If I didn't do the flash, you'd just see streaming lights and would have no idea that a bus was involved. So, 2 hours later, I had 2 or 3 good shots, but this was the winner of the night.

ANYHOW, I wanted to blog about this photo because it represents the dichotomy between motion and reality. My idea of life and accomplishments represents the streaming lights. Things should be moving...constantly. There should be no stopping, no relaxing, no resting, no delays, no hindrances...just move move move move move. Accomplish!

Then comes the flash...that .1 second that enables you to see that all this streaming is coming from a bus...with METRO emblazened on the side. Sometimes in life, I fail to see the bus for the streaming lights.

In that fraction of a second where everything seems to stop...where no motion is occuring, I get hard on myself. "Why aren't we still moving? What have I done wrong?" Then I go into this self-depracating space where I get all depressed and fall further into the pit of inaction.

What I need to keep in mind is that THE BUS IS STILL MOVING! Just because I can see the damn thing doesn't mean it stopped...and even if it does stop, its for a purpose...you know, like resting, getting fuel, picking people up and dropping them off...you know stupid things like that.

All that to say its been a stop and go week. Food has been up and down, exercise has been down and down, finances has been stopped. Things aren't moving at the pace I'd like them to, but maybe its for a reason.

With the exercise thing, my friend John pointed out to me that exercise needs to be a lifestyle thing. I recognized that I just keep *adding* to my lifestyle...and failing. I'm not *changing* my lifestyle which is necessary to really make progress in that area.

Since I'm not quite sure how to do that, it'll be a good topic for future reflection.

In the meantime, I'll keep speeding along...at a snail's pace.