More of the same- but different

How's your day going?
Same shit, different day.

I first heard that as a response from a co-worker about four years ago. I worked below him, looked up to him, and thought he was smart as a whip. His nonchalance disappointed me since it forecasted the sentiment I had to look forward to if I were promoted. We were both in our mid-twenties at the time- can you believe that? What a negative outlook on life!

I tried not to let his outlook affect me and kept on trudging along with optimism. Although we can't change our circumstances, we can control our reactions, and by choosing to be positive, things actually get brighter.

This concept of perspective really struck me in photography class. For class, I wanted to do a project which allowed me to take photos of the city without being cliche. The theme that I selected was reflections, and while I initially looked for mirrors and glass, eventually I saw reflections in unexpected places- puddles, oil slicks, granite floors.. everywhere. It was an eye opening experience.

In this week's NY Times lens blog, there's an article on an artist who took a picture of the same hill over five years. It's absolutely amazing how many wonderful pictures he took of this seemingly boring hill in Lincoln Park, Chicago.
 http://lens.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/23/more-of-the-same-but-different/

From Paul Octavious' project "Same Hill, Different Day" http://pauloctavious.com/hill/

The article also references another great project, documenting the many faces of another photographer's baby girl- Kanna.

My favorite, called "Love Scene"
http://www.flickr.com/photos/toyokazu/4795429882/in/set-72157624017824772c

I think it's time to take more pictures... try to make the mundane a little more interesting.