Peak Experience

I woke up feeling as if I hadn't really slept, still carrying a sense of being hungover somehow. There was thick fog outside so an internal driver took over to get me out on the moor before going into the office. There wasn't a soul to be seen. It was beautiful. The mist was like a tide, rolling in and out, allowing glimpses of the sun, until finally I topped out into a clear sky. It felt astonishingly warm for a mid-September morning. Unfortunately, there wasn't much time for photography as the mist swept in again and the call of work summoned me down to earth.

Once in the office, almost right away I solved a problem that had me despairing of my sanity when I was in last. I managed to walk away from it then, but only after hours of frustration. Today, the solution came to me within a minute of sitting down and picking it back up again. There's a lesson there. After some tangible progress I then got halted by another blockage so decided to call it a day at that point rather than sink into the same self-defeating vortex. It was a good decision.

I spent a few minutes around Market Square with my camera before catching the train home. It was hot. And humid. On getting back to the flat, feeling sticky, I decided to take a short spin on the bike, just to savour riding in warm air for possibly the final time until next summer. I wanted to feel the sun on my skin and hang on to that memory to help keep me going through the cold and damp of winter! 

I couldn't linger about because I had a date with Forrest to have some food and a few beers in Leeds in celebration of his birthday this week, although that didn't stop me getting into a bit of photography along the way. The heat haze lent a wonderful atmospheric perspective to the landscape. 

My head felt much better while out on the bike but as soon as I got inside I felt the heaviness come on again. Nonetheless, for once I managed to leave the flat in good time for the train in order that I could take a very gentle walk to the station. I'm normally having to break into a jog at some point. Some way down the hill, rather proud of myself for overcoming my normal programming, I suddenly realised that I'd left Forrest's present behind. I had to run back up and all the way down the hill again so as to catch the train. I spent the journey with my clothes soaked in sweat!

Despite a damp T-shirt, I enjoyed a lovely evening with eldest son, able to sit outside and eat just a couple of minutes away from his flat. It's a shame the weather only presents that possibility on a handful of occasions each year. Somehow, the beer was good for my head and I felt much better by the time I got home. It was then that it dawned on me that for having a 'hangover' I'd packed a lot into my day. It felt like a return to the old 'me'. 

I've spent a bit of time writing this up because this turned out to be a positive day. There were pleasing shots from this morning's walk and the afternoon's cycle ride that I could easily have posted here, but I've chosen a street shot because today, above anything else, marks some kind of rekindling of my love for street photography. It's capable of giving me the biggest buzz. I anticipated this shot before it happened and got myself in position in good time. It's this kind of awareness and boldness that's been missing before now. It's not so much confidence but desire. I've got my desire back. And I think I was well rewarded too. It's one of those shots that reveals new things the more you look. 

A month or so back such a day would not have been possible. When progress is slow and spasmodic it's easy to forget that it is actually happening behind the scenes. Today I can certainly acknowledge that.