Bowling Alone

I have been thinking a lot about social capital, if you can believe it. I know, not a usual topic for pondering, but perhaps the theme has relevance for me right now. In 2000, Robert Putnam published a path-breaking book about something that was really becoming pretty obvious. People are less socially engaged, or really, less social in general. The basic premise was that we as a country weren't in bowling leagues any more. Or for that matter, we, as a country, were no longer fraternally connected. No longer were people naturally Eagles, Elks, Mooses, (moosi?) or even Odd Fellows or crazy Kiwanians.

I think that Putnam, and the scores of researchers who followed his lead and further researched and confirmed his premises, found that people have focused on work as a place where they found or tried to find substitute social capital. We work more, have complicated schedules that are difficult to balance, and sometimes single parenting make getting away for lodge night or bowling league nigh impossible to make.

Obviously, we are less rich without these social interactions. We don't have "lodge brothers" or often, friends that are not work related. Not only do we as Americans have fewer friends but we have a less diverse pool of friends. League play of any kind has declined, and it has been displaced by solitary gym memberships and workouts. Since church attendance has also historically been declining, we are often losing another "bowling alley/league" that might have provided social capital. Or, remember "coffee klatches?" Mens' (or ladies'?) night out? The majority of people no longer plug into these social networks.

And people need that social capital that these networks (used to) provide. It was the first layer safety net for individuals as they experienced, well, life. People, and especially men, rely on work as place to gain social capital, and Putnam and others are clear and correct in pointing out that work is an inadequate source of this needed capital.

I wonder why I am writing about this topic now?

Been to the mountain...

I was up early today and wandered up the mountain, as in Mount Baker. I wish I could have said that I hiked miles and miles, but I drove most most of the way. It was a perfect day to get out. We have been blessed with a remarkable late summer and fall so far, and it is great. Last night I sat on a patio and drank a glass of wine, and today was almost better.

My photos were less than inspired today, but some might find them interesting. I drove to beyond the trailhead at Heliotrope and found a great new vista, but really only took pictures of the last of the summer flowers, a few daisies and a thistle that was interesting. It is has been so nice that it is very dry--these waterfall photos were not easily obtained because of this. Normally this water fall is pretty accessible, but today it took a vertical hike to get to the water and the flow was far less than I have ever seen it. It was even more evident all along the Nooksack. We need the fall rains.

I was up early enough for the sunsrise, and even stayed up for the sunset. The sun "leaked" behind Shuksan and a cloud, and was glorious behind the clouds to end the day.

Home

I made it back to Bellingham yesterday just in time to see the sunset--it was a nice change from hours of driving in the rain, and reminded me once again why I like this area.

The whole area is abuzz with football talk right now--the University of Washington, previously ranked about 127th, and a double digit under "dawg" improbably beat USC, the (previously) third ranked team in the country. I guess that is why UW paid 1.8 million for a new coach, but it meant that Seattle was seriously crazy as I drove through town. Or tried to. There were only 60,000 at the game, but another 100,000 wanted to go there after the game to help the team celebrate.

I had a fun trip--like I mentioned once, it was almost too much to see in such a short period of time. I discovered that I do love the ocean side of Washington and Oregon--I saw it on calm, peaceful days, and it made me want to see the ocean and sit on the beach on an angry day, with wind and crashing surf. I felt that I went to an area or a beach, and then I had to leave because the light was changing or I wanted to go some where else before the light was gone. It would fun to go and rent a house and just wander the beaches for hours. Maybe...

It was a time to get away and perhaps gain a bit of perspective about all that is going on right now. Plus, with a birthday thrown in there, it was a time to be even more self-reflective about where I am right now. I came up with no concrete answers, other than to further confirm the realization that the next few months will be a challenge.

It might very well be time to feed different parts of me. I thought about this while I was watching the surf. Parts of me are easy to feed, but the social and the aesthetic parts of me, well, I need to work on those things so I don't end up a recluse who just takes pictures of sunsets and flowers and memorizes all the episodes of NCIS. I don't know how or what all I need to do to avoid this.

It is something that I am working on. While I am watching the sunsets.

Nice light...

OK, I am sold. This ocean thing is kind of nice, and the light, well, it is amazing. I know that some will say light is light, but that is not the case. And you don't have to be a photo geek to believe me, though it might help. I suspect that it is the high level of "stuff" in the air, from water to dust to whatever, but if it is clear, it is amazing light.

I am in Tillamook, home of the famous cheesemaker, and I smiled when I first got out of my car--it smelled like Wisconsin!. Though some might not fully appreciate the "smell of money," the cow rich smell did bring back memories. And later, when the wind shifted, you could smell the whey from the cheese factories. Makes you wish the wind shifted once again, actually.

But once you are by the ocean, it is all ocean breezes.

I started my day with a sunrise, though it was viewed from my shower. There are a series of photos near Canon Beach, then the sunset shots are from Cape Meares lighthouse.

I do feel a bit like I do when I travel for the first time to any "exotic" location. There are so many things to see and do--I wanted sunset photos from other places, but you can't be in two places at once. I am also on sensory overload--I find myself just looking rather than taking photos. It has meant that this trip is producing mostly tourist snapshots and other flotsam. (hey, did you like the nautical term?) But hopefully they are in focus and correctly exposed tourist shots. And they were helped by "nice light."

Roll On, Columbia, Roll on...

I am in Astoria, Oregon, a charming river town on the Columbia River. It was a day where any forest was a rain forest, and your wipers were on high all day. Not a great day for pictures or driving, but it generally wasn't that bad of a day to just hang out.

Astoria is a great little town--several very good antique stores, a Bosnian restaurant, whatever that means, and I am staying at a nice hotel run by nice people that just happens to be next a restaurant called the "PiggnPancake." I know where I am going for breakfast.

To get to Astoria from Washington, you need to cross the Columbia River at almost its widest point--the bridge is impressive and is one of the longest bridges in the West. Almost impossible to photograph as a whole, but it is pretty dramatic at sunset, as are the hundreds of pilings left from the boom and bust days of a river town.

Fair winds...

Hoquiam, WA...

I am on my road trip, and in a small coastal town in Washington, and getting ready to head to the rain forest. It is a bit later than I had hoped--it was a kind of a late night The aptly named Econolodge has econo-walls, and it was loud last night. It was non-stop Rascal Flatts, (OK, it wasn't just that Rascal guy...it was a whole stable of country western musicians--and for the record, I do like a very small, limited, tiny amount of Western music) if you can imagine, and well, they weren't exactly fighting, if you get my drift.

So it is a late start but first I wanted to post a few pictures. Yesterday along the way I went to the Puyallup Fair, perhaps the largest fair in Washington. Its not a state fair, but it isn't it isn't the Hancock County fair, either. It is entirely capable of filling anyone's need for food on a stick, rides, and/or the smell of um...manure. It was fun. I ate a perfectly awful corn dog at the "Crusty Pup." I was approached by Carnies selling everything from windows to absorbent mops to pots and pans. In fact, one of the largest sponsors of the fair is Kitchen Craft, a Wisconsin company that makes pots and pans. They have a whole building named for them, and countless booths pitching the pans.

It was senior day, and I was a little younger then most of the crowd. They didn't totally fill up the roller coaster or the other rides, but they filled up ever demonstration seat available, and they cheered the banjo band. And probably lined up at the Metamucil stand.

I ended up at the beach at sunset, on the Pacific coast. I live in a place where you can see the water, albeit a ways away, but the ocean is very different than Puget Sound. The vastness of the view is mind-boggling, and humbling. I will take more photos as I can.

Coming storm, threatening skies

Today I finished applying for unemployment, a task not for the faint of heart. Amazingly, some of the forms that I had to fill out were actual real life paper forms, with quaint directions like "use a dark pen, not pencil," "check box for yes" and "write your reasons for this in the box below." But it is done. Now I just have to apply for three jobs a week. Who knows? As I have said in other contexts, even a blind robin gets a worm once in a while. I did learn that my adjunct gig will net me a grand total of $1,300, before taxes. Apparently for ever three dollars I earn beyond the huge sum from unemployment, two are deducted from my weekly dole. Yep, I'm in the money, I'm in the money, etc.

All in all, the above photo matches my mood--it is a photo of a threatening sky near Mt. Baker. But it will get better. I am taking off tomorrow for a few days with no real destination other than it will be south of here and water will be nearby. Hopefully the Oregon coast and a rain forest or two will offer different skies

St. Sophia Celebration, or, Greek Fest in Bellingham

Again, it was an amazing day, and what better to do than to go to a festival? For a big chunk of my life, I spent most weekends at one festival or fair or another. The list is long--Bean and Bacon Days, Broiler Fest, Sawdust City Days, etc. It was at the point before I left the newspaper that I could tell the month/week not only by the calendar but by which festival/parade/fair I was at.

And I loved it. People were happy, it meant a great deal to the town and its people, and the food was good, sometimes even great. Great tasting, but not that great for you. Sometimes by the end of the week I was hungry only for a box of shredded wheat, or a head of cabbage, or anything that would soak up all the grease that I had consumed. I think that I only have to mention the Pork Rind Festival to hammer that point home.

This weekend was Greek Fest, a celebration hosted by St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church. The church, just down the road, has been in Bellingham for about 40 years, though this church building is only about 20 years old, as it replaced a church that had been destroyed by fire. Actually, this is just part of a pretty vibrant Orthodox community in Bellingham, as there are is a large Russian Orthodox community as well as the Greek community.

I have to admit that the food was a tad bit different than the fried cheese curds from Wisconsin. And there was no cute little steeple attached to the local Lutheran church. Here are a few photos of the event to go along with the memories of yet another festival.

Boulevard Park

It was an exceptional day in Bellingham, and since I am a man of leisure, I was just hanging out at a local park. I am pretty sure that neither state will last: It will rain, and hopefully I will not be so, well, so lazy. That said, I will take both moments on a day like today., even if they are temporary states.

Shameless commerce

I admit that I stole the phrase from the Car Talk guys, but I also admit that I am not that ashamed to do a little business. One of the ways that I tried to prepare was to make photography part of my budget. I bought a large format printer that can print up 17X22, and stocked up on archival ink and and paper.

Now, I am assuming that I have have a product to sell, and perhaps I do--that may be the real test of this. Essentially, any picture that I have posted on my blog, previously posted on Facebook, or whatever pictures I might eventually post on my (future) website are for sale. Most are available up to 20 inches wide--I will try and print them in standard sizes (8X10, 11X14, or 16X20) but that is not always possible. So, if you order a print, it will be at least the larger dimension, but it might not be a perfect standard size. A picture may be 10 inches wide, but only 7 inches tall, for example. Remember, all photos will look better as a print than a low-resolution electronic image

Prices are as follows: $25 for an 8X10

$45 for an 11X14

$75 for a 16X20

Shipping is $8 and will either flat or in a mailing tube for the larger sizes.

What you get: the print you choose, printed with archival ink on Epson Exhibition Fiber Paper. I use an Epson 4880 printer, and the pictures should last at least 80 to 100 years. The paper is a soft gloss, and looks very much like traditional photo paper. At least technically, it is the best printer/ink/paper combination available. Esthetically, well, you have to decide. And choose...

I can do custom sizes or shapes. I also am very willing to print your digital photo--send me the untouched, uncropped digital file, or, if you are more comfortable with Photoshop, your fixed, cropped, sharpened file to me and I will print it for you. Prices for custom printing are variable, but roughly 30-40% less than the prices for my prints. This is a great printer, but it works better and is cheaper if it is used often.

Payment can be made via Paypal, or by check.

Sunflowers

I am sure that it is just my sunny disposition, but I do love sunflowers. I think that their color scheme, their texture and especially their size make them attractive, and they are great to photograph. I know that I was on a daisy kick for a long time, but I think I will explore a bit photographically with sunflowers for a bit--be patient, and maybe I will get it right soon and I will move on to something else. Maybe waterfalls!? But, until these die, you maybe exposed (a photographer's joke) to a few more in the next few days.

Harbor light

I have begun on the paths that most unemployed people take, and started on the mounds of paper work that you have to fill out to share in the state's largess. I couldn't file the paperwork yet as I am technically on vacation the rest of this week, but Tuesday I will make it all official.

In my first two days of unemployment, I have cleaned my house, a normal thing for most, but as some who know me will attest, not a common event for. I mean, really cleaned, like scrubbed floors and everything. I have even mostly unpacked the stuff from my office, and have two new bookcases brimming with books. Gol, the excitement!!! Don't know what I will do to top these highlights. Where can it go from here?

Tonight I went to a happy hour on the Bay, for cheap food and beer, and for a bit of time to sit and relax. After the meal, I wandered all along the harbor, enjoying the evening and the light. Above are a few photos of the harbor light.

It is done...

It is done, or rather I am done. I am perfectly and completely unemployed.

Suffice it to say that I have somewhat mixed feelings about this state of being.

So, I am transporting myself to some other place, in this case, Dingle Harbor, Ireland, with the help of a favorite picture. Oh, and a very large drink. That may not be the perfect coping mechanism, but it is a balm on a wearying day like today. I know, all in moderation...

As Don, my friend De La Mancha said, "on to new adventures." Or, as his friend Sancho would say, "One to new misadventures." Either way works.

Stay tuned

Readability

I have changed the format and some of the colors on this site, hopefully to make it more readable. In particular, I have tried to increase the contrast between the text and the background, and I have increased the font size. Well, that last one may be more for me than any readers...

Comments and suggestions are encouraged and welcome.

There are others...

Check out the following link: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/30/magazine/30FOB-medium-t.html?em

Apparently there are others....

This is from the August 28, 2009, Chronicle of Higher Education:


Reports of Facebook's Death ... Exaggerated?
By Jeff Young
Is the Facebook party breaking up? We still hear that plenty of students and professors are addicted to the social-networking site, but a New York Times Magazine article out today says that even though overall numbers on the site are up, a vocal group is heading for the exits.
"I have noticed the exodus, and I kind of feel like it's kids getting tired of a new toy," one writer told the Times in the very anecdotal account.
An article earlier this month in The Guardian took note of the trend as well, arguing that the "cool cyberkids" are starting to abandon Facebook because too many old fogies have showed up on the social network.
Some professors have been part of the recent group leaving Facebook. Dan Cohen, director of the Center for History and New Media at George Mason University, left Facebook earlier this year and talked about it on his podcast, Digital Campus.
Will students' interest in Facebook fade this year? Will professors lose interest? Or are reports of the site's demise greatly exaggerted?

Here are two responses to the above:

eelalien - August 29, 2009 at 02:52 pm
Perhaps the reason many are leaving is because they are finally running out of drivel to talk about (mostly about themselves and the "interesting" lives they lead). I have never been impressed with what is going on - or not going on - in Facebook. At least MySpace has proved to be a pretty good venue for musicians, and Twitter has become the weapon of choice for people so utterly self-absorbed that they must communicate what they are doing constantly. I have never seen any educational value in FB, and social networking, aside from some of the free tools, has yet to prove its educational value to this educator.

atalanta - August 30, 2009 at 03:24 pm
I'm one of the old fogeys who jumped onto the FB bandwagon rather late in the game, but find myself checking it less and less frequently of late. Here's a brief chronology of my Facebook usage:At first, I was reluctant to sign on for fear that my students would find me and pester me to become "friends". When I finally received an invitation from my 75 year old mother-in-law I could not longer resist and joined. (Only one student contacted me, so my concerns were unfounded.) For a while I eagerly reconnected with old friends, posted photos (with privacy settings) and updated the relatives on my family's activities. At that point I realized that I was actually using FB more like a blog. I discovered that blogspot or livejournal linked to a Flickr photo-sharing site would serve my purposes better, in a more aesthetically pleasing way and without the annoying bells-n-whistle ob FB. And yes, to echo someone else's post, my acquaintances who post frequently on FB really have very little of interest to say. I'd be satisfied with perusing a blog once or twice a year, in lieu endless bad photos and updates of insignificant activities.

NOTE: There were posts in favor of fb and arguments that refuted its demise. But hey, it is my blog.... (-: