No New Year's Resolutions. Just a Continuation of "Best Practices."

I learned how to scan color negatives over my holiday break. 

It's fun. Only a quarter million negatives left to go....

I have a friend who, last year, had a near death experience after getting lost in the West Texas desert while on a hike during the Summer heat wave. He was hiking with his daughter and they became lost, ran out of water, and he started having  crippling leg cramps from dehydration. His daughter surged on to find help and, eventually, nearly 24 hours later he was helicoptered out of an endless maze of arroyos and barren canyons and into the closest emergency room. It was touch and go for hours and finally the doctor in charge of the tiny rural facility decided that, if the patient was to survive, he needed to be air transferred to a bigger and better equipped hospital. He was on the verge of kidney failure, had several broken bones from a fall and his electrolytes were .... not optimal. Modern medicine saved him. He's made a good recovery. 

He came by the studio a couple of weeks ago to get a new portrait. He'd lost weight, looked good and, at nearly 60 years of age he wanted a record of his current state. It was in the lead up to the session that he told me the detailed story of those grueling 24 hours. 

As we wrapped up I asked him if the event caused him to have any big epiphanies, and sudden revelations that changed his life. He gave it some thought and then said something I found to be pretty profound. "No. I reflected on my life and I didn't find anything I felt that really needed to be changed. No big changes, at any rate."

We kicked around the "why" of his answer. It was simple. He lives his life well and honestly. He owns a company that employs nearly 100 talented people. None are minimum wage workers. They are all very well compensated and do really good work. So about 100 families are elevated by his vision for his industry. In his "spare time" he is the board president of the biggest food bank in central Texas. He guides the mission and helps raise prodigious amounts of money for the charity. He has two wonderful, adult children who are smart, resourceful and well launched. He has been happily married (only once) to his wife of 34 years. He's not addicted to any particular vice. He doesn't gamble, drinks alcohol only sparingly and has never smoked cigarettes. He's honest in his business dealing. He's a generous mentor. He and his business give amply to all manner of good charities and causes. "What?" he asked me "do you feel I need to change?" 

I couldn't think of a damn thing. So I won't be looking for his list of resolutions. Nor his New Year's Eve promises to himself to be "better." Life is too short to try finding stuff to change when it's only applicable for social posturing. 

While he's in good standing I am sure there are a few things in my life I can improve but none requires a hard core resolution or a self promise. My self-critiques are more apt to elicit suggested improvements instead of ponderous resolutions or promises I might not be able, or want to keep. 

I'd like to get faster in the swimming pool but at 68 years of age I think I can settle for maintaining the current status quo. I could pare down the number of cameras I own but, really, I don't think eight or nine cameras of various ages is excessive. And I know myself well enough to understand that any cameras that are shed are really just creating space for replacement acquisitions. The cameras are all paid for. And most of them were used to turn a profit. No, I'll keep the cameras.

If, after 38 years of a married relationship you still love and respect each other I'd say not to monkey around with any new resolutions that might upset the proverbial apple cart. If  you really exercise, have no chronic health issues, and still sleep through the night, I'd suggest not changing much in the fitness and nutrition categories. If you still love what you do even after you've decided to jettison the clients who paid you to do it, and you just do it for yourself, I'd say you should count yourself lucky and not go looking for self-inflicted trouble. Or misguided forays into "new" careers.

My friend, the desert survivor, seemed to distill the idea of resolutions down to a simple thought: if you are making other people's lives better and working hard at not doing anyone else harm you might already be doing exactly what you are supposed to be doing right now. No changes needed.

As I have said before, I think Happiness is Self-Inflicted. Victimhood is passé. And most of us are living well and have much to be grateful for. It doesn't always take a near fatal episode for us to realize that change is only really necessary when things are NOT working out. When we KNOW we're on the wrong path. Or an unsustainable trajectory.

So. After saying all that I do have some things I think I will do more of and some things I will do less of. 

Everyone tells me I should volunteer. All my friends and colleagues who actually work in non-profits say they'd much rather have financial donations than having to train yet another retired executive who "already knows the best way to do......" So, I'll up my charitable check writing as I well as I can. 

I've probably worked enough. I'll try accepting fewer assignments this year and spend more time on my own art. 

I do NOT trust anyone who does not like to read fiction so I will continue to plow through both good and bad novels with right good passion. There's a bunch of really interesting stuff out there to choose from. I'd hope more people try to find a balance between reading fiction and non-fiction but my bigger hope for most of humanity is that they just find the joy of reading ---anything.

Walking is good for your balance, your distance vision, your cardiovascular system and your mental health. If I did not already walk X miles per day, at least five days a week, I might resolve to walk more but....as my friend says, "If it's already working you don't need to fix it." 

I guess if I had to choose one thing to make a resolution about it would be to eat more fresh fruit. Yeah. Okay. There's a resolution!

I hope everyone had a nice break, got good socializing done, hung out with good friends and kind family members. I'm back to the blog and writing more each day. If you want to join me that's great. If you want to instruct me about what to write then.....be prepared for more two week hiatuses. 

As much as possible we'll keep our content as much about photography as possible. That includes cameras, lenses, books, shows, photo walks, and random philosophy about all things photographic. We'll only occasionally stray into swimming or other non-controversial and proven health topics. We won't be mining fads, miracle cures, or strict diet regimens of any kind. 

Resolutions? maybe just tweak the stuff that needs some adjustments. maybe don't take up skydiving or jump into something that's ultimately not much fun for you. Make your tweaks manageable and effective. Little stuff. Don't fix what's not broken. 

And consider leaving a comment if you enjoyed a post. It makes it nicer for me. And I promise to moderate them almost instantaneously. No problem.

2024....here we go.