Archive for the ‘Psychology’ Category
Rising from the rubble
It’s been four months since I came home from holiday to find a gutted house. At first the repairs were rapid, as the salvage and demolition crews worked side-by-side. But in recent weeks the progress has been slow and full of surprises: Asbestos in the basement, poor plumbing in the kitchen, weird wiring in the […]
Filed under: Minnesota, Photography, Psychology | 20 Comments
Tags: house construction, house demolition, water damage
I’m the first to admit it: I dressed kind of weird when my family moved to Minnesota from Peru. My innate lack of style — and years of wearing the state-mandated gray school uniform — somehow led me to believe that green-and-white plaid pants were OK. Of course, my pants were not OK. Neither was […]
Filed under: Ethics, Psychology | 29 Comments
An Earth Day meditation
Since 1970, Americans have celebrated April 22 as “Earth Day.” It seems fitting to mark this year’s anniversary with the words of one of the original Americans, Chief Seattle.
Filed under: On this day in history, Psychology | 2 Comments
Tags: April 22, Chief Seattle, Earth Day 1970, Earth Day 2013, Earth Day quote, Man did not weave, web of life
A winter most fowl
One of the things I most love about blogging is “meeting” other bloggers around the world. It’s wonderful to see that the flowers are blooming in Scotland, or to momentarily mistake Paris for Marrakesh. But this far-flung news can also be depressing. I live in Minnesota, you see. Tucked up against Canada — in the […]
Filed under: Minnesota, Photography, Psychology | 33 Comments
Tags: Lake Wobegon, Minnesnowta, Minnesota, winter
The lighter side of street art
Last Saturday I had the honor of being Freshly Pressed. Many thanks are in order: to Cheri at WordPress; to everyone who read, “liked” or reblogged my post on street art; to my new subscribers (welcome!); and especially to the more than 200 readers who took the time to comment. But what most surprised me […]
Filed under: Minnesota, On being creative, Photography, Psychology | 28 Comments
Tags: digital photography, Freshly Pressed, graffiti, light painting, Minneapolis, street art, TCB, Twin Cities Brightest
The stuff that really matters
Ten days ago, a truck pulled up to Steve’s and my rented home and disgorged a pile of boxes into the garage. Boxes full of books, boots, clothes, VHS tapes … boxes full of memories, and the possessions we’ve amassed together over the past 27 years. But as I stood in front of the pile […]
Filed under: Minnesota, Psychology | 32 Comments
Tags: American materialism, consumerism, decluttering, spring cleaning
Is street art … art?
Is street art … art? I’ve often asked myself this question as I’ve strolled the streets of Paris. And now, thanks to an exhibit at Paris’ Musée de La Poste, I can answer with a definitive “YES.” The exhibit Au-delá du Street Art brought together the work of many well-known urban artists including Miss.Tic, Banksy, […]
Filed under: Paris, Photography, Psychology | 394 Comments
Tags: Banksy, Chet Abraham, Musée de la Poste, Paris, Paris. street art, street art, urban art
Notre Dame, in sight and sound
Shortly before my recent trip to Paris I was surprised and honored to receive a note from Des Coulam, author of the wonderful Soundlandscapes blog. “I thought it would be great if we could do something together for joint publication on our blogs,” he wrote. Des’ idea was simple enough: I would choose a place […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Paris, Photography, Psychology, Travel | 12 Comments
Tags: Des Coulam, gargoyles, Haussmann, Kilometer Zero, Lutetia, Notre Dame, Notre Dame bells, parvis, Soundlandscapes, Soundlandscapes blog, travel photography
On January 28 three friends and I had the privilege of touring the Pommery estate and champagne cellars, which double as a modern art museum. My favorite installation was this “house that rains on the inside.” Little did I know that the exact same thing was happening to my house in Minnesota, probably at the […]
Filed under: Friends and family, Minnesota, Psychology | 31 Comments
Tags: homeless, house demolition, insurance, water damage
Across the United States today, banks are closed and businesses idled as Americans observe the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., who 50 years ago shared his dream — and hope — for a nation divided by inequality. Typographical portrait copyright Heather Munro 2013 I say to you today, my friends, so even though we […]
Filed under: On this day in history, Psychology, Writing | 6 Comments
Tags: civirl rights movement, emancipation decalaration, Jr., Martin Luther King, pacifism, President Obama inauguration, racism in America
