Heartlines – Curve Ball
Author Archives: Sandi LoConti
August was…
Bee-like. Busy in a laid back sweltering way, creatively productive, sweet in its return on courage manifested and hopeful. I had the opportunity to take part in August Break 2016 on Instagram. Using the thoughtful prompts from Susannah Conway I thoroughly enjoyed each day of capturing my ordinary take on the subject and sharing among her many followers. Making space on her site for us to share our blogs shows the true measure of her generosity. Not only am I grateful but I’ve taken away many a lesson.
One of the prompts was “handwriting”. Of course it came at the exact moment I was trying to figure out where to start my summer work:
It was my intention to use my down time to launch the Elder Beauty Project instead I’ve scraped it. As a project, I’ve scrapped it as a project because the real project is and always has been Ordinary Legacy. Thank you David for reminding me of that and now I see it again.
The fact that I’m tired of talking about myself remains. While this has been the outcome of my summer work, the month long journey to get there has been amazing. After a somewhat delayed start, read procrastinated for weeks, I worked up my courage to send an email to the director of the Mahwah Senior Center, Susanne Small, telling her about what I do and how I’d love to do it. She loved the idea, with enthusiasm and more generosity I was invited to the center to share my vision. I was also invited to speak with several of the seniors about my vision. While they are a bit curious, I’ll need to come back with a bit more for them. Suffice to say you’ll be seeing more of this:
Susanne has graciously offered to work with me to develop the questions most likely to yield the result I’m looking for, she knows our seniors and what makes them open up. I’ll be able to leave brochures for them to consider working with me sharing bits of the ordinary that make their lives distinct. That got me investigating and developing a concept brochure.
Which in turn led to Bergen County Camera, where collectively they know everything, to look for a new lens for my DSLR. I mean they know everything so showing them what I do now and how I want to tweak it took a bit more courage. They didn’t flinch at my work, thank God. It always helps to lead with the fact that you understand full well that you are an accidental photographer… I have a new lens, which I like but the jury’s still out on whether or not it will perform the magic I require. What? I’m practicing and keeping an open mind, I mean believing in my talent…like I always say, you shoot enough you’re bound to hit something.
True to form once you allow yourself to see it, you will see it everywhere. Like here:
And here:
And here:
These are the stories, the ordinary legacy stories that have been right under my nose while I was too busy being all about me. Not very Jeanette-like as it turns out.
So going forward Ordinary Legacy will continue to be about preserving the ordinary stories that are all around, hopefully full of senior insight, definitely traditional recipes that may be lost, collections and oh those amazing ordinary legacy moments in time.
I can’t let go of the Heartlines series I just started because it’s been so well received. If you haven’t seen them yet, they are heart shaped letters to a specific someone but not addressed to them. They tackle that someone’s current situation/dilemma/angst/ without mentioning their name. In the end there are always several people who would swear that the Heartline is meant for them. The beauty of us all being in the same boat as it turns out.
For me September has always been the beginning of the New Year. I don’t do resolutions but I can see this year I’m headed away from Facebook, because their algorithms are becoming a pain in the ass, and leaning toward and loving Instagram where images=stories, duhhh. I’m glad to be back, renewed and ready to keep allowing myself to see all those ordinary stories I’ve been overlooking. Hope you’ll stay tuned and join forces along with me.
Summer Work
Unless something incredibly amazing happens during August, we’re taking the month off from blogging. I’ve been trying to launch the Elder Beauty Project and it just hasn’t happened. Why? Beats the stuffing out of me… Fear? Well yeah, there’s always that. Not knowing where to begin? Absolutely.
What if? I’ve been through enough what ifs to last a lifetime and haven’t come up with a decent answer yet. So now is the time to start asking for help. Did I say that out loud? Yes, yes I did. There are brilliant people in my circles that would be more than willing to tell me how to get started, stay motivated, shut up about the what ifs and on and on. Why the hell do I think I always have to reinvent the wheel? On my own? You know why…
I believe in this project so what’s the holdup. I envision it to be a cross between Humans of New York and On the Road with Steve Hartman with a culinary twist. Make sense? Fine, you’ll see, it will look a lot like this; one of the most satisfying days of my life on a creative level, culinary level and humanistic level. I will never forget it and crave so many more of them.
So I’m going to channel my inner Jeanette (in whose honor I dedicate the project) and get off my ass and talk to people about their people or other people’s people and get this thing going. The overriding fear of these stories not being told should surpass the fear of getting started. You can get involved, you know, at the Elder Beauty Project. Just sayin.
I’m also going to take part in the August Break 2016 with the incredible Susannah Conway, to make sure my brain doesn’t completely explode, along with a host of other incredible bloggers and creative souls and just plain humans. Look for the Ordinary Legacy images on Instagram #augustbreak2016
See you in September, when the summer’s through…with a plan, renewed enthusiasm and all the courage I can muster. Can’t wait.
Superpower…
The concept of superpower implies seemingly impossible abilities. According to Wikipedia: There is no rigid definition of a “superpower”. In popular culture, it may be used to describe anything from minimal exaggeration of normal human traits, magic, to near-godlike abilities including flight, superstrength, projection of destructive energy beams and force fields, invulnerability, telepathy, telekinesis, teleportation, super-speed or control of the weather.
Doesn’t mean a mere mortal like myself can’t have a superpower, doesn’t mean you can’t have a superpower. My superpower is pulling together a meal for anywhere between two and eight people at a moment’s notice using nothing other than what’s in my pantry, the magic fridge (as my sister calls it) and a bit of Sunday afternoon mise en place. Or as I call it chop/roast/sauté therapy.
So while Sunday morning looks like this:
Sunday afternoon looks like this:
The result of this is the ordinary legacy moment of the week. That moment when my neighbors and I are chatting on the deck and we decide we’re all hungry. Minutes later we are dining on slices of lasagna made the previous day in a loaf pan, tomato-zucchini-mozzarella-basil salad with dark chocolate balsamic and olive oil dressing and for dessert the now famous angel food-blueberry-gelatin concoction that tastes exactly like you want summer to feel. Cool and refreshing. Nothing makes me happier.
Have a good week.
Ordinary Legacy Moments – week of July 10, 2016
Miracles happen every day, change your perception of what a miracle is and you’ll see them all around you…Jon Bon Jovi
I’ve been talking about ordinary legacy moments forever, but this quote helped me put them in a completely different context. These are the moments that just make you smile, you’ll remember them, they will validate something you didn’t even know needed validating and they are all around. Once you change your perception of the ordinary moments in your life you’ll see them all around you.
The animated chat with three total strangers in William Sonoma on the trials and tribulations of women’s clothing. See, last week’s post was spot on but they reminded me there are even more issues: bra straps that don’t stay up, tagless shirts for MEN…old fashioned bra stays, you know those little loops that snap over a bra strap so it stays in place. Before that a lengthy comment from a reader on the blog with even more trials and tribs. Apparently these will just keep on comin…stay tuned.
Marlon, the cashier in Michael’s that took my phone and zeroed in on a 50% coupon. I thought I already had a fabulous score for Carly’s birthday present but he saved me ten bucks. Yep did the survey, yep spoke damn highly of Marlon. And yes Marlon I will check for them in the parking lot before I come in. Love that kid.
An interesting conversation with himself that proved once and for all we have a very different recollection of how certain things actually went, nough said. Sent my mind into quite a tizzy but in the end I wound up forgiving MYSELF for everything I’ve ever done…ever. Amen to letting shit go already.
A long overdue dinner with friends that never disappoints, you know you’ve been doing this for a while when one of us can order for all the others. When you laugh for hours, when you encourage and cajole and pick up where you left off no matter the amount of time that’s passed. The ordinary legacy moment when we know something the other didn’t…there is still room for a first!
The power of a good photo, especially if you took it, and it sparks conversation at the camera store where you’re picking up the print. That moment you were looking for to confirm it’s safe to have conversations with professionals and that you might actually have a decent perspective…might…or it might just have been that face of mine that people can’t help but talk to.
One speaks, one listens. That is the title of one of my favorite water colors done by artist Carol Grigg. The title resonates with me always but especially this week when trying so hard to convince someone that …she is kind, she is smart and she is incredibly important… I won’t stop till she believes is too.
These are all fabulous but the number one ordinary legacy moment of the week was a conversation with a neighbor toward the end of our longer Saturday walk. He was sitting on a bench as we walked by. When I said good morning he stopped us. Didn’t really say all that much but pulled the ear plugs from his phone so Toti and I could hear the music. Yep dancing on Mark Twain Way is now a thing. If you had to get a song stuck in your head all day, this was a damn good choice.
Have a good week, look for the ordinary legacy moments.