snOMG

It was very wonderful to walk around in the first snowstorm of the 2009-2010 winter season here in DC, the one back at the end of December.  It made everything different.  People were friendlier (while it was actually snowing, at least), people were putting on skiis outside their front doors, there were no cars and you had to walk in the street.  It felt quiet and slow despite there being a good amount of people out, and I felt a different interaction with the same places I've been walking to and past my entire life.

sledding and skiing at fort reno

taking the (invisible) dog for a walk

my street

Walking around also reminded me of possibly my favorite "Boondocks" comic strip of all time:

AND I learned, the very hard way, the lesson that you should never, ever wear liquid eyeliner in a snowstorm.  But I don't have pictures of that.

High (Line) Times

You don't have to move far in order to see dope stuff, and that's particularly true if your movement is transgressive.  A couple of times a few of us went up on the High Line, not on the new fancy-pants part (though it's nice over there too) but on the side where you're not allowed.  Getting off of ground-level in NYC always provides a vantage point for mesmerizing views, and this was no exception.

The first time I went we were looking for remnants of a (mostly) bygone time, the era of hobos and tramps, riding the rails and jungle camps.  We did see some hobo signs, which was pretty cool.

As well as some markings from more recent passers-by.

But most interesting was the home that we came across.  It was located under the High Line and over a building, where me and Melicious are squatting (no pun intended) here:

The guy that lived here had a lot of stuff, including a copy of Dark Days.

I'm not going to post other pictures of his home because, well, it's his home.  Meredith left a note for the guy and ended up talking to him a couple days later.  This whole excursion was pretty fantastic and beautiful and a bit surreal, and came about with none of us really knowing what we were getting ourselves into.  For me it really highlighted how much there is all around us that we are not aware of, but can catch a glimpse of if we pay attention.  (And maybe trespass a little too.)

Thanks to Tyler S., believer in creative appropriation, for the photos.