Time & ADAY.ORG Project

We all get the same 24 hours in a day but have you noticed that time seems to be flying by more quickly these days?... unless of course you're working some boring job somewhere which then makes time stand still.

Some scientists believe our sense of time varies with age according to our experience. For young children and young adults, time seems slower because their lives are full of firsts... first time 'novel' events that are vivid, full of detail, making the data of memory very dense. As we age and experience these events again and again over time, there's less of an impression being made and time seems to move more quickly... kind of the 'been there', 'done that', theory of 'lets move on' speed of time. This is easily understood when we try to learn new things or acquire a new skill. It seems to take a long time to absorb and process new information, but once it's mastered, we no longer give it a second thought.

While we all experience time at one second to one second, other theorists believe that as we get older. "the current of time seems to carry us along". In the documentary, Through The Wormhole: Does Time Exist?, scientists state that the passage of time seems to increase by the square root of your age. At age 10, you experience time as 1:1, a second goes by in a second. At age 20, it's 1:1.4 and at 60 it's 1:2.44, our perception of time about two and a half times faster. Okay, you lost me at the square root. But I do understand it as it relates to my perceptions of summer. As a child on summer vacation, July and August seemed endless, eternal, but as an adult, these two months zipped by leaving those long 'To Do' lists still undone.

For many years I've been interested in the subject of time, not so much the science but in its record keeping, a record of existence, a way of leaving my 'mark'. For most, this 'mark' or record can only be seen backwards over a long period of time unless you're a Steve Jobs (Apple) or Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook) or Sergy Brin and Larry Page (Google) who find their genius and notoriety early in life.

So when I read this first sentence in USATODAY, "If taking and posting one photo a day for an entire year seems like a daunting task, the folks over at ADAY.org have a proposition for you. On May 15, 2012, the Aday project is asking people around the world to pick up a camera and take a few photos to document their daily lives", I was hooked.

ADAY.org is organized by the Swedish non-profit foundation Expression of Humankind. It supports scientific research and education centered around the photographic image and written word.

ADAY's website read "photographing the world on a single day... One day a million views - add yours!"

And so I did.

This image is a view from my bedroom window. Today's weather: 64º, rain, 92% humidity, 62º dew point with thunderstorms expected for most of the day. A good day to stay indoors, finish a few things already started, nothing too complicated, nothing requiring a brain or an ounce of creativity.

Just finished breakfast... a slice of sweet chocolate bread, '365 Organic' strawberry yogurt and coffee. The rain is now heavy and the laziness of the day has me back under the covers to finish watching a DVD previously started last night. This image is of the final scene of the Series Finale, Season 10, of MI-5, a fictional spy drama produced by the BBC. This show now climbs to the top of my all time favorites. I'm missing it already... poor Harry!

The rain has temporarily stopped... a good time to run some errands. This image captures a distorted view of a corner in Jenkintown PA seen through the reflection of the van's passenger side mirror.

This is an image of my Post Office Box... Box 34. I've had this mailbox for many years. There's something nice about the anonymity of not having your exact physical location known, but those were the 'pre Google' days.

"It's my way or the hiway"... just kidding. This is an image of a sign that belongs to the Hiway Theatre in Jenkintown PA. The owners of this movie theatre have changed several times over the years, but thankfully this classic sign remains. It is an exact replica of the original vertical sign that existed from 1940 until the 1980's. The cost to replace the sign was close to $50,000. In 2013, the Hiway will celebrate its 100th Anniversary!

This image is of local traffic in the rain on Old York Road in Abington PA. We're heading north to the Willow Grove Mall to pick up a few saw blades from Sears and then to The Fresh Market for groceries.

This image is of M&Ms and jellybeans beautifully arranged in the candy aisle of The Fresh Market in Horsham PA. This is the final destination of running errands before heading home. And no, I did not get a cart full of candy... just an eyeful of color on what otherwise has been a gray, rainy, rather desaturated day.

The date for online viewing of the work, presented by participants in over 190 countries is projected for May 30th. On that day you can see it here.

And so this is how a record of existence begins, with glimpses, snapshots, thoughts and collections capturing the moments in time that speak to who we are, what, when and why we are.

John Lennon once said, "Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted".

How do you like to 'waste' your time? 

If you could take THE one picture of your day, what would it be?

Have you begun your record of existence?... What does it look like?

While you are pondering your answers, here are a few interesting links:

NPR: Why Does Time Fly By As We Get Older?... with two short videos: one of 'Every Day' with Homer Simpson and another by Maggie Starbard of people collecting memories seen here.

Through The Wormhole: Does Time Exist? The discussion of how time is perceived begins about 11 minutes into the documentary seen here.

And for all of you who remember what time felt like when it was 1:1.4 you might enjoy watching and listening to these: The Rolling Stones here and The Chambers Brothers "Time Has Come Today", the long psychedelic version here.

Time to go... Dyan

Astrology, Window Art & Loreal Prystaj

Most people know their Sun sign, which correlates to the day and month they were born. I'm an Aries, a fire sign, but aside from loving to start new things and being impulsive (when I want something I want it now!), little else about me fits the Aries profile. There is absolutely nothing adventurous about me and while I like red, I don't wear it very often. I am much more like my Ascendant sign, Scorpio, a water sign, which was rising on the eastern horizon at the moment of my birth. I come across rather shy and reserved, a bit secretive, empathetic, and can solve most mysteries long before any clues are given.

These two signs help describe the multifaceted aspects of our personalities. The Ascendant sign is our persona. It is the image that faces outward, how the world sees us, that first impression. Our Sun sign is our ego or inner being, who we are when we are not surrounded by others. Together, these signs represent both our public and private selves.

Often this public vs private, inner vs outer aspects of astrology, as strange as it might seem, comes to mind whenever I encounter great window displays, either in the malls, which I don't do often, or while walking the streets of the city.

This happens because I first see the actual physical glass that separates us from the story being told, of mannequins and props and the psychology of merchandise being sold. Then there's the play of reflection, of ourselves and outside structures, on the window's surface, creating a 'reality vs fantasy' world and the barriers between them.

I know some of you are saying..."hey it's a plastic model, just a dress, a purse, a pair of shoes... what reflections... what worlds?" Okay, at times that's all it is, a dress, a purse, some shoes, but there's so much more  when you're talking about great window design like the ones seen last month at Daffy's in Philadelphia, at the corner of 17th and Chestnut Streets, based on the theme of Alice in Wonderland.

The concept for these windows comes from the work of artist Loreal Prystaj.

Here are a few of her images.

I was amazed to learn that Loreal is a student!!! She's attending FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology) in NYC, loves being in the city, and will be graduating with a BFA degree in 2013. I truly expected her to be someone long into a career of Photography, not one only begun in 2008!

Here is her self portrait along with her thoughts on photography and work.

"Reality is perception, and my perception of the world around me becomes reality through my photography. I find myself creating illusions in my head; I am the only one who knows exactly what is on my mind, and I have become part of my own masterpieces to fulfill my imagination".

"I shoot almost 24/7... mostly personal work, not school work. I do well in school, but care much more about, and make it first priority, to do my own work".

Loreal recently celebrated a birthday. She's an Aries-Taurus Cusp sharing a bit of both signs which explains her great drive and energy towards her work (Aries ruled by Mars), and her appreciation of beauty and a tenacity to see things through to completion (Taurus, an earth sign, ruled by Venus)... great attributes for any artist who works 24/7!

To see more of Loreal's wonderful photography visit her website here.

And for more great window displays from our friends in the UK go here and here and here.

If any of this post has sparked your interest in astrology, try Astrodienst for a free natal chart and daily horoscopes based on your personal birth info here.

And for my favorite horoscope guru, astrologer and quasi-psychologist check out Rob Brezsny of Free Will Astrology who describes what he does as "predicting the present, not forecasting the future". Get your weekly horoscope and his free newsletter here.

So who are YOU? What personality traits do you 'display' or hide within? 

Have you ever purchased an item because you saw it in a store window? What did you buy and was it worth the impulse?

Talk to me... back in two weeks for my next post.