Weathering

April 30th, 2024

I like shiny and brand-new things. I like fresh colors and smooth surfaces and sharp angles. I like it when things are clean and well-maintained and pleasurable to see. I like order and cleanliness and visible care given to inanimate objects. I like all that but when I see something that doesn't look like that, something that is weathered — then I stop and try to record it, either as a photo or as a memory. New things are nice but forgettable, rough things are easier to notice and remember. Of course, there is a difference between weathered and neglected and dirty. I am not able to clearly define what that difference is, but I know it when I see it. That is why, when I visit a new place, after a quick tour of the center and touristy landmarks, I move to streets just off the popular walking paths. I look around to see how normal people live there. How do the regular streets and houses look like? What are the natural traffic patterns in that particular place? And, of course — I try to find interesting subjects for my personal highlights of a visit. I never have to look for long to find examples. A doorway, a part of the stone or brick wall, an old sculpture in a forgotten corner of the park, or a house partially hidden just off the main street. It is much easier to see it in an unfamiliar place when my sight is sharpened by the unfamiliar and scent of discovery. Then, always, a strange thing happens after the trip. It is a surprise when I start to see the same things in places I thought I knew and walked by hundreds of times. My perspective gets sharper after each visit to a new place. After each trip I make, I start to see more and more details in my familiar surroundings. I pay more attention to what surrounds me after discovering something new.