12.1.20Skywalking In the Living RoomI went to see the in-progress work on the Peters Cartridge Factory apartments this morning. My favorite apartment was this one. It had a window into the old skywalk that connects to the other building across the road. They bricked over the other end of the skywalk and added a window for this unit to look into it. While it’s no longer accessible, I thought it was neat that they at least cared enough to put a window there. Who needs art on the wall when you have an interesting piece like that on the wall?

12.2.20He MunchThe neighbor behind us threw their pumpkins into their backyard for the squirrels, so I got out the 600mm Tamron and snapped a photo of one enjoying himself.

12.3.20An Anniversary3 years ago today, we let Myrtle into our home and she quickly became our world. Here’s a photo of her wanting to come inside after being on the balcony for 5 minutes.

12.4.20Forest AvenueI photographed a house on Forest Avenue for a realtor today. It was built in 1989 and designed by the owner, who recently moved out of state. It has a crazy southerly view. Too bad it was a gloomy day.

12.5.20Ashley’s FlagAshley loves flags, so she got a Christmas flag to put on the pole out front.

12.6.20Myrtle’s Big Day InAshley has a migraine for the majority of the day and stayed in bed. Myrtle, loving the chance to snuggle with her mom, took full advantage. I tucked them in and put the sleeping mask over Myrtle’s eyes and took a photo.

12.7.20Night StockingJust a quiet scene in the dark.

12.8.20The EdgarI got an email from a friend who works for Rookwood Properties last week. She asked if I’d like to feature one of their properties on Refined. The property was Lytle Tower—the place where I spent maybe the most transformative years of my adult life. They rebranded it “The Edgar” recently with all new signage and renovated apartments, so it was worth looking into. I’d been back to Lytle several times over the years since I’d moved out, but every time I go in there, it’s just as sweet as the last time. I love that building with every ounce of my being and always will. Though I didn’t get to see my former apartment (maybe one day!), I got to photograph three units on the second, fifth, and twelfth floors. There’s something magnetizing about this place; and I may be one of the only people in the world who feels that way. It just feels like I have a special kinship with it that I don’t have anywhere else in the world.

12.9.20Weird CornerJust a weird corner of Bellevue that I frequently pass when walking to and from the Avenue. I wonder what the story is behind the tire.

12.10.20Foggy MorningWent to drop Myrtle off at daycare this morning and was stunned by how foggy it was on the Kentucky side of the river. As soon as we crossed over the bridge into Cincinnati, the fog was gone.

12.11.20Campbell County CourthouseI’d never been inside, but we needed to get our licenses changed, so we went to the Campbell County Courthouse for the first time. However, after being stopped at the metal detectors, we were informed that we needed an appointment before being allowed to go further (COVID restriction). So even though I’ve been inside the front doors, I still don’t feel as though I’ve truly been inside yet.

12.12.20Sunset WalkWe walked down to the Ameristop for provisions and took the long route home because my knee hurt too much to take the stairs. Glad we did.

12.13.20Art Glove GuyOh god, I’m art glove guy now.

12.14.20Making WFH WorkAshley’s frequently on work calls and I’ve made the mistake of barging into her office while she’s on a call during quiet moments when no one’s talking, so I got her a little remote-controlled “ON AIR” sign that she turns on whenever she’s not to be disturbed. We used magnets to affix it to the desk.

12.15.20Extinct BirdsToday I worked for the Cincinnati Museum Center to produce images for a book they intend to publish. I met Cody Hefner at the Geier Center and started off by heading to their zoology department where they had an ark of taxidermied animals. Everything from mice to full-sized lions were accounted for, as well as a huge skull and prehistoric bones. The image I needed to make had to be portrait orientation and include extinct birds. I do not remember the full names of the parakeet and warbler, but that’s a passenger pigeon in the background. Cincinnati was the final resting place for Martha, the last passenger pigeon in the world.

12.16.20IckBad day. Feeling ill again. Taking drowsy meds and in bed by 9:30. Try again tomorrow.

12.17.20An ObservationThis was perhaps the least productive day I’ve had in weeks. I worked the bare minimum then did nothing worth doing for the remainder of the day. During the hours spent waiting to go back to bed, I noticed this shape at the top of the lamp in my office. It screws onto the shade to keep it from coming off. It’s shaped vaguely like a lightbulb, though it’s smaller, coarsely textured, and opaque. In silhouette, they are the same, but in reality, they are opposites. The lightbulb is a symbol of an idea; a eureka moment. This is the symbol of my lack thereof.

12.18.20DuveneckThe Art Museum reached out to me last-minute about covering their new Frank Duveneck exhibit. This is a bust of him in the Cincinnati Wing, which they repainted specifically for this show.

12.19.20Aimless WanderersAshley had errands to run by herself today, so I took the dog on a walk. Since it was just the two of us, and since we have no plans anyway, we got down to the Avenue and I decided to just keep walking. For about three hours, she and I walked through Downtown, over the Roebling, into Covington, over the Licking, through Newport, and back to Bellevue totaling over seven miles in all. It was actually really nice to just go with the flow and not worry about the destination or the time. It’s good to let yourself float through a chunk of the day on occasion.

12.20.20Plant StandsI’ve been making these plant stands over the course of a week. In total, I’ve made four tall stands and one short stand. Each one has gone to a relative (or is going to go to a relative soon) as a gift. Ashley found this design online and asked me to build a couple, but after I got the hang of making the first two, I wanted to make more. I borrowed a mitre saw, a band saw, and a nail gun from my father to see if that would make the process of making them easier, and it definitely did. I’m going to figure out what it costs to make each one and build that into the price so I can cover the cost of construction and sell them for charity or something.

12.21.20Head ScritchesA really adorable kitty scratches her head on a bowl.

12.22.20Sun In the Heart of the HomeI love all the natural light our kitchen gets in the morning. I liked this particular little vignette.

12.23.20RosieMy in-laws’ dog, Rosie, is staying at our house this week. She’s very small and very cold.

12.24.20A Festive DoorJust a tastefully festive door.

12.25.20Come PreparedChristmas requires preparation. Having a good knife on hand to tackle over-wrapped gifts is essential.

12.26.20Chillin’Ashley chilling, both figurative and literally, by a fire with a beer in hand.

12.27.20IT HelperAshley’s grandfather got a wireless speaker for Christmas and can’t figure out how to set it up on his phone. To help him with phone issues, I made a holder that will hold his iPad (left plank) to point at his iPhone (right plank) when both are placed on the holder. He can then FaceTime me on the iPad and turn the camera around to point through the hole at his iPhone. Because he shakes so badly, I thought the holder would eliminate the shake and allow me to remotely help him figure out his phone.

12.28.20Height HelperSometimes one must build a bridge before they can dam the river. While painting the bathroom this week, I found my step ladder was too large to get into a corner of the room because the shower stall was in the way. There was no way I could get up to the corner and finish the trimming unless I had another 12 inches in height. So, in order to finish painting, I had to build a step stool that would be small enough to fit into the tight space while giving me the necessary leverage I needed. This is the stool I came up with to finish the job.

12.29.20Well, ShitCar’s dead. Went to pull it out of the garage and it wouldn’t start. It sounds like it wants to start, but just won’t. We had to have a tow truck come and take it to the mechanic Downtown. With a full-to-the-brim week ahead of me, this isn’t good. I can’t Uber because of COVID, so I guess I’ll be walking everywhere.

12.30.20Sweet Little StrangerBecause the car’s in the shop, I needed to walk to Mt. Adams from my home in Bellevue for work this morning. On the first leg of my trip, I came across this sweet little pup on Taylor Avenue. Her tail flipped back and forth like she wanted it to fly off her butt, instantly melting my heart. When I made eye contact with her, she started throwing her front paws down and wiggling her head—that type of dog behavior that suggests she desperately wants to be pet but is too overcome with excitement to hold it together. As I raised my camera to take her photo, she became shy and looked away. It looks like she’s stoic in the photo above, but she was anything but at the moment this was taken. Her nose touched my hand as I reached through the fence to give her a scratch on her snout and appease that mile-a-minute tail.

12.31.20A Big Empty Building2020 has packed its shit and is moving out. I photographed a 900K condo on Race Street and this empty building on Central Avenue. Of everything I saw today, this room with the good light was my favorite.