Afternoon Market
Photographed 8K’s newest renovation in the market. I really liked this view from the window of one of the north-facing apartments.
Jack
Look at the bokeh in his precious little eyes. Look at the whiskers protruding from his fluffy meat-cheeks. Look at the perfect little ears and his pink chin. He’s the most adorable kitten.
End to 2025
Overall, 2025 was a better year than others. Of course, with the end of it being so top of mind and awful, I really have to dig deep and analyze it without just the recency bias coloring my perspective of it.
I made more money in 2025 than I ever have before. We went on a really good road trip with Myrtle. We met new people and maintained our strong relationships with those closest to us. I got to see my best friend bring people from around the world together for a live show he designed and then marry one of my other best friends in front of everyone. I shot so many events that I think I might be less of an architectural photographer and more of an event photographer now. I worked with a globally-recognized artist and traveled for work for her. I bought a truck that I genuinely love to drive and realized I am a small truck guy. I got to eat at Casa Bonita in Denver with my friends, and a trip to Chicago in September was a blast.
It’s wild how the death of one person in your family, though, really nullifies how you feel about the year overall. I won’t keep harping on this because we still have a lot to do for it, and I know I will speak on it again within the next few days, but all I’ll say is after seeing a man die, I’ve really started seriously thinking about mortality in ways I haven’t before. Nothing is certain, we never truly know how much time we have left, and having a clear vision of what’s to come is optimistically foolish at best.
So, as I leave 2025 in the past, I have to remember that I can only guess at what’s to come in 2026 and plan for it accordingly. Hopefully the next year will be as good as the last minus a repeat of that thing at the end.
Forgotten Love Notes
I think it was before I got laid off at the website when I found this book of love notes at a boutique in the suburbs. Each page has a different design with everything from a sincere quote (my least favorite) to something cheeky, often with a stupid pun (obviously my favorite). All of the pages are perforated so you can detach them from the book and give them to someone. I used to give them to Ashley around the time we bought the house. It’s kind of fun flipping through it again.
The Wendy’s Sunroom
Found a Wendy’s that still has one of the old sunrooms. The restaurant’s been updated with new decor and such, but it still maintains this architectural feature. It lacks all of the warmth I remember it having from visiting Wendy’s in my youth, but I guess it gets points for still existing.
How to Follow?
How do you follow an entry like yesterday's? I don’t have a good answer, honestly.
Here’s an image of my phone in the smartphone slot of a grocery cart.
At Peace
Ashley’s grandfather, David Buttelwerth, passed away just after noon today. We’d gone over to hospice to sit with him, her grandmother, and her uncle when we very gently and quietly slipped away. To say it was emotional would be an understatement.
The last couple of days, he was medicated into comfort and remained unconscious. He suffered for months with back pain that eventually led us to take him to the hospital where we learned he had more going on than previously believed. Without going into details, it was an uphill battle that he couldn’t win. The only solace I take from this whole thing is that he was without pain in his final moments. Dave was with his beloved wife, son, and granddaughter when he passed, and he’s at peace now.
I had the honor of knowing him for his final decade. Seeing his relationship with Ashley, it was clear he was a good man, husband, father, and grandfather. Among many things about him, I always admired how he was so focused on his hobbies—birding, puzzling, golf scorecard and stamp collecting, and when he was younger, photography. His family would sometimes give him a hard time about what he was into, but his curiosity and drive to keep his mind active and love what he loved is aspirational to me. He was quietly content and comfortable with himself in a way I hope to learn one day.
I’ll miss his smirk when he’d say something sarcastic to someone in the room. I’ll think of him every time I have a Little Debbie or Hostess snack cake. Nary a puzzle will be put together without Dave on my mind. The next time I photograph a bird, I’ll think of him.
Following his passing, we took her grandmother back to her condo in Florence. She was quiet and subdued in a way I’ve never seen her before. Time will tell if she’ll be alright or not. We hope she feels supported despite losing him; she has many people around to lean on should she need it.
Nothing today felt appropriate for Daily Photo. The only thing I came up with was documenting Dave’s chair—the recliner that no one will dare sit in out of respect for their patriarch. It’s going to be a very hard couple of weeks while we figure out what’s next for Dave’s funeral, Grandma, and everyone who loved him.
Tear-Down
This being the worst Christmas on record, we took down all the decor tonight. We’re sick of seeing it. We lack the Christmas spirit, and we’re sick of our home pretending to be this sugary-sweet holiday thing that it’s just not this year.
We didn’t exchange gifts, either. That was also a first for me. As Myrtle tore into her gift (a bag of treats), we packed everything else away and hoped for something better in 2026.
Christmas
We visited Grandpa in the hospital this morning. It was horrible. His condition has deteriorated so severely that they’re stopping meds and moving him to hospice within the next day. Ashley is a wreck and I feel largely helpless on what to do besides be present for the family. Personally, I didn’t feel like going up to my sister’s for Christmas considering how awful we felt about all of this, but it offered us a distraction nonetheless.
The kids enjoyed their gifts. It was nice seeing them open their presents and be carefree for a few hours. It temporarily got my mind off mortality, but it also unfortunately cooked up some new fears and worries unrelated to the Grandpa situation.
I don’t know. This is honestly the worst Christmas I’ve ever experienced, and though it could always be worse, I’ve never had one this bad in my life.
Recovery
After saying goodbye to our cabin, packing up the truck, and setting the GPS for home, we realized we needed coffee. With it being Christmas Eve, our options in rural Madison County were limited. A small town called Marshall was set along our route, though, and we figured that would be our best option.
The winding mountain roads snaked alongside the French Broad River for miles until Marshall peeked into view on the other side of a bridge. Once downtown, it became clear our luck was running out. Most everything was closed or shuttered, save for a little mercantile beside an old-timey gas station near the opposite side of the business district.
This place was devastated by hurricane Helene last year. Evidence of its recovery is obvious if you’re looking for it. For example. the house pictured was boarded up with debris strewn around it. I imagine it was a casualty of the storm and still isn’t inhabited. With the town sitting so low in the valley and directly on the river, it’s no wonder they suffered when the French Broad rose following record-breaking rainfall.
We continued home through rural parts of NC and TN until finally reaching the highway. From there, it was a straight shot home. With everything going on, I had a minor existential crisis concerning mortality somewhere along the way. I finally snapped out of it when Ashley applied lotion to her hands and it made a hilariously cartoonish slathering sound that made me die laughing.
Cabin Along the River
Ashley found an isolated cabin on a hill along the French Broad River in North Carolina for us to stay in for two nights. After we left Gatlinburg, we drove to a farm in the mountains where a family had built the cabin and rented it out on Airbnb. It isn’t very big, but the large outdoor wrap-around porch is nice considering it’s about 20 degrees warmer down here than it is back home.
Our host dropped by to give us fresh eggs, goat milk, and she baked us a loaf of garlic bread in the shape of a heart. The furniture in this place photographs far better than it is to sit on, sadly, but at least the bed is comfortable. Overall, it’s a nice place, and I’m excited to sit and do nothing for a whole day.
After her grandfather’s condition worsened, we considered canceling this trip. That was back when she and I were the only two in town who were able to take care of him and her grandmother. Since then, other family members have arrived from Florida and it’s taken the pressure off Ashley. She needed a couple days away from the hospital to de-stress. While the looming fear of him passing away hangs over everyone, there’s little we can do besides wait and hope for the best.
Gatlinburg
I misspoke in my last entry—I have been to Pigeon Forge. When I wrote that last night, I’d forgotten and it later came back to me. Back then, we also went to Gatlinburg since it was in close proximity. We did the same thing today.
From what I remember, not a whole lot has changed since the late-90s; putt-putt golf is still a major presence, there are loads of trinket and fried food shops, and it’s still just as crowded along the main drag. I liked the The Village Shops for its walkable, European-inspired architecture and winding alleyways. Though they were too expensive to ride, I thought the ski lifts looked fun, too. I was surprised by the number of ice cream shops open in winter, but I guess there’s still a demand for it. A Trump “superstore” conveniently shares a building with an adult sex shop, effectively sequestering Gatlinburg’s center of depravity while sandwiched between a “family fun parlor” and something called “Chocolate Monkey.” Even in cold, grey December, Gatliburg’s cup still runneths over with color and an undeniable vibrancy (for better or worse).
To a child, the arcades and attractions must be incredible. To an adult, it felt a sliver of Orlando on a budget with National Parks nearby. I won’t say it was great or terrible. It just is what it is.