Looking back at the first quarter of 2023

I’ve struggled a bit with motivation this quarter, with winding down and getting into a creative mindset in the evenings after work so I can write these posts and process my photographs. That’s always a back and forth sort of thing, easy during one period of time and challenging during another. That’s one reason I’ve been working to a weekly blogging schedule all these years, to force myself to focus enough to at least put together one post a week, consistently, each and every week. Granted, some weeks it’s stressful and I question whether the post was worth it. But I worry if I don’t do that I might drop off the face of the earth and never post again. I enjoy this far too much to let that happen. And your support helps tremendously in keeping me consistent. So thank you for that.

I hope you’ll find something below to enjoy, whether that’s one of my posts you might have missed or a new look at one you’ve already read. Or perhaps you’ll see a book or movie or song that’s new to you or an old favorite.

Photography

I didn’t get out photographing quite as often this quarter as I have some. There were cold and windy days when we just didn’t feel like hiking. And there were a couple weekends we chose to do other things. But with the weather warming, the greenery and flowers returning, I’m hopeful I’ll find a new sense of passion and find more opportunities to make use of the camera.

Please take a look back through this quarter’s posts and photographs.

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Reading

This felt like a very good quarter for reading. I did run into some books that didn’t excite me, such as The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, Flatland: A Romance in Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbott, The Guest List by Lucy Foley, and The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz, but I didn’t absolutely hate any of these and I ended up loving several other books, which you’ll see further below.

The books I consumed this quarter (paper, ebook, and audio).

The full list of books: Galatea by Madeline Miller, Moon Woke Me Up Nine Times: Selected Haiku of Basho by David Young, Wayward (Wanderers #2) by Chuck Wendig, The Angel Maker by Alex North, The Original by Brandon Sanderson & Mary Robinette Kowal, Moonraker (James Bone #3) by Ian Fleming, The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, The Mist by Stephen King, My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman, Second Foundation (Foundation #3) by Isaac Asimov, Flatland: A Romance in Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbott, The Book of Tea by Kakuzo Okakura, The Guest List by Lucy Foley, Lord Edgware Dies by Agatha Christie, Invasive by Chuck Wendig, Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl, The Terraformers by Annalee Newitz.

Of these my favorites were:

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry by Fredrik Backman

What an absolutely beautiful story. A complete gem. Touching. Lovely. Delightful. Funny. Sad. All told through the eyes of a young girl who must learn to live with the death of the most special person in her life, her grandmother, who left her letters to deliver to others. Slowly little Elsa learns there was more to her grandmother than she’d realized.

Wayward (Wanderers #2) by Chuck Wendig

This was a great conclusion to the story begun in Wanderers. What starts a little slowly soon gains momentum and takes us back into the lives of the characters as they continue trying to deal with all that’s happened in the world, upending everyones lives. A pandemic story that’s more than it seems, full of technology and touching on the increased societal polarization we should be far too familiar with.

The Angel Maker by Alex North

I won an advanced reading copy through a Goodreads giveaway. This was my first exposure to Alex North and I’d like to read more. It began right off with a complete gut punch of a beginning, setting up for all that followed. A family upended by a violent act, another family that might seem crazy but leaves us wondering if so and just how much, hints of the supernatural, questions of determinism. An enjoyable fast paced story blending horror, mystery and thriller.

The Mist by Stephen King

I first read The Mist as part of the anthology, Skeleton Crew. It was the longest and one of my favorite stories of that book. Recently I learned it had been narrated by Will Patton so I decided to give the audiobook a try, and I found I enjoyed it just as much as I had the first time. An ominous wall of fog washes over a Maine community, bringing with it something terrible, and leaving a father and son trapped at a local grocery store.

Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

An extraordinary book. The first part is an autobiographical look at Frankl’s experiences within Nazi concentration camps where he was taken in World War II. He tells of all the difficulties and hardships, but also of how even in places like that he and others were able to find hope and meaning in their life. The second part is an introduction to his philosophy of logotherapy, something he’d been developing before his time in the concentration camps, though it seems those experiences may have both validated and influenced his beliefs and development of logotherapy. A very moving and impactful book, something I would think could give hope to just about anyone in any situation.

Movies & Anime

I’ve been on a bit of a roll rewatching older movies and that mostly continued this quarter. I first watched these movies when they came out in the late 70’s to mid-90’s and loved them all at the time. As often happens I found myself loving them all over again during the rewatch. It had been a long time since I’d watched any of them, and though I remembered enough that it wasn’t like watching them for the first time, they did still feel fresh as I slowly rediscovered and was pulled back into stories from my youth.

Hackers was one of those perfect movies that hit at the perfect time (1995) to completely resonate with me. About a group of misfit computer geniuses who’s lives are turned upside down when they find themselves involved in something much bigger than they’d expected, starring a young Angelina Jolie and Jonny Lee Miller.

Then I decided to go back even further in time to 1981 when I first watched Raiders of the Lost Ark, the first Indiana Jones adventure. I’ve always enjoyed these movies and the first has the greatest draw for me, though I hope to rewatch some of the others, as well.

After getting back into Indiana Jones it seemed almost natural to go back just a bit further and rewatch the 1977 hit, Star Wars. I remember sitting in the theater with my mouth open, smiling, my eyes wide, completely sucked into the story, the special effects, the music, the quirky characters. I loved it all, and walked out of the theater almost dizzy. I felt as if I’d been in space with them.

Of course, I had to also rewatch both The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi so I could experience the entire story again. Such fun, though I do wish I had access to the original versions and not the remastered ones where George Lucas went back and changed or added various scenes. I respect his desire to do that as a creator but they never worked as well for me as the original versions. Regardless, though, I loved rewatching these classics.

Music

I don’t think there’s ever been a bad quarter for music. There’s always something to listen to, whether that be music from years ago or something brand new. Below are some of the songs I’ve listened to the most this quarter, and I ended up purchasing most of them. As often happens, I had a difficult time narrowing the list down to just four.

Beyond the Black - Forget My Name

I recently discovered this band and this song has become one of my favorites of theirs. I love the dynamics from heavy to soft, the mix of electric and acoustic with a great acoustic guitar solo that gives me the chills alongside the more traditional electric guitar solo, some very tight drumming, and the mix of melodic vocals with occasional harsh vocals. The relaxed studio environment in the video was nice, getting to see all the musicians perform and interact both together and individually. You could see their passion for the music. I’ve completely lost count how many times I’ve listened to this song this quarter, and I’ve already purchased two of this German symphonic metal band’s albums from bandcamp, Heart of the Hurricane: Black Edition, and the newly released self-titled album, Beyond the Black.

Lyrre - Call in the Wind

Lyrre continues releasing new tracks, this being their third. They’ve also recently released a couple more. I love their mix of genres with rock elements mixed with more traditional sounds. The hurdy gurdy provides such a great layer of droning sound, it perfectly fits their style. I purchased this track at bandcamp and plan to continue purchasing their music.

Band-Maid - From Now On

I love Band-Maid. They have such range in their songwriting. Pop, rock, hard rock, metal, punk. But each song sounds like them. In this case they decided to write an instrumental heavy metal piece and it’s fantastic. Great guitar riffs throughout, some great bass moments, incredible drumming. Granted, that’s what I’ve come to expect from this band (as well as awesome vocals on most of their songs). They’re one of my favorite groups out of Japan.

Rodrigo y Gabriela - Descending to Nowhere

Thanks again to Joseph Smith of JWSmith Photography for introducing me to the incredible guitar duo of Rodrigo y Gabriela. I’ve still only listened to a small amount of their work but I’ve enjoyed it all, and this song continues that trend. So very catchy with their mix of melody, rhythm, acoustic and electric guitar, and percussive elements. I immediately preordered their new album, In Between Thoughts… A New World, from bandcamp based on this song.

Life

As I mentioned up top, motivation has been a struggle recently, though it hasn’t been crippling by any means. More recently I feel I’ve been “seeing” more when out hiking, finding potential in the scene. I’m not always able to convert what I see into a compelling photograph, but I think seeing is the first step so I’m happy about that.

Recently, I’ve also noticed more changes when out hiking, both the typical seasonal changes with flowers slowly appearing and some of the browns turning into shades of green, but also longer term changes as trees fall or grow, sections of trails collapse into a creek and are rerouted elsewhere, areas where flowers once bloomed being covered over by brush and vines. These are all typical and normal changes and I don’t necessarily feel happy or sad about them, though that does happen, but I find myself more aware of how things change and more aware of how very different it all may be years from now. Food for thought, if nothing else.

And to end on a positive note, I have to say it’s been a good quarter. I had many opportunities to spend time with family. I had time outside in nature. I made it back to the book fair a couple times and stocked up on more books to read. I also started visiting more of the wonderful little free libraries hidden here and there, dropping off books I’m done with and sometimes picking up a new one. I listened to some fantastic music that motivates me and leaves me feeling better than before. And I rewatched some classic (to me) movies that I loved as a kid and was able to appreciate as an adult looking back.

What about you? How was your quarter? Anything fun or interesting happen? Leave a comment below and let me know.

And I hope you have a fantastic 2nd quarter of 2023!

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