random thoughts – Day 2,267 (Monday) – delivering

Mess from dance night.

The photos for the Lowellscapes Show (open June 6 to July 26) were due today. The mess from the costume bags being dumped in the kitchen upon arrival home last night needed to be dealt with because the magical gnomes or fairies or sprites or whatever that are supposed to tidy up overnight keep blowing me off. It was a busy morning.

I got caffeinated and ready to get busy. The costumes were pulled from the bags and rehung. Hair accessories were returned to the designated storage in the bathroom closet. Makeup was returned to its rightful place in either the everyday makeup drawer or the stage makeup storage box.

Once the dance stuff was dealt with, I moved to the photos. Gallery paperwork needed to be completed with image titles and emailed. The six framed pieces were set into a tote bag, where they all fit, but it was too heavy to manage. I envisioned missing a step outside the gallery and having a bag with smashed glass and damaged photos. A second bag was found and the load was split into a more manageable configuration.

The ride to Lowell was after the morning rush and therefore reasonable. I finally parked in the no-longer-so-new Hamilton Canal Innovation District (HCID) garage at Dutton and Canal. It opened in 2020, but until last year, I had a work parking pass at another garage and always parked there or in the bank parking lot. The level of the garage I parked on was practically vacant, which felt a little like the setting for a scene in a suspense movie.

Delivered.

The work was safely delivered. I was the first one to arrive with pieces and I had a nice chat with the gallery executive director. While I was there, two other photographers in the show arrived with their pieces and I got to meet them. 

It was fun hanging around in the gallery for a little while. I miss the atmosphere and am looking forward to the exhibit’s reception in a few weeks. Being laid off from work and then moving removed me from more than just a job. It’s like I was laid off work then I laid myself off from some several once-nourishing aspects of my life and I need to reclaim that territory.