The Balloon Man and The Return of The Statue Man
Cindi, who is a really amazing photographer, took me on a downtown photo adventure with her last Fall when she was visiting Seattle. We woke up super early and headed toward the waterfront. It was raining and still dark when we left, but we did not let that deter us! Cindi is an especially fun person to go on photography adventures with because she is both fearless and curious. She is not afraid to take a stranger's photo and she is also very curious to talk to strangers. Because of this, we got to talk to The Balloon Man (who is pictured below) for a while. I've seen The Balloon Man countless times at the market but I had never before talked to him. We took a lot of photos throughout that day, but here are some of mine from the first portion of the day, the downtown portion.
Last Sunday, I went to craft day at my friend Ces's house. It was a rainy day, therefore a perfect day to huddle inside a warm apartment while working on a scarf. While crafting, we watched 'The Little Mermaid,' for purposes of nostalgia. The best part was trying to sing along to all the songs, which are still sort of in my memory. Afterward, I walked from his house to downtown to catch my bus. It is a longish walk, and by the time I finally got to my stop, my jeans and jacket were soaked with rainwater. Some of this rainwater was the type that had collected in a big puddle on the side of the road and was then splashed onto an unsuspecting pedestrian (me!) by a car in a hurry. It was one of those days where it seemed I waited for my bus for thirty minutes or even longer. Which is vexing, especially when soaked, but it just means next time I want to catch a bus, it will come right away.The karmic rules of the bus rarely fail. Once on the bus, it took me a while to get settled. I had to take my wet jacket off, find my book, find a new song to listen to, etc etc etc. So, I had my book sitting on the seat next to me when The Statue Man sauntered onto the bus. I noticed him when he was just a couple of steps ahead of my seat, so I quickly picked up my book in hopes the infamous statue man would sit next to me. But, he chose a different seat by himself which was probably for the best, because what would I say to the statue man!?
I talked about encountering The Statue Man on another occasion. It was a day that Ces and I went to the aquarium together. So when I saw The Statue Man again, I quickly texted Ces. I marveled that while I am covered with water, The Statue Man's paint is still in tact. My mascara was smudged beneath my eyes like a raccoon, but The Statue Man's weathered green face was still pristine. This is when Ces suggested The Statue Man is indeed a real statue! After agreeing this certainly must be true, we decided The Statue Man comes to life once a month, the first Sunday of every month, to wander among the humans in the guise of a street performer. He has been around for hundreds of years and will exist thousands more, so all the Sunday's together will actually be longer then the average human life. But it would hard to keep friendships as The Statue Man. Three years for you or me would be only a little over a month for The Statue Man. But there would be benefits to being The Statue Man. I am certainly curious to know what the world will be like in a thousand years! I bet it will be an odd place.
Last Sunday, I went to craft day at my friend Ces's house. It was a rainy day, therefore a perfect day to huddle inside a warm apartment while working on a scarf. While crafting, we watched 'The Little Mermaid,' for purposes of nostalgia. The best part was trying to sing along to all the songs, which are still sort of in my memory. Afterward, I walked from his house to downtown to catch my bus. It is a longish walk, and by the time I finally got to my stop, my jeans and jacket were soaked with rainwater. Some of this rainwater was the type that had collected in a big puddle on the side of the road and was then splashed onto an unsuspecting pedestrian (me!) by a car in a hurry. It was one of those days where it seemed I waited for my bus for thirty minutes or even longer. Which is vexing, especially when soaked, but it just means next time I want to catch a bus, it will come right away.The karmic rules of the bus rarely fail. Once on the bus, it took me a while to get settled. I had to take my wet jacket off, find my book, find a new song to listen to, etc etc etc. So, I had my book sitting on the seat next to me when The Statue Man sauntered onto the bus. I noticed him when he was just a couple of steps ahead of my seat, so I quickly picked up my book in hopes the infamous statue man would sit next to me. But, he chose a different seat by himself which was probably for the best, because what would I say to the statue man!?
I talked about encountering The Statue Man on another occasion. It was a day that Ces and I went to the aquarium together. So when I saw The Statue Man again, I quickly texted Ces. I marveled that while I am covered with water, The Statue Man's paint is still in tact. My mascara was smudged beneath my eyes like a raccoon, but The Statue Man's weathered green face was still pristine. This is when Ces suggested The Statue Man is indeed a real statue! After agreeing this certainly must be true, we decided The Statue Man comes to life once a month, the first Sunday of every month, to wander among the humans in the guise of a street performer. He has been around for hundreds of years and will exist thousands more, so all the Sunday's together will actually be longer then the average human life. But it would hard to keep friendships as The Statue Man. Three years for you or me would be only a little over a month for The Statue Man. But there would be benefits to being The Statue Man. I am certainly curious to know what the world will be like in a thousand years! I bet it will be an odd place.