do-over

Distance usually helps clarify that which was murky.

I’ve made some minor edits*** to “What am I documenting?” … if you’re interested.

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*** Why is this important? Because unclear writing is evidence of unclear thinking. And since I spend a lot of time on this blog pointing out the logical flaws in the arguments of others, it is only right that I try to keep my own house clean.

For those of you who like to pore over such things, although I can’t imagine why you would want to, here’s a reprint of my original post:

1800	2007-04-29 8:40:20 pm	what am I documenting?

My son borrowed my camera the other day.

“What are you documenting?” he asked when he saw the pictures I’d taken.

Good question. I’m not quite sure, except to say that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction—in this case, the bold and fast-paced transformation of a formerly sleepy neighborhood via striking (and sometimes strikingly incongruous) architectural statements (some of which are artful and most of which are gut-wrenchingly bad) have propelled me out into the streets of Lower Manhattan with my camera. When the inevitability of change gets in your face every time you walk out your door, it seems like a natural reaction to want to document those changes.

There is nothing conservative about me. I come from a long line of rebels. I am not afraid of change—as long as the rush to change isn’t so great that we are tempted to throw out all of the old to make way for all of the new.

So: I have taken to documenting the changes in my backyard. It’s an accompaniment to the hints of changes that I’ve picking up in the culture but cannot possibly document because of the dizzying pace of change.