eleven :: routine

hello there. i'm sorry for such a late post... but i bring you shari and my documentary project today. the word this week was ROUTINE and picked by shari .

SHARI's response:

routine: a part of the everyday, ordinary, a schedule.

i started thinking about this word several months ago when i thought up the idea of dishwashing portraits. i wanted to take an activity that was routine and occurred everyday and create art. i wanted to document this part of my daily routine because i spend so much time cleaning the kitchen each day. what interests me about this idea is that there are so many everyday activities that go completely undocumented, unexamined and are often thought of as tedious, boring, uninteresting. i'm thinking of doing a series of these for other routine activities, specifically involving household chores.



a part of my daily routine now is taking a few photos of my backyard. this started as the backyard challenge as i wanted to see my yard with new eyes. each day, i take my camera outside to my backyard and try to see my world differently. i choose to make this activity part of my daily routine.



the word routine also conjures up something that it a regular part of my weekly schedule. one such thing is volunteer work at the co-op.



capturing a moment from my everyday life, one that is routine but is often left undocumented....traveling as a passenger in the car. i wanted to think of parts of my life that often go undocumented because they are so routine that i don't even really think about them. traveling as a passenger is one of those things, though i do often
document this when i travel.



finally, coffee and a book. these two things are without a doubt a part of my everyday routine. this particular image captures my daily ritual in another place (wrightsville beach). i like that these 2 elements of my day are the same no matter if i'm home or traveling. coffee and a good book can turn any day around. :)



i loved examining my daily and weekly routine with this project. what stands out in your mind about your routine?

MY response:

shari must have had e.s.p. when she picked this week's word. i fixated on the thought that i'd be out of my element - away from my routine for a part of this past week. there is nothing like being away from home - from your day to day to make you reflect on your personal routines.

the first thing i thought of was routine :: repetition :: daily :: ritual :: a practice of some sort.

i then started thinking about how you can have several "brands" of routine: the ordinary - get up, shower, get dressed, brush teeth. in the ordinary it's the order - the subtle that differentiates you from me. perhaps your order is hit snooze, get up, brush teeth, get coffee, workout, shower, get dressed. [work out is NEVER part of my routine]

then there's the weekend routine, a mon. wed. fri. routine... i have a studio/art making routine [which always involves leaving something slightly unfinished so i can pick up where i left off]. for awhile i had a daily drawing routine [remember?]....

you can get superstitious about your routine - if you don't follow the precise order at the precise time it's all over. or you feel unsure/shakey. you can be loosey goosey with it - not have it, defy it.

in my life my routine changes every 10 to 15 weeks. depending on what i'm teaching, where i'm teaching it, and what time i'm supposed to be at school. with me - the grass always seems greener regarding routine. if i don't have it i crave it, if i have too much of it - too many responsibilities - i want less.

my favorite routine? sunday morning. sleep in a bit. make a big big latte with foamy milk, get the new york times, read the styles section first, then the week in review, then the arts & leisure, and then thumb through the rest of the paper for things of interest.

i also really was interested in thinking about the mundane.... how normalcy and habits can feed into it. how you can play with yourself by altering your routine... shifting small things [start with putting your right shoe on instead of your left]. how being stuck in a routine can be both good and bad.

and so photos you ask? here are things that are not part of my routine, but were part of my life this weekend:



not my dog [having pets/kids exposes you to all kinds of routines - time to be walked, time to be fed...]



not my bathroom or my shampoo



not my bed

and that my friends is it for now. i have photos of my show, and a million polaroids - that was part of my routine this trip [i took 3 packs worth!!] all of this i hope to start to share later this week....

be well....