single frame: Salvation Army donation

Salvation Army donation

Salvation Army donation
Nikon FA, 50mm f/1.8 Nikon Series E
Foma Fomapan 200
2017

As I prepare to leave my home of ten years, I asked my sons to go through their things and pile in the living room whatever they no longer wished to keep. A decade of childhood memories soon filled my living room. My younger son was his usual pragmatic self: don’t need this, don’t need that, okay, I’m good. My older son wanted to make sure I was okay if he gave away his twelfth birthday present, a skateboard and all the associated regalia. It’s so like him to want to care for the emotional lives of others. I admire both my younger son’s pragmatism and my older son’s deep heart.

And oh, hey, there’s the TV my friend Steve gave me when I moved into the one-room apartment after my first wife and I separated. I watched dozens of movies on it, all borrowed from the nearby library, as a way of distracting myself from my troubles. My younger son used it most recently to play games on the vintage Super Nintendo system I bought him for Christmas some years ago. He does love his retro gaming.


Comments

8 responses to “single frame: Salvation Army donation”

  1. Jon Avatar
    Jon

    That is a sweet story Jim. Good kids you have there. I hope the TLR’s are not headed for Sal’s.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Ha, you’re not the first person to ask about the TLRs. Those are just on display in my home – they are not going anywhere!

  2. dan james Avatar

    Lovely photograph and story Jim. It looks kind of timeless too, nothing there that couldn’t have been made in the 80s, maybe even late 70s onwards. Oh and I really like the soft grain of the Fomapan, ideal for this shot.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      This normally wouldn’t have been a photo I shared here, as the subject isn’t entirely in focus, and the composition isn’t very good. But I wanted to write about my sons and this time of passage in our lives again. So here you go!

      The Fomapan 200 is a really solid everyday b/w film, especially since I can get it for about $4 per roll plus shipping. Of course, sometimes I can get Tri-X for that, too, and I love Tri-X. But I also find ISO 200 to be wonderful for everyday shooting.

  3. bodegabayf2 Avatar

    I like this photo. A poignant reminder of the passing of time and of life’s seasons. There might be another Jim Grey photo essay book here.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      Hunh, what an interesting thought. I wonder if I can make a compelling narrative out of this time through photos.

  4. DougD Avatar
    DougD

    Life moves on, and that Sorry game reminds me that our family needs to have a game cull. I’m going to suggest Harry Potter Clue.
    And a guitar, our household currently has four, and Derek is up at Ontario Pioneer Camp with number five for the summer. I could be the guitar version of your home for wayward cameras, can’t have too many.

    1. Jim Grey Avatar

      I appreciate a well-played guitar but have never had any desire to play it myself. That guitar fell into our hands fairly randomly. The boys picked at it a little but never took to it. It’s a pretty crappy guitar anyway; won’t hold a tune.

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