Big Fish, Little Fish

A really really leeetle tiny fish.

Related posts:  Coming. And Going.;  Airliners Are Viviparous

Another Wizard's Workshop

At least I'm almost certain that's what it was.  It was a room at the top of a dim stairway inside a creaky old building, located in a flea market of all places.  It was completely devoid of activity and curiously quiet despite all the traffic and goings-on just outside.  I accidentally stumbled upon the place while checking out the old East Gate ("DongDaeMun") neighborhood of Seoul, "urban explorer" style.

As I climbed the stairs I smelled incense, and having carefully and quietly wended my way up -- I don't know why, but somehow I was certain that I should try to be as discreet as possible -- I found the door open a crack, but of course I did not dare enter and all I saw was a glimpse of a table with a book and a partial view of a monitor screen displaying what may have been some sort of geometric diagram (I guess even wizards need to look up references now and then).

I did not see or hear anyone during all this, so how do I know the place was a wizard's laboratory?  Because once past the ground-floor portion of the staircase (top photo), every subsequent shot I took came out looking like this, until I exited the building:

All I can think of by way of an explanation is that the place must be under a protective geas of some kind, to discourage casual curiosity-seekers.  Like me.

Sleet Day Slick

Made me think of some piece of space junk burning up upon re-entry.  As seen through a thermal-imaging camera.

Lunar New Year's Eve, 2025

 

[Shot was taken back in the summer, of course]

Coming (In) And Going (Out)

Or is it Going (In) And Coming (Out)?

Unopened

Red envelope.  Perhaps a greeting card, or an invitation to some auspicious event.  In any case, a piece of happy news suggesting some kind of connection between the sender and the intended recipient.  But discarded without being read -- yet it does not seem to have been just randomly tossed out, either.  Wonder what's the story...

Night In Day

Or was it Day In Night...

Soluna?  Lunasol?

I don't remember.

 

Related post:  Soluna

Errant Specs

This one threw me for a loop.  Small trinkets and doodads can be dropped accidentally, and a child's toy can be left behind and forgotten about.  But eyeglasses?  Who accidentally loses the glasses off their face without noticing?  Or if these were deliberately left behind for whatever reason, I think there would still be some appearance of deliberation -- like, wouldn't the owner have placed them aside at least, resting on a bench or hung on a fence or some such?  I know I would have (although of course, I am subject to obsessive-compulsive tendencies).  And why would anyone do such a thing anyway -- it's not as if eyeglasses were cheap and disposable.  Did someone get into an argument, become all het up and fling them away in anger?  Were they perhaps snatched off a victim by some delinquent, then chucked in a random spot?  It just seems so odd to see them simply tossed out in the middle of a sidewalk.

EDIT:  I took a closer look at the image, and it looks like one of the lenses is missing.  But even so, why wouldn't you just get the frame fitted with a new lens, instead of throwing away the whole thing..?

Related post:  Errant Jacket

Strange Skies

I guess I caught the tail end of something pretty spectacular -- it was fading even as I watched.  If I hadn't just happened to look up at that moment I would have missed it altogether.

Accidental Juxtaposition III

 

Accidental Juxtaposition II

Accidental Juxtaposition I

Snagged

 

Rays At Sunset

 

The Heart That Sees

Probably Not A Bunch Of Balloons

Although I suppose it's just possible.

But anyway, for now I'm putting it under UFO.

Related posts:  UFO

Even Tigers

need to keep warm in this weather^.

Temple Visit, Redux

It seems to me that, for whatever reason, some photographic images lend themselves more smoothly to the "vintage treatment" than others.  One of the images from the previous post was felt to be one such.  I subjected it to multiple "retro-fying" treatments to imbue it with the antique look.  I'm 87% satisfied with the result.

Visit To MokJeongGul

It's a Buddhist retreat located in a small cave just below GeumSunSa temple.  As day-treks go, it was not the easiest.  To get there I had to climb part way up a mountainside by a steep narrow path that barely pretended to be "paved" with uneven, rough-hewn stone steps which were a bit nerve-wracking, especially as I was bundled up against the cold in thick clumsy clothing that impeded movement somewhat, and that at one point were rather dangerously close to a drop-off without a railing;  I'm halfway convinced it was deliberately designed as a symbolic pilgrimage intended to weed out the weak-willed^.  Once I got to the temple though, I have to say I was pretty impressed.  Insulated against the bustling city below by its location, it offered a feeling of quietude, contemplative calm and spiritual refuge, possessed in common by Buddhist temples everywhere but especially palpable there.

However, for me the most interesting part of the visit was not the temple complex but the little sanctum associated with it.  It was memorable for its similitude to the ideal cave/subterranean retreat I've built in my imagination over the years -- a place of isolation both physical and psychological, and free of distraction of any kind.  I remember when I was little I sometimes would climb into the large wardrobe that stood in "the other room" downstairs, shutting out the world and enjoying the quiet darkness.

 

Darkening Bird

If the bird were 2-dimensional like its shadow, it would melt into the shadow of the wall and disappear.  Would it then still continue to exist, or would its walk be one-way only?

Related post:  Two Skies