Outtakes from my 32to33 project.

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I legally can’t discuss the second one.

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While home for the 4th of July weekend, the pangs of nostalgia gave way to a new perspective on why and how I’m using an assault of websites. Aside from this blog, I tweet, I check-in, and I photo. I think too often now we’re quick to say that people do all of those things in order to make themselves the center of attention. In many cases, it’s certainly true. But I’ve come to see this differently.

This is no longer about getting people’s attention right now, in this moment. This is what I’m leaving behind. This is how someone else years from now will learn about my life. Who I was, where I went, what I saw. They will know my friends, they will know my family. They will see my success and failures. They will know every step. The internet has become the diary under my bed, but for everyone to see. And while every day may not be some incredible adventure, this is my life. There’s certainly the risk that some of these sites will fade and vanish in the decades to come, and maybe I’ll be ready for that. But for now, this is how I’m doing it. My only regret is that it took me this long to figure out what I should be doing here.

Part of this exercise is nothing new to many of us. For years my friends and members of the Flickr community have been doing what’s generally called “Project 365” where you set off into a year taking a single photo every day (or selecting the best of). I’ve added the rule for myself that each photo will be taken with instant film from my Fuji Instax camera.

I present the current form of my project:

32to33

There’s some hiccups and bumps with this layout I’m hoping to fix shortly. Because I have to scan these photos, it may seem to be a few days behind but I will scan every image when I can.

Please enjoy.

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Today, I am thirty-two years of age. I’d like to think that I’m more grown up than I was last year, but those who know me understand that I stopped growing up decades ago.

I still jump on curbs and balance along them and I enjoy it like it’s the first time I’ve done it.

In the last 365 days, I pushed the boundaries of my known world and returned to places I love. Hawaii, Chicago, Toledo, Detroit, Scottsdale, Shanghai, Beijing, New York, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Chicago again, and dotted California in between all of those places. I’ve collected 20,462 American Airlines miles. I wish I could have done more.

Just over two weeks ago, I started a new job. It has made me hungry again and reminded me a little of why Los Angeles could be great.

I have found great inspiration in others, but continue to feel like I don’t inspire others myself.

I miss the streets of London. I miss my family. I am hungry.

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For the past five years, I’ve created a poster to announce birthday-related festivities. There tends to be a general layout with the overall theme usually focusing directly on how amazing I am as a person.

In my head, I’m very popular.

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Since then, I’ve battled home through the last two Christmas seasons when the midwest is washed in white and gray and angry with snow storms.

July 4th offered the chance to get home for the summer green again. And the midwest heat greeted us with smothering, humid arms. Liz and I spent a few days in Chicago playing tourists and falling in love with that city all over again. Chicago is, stated with an overflow of bias, the best city in this country. If scientists could just knock ten degrees of the summer temperatures and add those ten degrees to the winter temperatures, we’d be in business. Wrigley Field, The Art Institute, Millennium Park and I could keep going. You can challenge that another city might be better, but just know you’ll lose that debate.

The remainder of the weekend was spent catching up with the heart of the Sliozis clan back in Libertyville. Brats were grilled. Gluten-free beers were shared. And as always, we all made fun of each other. Liz had taken photos of her childhood home, which inspired me to do the same (although mine aren’t nearly as good, and she gets credit for some of the photos below). While the house I mostly grew up in has changed the way it looks, inside and out, the memories deep in the walls will always make that house home.

The night ended with the way many July 4th evenings did when I was growing up. A five minute walk to spread our lawn chairs across the outfield of Libertyville High School.

There is no cure for homesickness.