Ten.Four Hundred & Forty-Eight

1. I want to sleep longer but I know I have a long day ahead of me.

2. I can feel the the crispness in the air. I can see it too. There’s a stillness and the color of the light is different again. I love this changing of the season. Oh. Yeah. It’s the first day of fall.

3. We see a hawk gliding through the trees out back. I’ve already seen one of the cranes too. I don’t this view for granted.

4. I decide to rent two lenses for a test run on today’s shoot. I’ve been shooting with the same 50mm for so long. Do I need something different? Does it matter? What will I need if I continue to pursue this kind of work more diligently?

5. I’m an hour early. I blame the anxiety I have around being late. I find Hero Coffee and sit there and clean the lenses. People are popping in and out of this tiny spot. My chamomile is so hot I can’t drink it.

6. “We weren’t expecting you until 2.” And my heart starts beating and my stomach drops because I definitely do not want be here for more hours before I can even get started. I tell him I’ll start on exterior and interior shots until Chef gets back.

7. The dumplings. The bite of the celery leaves and the juicy explosion of gooseberries in the mouth. Insane. I tell him it’s one of the best things I’ve eaten in a long time. I wish them good luck because what I did taste was amazing. That’s not a happy accident. And I also apologize for the confusion and for them making it work.

8. The sun is so bright and the air so cool it seems a shame so go inside but I need to rest.

9. We’re number three on their list. The other houses have full finished basements and ours is unfinished and only a partial. I can’t control this. I hope they are somehow swayed by the newness and the neighborhood of our house. See, I didn’t want to get my hopes up too much.

10. Duck leg with a blueberry glaze and a hazelnut gremolata. Purple kale salad with goat cheese and fried chickpeas. Filet of beef with trumpet mushrooms and cauliflower. 2005 Bordeaux from Margaux and some champagne. Sherry with the whiskey date cake and a cheeseboard. Happy Birthday to him.