General thoughts
Taking time
Been a little while since I wrote and posted anything. As per my last post, I’ve needed a break and have taken a couple of months off from work in order to recharge.
Coming up to my third week off and it’s been ok. Main thing is I’ve allowed myself to actually break and not try and set house goals while I’ve been on leave.
However, weirdly I’ve gotten a fair bit done as well. One of them was out of necessity as my wife and daughter are redoing her room. They cleared everything out and my wife painted the walls, I simply put the new bed together. Will also need to put together a new desk for her once we work out what desk to get.
Other than that and a few other things around the house; I’ve mostly been spending my time looking after our puppy. She’s doing well and I’m basically in love with that furry nugget :D I love our lap and nap times but she’s also getting a little big (around 15kg I think), so it’s getting harder to carry her.
Poor thing is going through teething at the moment so a lot of things revolve around teaching her not to nip and bite at people. About to start taking her for walks now that her vaccinations are up to date, however the weather has been a bit wet (not that she would mind).
So far, I would say the break has been worth it. I still have concerns that when I get back I’ll feel a little like it was a waste of leave. While we already had a trip to Sydney booked and leave sorted for 2 weeks, taking the remaning two months off can sometimes feel a little unnecessary.
However, then I remember my mood towards work before this break and I need to allow myself to remember that this break was needed. Still, there have been times where I’ve thought to myself that I’ve rested enough and should’ve taken a shorter break. I need to let go this fear of using leave when it isn’t for a specific reason.
Annoyingly I’ve given in to my consumerist tendencies a bit with the time off, but I finally got hold of a camera I’ve wanted for years: the Pentax Q. Looking forward to taking this to Sydney when we go, and I might write more about it specifically once I have some more time with it (and acquire the 06 telephoto lens I’ve also wanted for it).
I have spent a little time writing in my journal still. This is nice but as I’ve mentioned previously, it doesn’t trigger me to write posts for my blog. I might move my journaling back to my trusty Writer Forte to more easily go between journaling and developing posts for the blog. We shall see.
For now, I’m just feeling very grateful that I have time to take. Time to sit here in one of my favourite cafes, having a coffee and writing this post. No need to check the time taken to make sure I get to work. Able to finish up here then take my new little camera down to the beach here for some photos (while it’s cold and wet, going to the beach is still a nice thing to do).
Homelessness in Perth
I take and share a few photos. Recently many of those photos have been by the beach, as I and many others take advantage of the nice weather before winter comes around. I generally don’t like taking photos of people directly, but sometimes the context of the goings on within the community is a nice reference for trying to document how life is like within a specific time period.
However, the viewpoint I’ve been capturing is very much a privileged view of life here. The other, and unfortunately increasingly more common, part of life here in Western Australia is people doing it tough and sleeping rough.
It’s an aspect of life I do not capture because it feels exploitative to photograph those struggling to just survive. But in a State that is full of people who are lucky enough to have (like myself), it also feels slightly shameful to hide and minimise the plight of those who have not.
To be clear, I don’t think photographs are the answer to anything here. I’m just thinking of the bigger picture.
I honestly get overwhelmed thinking on what I as an individual can do to help, beyond the occasional act. As one person it feels like a crisis too big to get close to solving; let alone have the means to assist in any real, lasting way.
The situation is being noticed here. People in Perth are increasingly aware of homelessness and there’s occasionally a local news story highlighting the matter. However the tone of the voices on the subject, particularly by those in positions of both power and influence to make a meaningful difference, is often one expressing frustration at the inconvenience of the homeless on their privileged lives; then dismissal of the issue as someone else’s problem.
I don’t have a solution but it feels like more can be done. Politically though it might be a tough sell to, as an example, provide basic shelter for rough sleepers when there is a cost of living crisis overall and many are doing it tough and often going without meals just to maintain access to a shelter. It would be understandable for those people to feel disadvantaged by such an action just because you are scraping by to afford to live in a place but are barely getting by yourself.
But in a State where there’s no shortage of wealth being displayed or resources to be used, collectively we can do more.