Facing Fear

Today is Blue Monday, apparently the most depressing day of the year. It is also Martin Luther King day in America. One of my biggest fears is having darkness dim my light. I am afraid of giving in to fear of change and not feeling hopeful or optimistic. When I am home for long periods of time and I find myself sinking deeper into my couch. I know this is the time I need to take a long car ride. I love to listen to music and look at the change of scenery. I saw a local photo group on facebook was doing the gargoyle tour of the Princeton campus a couple of weeks ago. It reminded me I had bought a guide when I visited the Art Museum. I started to plan my day and the first disappointment was the museum is still closed, because of covid. Last week I had a very successful week going through my mom's things and items I had been looking for magically appeared. The gargoyle tour book was one of them. I looked at the map in the book and realized where I would have parked when I worked in town, was near a big cluster of gargoyles from buildings built during the 1900's. I was happy to walk around campus, but it had a bunch of food trucks (not very photo worthy). As, I walked along I slowly realized my map was VERY old. So, when I saw a security person I asked him to take a look at the map. He confirmed the tennis courts are now all new buildings and where the old boiler room was, is now the security building. I chose to do Princeton from the 1941 illustrated map I have, because I knew it would still be there. So, I was very disappointed. But, as I walked back to my car I captured a few pictures of gargoyles on some of the dorm buildings. I also am glad I captured the texture of the buildings. The positive thing I can bring to comparing life today to a 1941 illustrated map of New Jersey is Route 195. What a wonderful route that is! It took merely 45 minutes from my house to where I parked in Princeton. Construction had started in the late 60's and finished in the late 80's. Also, it looked like move in day. I saw a lot of women carrying in their clothes and belongings. The first freshmen class which allowed women was in 1969. That was my hopeful vision of the day. I ended up having a very nice day with stops in Hopewell and Frenchtown, which I will write about in the next couple of days. I realize as I face my fears, the better I feel. During this time of uncertainty, I am not getting my hopes or expectations up too much. I am concentrating on all I am thankful for, and some things have to change to be better. If I was to judge what I saw out my car window all day yesterday, compared to the map from sixty years ago, I would overall say New Jersey is looking really good. The amount of protected land along where I rode through was massive. There were many farms and even the abandoned farms were beautiful. The downtowns were bustling. The trails were being appreciated by bicyclists and walkers. I took a lot of pictures of the Victorian archecture which was abundant in this area. Quote of the day: "Only in the darkness can you see the stars" Martin Luther King Song of the day: Don't Look Back Boston