Noah Grey

Absence is not an ending.

Doing work that I thought because of my mental disabilities/impairments I'd never be able to do again. And doing it *well*.

You can mute words and tags under Settings > Moderation. (I don't know who this man is either, but I do have a short list of names & topics I keep clear of for my mental health.)

Coding a new website entirely by hand. Can't keep my nerd credentials more solid than that, can I?

Good and healthy... and well-designed for. :)

"Moonrise, Zabriskie Point" by Noah Grey. Taken at sunset in Death Valley, the jagged silhouette of the desert mountains lies in deep shadow, their ridges tinged with the last fiery light of day. Above them, a single immense golden cloud drifts across a sky of pure cobalt blue. The full moon rises just above the cloud's crest, pale and luminous, like a pearl balancing on a golden wave. (In my photography career decades ago, this became kind of my "signature" image — not what I thought was my best, but the one I sold the most prints of at the time.)

Moonrise, Zabriskie Point
#photography #photosky #landscapephotography #deathvalley #california #moonrise #oc

I felt so much of this so deeply. Thank you for writing it... and being you, always.

Can I bring Joni Mitchell's "Blue" and/or "Hejira" albums, and my teddy bear?

<nervously steps into the room to offer a friendly smile, and a respectful hug if it's welcome>

I played your work endlessly as a child, and admired you endlessly as an adult as I learned of your life and accomplishments. In both gaming and LGBTQ+ history, you and Jennell will never be forgotten.

Top painting: "Birthday Postcards: Corkagh Mornings" by Noah Grey. An impressionistic/pointillist painting of the lake at Corkagh Park in Dublin, Ireland. The water is a shimmer of deep blues and turquoise, mirroring a sky of swirling clouds in white and purplish-gray. Along the far shore, a line of lush green trees stands reflected in the still surface, their shapes softened by dappled light. The feel in both paintings is intended to be layered and tactile with spangled texture, giving the scenes a sense of quiet energy. Bottom painting: "Birthday Postcards: Liffey Days" by Noah Grey. A impressionistic/semi-pointillist painting of the O'Connell Bridge spanning Dublin's River Liffey. The scene is rendered in a melange of colors and color splashes, (hopefully) suggestive of the full vibrancy of an afternoon in Dublin's city centre, circa 2006-07. The bridge, carrying a yellow bus along with blurred cars & crowds, is rendered in textured strokes of pale stone, arching over the river lined with ornate lampposts and balustrades. On the opposite bank of the Liffey is a mosaic of painted façades, mostly Georgian in character, and the thin towering Spire in the distance. Your reward for putting up with my alt-texts today is learning that several Dublin monuments have colorful local nicknames — and the Spire is most popularly known (or at least it was when I lived there) as The Stiffy By The Liffey.

Birthday Postcards: Corkagh Mornings & Liffey Days
#art #painting #impressionism #pointillism #dublin #ireland #digitalart #artsky #blueskyart #oc

Petrichor — the earthy scent that happens when fresh rain falls on dry soil. Even the word for it makes me tingle a bit.

I'm trying... and very much needed to hear this today. Thank you. <3

Pretty much as the description says. Barry's wearing a dark green coat and fingerless gloves, and most of his face is blocked by his hands and camera pointed straight at me (which the focus is on), with a hint of mischief in his smile blurred in the background. By this point I'd taken hundreds of photos of him with my then-expensive Canon 5D digital SLR, and he was just starting to turn the tables with his Panasonic Lumix digital camera. The background is green with hints of orange (not planned!). The sun is bright but not glaring, the weather brisk but not freezing, the mood was high, the day was near to perfect enough as I'll ever ask out of any day in my life.

As a coda, a photo of Barry taking a photo of me in St. Stephen's Green, on our last day out together in January 2007. Lá breithe shona duit, mo chroí.

I posted myself playing piano for my late husband's birthday today. Nervous/anxious as hell about it, but I did it for me and for him and I'm keeping it up anyway. bsky.app/profile/that...

(* and amateurishly, I know. I play almost entirely for therapeutic reasons, & this is just me doing some self-therapy, as it were. And the first time in 15-ish years I've publicly put out any music, & the first time ever publicly filming it, so forgive me if I'm especially nervous/RSD about this.)

YouTube video by Noah Grey Noah Grey - St. Stephen's Green

For my late husband's birthday today, some solo improv #piano. The underlying "concept" is that I was improvising to the thought of the walks I used to take through downtown Dublin with him, playing spontaneously* while recreating such a walk in my mind.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUdi...

That is a great line. #amwantingtoread

"Baldongan Castle, Ireland" by Noah Grey. A B&W high-contrast photograph of the titular castle, its weathered stone tower rising against a moody sky streaked with heavy clouds. The ruins stand solemn and alone amid a quiet graveyard, where old headstones lean at gentle angles, their surfaces mottled with age and lichen. Wildflowers and tufts of grass grow among the graves, softening the scene's starkness. The light is dim and dramatic, catching the rough textures of the masonry and the sculpted clouds above.

Baldongan Castle, Ireland
#photography #photosky #landscapephotography #castle #architecture #ireland #b&w #blackandwhite #oc

"Rain Leaves" by Noah Grey. A macro sepia photograph of a small cluster of skeletal autumn leaves, their delicate veins exposed like lace against a soft, sepia-toned background. Light filters through the thin, decaying surfaces, revealing a network of fine lines and dark specks — the quiet geometry of time and weather.

Rain Leaves
#photography #photosky #autumn #solitude #depression #macrophotography #naturephotography #sepia #oc

It is. Damn it all, it really, really is. 🫂

Fellow SNAP recipient (disabled) here. Out of words for how sad & angry I am at "my" party for this. I wish the likes of Mamdani & AOC would form a truly progressive third party, because something has to give with the Dems. So tired of voting against the greater evil; I want something to vote *for*.

"Stillwater Fall" by Noah Grey. A photograph of an autumn landscape in Stillwater,* Wisconsin, glowing with the warmth of late-afternoon light. Across the frame, a dense hillside of trees blazes in shades of gold, amber, and russet, their colors mirrored in the calm waters of the river below. The sunlight strikes the foliage at a low angle, setting the leaves aflame with copper and honey tones, while the water ripples in bands of deep blue and reflected orange. * Yay for nominative determinism.

Stillwater Fall
#photography #photosky #autumn #fall #wisconsin #oc #naturephotography #landscapephotography #blueskyart

May a music equipment geek be curious as to what keyboard you have there?

"Passersby (For K.)" by Noah Grey. A B&W photograph of a weathered statue of St. Francis entwined in ivy, taken at Carmel Mission in California. The saint's face is gentle and contemplative, his downturned eyes resting on the large crucifix, which seems nearly as tall as he is, that he holds tenderly in both hands. Time and the elements have softened the marble, streaking it with subtle textures that echo the folds of his robe. Lush ivy climbs around him, threading through his shoulders and beard. The contrast between the rough stone and the dark, velvety leaves is intended to give the image a quiet, reverent mood, as though nature itself is embracing the saint and the literal cross that he bears. The title is taken from "Be passersby", a saying of Jesus recorded in the Gospel of Thomas, and is dedicated to someone very dear to me about whom I... hope.

Passersby (For K.)
#photography #photosky #statuary #crucifix #b&w
#carmelmission #california #stfrancis #jesus #oc

But the cat came back the very next day The cat came back, they thought she was a goner But the cat came back, she just couldn't stay away

Typo (lounging in Ceiling Cat's home) concurs and gives Nelson nose nuzzles.

Working on my book. Playing piano more. Even the news this week seemed more hopeful than usual (low bar, but still). And most of all, maybe falling in love again. Honestly, I've had so much joy this week I don't know what to do with myself.

"Three Dunes, Death Valley" by Noah Grey. A triptych of high-contrast B&W photographs. In the left and right images, the sharp ridges of tall sand dunes curve towards the center, their surfaces etched with delicate ripples from the wind. Taken in the early morning hours when the sunlight was shining at a straight horizontal angle, the sides in shadow are contrasted into full black, as are the mountainous horizons beyond beneath thick wispy clouds. The center image is a straight-down view of a dune ridge, its uneven curve running right down the middle, with nothing but the sand visible, forming an almost purely-abstracted show of stripes. The intended mood is an interplay of light and shadow, representation and abstraction, austerity and sensuality, and the figures of Muad'Dib in the distance riding a giant sandworm against the forces of the Baron, just to see if anyone actually *reads* these alt-text notes.

Three Dunes, Death Valley
#photography #photosky #naturephotography #b&w
#blackandwhite #monochrome #california #blueskyart #oc

For the first time in very many years, I actually have a little hope that there might be a special someone in my life again.

It was another post that brought me here, but it was you saying "My. Love. For. You. Is. True. But. Also. Selfish. Because. I. Adore. Loving. On. You." that kept me coming back. I aspire to that: not just loving humanity, but loving *to* love them. And I take such joy in seeing you do it daily.