Monday, February 11, 2008

Across the River

What we call the Poplar Street Bridge is the main vehicle crossing of the Mississippi River, carrying Interstates 55, 64 and 70. The span is functional, not beautiful, but the scene looks pleasant in Golden Hour light and big, gentle cumulus clouds.

I am curious about our visitors reactions to my posts of the last two days regarding the Kirkwood murders. As I write this late Sunday evening, no comments were posted about the day's pictures and comment, although there were a considerable number of visits. We usually try to show beautiful, arresting or humorous images on our CDPB blogs but I don't think that tells the whole, true story of our cities. Each town has beauty and squalor, joy and tragedy, celebration and quotidian routine. When I can, I'd like to show a variety of views of St. Louis, and not just pretty ones. It's just life here.

How does that approach make you feel? Does it seem uninteresting or uncomfortable, or does it intrigue you? Share your thoughts about this.

5 comments:

Olivier said...

l'axe de l'arche avec le pont est superbe.

The axis of the arc with the bridge is superb.

Lolololori said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lolololori said...

I really did appreciate your having included Kirkwood into the blog. I'm from Kirkwood. Now, every day I drive by my local grocery store, where I'm a 3rd generation shopper, to the sight of a giant American flag waving nightmarishly at half mast.

The owner was a target on the city council that night. He went back to work on Saturday.

It seems like there's just so much to say, but so little motivation to say anything in the wake of such a totally random act of insanity+violence. I feel like those of us from Kirkwood, many who knew EVERYONE involved VERY well, have so much to say (I know I could go on for hours describing just how closely, I, at only 25 years of age, knew every one of those targets in that room, including the shooter) that silence is the only thing that does justice to the vulnerability and shock our entire community is experiencing.

Maybe you just have classy readers who don't want to polarize a random tragedy into issues and conflict that really don't relate to the violence at all. Here's to your kind readers, then.

And as my favorite author puts it, "There's only one rule that I know of, babies—God damn it, you've got to be kind."

Anonymous said...

I think the way you present photos that capture the TRUE essence of life in STL (good or not so good) is a truly positive thing. Keep it up, please.

Alan said...

I appreciate showing all points of view, including the tragic. Sometimes, however, the best thing to say in a time of loss is nothing at all.