44 Degrees Latitude North
Newport, Oregon
Welcome back to “As I See It”.
It started as a whisper, in my own head. 44th Parallel North.
It was 2011. I was thinking about different subjects for photo series.
44th Parallel North. The next time it was a bit louder.
Ok,ok.. I hear you. 44th Parallel North. Where the fuck is that even?, I thought back to myself.
Well, let me tell you where the fuck that is. Starting on the left coast of the United States, the 44th parallel runs east through Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesnowta, Wisconsin, Michigan, across Lake Huron into Canada, then back into the United States in New York, then through Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine and Nova Scotia.
In Western Europe it picks up in France. It then runs east through Italy, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, across the Black Sea, through Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, China, Mongolia, Japan, finally running through the Kuril Islands, which are administered by Russia, but claimed by Japan. But you probably knew that already.
That there is quite the trip.
As I started reading about it, I realized that I already had photos that were taken on the 44th parallel north. From two prior trips to New England. I had photos from Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.
As I read on I realized that I had other personal connections to the 44th parallel north.
It runs through Bend, Oregon, where my father lived at the time that he passed. The location of his transitional portal.
My friend of over 40 years, Lou Ann, lived on the 44th parallel in Oregon.
When my mother was 75, she moved to a little town in Italy. Reggio Emilia. And yes, you got it. Reggio Emilia is on the 44th parallel north.
In Central Europe, it runs through Sevastopol, which is a Black Sea port town in Crimea. The town in Northern California in which I lived for 25 years, and raised my children was named for Sevastopol. Sebastopol.
It blew my mind. So much so, that not long after that, I went to Oregon to shoot for this series. I have photos of the house that my dad lived in when he passed. Photos of Lou Ann. Photos at the coast in Newport. Photos going over the Santium Pass.
It was coincidental that less than a year later I moved to Vermont, based on nothing more than a feeling that I was supposed to be there. Where I moved was approximately 30 miles south of the 44th parallel. That’s a wee bit more of a personal connection.
The name of the series morphed to 44 Degrees Latitude North. I have added more images from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and upstate New York.
I look forward to many things about continuing this series. Visiting my friend Valerie in South Dakota. My friend Fiona in Minnesnowta. Visiting with my friend, Anya, at her family cabin in Michigan. Yellowstone. The Painted Hills in Oregon. Shooting photos at the intersection in Minneapolis where Mary Richards threw her hat in the air. PEI oysters in Nova Scotia. Perfume making classes in Southern France. Culinary classes in Northern Italy. Walking the streets that my mother walked in Reggio Emilia. Crossing the Adriatic Sea to Croatia. The Gobi Desert in Mongolia. Whaat??!!
Too much to write about here, now.
Many adventures await me. Many places that I am meant to go. People to meet. Lessons to learn. Secrets to discover.
First things first though. I’m hella hungry right now.
Till next time,
Be Well
Montpelier, Vermont
Sand Beach, Maine