Light in a Third Floor Window by Chipka
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Description
Cregier lived on the corner of 10th and M: two stories above the scent of an auto repair shop and an alley tinged with glass and the outspill of alcohol-weakened bladders. From his window, he could lean out, just so, and allow his gaze to follow the straight-ribbon flow of something that might once have been sand: the sidewalk, which like the alley, held the litter of broken glass.
Rats scampered across M, angling--like sentient and sinister shadows�into the alley--
Or were they small dogs
--and lost themselves in the distance.
It was weeks since Cregier lost sight of things, since life had taken the sort of left turn that would have fit in some noir-movie full of hulking cabs and women in fur coats: some noir movie with a moody, half-jazz soundtrack. But his life (if ever there could be a movie made from it) lay devoid of a leading man. He was not up to the part. And so, as a nameless pedestrian ambled below, called to some destination at the distal end of M. Street, he sat in the chair rescued from a dumpster dive three years ago. The scent of burning tobacco filled the air. His feet were bare, and he could feel the grit of the unswept floor beneath his naked soles.
He took a drag on his cigarette.
He dumped ash into the unused maw of his left shoe.
***
I have no idea where this little vignette came from, but I suspect it had someting to do with this image. It's less than an hour old: I took it on the way to the internet cafe I currently use for my uploads. When things settle and my schedule permits, I'll be posting more regularly, but until then, I hope you've enjoyed this brief glimpse into...whatever this is a glimpse into.
As always, thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting!
Comments (21)
MagikUnicorn
Great light :)
beachzz
It's a glimpse into that world you're in at the moment. And the words, they are so good~~ have that same feel, same mood of an old movie--great stuff!!
CoreyBlack
This building is right around the corner from my house. I've been by it 1000 times and never realized how interesting it was until you made a picture of it. I like the mood, it's like a page out of a Raymond Chandler novel. If it wasn't for the newer car in the foreground, I'd expect to see Humphrey Bogart or Robert Mitchum in their fadoras, lighting a cigarette in the doorway. As for the story? Fabulous. Why aren't you writing private eye stuff?
carinatiefenthaler
Fantastic stuff!
auntietk
Great shot, and your vignette is perfect for it. I love the mood ... excellent work, my friend!
durleybeachbum
Fantastic! Your writing sometimes reminds me of 'The Maltese Falcon'
anahata.c
I agree about the Raymond Chandler tone, except it's your tone, and has elements of Eastern Europe in it as well, and is definitely not LA...In any case, your vignette is the perfect companion to this wonderful shot, a shot filled with that chicago-night sulfur yellow glow (jaundiced again) and the angled shot of a building at a corner, and the sense, as we look both ways, that the blocks go on in quiet and a certain tedious repetition...This is a very chicago shot (once again), and what other tale would come to mind but the one you wrote, of smells rising up and sitting amidst smoke curls and jazz and old furniture rescued from dumpsters? In your image, you have those glows around the lights once again, and that sense of building facades that are bold but swallowed by the darkness once we reach their tips...Chip, you may be amassing a wonderful chronicle of this city. Do you know Jimmy Yancey? Well if you do, you could use his old boogie as a backdrop to some of these shots and your always vivid writing. There are other musics too, certainly more contemporary than his; but I think of his regardless...Wonderful upload in word & image. And very true to this place.
jeroni
Fanstastic photo
ladyraven23452
well done my freand i miss my camera
MrsRatbag
Perfect. Your fertile mind strikes again! Another little slice of a world...
Meisiekind
Wonderful work once again!!! You remain one of my favs!!! :)
hipps13
wonderful work warm hug, Linda
sandra46
WONDERFUL!!!!
anaber
Excellent shot.The lights are fantastic and your point of view is very interesting!I like that atmosphere!
mermaid
oh what a gift you have to take a shot in the night, others would pass by for it would be to normal to them, to ordinary... and turn it into something very special together with this so well writen words of yours, capturing the mood and leading us into a story that could be the beginning of an absorbing novel
photostar
It suits the narrative scenario very well, Chip. A scene with its own story to tell.
kahun.hida
ビルの窓についた明かりと、唯一人歩く人の後姿が印象的なすばらしいＰｈｏｔｏ！！！！！
kasalin
Most beautiful ! Excellent lighting, love the atmosphere ! Pretty post, dear Chip 5* :)
KatesFriend
It is interesting to get a glimpse into the lives of others through their windows and half open doors. I once had a view of a similar apartment except in the late evening, someone's cat would seat itself in the fame and survey its kingdom from the loft perch. The lighting puts a hard edge to the concrete of the scene creating the film noir look of which you speak.
NefariousDrO
Corey's kind of nailed it, this image, and your story to go with it, are like a great noir-style novel. I'd love to read such a creation from you, with your incredible imagination, gift for imagery and solid characters, what a great read that would make! Have you ever read anything by Neil Gaiman? I kind of think you have the kind of creative mind that he has.
three_grrr
Isn't it strange how certain images seem to write their own story? I think that's what happened here, the image took hold of you and dragged the story out. Something very lonely and despairing in shots of empty city streets