Tuscaloosa, Alabama

It doesn’t really take a lot to make me happy — a few good assignments, the promise of a paycheck, a trip to the bookstore and a decent night’s supper — throw in a set of crisp, clean sheets to crawl into at night and you have the recipe for contentment.

There’s no reason for it really. I didn’t do anything particularly special — I didn’t save a life or change the world, I didn’t make a lot of money or perform a random act of kindness. I simply woke up and did my job and that was enough. I photographed twins for a furniture store advertisement, a new movie theater for the newspaper, and a politician waiting for campaign results (also for the paper).

In between all that, I washed a load of laundry and a load of dishes, reclaimed my apartment from this past weekend’s first annual jack o’lantern carving festivities, and made an impromptu trip to the bookstore, where I purchased a copy of Julia Cameron’s Walking in this World: The Practical Art of Creativity.

I stopped by the body shop to photograph my poor, wrecked car, which should be repaired by next week. I answered a few emails and called a friend who is interviewing for a new job tomorrow. No, I won’t win a Pulitzer for today’s work, but all in all it was a pretty good day.

And that’s enough.