VSW in Rochester, NY

I am living in a two room corner of the laboratory/studio building of the Visual Studies Workshop. I do mean two room, and not two bedroom. But I am not here for a vacation, I am here to work. True, I had kind of hoped to have access to a pool and a gym, but no matter! And true, I realized I am completely addicted to the internet, but I do not have a signal in my sitting room. I have a little signal in the eating area (notice I didn't say kitchen), but it is not comfortable to type. So I am practicing writing without the instant gratification of seeing it online immediately as I edit it. Didn't know I did that, did you!

I have done 'shopping' since arriving last night. It's getting expensive, but cé la vie.

The grocery store is a chain called Wegman's, a regional store. I would like to their site and history (if it's online) but again, no internet as I type. Wegman's is a claustrophobic place, the facade of which has a distinctly 1970s look. Inside, I found myself in a different store than I have ever been in. Perhaps it is also reminiscent of a 1970s store, but I wouldn't know. The aisles were hardly wide enough for one person and were packed with more varieties of things than I could imagine.

There was a Deli section, complete with a service counter for your fresh cut deli meats. Next to that was a meat counter (didn't I just pass meat?), with all sorts of meat. I get nervous around sales people, and there were at least three butchers behind the counter. I didn't want to accidently make eye contact, so I don't know what kind of meat was in there, but it was a long counter. Then was the cheese section. It had a counter too, but no one there. There were three different kinds of fresh mozzarella. Several big rounds of hard cheese. Lots of cute, saran wrapped wedges of yellow and white cheeses. Then the yogurt section. Three different kinds of 'live' varieties, several kinds of soy-based yogurts (not just one!), and goat yogurt. There were two aisles of breads. They had my soy milk in the jumbo size.

I was overwhelmed. I bought some simple things, keeping in mind I would have to carry it through a building and up a flight of stairs, and jam it into a 3 cubic foot fridge.

This morning, I went to Target (oh, how I've missed you). I bought a new rug (to cover the scary-dirty rug in the eating area), new sheets (while sheets were provided, I couldn't help thinking they might splurge to replace them when they have become as stained as these), a new pillow (everything seems dusty), flip flops (didn't have any), a hair dryer (why did I think there would be one? this isn't the Holiday Inn!), and lint/cat hair rollers (I hadn't thought I would need this).

I went to a camera shop, intending to buy a camera bag I had seen online (this is a dealer-- not available in C'ville!), some negative sleeves, and maybe some film. The shop was in a converted fire station, a beautiful little brick building with the engine bay doors converted into windows. I had high hopes in the town that invented photography as we know it.

Alas.

They had no film.
No negative sleeves. ("We can special order them, but it will take three weeks.")
And the camera bag I wanted, was of course not there.

So I drove to Kodak. I needed hope. I thought of it as traveling to Mecca to kneel before my god!

Alas.

Kodak headquarters is a beautiful high rise in the art deco style. Across the street in the hole of what I assume was one of their factories recently torn down (I would link to the article, but I can't. It was a couple months ago). I asked the very nice receptionist about a factory tour. She apologized and said they stopped doing that fifteen years ago.

I left, again defeated.

I headed to the photo lab, Rochester Photographic, to drop off my film for developing. Remember, this is something that was a 120 mile three day epic in C'ville. It turns out the lab is several blocks from where I am staying-- potentially walking distance. I went in with my film. The young man who came to help me (it reassures me that a young man worked there, as opposed to the really old folks at my Indiana lab-- this isn't a dying art yet) even knew I would want "process only" and didn't flinch at the 120 film (I've heard "What's that?") and even said they would sleeve them for me (no three week wait). If that wasn't enough, they will be ready today. In the same day. The same afternoon, even.

This is why I am here, to get these things done, to make the work, to make more work.

I will have to mail order my film, I guess. I have to buy my Kodak film from NYC and have it shipped to Rochester. Do they know how expensive gas is right now??