Red is the New Black
Once upon a time there was a little girl who liked to play chess.
She carried her chess pieces around with her in a messenger bag with a green buttoned rosette.
One morning after eating breakfast,
…her mom
decided to go to visit her grandmother, where her cousin would also be visiting.
First they had to go to the flower shop and buy some flowers. Her mom told her always to bring a gift when she visited anywhere, even family. It didn’t matter how much it cost, just something small to show your appreciation for being invited.
“Take the chillis from the table in the kitchen,” Mom shouted from the hallway, “Grandma asked me to bring a couple”. The dried ones, not the fresh ones on the plant.
“You must keep up with me,” said her mother, but the little girl’s short legs struggled while her mother walked on ahead.
“Wait, Mommy!” she shouted.
They took the train to the suburbs where Grandma lived. They sat in a compartment with a foreign woman and her son.
When they arrived at Grandma’s local station, they went directly to the local fruit and veg market.
There they met Grandma’s neighbour.
She’d been out shopping too and had purchased some red roses to lay on her husband’s grave. He’d been killed in an accident while she was pregnant with their daughter. She never remarried, even though she was a very beautiful woman and got plenty of offers.
Somebody else was stocking up for a weekend party.
The little girl’s mother was tired and needed to sit for a moment.
“I’m hungry,” the little girl said, “I want a Taco or a kebab pizza”.
“No way,” said her mother, “You just ate and Grandma is making us lunch. Besides, I need to get a diving watch for your dad.
He’s busy painting today. He’ll collect us later at Grandma’s in his van”.
As they walked down the street, the little girl noticed a man talking to himself.
“He’s mad as a brush,” her mother said.
She saw a pretty dress. She imagined herself all grown up and wearing that dress at a party with sophisticated company and elegant guests. There would be a chandelier with hundreds of tiny lamps and glass crystals.
“Let’s cross the street here.” said her mother, “I need to post a letter.”
As they crossed the street down by the lakes, they saw a man busking on the street corner, having parked his car on the pavement.
They stopped and listened for a little while. He was kinda funny. Not bad at all.
A thing of beauty is a joy forever.
— W.B. Yeats
Connecting with friends is pretty good too, sharing your interests.
They saw some cargo bikes on the way up the street.
Then to cap it all,
the young girl’s mother said, “I need to get a handle on this.”
“I need to hydrate. Here’s a couple of bucks. Will you buy them for us?”.
“I also need to pick up your Grandma’s bike from the repair shop. But what are we going to do with all our stuff?”
“Shall we crate it and ship it?”
“Hey, there’s your auntie, taking a break from her training.”
“Hej, Sis, we’re on our way to Grandma’s. What about a little retail therapy to calm our nerves?”
…followed by refreshments of course…
Sis reflected on the idea for a few minutes.
She knocked back a couple of bottles of refreshments.
…and they were all ready to roll…
After a long day out having fun, they made their way to Grandma’s house, exhausted but happy:
Grandma almost had a fit. They’d missed lunch by about eight hours. She started screaming at them that she’d been worried that they’d been raped behind a dumpster…
…or eaten poison berries…
…or been molested by “The Earl”…
She was quite relieved that they hadn’t been kidnapped to be sex slaves in a cellar in Austria
…or Oslo…
or France
“I left the light on in the hall after it got dark,” Grandma said.
Your Grandad’s been sailing and playing golf while I’ve been sewing, waiting for you guys. Do you like my zebra?
Come sit on these bar stools in the kitchen while I read from the Bible for you.
“I…
…am the alpha and the omega.
…or would you prefer me to read about the three young fellas…
…or about the Indian monk…
Or this one… it dosen’t have a happy ending though. Not yet at least…
Never mind…you can always create your own happy ending…
Or read thirty-four shades of red as a goodnight poem:
The End
All photos my own work.
My boss, (ex-boss; I was let go yesterday), gave me some assignments to teach me how to photograph. This story was a way to string these pictures together. (If you have some ideas to pep the story up, I would be delighted to hear them at [email protected] or in the comments section below)
- Take each of the primary colours and use them as a theme in your photographs. The object of the exercise is that I learn to see. See my Instagram profile Copenhagenred.
- Find a letter of the alphabet in a photo. I am not allowed to use printed material. See badzwischenahnnwc17. Scroll down.
So this was my red effort.
This is not a political story, except for the obvious political references.
The fact that I started with red is entirely coincidental.
Now I see red everywhere.
Some of the photos are years old.
Thank you so much for reading this far. I really appreciate it. If you enjoyed this story and would like others to enjoy it too, hit the RED heart below.
Better still, recommend it on Social Media. I am also on Instagram: @copenhagenred.
That would truly delight me.
If you liked these photos (I will be the first to admit that the storyline is a little thin), you might also like: