Design. Charity. Life.

After buying The Book of (Holiday) Awesome by Neil Pasricha, I skimmed through the pages of awesome holiday things during Christmas Eve. Realizing how many of the awesome things were familiar, I decided to record which ones were happening right before my eyes on December 24.

As the book description says, there’s nothing like holidays. Pasricha is here to remind us that “not only are the holidays great but there’s actually even more to celebrate than we realize”. He’s definitely right. The small things that happen every year at Christmas time – some of them hilarious, some of them annoying – may go unnoticed but are what actually make-up the holiday experience itself.

Here are the ones I took photos of, including their corresponding page in the book. (Note: None of these are staged, they were all photographed as they happened).

For more on the Book of Awesome series and blog, click here.

Now that we’re moving more and more to digital, we’re taking more and more photos. With 500 or 1000 photos on a 2-week trip, instead of 4-5 “rolls” of film, it’s reasonable to wonder if these photos are less significant for the most part.

But there will always be those key moments, of key places, that really have meaning. Some old family photos represent much more than what you can see inside – including years and years of memories.

What about re-creating old photos? Or going back to the site that a very old photo was taken at? A blog called DearPhotograph.com presents a window to the past by posting user-submitted photos of someone holding an original photo in front of the live scene today. Some of them are entertaining, most allow you to take a look back in time and just ponder, others are emotional (based on their captions, such as someone missing a loved-one that once stood in that place, for example).

A news article said that the photos “drag you across time and into the present, an unexpectedly fascinating way to sense time and space and the human connections that give them meaning.”

Here are a few selections from DearPhotograph.com, with their captions below:

"Grandpa loved the outdoors. But he loved us more." – Pam Dusbabek

"There’s no place like home." – Elizabeth

"They built this house with their bare hands." – Malwa

"40 years later, I still love to play in the leaves." – BT

Update: I finally met Cake Boss in person!
See http://bit.ly/DanielBuddy

Over the last few months, out of nowhere, un-related people have been telling me I look like Buddy from TLC’s show, Cake Boss. I think it’s a great show, no problem. But really, me and Cake Boss? It’s not even that I’m a huge fan of cake – I prefer real meals over dessert food any day.

Here’s a few random photos of us mixed together. Click it for larger version.

It’d be awesome if Buddy saw this – if you’re on Twitter, why not tweet him the link? (@cakebossbuddy)