Prelude:

On April 7th, 2019 I moved into a studio apartment in Manhattan. This was my first time living alone in New York. I had spent the previous two years living with roommates, but grew tired of this. Upon moving in, I made the unilateral decision that I would build a home gym in this studio. Keep in mind this was pre March 2020 when working out from home was significantly less popular. For some reason I wanted the weights to be inches from where I slept. If this sounds weird, I am not claiming to be not weird. I felt that if I had the weights right next to me and in a place where I could work out alone, free from the judgement of everyone, I’d be able to accomplish things I could never dream of had I been working out at a regular gym. I also grew an obsession with working out my legs. I’ll spare you the details of what precipitated this strange obsession, but obsessed I was. And so, by Friday April 12th, 2019 I had a squat stand with a bench and full Olympic weight set in my tiny New York studio. The below is the best picture I have to give it a visual (tons of photos got deleted when switching to a new phone a couple of months ago and yes the person in the picture is me):

Over the next year and a half, I did exactly what I thought I would do. Somehow, someway I squatted 3X per week every week during the span of April 2019 - August 2020. By the end of this period, I was squatting 360 lbs 3X per week. This photo was taken on September 13th, 2020 while I was filming a Tik Tok.

What’s amazing is that at the time I had zero appreciation for what I had done. And in the process of this, I kind of destroyed my body. My legs no longer look like this. It’s December 21st, 2021 and I have not done a leg workout since January of 2021. I’m extreme. Either I’m all in or I’m all out. If there is a clear lesson from this experience I am unable to think of it. Saying to appreciate yourself feels glib. Too easy. I recorded the majority of my workouts over the two years I lived in that studio and have the footage saved on an external hard drive. One day I’ll revisit and be happy I documented it.

Write Up:

Zig seems like a cool guy. I discovered Zig on Twitter. He was congratulating another artist on a sale they had made. I clicked out his Foundation link and the first thing I noticed was his profile photo.

I noted (and perhaps it is just this photo) that he looked quite similar to Henrik Lundqvist. As a native New Yorker and loyal New York Rangers fan I appreciated this quite a bit. Google Henrik if you are unfamiliar with what he looks like. Let’s continue with the photo:

Zig provided a write up and we love write ups on this blog so let’s examine.

‘Traveling through the night is a lonely venture. Gives time to thought and reflection.’

My family spends thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle’s house in New Jersey. As I am in New York, every year I take the late afternoon bus to their house from Port Authority. It’s difficult to put into words, but there is something I love so much about that bus ride. The ride is always so quiet and tranquil. Perhaps it’s that warm, cozy feeling that the end of the year holidays elicit that makes those bus rides so enjoyable. I’m not sure though. Again, difficult to put into words. But, that’s why I love this photo so much. This photo *feels *like those bus rides. The dark bus contrasted by the bright lights outside elicits this elusive feeling of hope and potential in me.

My favorite bus ride was actually one I took home from New Jersey after Thanksgiving in 2018. On November 23rd, 2018 I was traveling home from my aunt and uncle’s house to New York to attend a basketball game at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Typically I stay in New Jersey through the weekend. My friend had asked me if I wanted to go to the game months earlier and I said yes totally unaware that when it came time to actually go, I would not want to. The previous couple of months had been difficult for me. On September 29th, 2018 I broke my elbow while playing basketball. This was the first and only bone I had ever broken in my life. In order to allow the bone to properly heal I was unable to workout for two months. I did not enjoy this. I remember vividly that on that bus ride I experienced this discomfiting sense of a desire for more. While there was a desire for more, there was also a feeling of hope. It was the kind of feeling that is only ever brought on by a setting of darkness with a touch of light. Again, difficult to put into words, but I live for this feeling. It’s what energizes me. Suffice it to say that the feeling of optimism plus potential is a powerful drug.

Postlude:

Zigmarillion is a talented Photographer based in Sweden.

You can find Zig on Twitter Here

Zig’s work can be found on Foundation, OpenSea, and Rarible

While you’re here, I host a Twitter Space every Sunday at 2 PM EST with Guido Disalle and Max. If you’re interested in Photography, come join us! We typically feature a handful of speakers and open the floor to the audience to come up and ask questions.

Prelude:

On April 7th, 2019 I moved into a studio apartment in Manhattan. This was my first time living alone in New York. I had spent the previous two years living with roommates, but grew tired of this. Upon moving in, I made the unilateral decision that I would build a home gym in this studio. Keep in mind this was pre March 2020 when working out from home was significantly less popular. For some reason I wanted the weights to be inches from where I slept. If this sounds weird, I am not claiming to be not weird. I felt that if I had the weights right next to me and in a place where I could work out alone, free from the judgement of everyone, I’d be able to accomplish things I could never dream of had I been working out at a regular gym. I also grew an obsession with working out my legs. I’ll spare you the details of what precipitated this strange obsession, but obsessed I was. And so, by Friday April 12th, 2019 I had a squat stand with a bench and full Olympic weight set in my tiny New York studio. The below is the best picture I have to give it a visual (tons of photos got deleted when switching to a new phone a couple of months ago and yes the person in the picture is me):

Over the next year and a half, I did exactly what I thought I would do. Somehow, someway I squatted 3X per week every week during the span of April 2019 - August 2020. By the end of this period, I was squatting 360 lbs 3X per week. This photo was taken on September 13th, 2020 while I was filming a Tik Tok.

What’s amazing is that at the time I had zero appreciation for what I had done. And in the process of this, I kind of destroyed my body. My legs no longer look like this. It’s December 21st, 2021 and I have not done a leg workout since January of 2021. I’m extreme. Either I’m all in or I’m all out. If there is a clear lesson from this experience I am unable to think of it. Saying to appreciate yourself feels glib. Too easy. I recorded the majority of my workouts over the two years I lived in that studio and have the footage saved on an external hard drive. One day I’ll revisit and be happy I documented it.

Write Up:

Zig seems like a cool guy. I discovered Zig on Twitter. He was congratulating another artist on a sale they had made. I clicked out his Foundation link and the first thing I noticed was his profile photo.

I noted (and perhaps it is just this photo) that he looked quite similar to Henrik Lundqvist. As a native New Yorker and loyal New York Rangers fan I appreciated this quite a bit. Google Henrik if you are unfamiliar with what he looks like. Let’s continue with the photo:

Zig provided a write up and we love write ups on this blog so let’s examine.

‘Traveling through the night is a lonely venture. Gives time to thought and reflection.’

My family spends thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle’s house in New Jersey. As I am in New York, every year I take the late afternoon bus to their house from Port Authority. It’s difficult to put into words, but there is something I love so much about that bus ride. The ride is always so quiet and tranquil. Perhaps it’s that warm, cozy feeling that the end of the year holidays elicit that makes those bus rides so enjoyable. I’m not sure though. Again, difficult to put into words. But, that’s why I love this photo so much. This photo *feels *like those bus rides. The dark bus contrasted by the bright lights outside elicits this elusive feeling of hope and potential in me.

My favorite bus ride was actually one I took home from New Jersey after Thanksgiving in 2018. On November 23rd, 2018 I was traveling home from my aunt and uncle’s house to New York to attend a basketball game at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Typically I stay in New Jersey through the weekend. My friend had asked me if I wanted to go to the game months earlier and I said yes totally unaware that when it came time to actually go, I would not want to. The previous couple of months had been difficult for me. On September 29th, 2018 I broke my elbow while playing basketball. This was the first and only bone I had ever broken in my life. In order to allow the bone to properly heal I was unable to workout for two months. I did not enjoy this. I remember vividly that on that bus ride I experienced this discomfiting sense of a desire for more. While there was a desire for more, there was also a feeling of hope. It was the kind of feeling that is only ever brought on by a setting of darkness with a touch of light. Again, difficult to put into words, but I live for this feeling. It’s what energizes me. Suffice it to say that the feeling of optimism plus potential is a powerful drug.

Postlude:

Zigmarillion is a talented Photographer based in Sweden.

You can find Zig on Twitter Here

Zig’s work can be found on Foundation, OpenSea, and Rarible

While you’re here, I host a Twitter Space every Sunday at 2 PM EST with Guido Disalle and Max. If you’re interested in Photography, come join us! We typically feature a handful of speakers and open the floor to the audience to come up and ask questions.