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Sometimes you just have to look at things from a different perspective.

You might look at the photo above, taken at a rest area on the Northway in Queensbury, N.Y., and say the image was reversed. Everyone knows the famous I Love New York logo. The design and the slogan have been around since 1977, and have spawned many spinoffs, spoofs, and variations.

This particular sculpture, right side around, greets visitors to the Lake George Region as they get out of their cars in the parking lot. But as you look at it coming out of the welcome center, with a bit of imagination it spells Y NOT.

I looked at several things through backward lenses this week. On our short visit to upstate New York, we reunited with several of my friends from that same 1977 era. Organist-composer Alfred Fedak and choir director Susan Fedak joined us for lunch.

Just my type

Al remembered my interest in vintage typewriters and brought along the Singer Scholastic portable that had served him faithfully through his student years. All it needs is a little cleaning and a new ribbon. It has a good feel to it and I’m looking forward to the clatter of a keyboard again.

While we were catching up, I told them about my career in newspapers and my current writing life. Al smiled. “So you’re pretty much doing what you always wanted to do.” And he was right.

The next day, we caught a show by actor, storyteller, and song-and-dance man Richard Stillman, a college classmate. I told him afterward that we could see he has an important gift and mission in life: He brings joy to people’s lives.

Friends building their careers around their passions–an inspiration to other creative types, including me. What was I saying last week about serendipity?

Meanwhile …

Observations: Two out-of-the-ordinary posts this week got out-of-the-ordinary results. The free e-books about conflict, despite being about free stuff, didn’t do as well as I expected. I’ll separate out the reviews and post them on Amazon, Goodreads, and Audible. Recessions are not a sexy topic and The Rhetoric Referee has few followers, but that post did unexpectedly well.

Interaction: A friend on Facebook observed that “as seems to be usual for Howard Fielding viewpoints, you excel in seeing that there are often many sides to view it from.” And that’s exactly what I’m trying to do here.

Professional development: Not much time to write this week, but I was able to squeeze in some time on “He Said, She Said” and on “Reunion” by tapping away on my phone. That’s one advantage online tools have over typewriters.

Next week: Some slow time, no traveling required, that will allow for some more extended work time. Planning to move ahead on overdue projects.

In case you missed it …