Ozzie Ausband

the dead lady

biohazard the sweetest view a tall order... ...her view since about 1970. ...and out the door it all went! As always, I bring you life, death, detritus, uncertainty & human woe. There is a small run-down home nearby where I live. I’ve known about the pool behind it for about 3 years but have never been able to obtain permission from the owner. She was something like 200 years old, deaf, blind & mentally no longer of this earth. I don’t blame her. I think of leaving often….anyway, she was quite old & probably shouldn’t have been living there alone. When I say alone, I speak of human company. It seems that her home has become a cat sanctuary. She was being kept company by cats. With her eyesight, hearing and health declining, the property had began to deteriorate as well. It honestly looks like it hasn’t been cleaned or repaired in over twenty years. A few months back, I was driving past and saw Sheriffs Department cars, Haz-Mat vans and other such emergency equipment pulled up around the dilapidated home. I stopped, feigned interest and found out the gruesome news. It seems that someone had stopped by to deliver something, smelled decay and phoned the authorities. They found that she had been dead for days. The cats had little to eat… so, you know the rest. I hope that she didn’t suffer. It seems a shame that her family never really checked on her. I bet this story is more the norm than the exception. Anyway, her story wouldn’t have been told unless I told it… so there we are. The pool is very steep and unrideable. I’m glad of that. It would be a disservice to her. I took these images at twilight because its a melancholy place back there. I wanted to convey that to everyone. I saw rain-soaked filthy piles of mail, dating back to 1958. I saw old mouldering books on Catholicism. I saw giant rusted parakeet cages, brooms, pet toys and clothing from another century. Her life. Fini. R.I.P. Skate-Ozzie