Michelle and I were walking around Ottawa, near Chinatown, when she saw a photograph lying on the street. Naturally, she picked it up and we looked at it.

It looked rather dull, at first glance. Just an impersonal looking room. A hotel room, possibly -- the flavour of the curtains and furniture says "hotel" to me. Why would someone take a picture of a room like this?

Then I noticed the candles -- a small circle of them around a vase of roses on the table, and a long line of candles stretched out down the dresser's edge. And behind the line of candles on the dresser, a sprinkling of rose petals.

Someone tried to capture that romantic moment, before it happened. This is where the seduction would take place -- the photographer wanted to remember that. The setting for the love, before the other person arrived.

There's an electronic date, printed in the corner: "01 8 8". Assuming it's accurate, Michelle found this scratched, bent, discarded picture a little over a year after it was shot.

Because the ruined picture was found on the street, I assume things did not work out between the couple you can't see (but can sense) in this photo.