T.N.T.

A part of me really wishes that I was exposed to AC/DC's music when I was 10 years old. Back then, my older brother & his friends would call me "T.N.T" in the way older siblings relentlessly tease their younger siblings. This in turn would infuriate me, reinforcing the perception of my (then) hair-trigger temper.

The song of the same name really puts a whole another spin to it. Its like walking w/ a swagger, the badassness, & harkens imagery of Clint Eastwood's legendary "the Man w/ No Name."

Wasn't it General Douglas MacArthur who once said, "The promotion, cultivation, & application of ones own mythology can be quite useful." If only I had known! Man, I should have taken that name & ran w/ it. LOL

*sigh*

In other news...

This here is Deborah, an accomplished photographer in her own right.

This entailed shooting her in brand new (to her) dress that she picked up for $20 buck. So new that it still had the tags on & hadn't had time to get it tailored for her frame.

In ever "improvise, adapt, & overcome" mentality (thank you Gysgt Highway, see Clint's "Heartbreak Ridge" for the full meaning), we did so test shots where we didn't bother to zip up the back (a nod to Marilyn Monroe in "Some Like it Hot") but it just wasn't doing anything for me. Finding some safety-wire, we corseted up her dress & commenced wandering around the apartment complex inside & out & having a grand ol' time.

Below is one of those completely random moments that still brings a smile to my face.



Feel free to opine, critique, discuss whatever. Just please leave at least a first name so I know who I am addressing if I need to.

Feel Their Pain

W/o getting all emo again, all I can say is that I completely feel their pain.

http://poststar.com/news/local/article_f4330e50-0971-11df-bde5-001cc4c002e0.html

I cannot think of anyone that I graduated w/ (or those that graduated a year after) that is working in anything remotely what they schooled for or getting paid remotely comparable to those that were 2 or 3 years ahead of us.

It certainly makes me wonder if it is as it was cracked up to be. A part of me really thinks that I pursued a Bachelors more so because it was expected, as opposed to it being the best for me. Everyone I know (& some still do) immediately think that a 4-year degree will translate into a meaningful job.

That's simply not the case. I think its really more about marketing & how one sells themself & who people know than it is about the actual qualifications (though that can help).

Seriously, I've heard & see more people start wincing when they look at my resume that denotes I have a bachelors...this is even before they ask what the bachelors is in. I even heard one guy refuse to interview me because "if you're educated, you're more likely to leave for something better." & uneducated people aren't?

Then there's the other place of employment where I turned in my job app & resume & w/n 24 hours, they had already decided & snail mailed my rejection letter. There's also the super who kept putting me off for 21 straight days of followup calls, only to tell me that "I'm sorry, we already hired for that position 2 weeks ago." You couldn't have told me this when I talked to you 14 days ago? There was also the establishment that had a cattle-call of applicants, only to tell us that she'd already hired the first 15 people she took during the first cattle-call 2 days ago. Thanks for having me waste my time in filling out the paperwork as well as the drive up. I think my favorite was the workplace that flat-out offered me a job, only to have it rescinded 3 days later because HR & the applicable department weren't on the same page. Try telling that to the roommates w/o looking like your full of BS. LOL

Just trying to keep my head up but it sure can be difficult, especially after banging ones head against the wall for so long.

All I can say is thank god, I basically have only myself to worry about right now (as opposed to having a child or wife to help support).

*sigh*

In other news...

This here is Kelsey taken while I was in Boston.

Yes, you've seen this before but I took that one down because in hindsight, that entry was WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY to emo.

Granted everything is relative but it just seemed like that place in time found me in a better psychological state than I have been lately. I just feel really isolated lately as if I don't know who to trust. Or it just seems like people constantly want things from me that I cannot or am not in a position to give. Or it seems like when I go to collect favors that people owe me, they find ways to weasel out of them.

Anyways, I also like this shot because its teasing in some way & also reminds me of a time when even though I have about the same worries, they seemed half way manageable & less stress associated w/ them than they currently are.



Feel free to opine, comment, critique if you so choose.

the Day the Administration Died

Am I the only one who finds it ironic that the very 2004 Massachusetts law passed to prevent Republican governor Mitt Romney from appointing a Republican to the US Senate was the very law that got a Republican candidate ELECTED to that very same governing body?

I am also amused how people are crowing that the Obama Administration is dead, this w/ just about 75% of his first term left. People seemed to say the exact same things about "Slick" Bill Clinton after the Great Washington Massacre of 1994. "His" loss seemed to strengthen him, not to mention his revised tactic of "triangulation" (for better or worse) helped win him a 2nd term. Will this have the same effect on Obama? Dang if I know.

God forbid, ya know, that the voters just didn't like one candidate & voted for the other. God forbid, ya know, the electorate expressing its frustration w/ the status quo the only way they know how...at the ballot box. God forbid, ya know, that people being fed up w/ virtually 1-party rule in the state of Massachuesetts. Can't be any of that. Those reasons just aren't sexy enough.

*rolls eyes*

What's this means for Health Care? Danged if I know. All sides agree that there's a problem & something needs to be done to alter the status quo. One side has come up w/ a host of ideas (some would say to many). While the other side has been strangely silent. There's been much of what they don't want (public option, less coverage - higher premiums, higher taxes) but have been pretty thin on what they DO want.

All I know is everyone complains about crooked doctors & lawyers, until the very moment they need it. Unfortuantely to many American do not have or cannot get access to the later (let alone being able to afford one). I can guarantee you though, if this falls apart, no one will even attempt to touch this issue for the next 20 years.

What a strange world we live in.

*sigh*

In other news...

This is Ashley participating in my ongoing Breast Cancer Awareness series. Her mom has it or had it or beat it or something like that (haven't heard from them in awhile, not that I'd expect to).

It was tough trying to showcase the tattoo because of where it was inked but I think this one works.



Feel free to opine, comment, whatever if you so choose. Just leave a name if you do, so I know who I'm talking to.

Funny Thing Happened on the Way to my Email Account, Vol XI

Back before the idiot Rupert Murdoch ran MySpace into the ground, I was blessed w/ being provided comedic fodder for my ongoing series, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to my Email Account." This particular one is in its eleventh edition.

I never thought those many moons ago, it would have expanded to its eleventh edition, but considering there's no dirth of morons on the internet, it SHOULDN'T have surprised me. LOL

For the record, I publicly disclose on my MySpace profile, "I reserve the right to publicly post any &/or all portions of emails sent that I feel fall into the 'retarded' category as well as identify who it came from." If you choose to read 'Note 1' in my profile, I go into further detail in how I define it. I'm not going to waste time here. Its rare that I even use the site anymore but that's because of how crappy their interface has become. Course the Einsteins putting 40 cajillion scrolling slideshows on their profile that use tons of RAM to operate didn't help it either. But that's another story.

As I alluded to earlier, I was blessed w/ partaking in a message string w/ this wonderful breadwinner. At the time, a name of "SEXI PICS COMMENT DUM" is interesting in itself. It also doesn't speak to highly of the American Educational system when the subject heading of the message in question reads, "heyy sexi," but that's another story. :-)

Even though the formula to these kind of messages is about as predictable as a Law & Order episode, I still find it entertaining nonetheless.

Here's how the string of messages went...

- Him: Heyy wat's up...
- Me: Not much. How about you?
- Him: Nuthin just at a resturant u!!!
- Me: Oh, how flattering! What's your entree?
- Him: Wat entrie!!!! Do u got a boyfriend??

This Wonderboy sure gets to the point. LOL

- Me: Why you at the restaurant if you're not eating? Or were you using a double entrendre? No on the BF, BTW.
- Him: I'am at da resturant because I'am meeting some1!!!!
- Me: Mind if I ask who? First name's fine.
- Him: A family member!!! Visiting Philly !!!
- Me: What possessed you to initate contact? I'm nosey.
- Him: Naw it's cool u want 2 know It's kool !!! So do u mind if I ask u a question do u want 2 be B.F!!!!

By that point, I'd lost track of what "BF" stood for.

- Me: My boyfriend or best friend?
- Him: boyfriend
- Me: That kinda depends on if you're into guys.
- Him: No I'am not gay!!! I lyk grls 100%!!!!
- Me: Might want to read up on my profile. Do so & afterwards tell me if you're still interested.
- Him: Ru gay!!!

Which is has nothing to do w/ my profile, so much for trying to tip him off.

- Me: Wrong question to ask. The better question would be, "Do you always go around asking complete strangers to be your boyfriend" or are you a "sex on the first date" kinda guy?
- Him: No I just thought u look pretty I would not have sex wit u on the first date be I don't go around asking people 2 be it boyfriend!!!!

For the record, he's referring to this picture which was my main photo at the time:



I didn't have the heart to tell the schmuck that she's blissfully married to a great guy & has started a family w/ him. Although maybe I should have because that could have made a really funny twist to the "Funny Thing-" formula. But that would have been lying because I'm not the one who's actually married & I'm trying to keep it so that the morons are the ones that walk off the cliff of their own accord, as opposed to me pushing them.

Am I making any sense?

Anyways...

- Me: Strange answer considering your subject message was "heyy sexi". & I didn't ask you to be my boyfriend. I didn't know what your referring to when you used "BF" a couple messages ago, so I asked. You were the one that answered "boyfriend."

Next time it might help to read & view people's profiles before you start flirting w/ them. It might save yourself the embarrassment.

Any last words?
- Him: So u r a writer be I'am guessing u tried 2 write stuff about me u know wat I'am calling da policeon on u!!! Any last words be4 u write something!!!

Apparently, he still hasn't taken my hint to actually READ my profile where it clearly states, "I live for photography. This profile is just another place where I choose to showcase my work." Like I'm also sure the cops will respond to schmuck being embarassed for not using the few brain cells that he actually has.

If that weren't enough, he replies back 10 minutes later:

- Him: I'am srry!!

...not to mention, there was a friend request from him. & yes, he was declined.

Falling Apart

I'm remembering a conversation I had w/ a friend while out in Boston. We were walking from the friend's apartment to her local hangout. She had mentioned that she always liked going from her apartment to the hangout because everything aesthetically got nicer the closer we got there, brightening her spirits. When she returned home, it got more "depressing" because the aesthetic went from nice to scummier.

For clarification purpose, it wasn't anything remotely like crack neighborhood scummy. More like blue collar respectable.

This is an interesting contrast w/ me because I find the grime consistantly more interesting. The polished finish is what's meant to be seen. Its a boring mask that's trying to pull the wool over my eyes. May also be my mentality where I associate a mask w/ a "perception spin".

I dunno.

Anyway, people scratch their heads "why (I) enjoy tramping around in disgusting, abandoned buildings." Its because I get to find macbre stuff like this.



While we're on the topic of dilapidated man-made structures, History Channel has this pretty decent program, entitled "Life after People." It doesn't go into detail about HOW man has passed on, just for whatever reason he has, almost like we've just up & left. Its focus is illustrating what would happen to the things we leave behind & what Mother Nature would do to it. In other cases, how animals would use said structures or whatever. They often use known instances as a reference to compare & contrast it.

The program is half way decent. I just hate it when the History Channel pretends that BS pseudoscience (like aliens, Nostradamus, the Mayan 2012, or the Bermuda Triangle) should be taken seriously. The all WWII, all the time gets ridiculously annoying as well.

Was Entirely the Point

Here are things that I've either read or heard that has made me want to jump onto a table & shout, "That's entirely the (expletive deleted) point!"

For your entertainment pleasure:

- "I thought the Married w/ Children show was stupid and that the character Peg was a self absorbed Narcissist."
- "I don't really like BJ's (the store) because everything comes in gigantic size or they come in packages of gazillion."
- (in reference to my ongoing series where girls dresses in fancy dresses in rundown buildings) "That dress does not fit an abandoned building, too pretty for the scene."
- "I hated the movie Knocked Up. There was absolutely nothing redeeming about (the Seth Rogan character). It didn't help that all his friends were complete assholes."

Here's one of those outfit pieces that "doesn't fit", not that I'm losing much sleep w/ what complete strangers think these days. As long as I'm pissing off a certain segment as well as a completely different segment is diggin what I do, I think its safe to say that I'm on the right track.



Feel free to comment, opine, critique, whatever. I guess I'm a feedback whore like that. *wink*

Artistic Kudos

Happy New Year, everyone! May 2010 be better than the previous year.

I'm normally reluctant to have people use my work used as reference or stock material because in all honesty, I view my work as finished product. Its an intrepretation of my vision. Even when looking at samples of a prospective artist's work, it can be kinda a mystery as to what the finished product will look like.

- Will it be trashy?
- Will there be actual effort put into it? (Sorry but a crop job & playing w/ the colors doesn't cut it.)
- Will they credit me & list their source material?
- Will the finished product be demeaning to my subjects themselves?

Its always kinda a crapshoot. So long as the prospective artist asks beforehand (instead of just assuming I've already given permission), I usually give them the benefit of the doubt.

Bazzathe over on deviantART extended that courtesy. Since he took the 10 seconds it takes to fire off an email, I gave him the creative blessing.

This is the reference piece of Nancy & Nick he used:



Here is the artist's rendering in pastel:


Pastel Couple 1 by =bazzathe on deviantART

Feel free to comment, critique, opine, whatever is you so desire.