We've got it covered

When I was in high school, in the1970's, I carried a 35mm camera with me much of the time.  I saw my friend Michael Mullen's mom last year and she remembered this about me.  It was bulky, heavy,  and ugly, so that was a kind of a commitment.    But it also made me feel like I was part of an elite, a photographer.  I built my own darkroom and bulk-rolled my own black-and-white film to save money.  I wasted no shots.  Henri Cartier-Bresson was my hero -- the ability to capture that perfect moment and the patience to wait for it if needed.  Bracketing was carefully planned and recorded in a small notepad for later reference, especially for night photography, of which I did a lot, despite the wasteful nature of it.  Color film was saved for specific uses or when someone else was paying.

How times have changed.

Cameras are everywhere.  Our world is recorded in full color, from every angle, nearly everywhere we go.  Chris Harvey sent me a link to an app that enables you to walk point to point through Manhattan avoiding the cameras -- not easy I am sure.  I have not tried it yet.       

bonfire of the marriages

I just finished watching a fascinating discussion on "Meet the Press" about the DOMA and Prop 8 cases facing the Supreme Court.
Lots of vitriol.
Many people, my dad included, cannot get past the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman.  Honestly I  had a hard time with that too, even as the Mario Cuomo Liberal that I am.
 But then I picked it apart, and looked at at this way:
We in this nation (made up of states that need to agree on this because of common federal interests and laws) recognize a legal partnership called "marriage" that has a certain meaning, rights, and responsibilities, just as we have a legal entity called a "corporation".  Anyone can form a corporation, so why shouldn't any two people form a marriage?  It is a legal entity held together by a contract, notwithstanding the religious or cultural definition and context.
What is so difficult about this?

30 Seconds on the web is a lifetime

No, it's a novel, could be multi-genrational.

regular old reality is hard enough

http://augmentedreality.org/learn/video/nokia_mixed_reality_nokia_world

so I thought it was with iphones.  This is better.

WHAT"S THE BIG DEAL?

So doesn't it seem like none of the stuff that happens in the world is that much of a surprise?

Like you remember reading Neuromancer and how it seemed so otherworldly, but it's pretty much here.  You taught me the word avatar, now it is in common use.  The same with "pixel".  I remember my Aunt had Jean Dixon's book, where she talked about  some anti-Christ rising in the East, and thinking in '93 that they would be back to finish the job.

The stuff on the news now is just absurd.  The inmates are running the asylum.  You can't make this shit up.  Look around.  People are nuts...

Here's an idea I heard:  It's all about gases now, liquids (oil, water) are over. 

 

one minute taboo

The whole gay thing is so overplayed, isn;t it?

It's just another taboo, after all -- there are many, sexual and otherwise.  What about other bodily finctions?  And how they play into human behavior?  

worth ruminating on

"I am happy that I have reached the point where I can die without regrets.
"It's not so much regrets, it's more like, I figured out since I almost died that reaching this point is a big deal.  Some people are born ready to die at any time.  Seriously.  Not me.  It took a while to be ready to understand that.  And I finally feel like I have enough going on, and enough of a record, that I will not disappear.  I venture to say that most people don't understand that."
-- bruce gionet 2013

Fantasy vs. reality:

"easy to separate: one involves blood (and/or other bodily fluids)"