A blog no one reads that I never update.
I found this somber, enigmatic note posted on the Aurora Bridge this morning. It’s written in faded pen.
It reads:
Dear Sister,
All is
forgiven.
Please
come
home
The full significance didn’t hit me until I remembered that the Aurora is one of the most popular suicide bridges in the US. About two hundred and thirty people have leapt to their deaths in the last decade.
After wanting a new camera for years, I finally went ahead and bought myself one. It’s a digital single lens reflex, which puts it in the prosumer category–lots of bells and whistles, almost infinitely adaptable to any shooting situation, interchangeable lenses–and I have almost no idea what I’m doing with it.
When I was babysitting the photographer the other day, we got to discussing photography in very general terms. (Anything technical would have gone way over my head.) I noticed that he was using a Nikon D300, and commented that I couldn’t wait for my D40 to arrive via UPS. He gave me a piece of advice: never go anywhere without the instruction manual. This is from a professional photographer whose camera and lenses are worth more than my car. If he doesn’t completely understand his camera, I don’t hold out much hope that I will, either.
That said, I took a few pictures with it this weekend. The pain in my foot and the weather kept me indoors, so I don’t have anything of much interest. The pic below is the only thing I’ve taken that I like so far. (Thumbnail links to larger version)
A photographer came in to work the other day to take pictures of my coworkers for some Madison business magazine. Since he was shooting in the data center, I ended up having to babysit escort him for more than an hour. I had nothing better to do, so the photog used me as a stand-in while he set up.
When he sent back the proofs, he included this shot of me holding up a gray piece of cardboard. I think it was to calibrate light levels, but I didn’t ask.
It fairly begs for a FARK Photoshop/caption contest.
Here are a few of the comments I got regarding it:
Here’s the thing… I wasn’t even angry. Apparently, that’s how I look when I’m bored and slightly annoyed.
On an unrelated note, my pinched nerve is slowly getting better. I’ve been to the chiropractor four times this week, and it barely hurts to walk today. I never thought I’d be grateful for that. I tried throwing a few experimental kicks, and I was able to do so with only a twinge. I’m hoping I’ll be able to return to Tae Soo Do soon, since I’ve only been there once in the last month.