I recommend everyone go check out Fahrenheit 9/11 even if they, like me have a career in broadcast news, sure, there was nothing in it I had not seen or heard before but it was nice to have all of those points condensed into an hour and a half as opposed to have had gathered all that data from years of paying attention to the news.

Do I have a fotolog problem?

My fotolog is something that I enjoy posting and these are the photographs that I like to share with the world but, are my images simply no good? Why do I receive so few comments? I navigate around the site and comment on other folks logs that I enjoy and hope that the same could happen possibly for me.

Does this mean that I suck as a photographer?

I do understand that the most comments come when you post images of females that are clad in a minimalistic fashion. But even when I post something like that, there is such little commentary for what I am doing despite the fact that I am receiving thousands of hits per week. What are these people thinking as these pass on through? I am actually curious to understand how my own work is perceived and find the comments of the few who do post to me wonderful and I am truly grateful for them.

I look at some of the loggers who get the comments and there are often so many not just one or two but ten, twenty or more? How are their images better than mine, more thought-provoking than mine, more inspired than mine? I just don't understand. Maybe I never will.

I recently joined another photo service that is stanger in this regard than fotolog, textamerica. I feel that this mobile phone effort will be hard for me to sustain based on the nature of these other users on the site.

Maybe I need more attention, is that why I am posting here now? Posting for my two loyal readers? I feel that they already give me too much attention as it is. What am I to do?

The all important weekend update:

Friday afternoon found me free from the bondage of work thanks in part to a program initiated by Phil Kent, one of the few executives in this company that I actually admire. It was a wonderful example of a hot and humid July afternoon. Luckily, the bus had the A/C on for the ride back home to the southside.

I had some of my own coconut chicken soup for a light dinner and by nine p.m., I was over at Alan & Tiffany's cocktail party. This of course is when the drinking started and lay the path to follow for the rest of the weekend. Mint Julip, Bourbon & Ice, Newcastle(s),Sake to name a few of the drinks that I poured into myself on Friday night made for a rather rough arrival into Saturday morning.

The light of the sun was so unrelenting in its pursuit of all-time brightness, the heat of midday seemed to have discovered a new home as the heat of first light. Lacking my sunglasses I took the glare with eyes squinted and lowered until I was able to seek refuge in my own cool & darkened room.

Saturday- More to come!

I have had the opportunity to drive around the Midwest recently and find an America that despite ethnic and social distinctions through regional variation seems to be on a fast track to seamless cultural homogenation through the following list of retailers...

Wal-Mart
Home Depot
Lowes
Ruby Tuesday
Outback Steakhouse
McDonald's
Target
Ross


We must fight cultural homogenation by not spending money at these establishments...

I am sitting here watching snow fall in Kabul from back in 2002 on my monitor. A bunch of Afghan children are in the dirt streets tossing snowballs at the camera crew. Men in wool shawls bundled up against the cold carry brightly colored umbrellas as they make their way up the street. Women in burkas stroll while fat flakes of snow settle onto their bright blue garments. Cigarettes are smoked as bearded men huddle around makeshift fires. Usually the video is of an alarming nature but there are moments where day to day life is actually captured. It is in those moments where I find peace.

Ahh, better living through technology.

Yesterday, I got a new mobile phone, an LG vx6000.
It has a built in camera that is really nifty and being someone who enjoys such things, I also was clued into a neat service that allows you to post your mobile phone pictures directly to a website.

So without further hesitation I present my mobile phone log: Random images from an otherwise meaningless life.
I have added this site to my links list. Enjoy.

I am really frustrated with work, nothing is ever functioning right on this project and I feel that it is negatively affecting my workflow.

What the hell am I supposed to do? No one listens to me or considers my input valid. I am so tired of being here. Sometimes I feel I would be happier if I washed dishes for a living, at least I know how to unblock a clogged greasetrap and move on.

On another note,

Based on my personal observations, Michigan and Wisconsin are two profoundly different states. One watches the sunrise over the lake and the other watches the sunset. Wisconsin must have more persons of nothern european descent than Michigan as there are far more bakeries, smoked fish, bars & taverns, and cheese west of the lake.

Ok ya'll I'm back from an odd and slightly sad ordeal in the midwest and I promise to elaborate on it as soon as my mood allows me the pleasure of so doing.

In the meantime, I will continue to dream of a brighter tomorrow and push you, my brave readers to look into the world of vaseline glass. This yellowish collectible glass contains uranium oxide and glows bright green under UV light.

Spooky.