Friday Off Work

We're leaving late this afternoon to spend some time in Chicago and to have dinner with my dad and sister. I have today off work, which is awesome because, for whatever reason, this week was hellish. I've been blue all week, and exhausted, and I kept making stupid mistakes at work and had a really hard time concentrating. I am blaming it on daylight savings time.

My day so far has included . . . .


. . . a facial . . .


. . . a good cup of coffee . . .


. . . and getting ready to say good-bye.

Yes, Upstairs Kitty has a new home to go to. I'm taking her to the vet this afternoon to make sure she's healthy and get her shots started, and her new mom is picking her up. I can't say I'm not a little sad, because we've obviously grown to like each other, but she's going to a place with another cat, two people that adore cats, and an home that's like a kitty playground. She's going to the home of a good friend's sister, so I'll get to keep tabs on her and probably even visit from time to time. I think this is a good thing; she would have adjusted fine to our house, but we really weren't looking for a fifth pet; and while I think she would have been okay with our cats, she was less than thrilled with Lucy.

But she's also going with the caveat that if, for any reason, she doesn't work out, she's coming back here.

Democratic Paranoia and Inaction

From The Hill, via Pam's House Blend, it seems that we're closing the door on one year without many  accomplishments in Washington, and maybe we can expect more of the same next year:

In the run-up to the 2010 midterm elections, they don’t want to be forced to vote on climate change, immigration reform and gays in the military, which they say should be set aside so Congress can focus on jobs and the economy.

...Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said he was not certain whether repealing “Don’t ask, don’t tell” would be on next year’s agenda.

...One Democratic senator facing reelection in a Republican-leaning state said he does not want to see the issue of gays in the military, immigration reform or even climate change on next year’s agenda.

Now, let me make sure that I really understand this: Obama orchestrates the biggest get-out-the-vote campaign in U.S. history; convinces tens of thousands of us who have never campaigned for anyone to do so; and we, in turn, bust our asses to get a Democratic majority in the House, the Senate, and the White House — all so they can ignore some of the major issues on the Democratic platform that got them elected in the first place for their own job security — so they can stay in control (and then continue to do nothing)?

Great.

I've already said that if Evan Bayh doesn't start acting like a Democrat, I won't be voting for him again. I'm sure I can't bring myself to vote for whichever Republican runs against him, but I can certainly leave that particular race blank on my next ballot. I might be doing the same for other Democrats, if they don't get their act together. The "change" we voted for is starting to look a lot like stagnation.

The Unexpected Guest

She showed up on Halloween night. Jay thinks it's a sign; the first Halloween after his mom died, his favorite holiday, her favorite kind of cat materializes on our front porch.

She stayed on the front porch for three hours. Then, when we went to bed we opened the garage door far enough for her to come in. By the next morning, she had taken up residence in my studio.



As you can see, she's rather affectionate. But we can't have a fourth cat; that's just ridiculous. The good news is that after just a couple of days, Upstairs Kitty (as she's being called now) has a good lead on a home. I think it's almost safe to call it a done deal. But she might be with us for a few more days before it happens.

I hope it's soon, as I'm starting to really dig her.

A Few Hallowe'en Photos

We must be getting old — or maybe after the summer Jay and I had, right now we just prefer the quiet company of a few good friends over things more festive and crowded. Whichever the case, this Hallowe'en, the idea of dressing up and going out to a bar or a big party sounded about as much fun as having surgery. Instead, Jay and I opted to stay home, cook vegan pumpkin chili (which was delicious), and have a few friends over with their kids.

Children have been a bigger theme in our life this year, as we've managed to meet more and more people who have kids, and some of our closest friends have given birth this year, more than ever before.

Here are a few photos.


This is Bea, our adorable goddaughter, dressed not as a bee but as a ladybug. Bea is so sweet and funny — I say this even though I made her cry because I wiped the drool off of her mouth.


This is Glen, you can figure out his costume. Glen is, by far, my favorite little boy in the world. He seems to dig me, too. Usually when we get together with his parents, Glen will just sit somewhere nearby and talk to me for as long as I'll listen; which is a really long time, because Glen is fun.


This is Isa, dressed as a cat, being spoon fed chili by her mother. Isa might be the most beautiful child I know. And at four, she does yoga, and already has a photographer's eye for the world. She is so pretty that I could almost picture her in one of those creepy, little girl beauty pageants (but thankfully, her parents have far more sense than that).

One of my goals for this weekend was to take a new profile photo of myself. It's rare for me to take a self-portrait where I don't look like I belong in a lunatic asylum. But I managed to get one or two that I like. I'm not sure that they'll ever hand on my profile, because I don't know if a "photographer" should have the stereotypical photo-in-the-bathroom-mirror as a representation of the best he can do, but I like it, anyway.


And so here I am.

More Cabaret Poe

I found a couple of photos of Cabaret Poe by another photographer. I wanted to share them, mostly so you could see how awesome the cast/costumes were.





(Both images above copyright, Michael Martin White.)

Cabaret Poe

When it comes to live theater, I prefer smaller shows that I've never heard of, with an audience capacity of about 75, over something like Miss Saigon or Avenue Q. I think this is why my favorite local theater company has always been Shadowape — if only they put on a few more frequent productions.


Gorey Stories, Shadowape Theater Company

Last night, Jay took me to see a show called Cabaret Poe in Irvington. If you are local and don't have anything to do tonight or tomorrow, I highly recommend trying to see this production. It's a true cabaret show with musical numbers, dance, monologue, audience interaction, and improv.

The costumes were gothic and campy but also ridiculously cool, like a cross between something Edward Gorey and Tim Burton would have created. You'll see some recitals of stories that follow Poe's best work, including "The Cask of Amontillado," "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Fall of the House of Usher", "The Premature Burial," and more. These retellings are sometimes loose and sometimes close — but the rendering of "The Raven" in Cabaret Poe is, I'm sure, delivered exactly the way Edgar Allan Poe would have wanted it.

The whole time I was watching this show I kept thinking that I wanted to photograph the cast, in character and in costume. The old lodge that's housing the show is an awesome space, too.

Go see this!

Dreadful

I don't watch American Idol. I don't care two scoots about the show, and I never have. I can sum up everything I know about all of the contestants right here.

• Kelly something-or-other won the first season.
• Clay Aiken is gay.
• My niece works for the most successful AI alumnus.
• There once was a contestant named after a Disney cartoon.
• There once was a contestant with a bald head and a nice basket.
• An Indian kid was ridiculed a lot.
• Adam Lambert is gay.

Speaking of Adam Lambert, I've never heard him sing, and never heard him speak during an interview. All I know of him are various things that the gay blogs post. This limited knowledge makes it somewhat a mystery as to why he bugs me so much. It's true: Adam Lambert makes me nuts. Seeing his photo actually makes me angry, sometimes. I have no idea why.

I say this, even though Details magazine recently published these editorial shots, which might be the greatest photography this magazine has ever published, if you ask me. I would frame this and hang it on my wall — if it wasn't Adam Lambert. I like this shot enough that it made me consider that maybe I was being a little too harsh on Adam Lambert.



But then I saw this, via Towleroad, titled First Look at Adam Lambert's cover.



And suddenly, I hate him all over again. Certainly, that can't be the real album cover, can it? This photograph reminds me of Sheena Easton, Nagel, Dead or Alive (see below), feathered hair, synthesizers, LA Gear, and absolutely everything that was wrong with the 1980s. And so help me God, if this kind of photography makes a serious comeback and suddenly models want me to make them look like that, you'll be finding my cameras for sale on eBay.

Autumn

This is where I was over the weekend.



Here is another shot.



Of course, he was there, too.

In France, No Editing

I love this photo.



I love it, even though it's so Photoshopped that the model almost looks like a cartoon character.

But according to a proposed French law, this photo would have to have a disclaimer — a big one — saying that a person in the image was digitally enhanced. The purpose of this proposed law is to minimize body dysmorphic issues among adolescents.

Personally, I prefer more realistic photography, anyway.



However, David had a small cut on his nose. I removed it. So I guess the law would apply to me, too. Is that right?

Most of you think what I do is sexy. If only you know how many hours I spend removing zits from guys' torsos. And personally, I don't think that counts as a "digital manipulation" of a person.

But like everything, too many people take good things to a ridiculous extreme. By now, I'm sure we've all seen this video; it's several years old.



And that kind of thing really should have a disclaimer.

It's about balance, I guess. I've always said that I want to be a photographer. I am happiest when I look at a photograph and realize that it needs NO retouching. But some photographers I know can't leave any of their images alone, and after a certain amount of manipulation, I think a photograph is no longer a photograph; it's become digital art. Which is a fine thing, just not what I like.

I feel like I'm writing in circles. But that's what thinking about this kind of thing always makes me do.