I wonder

Ever since I saw the first Matrix movie I've wondered why they chose nosce te ipsum over γνωθι σεαυτον? It is from the Greek oracle's temple at Delphi, after all. So why the Latin over the Greek? Was it a mistake or did someone decide that the Greek was too illegible or "foreign" looking for the intended (i.e. North American) audience? Is this another example of the same mentality that retitled "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" to "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" for fear that the word "Philosopher" would adversely impact sales. Are people really that stupid, or is it just that the marketing weasels have an unfairly low opinion?

Leaping Coffin Boxes

So Elaine's coffin box that she made decided to leap from its hanging place over the den door again. It's done this multiple times now. Nothing else has every fallen off these sills, and the coffin box is especially firmly affixed. Last time she repaired it I practically hung from it to make sure was well seated on the nail that holds it in place. We've joked about some "previous occupant" disliking the coffin and I'm running out of reasonable explainations for why this item — and nothing else — should keep falling down.

A Couple of Fosters on the Beach

Elaine and her Uncle Herb on the beach at the end of Sagg Main Street, by Sagaonack Pond in the Hamptons.

A Dream of New York

Last night, or more correctly early this morning just before the alarm went off, I had a dream about New York. Elaine and I were there and this time it was a four week trip. In the dream we were in a hotel room with some friends we had recently made. Everyone else, excluding me as I had been the photographer, was taking turns changing and using the shower as we had just gotten back from doing photoshoot at the Cloisters that involved some elaborate Victorianesque (i.e. Victorian inspired but not of an authentic Victorian style) costumes and body paint. Everyone in the shoot (six people) had been painted a different colour and had been wearing a costume with highlights contrasting the colour their skin had been painted. As everyone was changing I was going over the photos and video clips from the shoot using a connection to a large T.V. in the room. We were all pretty happy with the way the pictures had turned out. After we had gone through all the pictures and were sitting around chatting I flopped back on the bed I was sitting on, knowing that Elaine and I had to come back to Vancouver and I said out loud, "How are we ever going to go back this time?" Then the alarm went off.

And here's one...

...from the "Oh, yeah. That sounds great. I'll get right on that." file:

So the other day azrielknight mentioned in gothicbc that he was looking for photographers for Comatose Rose. I responded and he said he was hoping that I would be the one to get back to him and to drop him a line. So I did, asking him what the deal was. He responded:

It's pretty simple really, when we need an event covered, you go and take pictures. You just have to take them at 1600 by 1200 or higher.

We usually want 30 good photos,

You wont be aloud to put the same shots on your website, you can however put different shots from the same event up.

Uh, yeah. Right. My incentive for taking pictures and giving up the rights to them is exactly what here? I'll not post my images to where a few thousand people look at them and relinquish my copyright, and therefore my ability to make paintings from them (which is the point in the first place), for a small 'zine distributed in half a douzen clubs? And besides, "aloud"? Allowed Muh. I wrote back saying, sorry, I'll grant a right to publish in the magazine if I otherwise retain copyright.

He replied:

Sorry you feel that way. I wish I could bend on this one, but we can't change our policies for one man who hasn't even had a formal interview yet, my other photographers would be pissed. Now, my Toronto photographer posts the photos he does on his site, but nowhere else. So you could post the photos you take on your site provided they are stamped with our copyright.

Yeah. What a deal that is. Sure... and if I show my paintings in your office lobby for free it'll be "great exposure", if I work my ass off developing your no-business-plan asshat dot.com get-rich-quick website for nothing I might make millions, and a butt-monkey unpaid internship at your failing audio-post studio will make me great industry contacts.

Maybe if I was 22, fresh out of art-school, naïve, and dumb as a post...