Photo © 2012 Markus Spiering
Click here for original image.
A hundred geeks with cameras. Yup, and I was buried smack-dab in the middle of ’em. Didn’t want to be there. Didn’t mean to be there.
I remember in a high-school science class, we saw a film of an amoeba eating a paramecium. The amoeba’s body flowed around its prey, and after it had the poor bug surrounded, it just, kinda… digested it, right there, just like that. The paramecium squiggled and squirmed, tried valiantly to escape, but too little, too late. And then—poof!—it shimmered and was absorbed into the predator. It was gone.
That was me, that poor, little paramecium. My goofy boyfriend pulled me in before I knew what was going on. And by the time I realized what was going on, I was surrounded, and being digested by an amoeba, and unable to escape.
Chet had begged me to come along. He said I’d enjoy it. For the record, I didn’t. But I was glad he was finally enjoying something. He’s been so bent out of shape since he lost his job last April. Laid off on April the first, if you can get that joke.
We scaled back on our standard of living. That didn’t bug me so much. But what really surprised me was how much it got him down. He stopped doing anything constructive, spent all day watching TV, wasn’t looking for work, said we’d do fine on his unemployment check.
We’ve been surviving on peanut butter and ramen noodles and pasta and frozen burritos. I don’t remember the last time I had a home-cooked meal.
I started by bugging him about his lack of work. He said he wanted a little vacation. I gave him a little vacation, then asked again. He said he was trying, but that nothing was available. I didn’t believe him, not that much. I asked him what job ads he had responded to each day. Most days, he just ignored me. Some days, yelled at me. I told him we could no longer afford cable TV. He convinced his parents to pay the bill.
I thought of getting ahold of a sledgehammer and having an “accident” with the TV set, but then I thought twice: we might need to sell it someday.
He was partially right, of course. There were no jobs in his field. But what bugged me most was that he was letting it get to him. His mind began wasting away to nothing, nothing at all, all day everyday. And as each day continued, he sank lower into the couch, and further into pity party.
I didn’t know how to snap him out of it. But his birthday gift did. One of his old office buddies sent him a digital camera, along with a really cool-looking book about how to take fun pictures about anything at all.
So when he threw himself into the hobby, and the hobby became an obsession, and a obsession became an endeavor, and when he began studying photography and framing and composition and lighting, and posted photo after photo to Flickr, and when he began hanging out with other camera-heads, and started talking about pursuing it professionally… I wanted to object. But not for the reason you might think. I wanted to object, because I was beginning to feel ignored.
But at least he was smiling again, and I had missed his smile. And the TV remained powered-off, except for the weekly exhibitions of his latest photos, which he would force me to watch, no matter how many hours I had worked that day.
Then, when he begged me to come to this big gathering of camera-heads, I gave in. I didn’t want to at first, but he pushed me and pressed me, and then he cuddled up next to me and told me about how much fun it was going to be to get away and that we hadn’t had a vacation in forever and that I needed a break—which was true. And he kissed me, and I melted and said yes. Sigh.
I hated it, didn’t enjoy it at all. There were no other camera-head-significant-others there. The food was okay, but the guest speaker spoke only camera-ese, and told only stupid camera jokes and camera stories. Then those assembled talked all afternoon about gadgets and techniques and awards, and showed each other the contents of their camera cases. Chet even got some business advice, which may or may not have been good advice, but he was enjoying himself, even though I had no idea what anyone was talking about.
“This is my girlfriend, Katy.”
And I smiled and faded into the background, maybe fondled a drink and tried to look interested in what they were saying while pondering the intricacies of the room’s potted flora. Too much, too far, too long. I was out of it. I so wanted to go home.
We started toward the door, walked out into the afternoon sun. I made a move toward the car, but Chet grabbed my hand and pulled me in the opposite direction. I looked up and saw that we were surrounded by a growing crowd, which was closing in around us on all sides. I was trapped, and one of the geeks with a camera was pointing it right at me. The other targets pointed their cameras back at him, but I was defenseless, hair akimbo, probably with a piece of spinach stuck between my teeth… not that it mattered, as no one could see my teeth.
The geek said, “Alright! Ready everybody?! Cheeeezzze!”
And everyone said, “Cheeeezzze!”
“Hold on!” He interrupted them, futzing with his camera. “Okay…”
“Quick!” said Chet. “Somebody fire before he reloads!” And raised his camera and took aim.
And that’s when the geek pulled the trigger.
For the reason that the admin of this web page is working, no hesitation very quickly it will be famous, due to its quality contents.
усиление проема дверного усиление проема дверного .
Внуково таможенное оформление в внуково москва — быстро и удобно
https://dev.kirill-vorotov.com/donettedouglas
Timber Path Hub – Categories were clearly marked, making it easy to navigate without confusion.
услуга усиления проема usilenie-proemov2.ru .
TrendCorner Market – A clean, neat interface and interesting pieces across categories.
усиление проёма уголком усиление проёма уголком .
Der FAQ-Bereich bietet umfassende Antworten zur Umwandlung von Bonusgeld und Auszahlung von Guthaben. Im FAQ-Bereich auf der Webseite
finden Spieler wichtige Informationen rund um die Plattform.
Ein umfangreicher FAQ-Bereich verbessert die Nutzererfahrung, da er schnellen Zugang zu häufigen Fragen und
Antworten bietet.
Insgesamt bieten VIP-Programme eine besondere Wertschätzung und Belohnung für die Loyalität der Spieler.
VIP-Programme in Online Casinos richten sich an treue Spieler und bieten ihnen exklusive Vorteile.
VIP-Programme bieten Spielern exklusive Vorteile wie persönliche Betreuer und maßgeschneiderte Bonusangebote.
Jeden Donnerstag findet der Tag der 1.000 Freispiele statt, wo bis zu 500 Freispiele möglich sind.
Freispiele sind für Bestandskunden verfügbar, die bei einer Einzahlung von mind.
References:
https://online-spielhallen.de/casino-bonus-codes-nov-2025-no-deposit-bestandskunden/
Wähle während deiner Einzahlung einfach den Willkommensbonus aus und freue dich auf einen 100% Bonus, der dir im besten Fall stolze 300 Euro beschert.
Zudem dürfen sich alle Neukunden auf einen sehr attraktiven Willkommensbonus freuen, auf den wir nun genauer eingehen möchten. Wir starteten mit dem HitNSpin Casino, in dem man uns als Neukunden einen beachtlichen XXL Willkommensbonus in Aussicht gestellt hat.
Glücksspiele sollten stets als Unterhaltungsangebot betrachtet
werden und nicht als Möglichkeit, Einkommen zu erzielen.
Das VIP-Programm bringt Vorteile wie persönliche Manager, höhere Auszahlungslimits, exklusive Turniere und Geburtstagsboni.
Ich habe letzte Woche 25 Freispiele für den neuen Slot Madame Destiny
Megaways erhalten, indem ich den Code eingegeben habe,
den sie auf Facebook gepostet haben. Das ist, wo sie exklusive Promo-Codes ziemlich häufig für Sachen wie Freispiele, keine
Einzahlungsboni, Reload-Boni, Sie nennen es. Was das Cashback angeht, so ist es einfaches Bargeld mit nur
5x Durchspielen, was es viel einfacher macht, es abzuheben. Alle
Gewinne aus Freispielen müssen vor der Auszahlung 30x umgesetzt werden. Was die Freispiele betrifft,
so erhalten Sie insgesamt 200 Freispiele (20 pro Tag für
10 Tage) an berechtigten Slots wie Sweet Bonanza.
Wenn Sie also klug spielen, ist die Wahrscheinlichkeit gering,
dass Sie Ihre gesamten Gewinne hier verlieren. Zum Beispiel kann Ihre erste Einzahlung Ihnen einen satten 100%
Bonus bis zu 300 Euro bringen, zusammen mit 100 Freispielen für den berühmten Big Bass Bonanza Slot von Pragmatic Play.
References:
https://online-spielhallen.de/verdecasino-deutschland-jetzt-e1-200-bonus-sichern/
TAB Global Hub – Nice product range with smooth and clear browsing experience.
скинули трек не бьется ((( уже в четверг отправили а он все не бьется(((, очень торпимся надо человека собирать в дорогу! https://1millionbet.top ну пока первый негативный отзыв. я против тебя ничего не имею, просто странно все это.Один из старейших!!!
For the reason that the admin of this website is working, no doubt very rapidly it will be famous, due to its feature contents.
усиление проему http://usilenie-proemov2.ru/ .
курсовая работа недорого https://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru .
цена усиления проема http://usilenie-proemov2.ru/ .
TAB World Picks Hub – Good assortment of products, and navigation was very smooth.
Trend Buy Hub Online – Loved the modern layout, exploring items felt easy and quick.
куплю курсовую работу https://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru/ .
The active ingredient of an approved medicinal product is this what makes the medicine effective for disease or the condition for which it is intended in an https://www.dataprotect.sg/levitra-for-profesjonell-bruk-effektiv-behandling-2/.
Организация групповых поездок требует надежного транспорта и ответственного подхода к безопасности пассажиров. Транспортная компания «Анапа Транспорт» предлагает аренду автобусов и микроавтобусов с профессиональными водителями для любых целей: корпоративных мероприятий, свадеб, школьных экскурсий или вахтовых перевозок. Круглосуточная диспетчерская служба обеспечивает своевременную подачу чистого исправного транспорта по честной цене. На сайте https://anapa-transport.ru/ можно ознакомиться с тарифами и заказать трансфер или междугородний маршрут, получив страхование ответственности перевозчика и контроль качества услуг.
Flora Goods Corner – The botanical items looked appealing and navigating sections felt simple.
For most recent information you have to go to see world-wide-web and on web I found this site as a most excellent website for newest updates.
Hi there, just became aware of your blog through Google, and found that it’s truly informative. I’m going to watch out for brussels. I’ll be grateful if you continue this in future. Many people will be benefited from your writing. Cheers!
заказать задание http://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru .
Since the admin of this website is working, no hesitation very shortly it will be famous, due to its quality contents.
Hello There. I found your blog the usage of msn. That is an extremely neatly written article. I will make sure to bookmark it and come back to learn extra of your useful info. Thank you for the post. I will certainly comeback.
курсовая работа купить москва http://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru .
Hello!
This post was created with XRumer 23 StrongAI.
Good luck :)
курсовая заказать недорого http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru .
решение курсовых работ на заказ https://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru/ .
Hello, of course this paragraph is genuinely pleasant and I have learned lot of things from it on the topic of blogging. thanks.
написание курсовой работы на заказ цена https://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru/ .
Rare Flora Collection – The curation felt elegant, and browsing remained smooth throughout.
купить курсовую москва http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru/ .
Soft Grove Online Picks – Clear structure and tidy pages improved the overall browsing experience.
курсовые под заказ https://kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru/ .
What’s up, its fastidious piece of writing about media print, we all know media is a impressive source of information.
Rare Flora Market – Loved the charming plant-themed items, and navigating the site felt calming.
покупка курсовых работ kupit-kursovuyu-22.ru .
Shop SoftGroveCorner – The interface was organized, allowing quick access to all items.
написать курсовую на заказ написать курсовую на заказ .
Excellent way of explaining, and good piece of writing to obtain information concerning my presentation subject matter, which i am going to convey in college.
написание учебных работ http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-24.ru .
чёрный гей порно секс видео чёрный гей порно секс видео .
сколько стоит заказать курсовую работу http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-26.ru .
написать курсовую работу на заказ в москве http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-25.ru .
заказать студенческую работу https://kupit-kursovuyu-26.ru .
где можно заказать курсовую http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-24.ru .
заказать курсовую работу заказать курсовую работу .
курсовой проект купить цена http://www.kupit-kursovuyu-21.ru .