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.
I personally find that i’ve been using it for a few days for fiat on-ramp, and the stable performance stands out. Support solved my issue in minutes.
24小時即時更新nba比分、賽程表，以及NBA球星數據統計和表現分析。
Статьи, личный опыт, руководства по преодолению тревоги, развитию критического мышления, гигиене информации и самопомощи.
Корпоративные программы: Психологическая поддержка сотрудников компаний для улучшения
их благополучия.
Философия: Создание поддерживающего
и человечного пространства, где забота о ментальном здоровье становится нормой
Устойчивости во времена испытаний
Всем здравствуйте! Хочу поделиться подборкой игровых площадок, где можно пополнять с баланса. Важно: высокая отдача. Актуальный рейтинг 2025 — здесь: Clubnika. Пишите, кто с чем сталкивался!
learn the facts here now https://upshift.ink
link https://tophat.cc
https://westernedge.org.au/playback-theatre-in-the-philippines/
Continue https://badai.sbs/
click to investigate https://elara.uno/
Discover More https://blendfun.cc
I’ve been using it for almost a year for fiat on-ramp, and the low fees stands out.
1win ödəniş üsulları https://1win5760.help/
В случаях запоя, острого отравления или абстинентного синдрома выездная наркологическая бригада оказывает помощь прямо на месте. Специалисты приезжают в течение 30 минут после обращения и проводят оценку состояния пациента, экстренное введение лекарств, инфузионную терапию и психологическую поддержку. Благодаря специальной комплектации мобильной бригады, лечение на дому возможно даже при умеренной степени осложнений. Врач также может при необходимости провести экспресс-анализы и дать рекомендации родственникам по дальнейшему уходу.
Углубиться в тему – http://narkologicheskaya-klinika-novokuzneczk0.ru
like this https://exponent.my
go to this site https://agentsland.org/
Read Full Report https://neur.cloud
Hey! Do you know if they make any plugins to protect against hackers? I’m kinda paranoid about losing everything I’ve worked hard on. Any recommendations?
https://LetsPostFree.com/389/posts/1/1/1933208.html
ЗАО «Техносвязь» — ведущее предприятие по производству печатных плат в Екатеринбурге с более чем 20-летним опытом работы. Предприятие обеспечивает комплексное обслуживание: от разработки до массового производства электроники, в том числе SMT и ручную сборку, выпуск МПП на разнообразных основах. Подробнее на https://www.techno-svyaz.ru/ Передовая техника, применение премиальных материалов глобальных брендов и опытная команда обеспечивают быстрое выполнение с безупречным качеством для партий любого масштаба.
Visit This Link https://elara.cfd
you could try this out https://prismagent.org
navigate to this website https://gofundmeme.sbs
Women’s World Cup livescore, growing women’s football with full coverage
Ремонт дома — это процесс, к которому редко относятся спокойно. Даже если он был давно запланирован, на практике почти всегда оказывается сложнее, дольше и дороже, чем ожидалось. Тем не менее, для многих ремонт — это не только стресс, но и возможность полностью адаптировать пространство под себя.
Одна из главных сложностей — планирование. Без чёткого плана легко столкнуться с постоянными переделками, спонтанными решениями и перерасходом бюджета. Важно заранее определить объём работ, приоритеты и понять, что действительно необходимо, а от чего можно отказаться. Подскажите какая краска термостойкая лучше?
Find Out More https://astake.lat
Related Site https://noon.pics
royale – https://casino-royale-us.com
find out this here https://verio.buzz
go https://astake.org/
The fiat on-ramp tools are seamless withdrawals and trustworthy service.
site https://perena.cc/
Всем здравия! Недавно искал честную площадку для игры на реальные деньги, и понял: половина сайтов — скам. Советую обращать внимание на наличие лицензии и читать отзывы. Свой топ-7 с моментальным выводом оставил здесь: mellstroy game. Пишите, кто что знает по теме!
click site https://cwap.xyz/
skyiwredshjnhjgeleladu7m7mgpuxgsnfxzhncwtvmhr7l5bniutayd.onion
great site https://upshift.my
Привет всем! Решил поделиться, как найти честное онлайн игровой сайт в 2025 году. Главное — не гнаться за большими бонусами, а смотреть на юрисдикцию и скорость выплат. Я собрал список проверенных площадок с минимальным депозитом — вот тут: Bollywood. Кто уже пробовал?
article source https://upshift.ink/
Приветствую! Только что вывел 15 тысяч с одного из казино — и решил поделиться списком тех, кто реально работает в РФ. Смотрите на отзывы за 2025 год. Все проверенные варианты — тут: лев казино зеркало. Кто уже играл? Какие суммы выводили?
try this web-site https://pactswap.org
my blog https://exponent.lat
1xbet promo code free spins
Ребята, а вы знаете, где сейчас дают кэшбэк? Я проверил десятки казино, оставил только те, где реально можно вывести. Ссылка на подборку: мелстрой гейм. Обсуждаем!
useful link https://blnk.lat/
2026 yılında en çok kazandıran casino siteleri hangileri? Cevabı platformumuzda mevcuttur. Deneme bonusu veren siteleri ve güncel giriş linklerini paylaşıyoruz. İncelemek için cassiteleri.us.org fırsatı kaçırmayın.
i loved this https://universalx.us/
address https://heyanon.pro/
get more https://cytonic.biz/
id888 – https://id888-th.com
go to this site https://unchainx.org/
over here https://exponent.bond