
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.
codigo promocional 1xbet apuesta gratis
description https://toast-wallet.net/
Asking questions are actually pleasant thing if you are not understanding something fully, however this piece of writing presents fastidious understanding even.
click to read more https://toast-wallet.net
noisy bet login – https://noisy-bet.com/noisy-bet-login/
Наркологическая помощь в Волгограде предназначена для людей, столкнувшихся с проблемами алкогольной или наркотической зависимости. Современный подход к лечению основан на сочетании медицинских, психологических и социальных методов, направленных на полное восстановление пациента. Врачи-наркологи применяют безопасные схемы детоксикации, эффективные медикаменты и программы психотерапевтической поддержки, позволяющие достичь устойчивой ремиссии и вернуть пациента к нормальной жизни.
Подробнее тут – наркологическая клиника клиника помощь в волгограде
apuestas deportivas juegos olimpicos – Calvin – partidos mundial
find more information https://web-breadwallet.com
official source https://toast-wallet.net/
when will 1win token be listed when will 1win token be listed
Источник https://krab4a.at
refreshing depth of insight. I found myself fully engaged from start to
статьи о маркетинге statyi-o-marketinge1.ru .
netassist.click – Content reads clearly, helpful examples made concepts easy to grasp.
ссылка на сайт https://krab4a.at
Impuesto de Apuestas Deportivas atletico real madrid
look what i found https://web-breadwallet.com
tabla apuestas múltiples
Here is my website: basketball-wetten.com
технического аудита сайта poiskovoe-prodvizhenie-sajta-v-internete-moskva.ru .
how to load code on 1win in nigeria http://1win5745.help/
webrelay.click – Content reads clearly, helpful examples made concepts easy to grasp.
Наркологическая помощь в «ВолгаМед Тольятти» включает широкий спектр процедур и методик. Каждый случай рассматривается индивидуально, с учётом состояния пациента, стадии заболевания и сопутствующих факторов. Ниже представлена таблица с основными направлениями медицинской работы.
Изучить вопрос глубже – экстренная наркологическая помощь тольятти
Лечение организовано поэтапно. Такой подход обеспечивает постепенное восстановление функций организма и исключает риск осложнений. Каждый этап терапии направлен на устранение конкретных нарушений, вызванных интоксикацией.
Углубиться в тему – вывод из запоя круглосуточно красноярск
site link https://web-breadwallet.com/
codigo promocional 1xbet costa rica
Pastikan artikel yang digunakan untuk backlink adalah artikel berkualitas tinggi, bukan hasil generate AI murahan atau hasil translate yang tidak terbaca.
сюда https://krab4a.at/
Комплексное лечение помогает восстановить работу печени, сердца и нервной системы. Пациенты отмечают улучшение сна, снижение тревожности, нормализацию давления и аппетита уже спустя несколько часов после начала терапии. В зависимости от тяжести состояния курс может быть продлён до 2–3 дней с круглосуточным наблюдением и корректировкой дозировок.
Ознакомиться с деталями – вывод из запоя в волгограде
reclama tu bono 1xbet con codigo promocional
Monday night football live scores, start the week with Premier League action
hoja de calculo para marca apuestas bono bienvenida deportivas
drake – https://drake-us.com
important source https://web-breadwallet.com
news https://web-breadwallet.com/
connecthub.click – Loved the layout today; clean, simple, and genuinely user-friendly overall.
seo блог seo блог .
Website https://web-breadwallet.com/
dobrowin – https://dobrowin-br.com/
технического аудита сайта технического аудита сайта .
1xbet codigo promocional sin deposito
https://pastelink.net/f478qnki
To be honest, Lately found a useful source from India for affordable pills. If you need ED meds without prescription, this store is highly recommended. It has secure delivery worldwide. More info here: indiapharm.in.net. Hope it helps.
1win sign up 1win sign up
Наркологическая клиника в Воронеже — это специализированное медицинское учреждение, предоставляющее помощь людям, столкнувшимся с зависимостью от алкоголя, наркотиков и других психоактивных веществ. Лечение проводится под контролем квалифицированных врачей, с использованием современных методик детоксикации, психотерапии и реабилитации. Цель работы специалистов — не только устранить физическую зависимость, но и помочь пациенту восстановить эмоциональное равновесие, вернуть контроль над поведением и мотивацию к трезвости.
Узнать больше – наркологическая клиника стационар воронеж
kraken8
kraken тор
bwin app – https://bwin-br.com/bwin-app/
продвижение сайта франция продвижение сайта франция .
codigo promocional 1xbet
Ниже приведена таблица с типовыми компонентами капельницы и их назначением:
Получить больше информации – kapelnicza-ot-zapoya-v-volgograde17.ru/
каталог https://krab4a.at