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.
Today, I went to the beach with my children. I found a sea shell and gave it to my 4 year old daughter and said “You can hear the ocean if you put this to your ear.” She put the shell to her ear and screamed. There was a hermit crab inside and it pinched her ear. She never wants to go back! LoL I know this is totally off topic but I had to tell someone!
My partner and I stumbled over here different page and thought I may as well check things out. I like what I see so i am just following you. Look forward to exploring your web page repeatedly.
Wow, incredible weblog format! How long have you been blogging for? you made running a blog look easy. The whole look of your website is wonderful, let alone the content
pinnacle – https://pinnacle-br.com
more jax wallet
официальный магазин дайсон в санкт петербурге pylesos-dn-9.ru .
additional hints https://toast-wallet.net/
ЖИЖИ бесплатная нейросеть
http://forum.446.s1.nabble.com/1xBet-Turkey-Promo-Code-No-Deposit-1XVATOUT-EUR130-Bonus-td148364.html
алкоголь доставка москва алкоголь доставка москва .
At this moment I am going to do my breakfast, later than having my breakfast coming over again to read more news.
https://sakuraimages.com/why-online-slots-are-taking-over-the-casino-world/
dyson v15 спб pylesos-dn-6.ru .
https://FreeAd1.com/389/posts/1/1/1763677.html
dyson спб официальный pylesos-dn-8.ru .
pgwin – https://www.pgwin-br.com
web link jaxx
https://chungcuimperial-plaza.com/the-evolution-of-online-slot-machines-from-classic-to-3d/
Если в «окно оценки» прогресс ниже ожиданий, мы меняем ровно один параметр — дозировку, время приёма, приоритет модуля — и задаём новую дату проверки. Это защищает от «снежного кома» назначений и сохраняет ощущение контроля у пациента.
Получить дополнительные сведения – http://narkologicheskaya-klinika-petrozavodsk0.ru
пылесос dyson купить в спб dn-pylesos-kupit-5.ru .
A disturbing, provocative, and utterly compelling read. The cult leader is a villain for the ages, manipulative and cruel. You can find the The Last Housewife epub to start this dark journey today. The book explores the psychological toll of abuse and the difficulty of healing. It is a thriller that treats its subject matter with the seriousness it deserves. A must-read for anyone who loves a good mystery. https://thelasthousewifeepub.site/ The Last Housewife Amazon
араван краби краби бу
дайсон спб официальный pylesos-dn-7.ru .
dyson санкт петербург купить dn-pylesos-4.ru .
пылесос дайсон v15 купить в спб dn-pylesos-kupit-4.ru .
пылесос dyson спб pylesos-dn-10.ru .
Бесплатный ключ для Windows 11 — только у нас, обновлено в 2026 году!
Подробнее – Как активировать Windows 11 без ключа
санкт петербург магазин дайсон dn-pylesos-2.ru .
click this site jaxx crypto
Good day! This is kind of off topic but I need some help from an established blog. Is it difficult to set up your own blog? I’m not very techincal but I can figure things out pretty fast. I’m thinking about making my own but I’m not sure where to begin. Do you have any tips or suggestions? Many thanks
дайсон купить спб оригинал дайсон купить спб оригинал .
My brother suggested I might like this web site. He was totally right. This post truly made my day. You can not imagine simply how much time I had spent for this information! Thanks!
vavada kladionica prijava http://vavada2007.help/
hop over to these guys jaxx
This is a topic which is near to my heart… Cheers! Exactly where are your contact details though?
Immerse yourself in an incredible spectacle with drone show companies.
The underlying technology driving these shows combines innovation and sophistication.
bbrbet – https://www-bbrbet-mx.com
сайт дайсон спб [url=https://pylesos-dn-9.ru/]сайт дайсон спб[/url] .
I go to see daily a few web pages and blogs to read articles, but this web site provides quality based content.
казино риобет на деньги
коррозия у авто? Авто Тех Центр «Защита» эффективная защита от влаги, соли и реагентов. Комплексная обработка кузова и днища, качественные составы и надёжный результат для новых и подержанных авто.
Discover all the possibilities of
playboy888 and enjoy a premium gaming experience with smooth performance, exciting gameplay, and nonstop entertainment. The platform is designed to cater to players who seek both fun and the chance to win big.
digitaltide.click – Pages loaded fast, images appeared sharp, and formatting stayed consistent.
доставка алкоголя круглосуточно москва [url=https://www.alcohub10.ru]доставка алкоголя круглосуточно москва[/url] .
Attractive section of content. I just stumbled upon your weblog and in accession capital to assert that I get actually enjoyed account your blog posts. Anyway I’ll be subscribing to your feeds and even I achievement you access consistently fast.
parimatch – https://parimatchmx.com
пылесос дайсон беспроводной спб [url=https://pylesos-dn-8.ru/]pylesos-dn-8.ru[/url] .
hi!,I love your writing very a lot! proportion we communicate extra about your article on AOL? I require an expert in this area to resolve my problem. Maybe that’s you! Looking forward to peer you.
more tips here jaxx liberty
дайсон официальный сайт спб [url=https://dn-pylesos-kupit-5.ru/]дайсон официальный сайт спб[/url] .