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.
http://classicalmusicmp3freedownload.com/ja/index.php?title=%E5%88%A9%E7%94%A8%E8%80%85:Promolive1xbet1
Когда запой длится не первый день, а состояние уже сопровождается тремором, потливостью, резкими перепадами давления, бессонницей, тревогой, тошнотой или рвотой, попытка «перетерпеть» или лечить самостоятельно таблетками становится опасным экспериментом. Сочетание алкоголя с сильнодействующими успокоительными, обезболивающими или сомнительными «антипохмельными» легко приводит к нарушению дыхания, провалам в сознании, аритмиям и скрытому развитию предделирия. Домашние средства не учитывают ни электролитные сдвиги, ни состояние печени и сердца, ни уже принятые лекарства. Выездной нарколог «СерпуховТрезвие» в Серпухове выстраивает ситуацию иначе: ещё по телефону врач собирает ключевую информацию — длительность запоя, примерные объёмы и виды алкоголя, наличие гипертонии, ИБС, диабета, заболеваний печени и почек, неврологических проблем, какие препараты уже давали и в каких дозах, были ли судороги или эпизоды дезориентации. На месте проводится объективная диагностика: измерение давления, пульса, сатурации, температуры, оценка тремора, степени обезвоживания, психического состояния, неврологического статуса. Только после этого принимается решение: проводить детокс на дому или сразу рекомендовать стационар. Такой фильтр защищает от грубых ошибок, позволяет точно подобрать схему и не терять драгоценное время, пытаясь «угадать» лечение.
Углубиться в тему – http://narkolog-na-dom-serpuhov10.ru
Xturka guncel giris adresi ve m.xturka uzerinden guvenli giris rehberi xturka guncel giris
website here https://prjx.space/
пылесосы dyson спб dn-pylesos-kupit-6.ru .
Рынок недвижимости Ташкента переживает расцвет, предлагая покупателям широкий спектр вариантов https://telegra.ph/Vash-novyj-dom-v-serdce-Uzbekistana-Obzor-rynka-kvartir-v-Tashkente-i-predlozheniya-NRG-BI-01-28
It’s remarkable for me to have a web site,
which is valuable designed for my knowledge. thanks admin
visit the site https://kittenswap.buzz
Full Report https://liquity.cfd/
Рынок недвижимости Ташкента переживает расцвет, предлагая покупателям широкий спектр вариантов застройщик NRG-BI
basics https://toast-wallet.net/
pop over here https://alchemix.center/
hey there and thank you for your information – I’ve definitely picked up anything new from right here. I did however expertise several technical issues using this web site, as I experienced to reload the web site a lot of times previous to I could get it to load correctly. I had been wondering if your hosting is OK? Not that I’m complaining, but slow loading instances times will sometimes affect your placement in google and can damage your quality score if ads and marketing with Adwords. Anyway I’m adding this RSS to my e-mail and could look out for a lot more of your respective interesting content. Make sure you update this again soon.
Xturka guncel giris adresi ve m.xturka uzerinden guvenli giris rehberi x turka giriş
https://www.notion.so/Meilleur-Code-Promo-1xBet-2026-Max2x-Bonus-Casino-2f7a89e59c8d805ca260cb999bf70c99?source=copy_link
777 casino – https://777-casino-mexico.com
Possession retention, teams that keep the ball under pressure
пылесос дайсон купить pylesos-dn-kupit-7.ru .
website here https://toast-wallet.net/
click for more info https://defi-money.cc/
visit this site https://daodao.cfd/
pop over to this site https://prjx.space/
try this out https://toast-wallet.net
why not find out more https://unich.icu
pop over to this website https://gluex.io
check this site out https://kinetiq.buzz/
casinority – https://casinority-mx.com
check that https://beraborrow.cc/
check my reference https://hlp0.cloud
мостбет слоты фриспины http://mostbet2035.help/
пылесос dyson купить dn-pylesos-2.ru .
塔尔萨之王第二季高清完整版，海外华人可免费观看最新热播剧集。
visit the site https://terminal.credit/
online slot casino, http://carlingfordhenandstagparty.com/every-spin-feels-like-a-win-the-thrill-of-online-4/ offers entertainment for players seeking an enjoyable experience. With various themes and modes, it’s easy to find a slot that appeals to everyone. Enjoy the prospect to win big!
view website https://defi-money.cc
https://bit.ly/m/CodePartenaire
как активировать промокод мостбет https://www.mostbet2035.help
Наркологическая клиника «Трезвый Шаг Раменское» — это место, где острые кризисы, многолетние запои и повторяющиеся срывы перестают быть бесконечным кругом, в котором семья остаётся один на один с проблемой. Здесь выстроена система помощи людям с алкогольной и наркотической зависимостью, а также полизависимостями, включая злоупотребление аптечными препаратами. В клинике в Раменском сочетаются круглосуточное наблюдение, профессиональная детоксикация, медикаментозная поддержка, психотерапевтические программы и сопровождение семьи. Важные принципы — безопасность, анонимность, уважение к пациенту и честное объяснение каждого шага лечения. Ни агрессивного давления, ни обещаний «чуда за один день» — вместо этого поэтапный подход, который даёт реальный шанс стабилизировать состояние, снизить тягу и выйти из разрушительного сценария под контролем специалистов. Для близких это означает понятный маршрут: куда обратиться, что будут делать с пациентом, какие риски учтут и как клиника «Трезвый Шаг Раменское» останется на связи после острого периода.
Узнать больше – [url=https://narkologicheskaya-klinika-ramenskoe10.ru/]chastnye-narkologicheskie-kliniki-otzyvy[/url]
официальный сайт дайсон pylesos-dn-kupit-6.ru .
he said https://kittenswap.buzz
Magnificent beat ! I wish to apprentice while you amend your website, how could i subscribe for a blog website? The account helped me a acceptable deal. I had been a little bit acquainted of this your broadcast offered bright clear concept
rio bet casino
Wonderful, what a webpage it is! This weblog presents
helpful data to us, keep it up.
пин ап казино официальный
see post https://theo.exchange/
find more info https://toast-wallet.net
check it out https://alchemix.center
find out this here https://snake.credit/
this hyperlink https://toast-wallet.net/
http://odessaforum.getbb.ru/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=28313