So, we had open lab

by | May 16, 2002 | Imported Entry

So, we had open lab in class today. A “work day” for those of you not presently familiar with the concept of a “lab.” Anyway, most of my fellow students, myself included, didn’t really have much to work on today. I spent most of my time fooling around with scratched negatives, scratching them more, printing them with the wrong color filters, burning them, bitting them, otherwise destorying them. It’s kind of a “grunge art” thing. Anyway, most everyone was slacking off and doing nothing interesting. A few kids were printing for something called the “print exchange.” The PE is actually something really cool that us photokids do. Basically we sign up on a list and say that we’re willing to make prints. The concept is that everyone that signs up gets prints from everyone else that signed up. For example, this year there were 24 kids doing it. So, each person prints 24 prints (including one for themselves) and then at the end of the semester, you trade prints with the other kids. The cool thing you have to realize is that most of the people that are doing this are “fine art” photographers, and mostly seniors and juniors. So, you’re getting VERY good prints for basically free. I neglected to get my name on the list this year simply due to time contraints, but next year I’ll be all about this. However, this year I’m still getting a few prints. 5 or so people that are in the exchange are also friends in the department, so printing 25 or more prints isn’t that big a deal for them. I’ve all ready gotten two prints this year in exchange for one of mine. I’m rather happy. It’s always nice to get art. It’s also a great way to preserve history, or to be a minor part of it. Think about what would happen if any of these people got famous. Years from now, you’d have one of the only copies of a rare “pre-professional” print from a famous photographer. It would be like owning a copy of Davinci’s sketchbook, or Ansel Adams’ contact sheets. That’s a cool thing. At least in my opinion.

Now, I’m the first to

by | May 16, 2002 | Imported Entry

Now, I’m the first to admit when I’ve left my computer on, or left something downloading, and I usually appologize since thats a waste of resources. I bring this up because yesterday we got our electric bill. It was nearly $200. Now, seeing as how we live in a two story home, with central air, three computers and other electronics, $200 doesn’t sound like a whole lot. Especially when you realize that this is infact Savannah GA and the air conditioner is running all the time to keep our house at a constant 70 degrees. Well, realization struck the household and it was decided that we were using electricity to much, althought I don’t really agree that $200 is “to much.” So, today, as we all left the house for classes, the air conditioner was turned off. A great idea. A fantastic idea infact. That way, we’re not keeping the house cold when there’s no one here except the roaches. What I don’t understand is why, after consciencely deciding the air conditioner was a waste, did leaving a computer on all day seem like a good idea. If you’re energy efficiant with one thing, wouldn’t it make sense to do so with everything else? I don’t try to understand it. All I know is that my computer is always off when I’m not actively using it, and if we’re applying the same rules towards air conditioners, we should apply the same rules towards other computers as well. Otherwise we’re being hypocritical and not really saving any money in the long run. Plus, hot air is bad for computers anyways, I wouldn’t want to leave my system to “bake” in a house with no AC all day. That’s just my two cents.

Fantastic… now shit from outerspace

by | May 14, 2002 | Imported Entry

Fantastic… now shit from outerspace is slicing through the earth at incredible speeds… swell.

And… if that wasn’t enough… this shit levitates… and NASA is working on time travel, otherwise know as merely “superluminal quantum tunneling” to the rest of us, or perhaps it was the “transient inertia effect” or “quantum vacuum energies.” I always get those confused, don’t you?

Wouldn’t it be nice…

That is all.

Lauren gave me a really

by | May 14, 2002 | Imported Entry

Lauren gave me a really nice compliment yesterday that I failed to mention. She said I was very much like a Beatnik. I took that as an extremely nice compliment and have been thinking about it for a little while. I don’t nessisarily see myself as an actual Beatnik, there are very few who can (or should) but I certainly embrace the 60’s counter-culture ideas. I dislike mainstream media, people influenced by or in the mainstream media, shallowness, authoritarian governmental figures, rules limiting my freedoms, that sort of thing. I agree far more with the ideals than I do with the sterotypes. I don’t wear all black, call people squares or drink to much caffine… well, at least the first two. I do have a passion for good music, expressive art, poetry, writting and pretty much anything else creative. I wish I could say I have more qualities that lend themselves to being Beat, but I don’t. So, I guess I’m only a little bit of a Beatnik, not in the traditional sense of course, but more in the passive mentalities. I’m an artist, and I think that artists lend themselves to that side of the social spectrum. We certainly love creativity and freedom and we express it in everything we do, otherwise there wouldn’t be any point to being an artist. I don’t know where any of this is coming from, but I figured I’d get it out of my system. Everyone needs a little self-analysis every once in a while.