A while back, if memory serves, my Dad told me a story about love. It was understated in the way that true stories tend to be, and of course the details elude my fuddled memory, but the idea of it always stuck in my head. Something like this: my Dad said that the closest he ever came to seeing love at first sight was in college, orientation, I believe. Two people locked eyes and right then, in that moment, the spark of attraction ignited their love. As far as we know, they were together after that.
And now, since May of this year, something similar has been unfolding in front of me. You see, for inspiration I regularly log on to the photosharing site Flickr; one day I ran across a picture of this fellow. Quite a good example of street photography! I clicked around to find out more. Turns out the photo was taken by a young British woman by the name of Rosie Hardy; and it turns out she had met someone through Flickr. Accidentally, I had tuned in to the beginning of a romance, unfolding in the form of daily photographs.
You see, Rosie had met (via Flickr) and fallen for an American fellow by the name of Aaron Nace. Aaron shoots Strobist style, which was introduced to me by Mykala. And this guy can put a heckuva well-lit shot together. He felt the same as she.
How to bridge the gap in their time apart? Photoshopping pictures together. Here’s the first, composed of two frames taken thousands of miles apart and lovingly stitched together:
Since then, when I get to work, I can pull up Aaron and Rosie’s photos of the day, and watch things grow. Then the other day, Aaron hopped on a plane to visit. Suddenly, no Photoshop necessary:
A comment from one of the many watching this all unfold summed it up:
you two make me believe it.
Certainly, without the internet Rosie and Aaron could have met. But would they have? It’s sad to think they could’ve spent the balance of their years living their lives, never knowing the other existed. But through some chance, they were brought together… and they seized the opportunity. Poetic, beautiful, amazing — all of the usual adjectives apply, but it’s also real… and I think it’s one of the best stories I’ll ever have the privilege of sharing in this humble space.
Sorry for the polemic, but believe me, your son will stretch himself to understand you far more than he will even for the most gifted teacher. What I owe to my parents can never be repaid, and there isn’t a day goes by that I don’t miss them.
These forums are so technical, snarky, and geeky that the unexpected sliver of sentimentality and genuine feeling is a pleasant surprise.
Because Beijing is so polluted, the performance of athletes could suffer due to the poor air quality. China has decided to take drastic measures to clean up the air:
Under rules to curb smog and traffic congestion that will last from July 20 to Sept. 20, owners of 3.3 million private cars can drive only on alternate days in China’s capital, based on whether the last digit of their license plates is even or odd.
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Freight trucks that don’t meet minimal emission standards were banned July 1…
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Over the weekend, the city also opened a $2.3-billion subway line linking the northern Zhongguancun area, the capital’s high-tech neighborhood, with its central business district.
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Beijing has gone on a spending spree, relocating factories, seeding clouds, retiring old vehicles, planting millions of trees and halting building construction amid concerns that athletes and visitors could suffer breathing problems.
The prospect of competitors wearing masks during events has spurred authorities to set a goal of 256 “blue-sky” days this year, up from 100 in 1998.
World record holder and asthma sufferer Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia has opted to pull out of the marathon and concentrate instead on the 10,000-meter event. Other teams are training for as long as possible outside China.
I’d like to address a few things, re: Nils, myself, and movies. He and I have disagreed before about Roger Ebert. Nils has said Ebert is too easy on movies, I love Ebert because he reviews the way I would: he first tries to understand the vision and intent of the film, and then analyzes whether the execution works. This is why I believe his reviews tend toward the positive… he’s focusing on the positive because that is his style. Regardless, I think Nils and I can agree with Ebert’s take on The Dark Knight:
Because these actors and others are so powerful, and because the movie does not allow its spectacular special effects to upstage the humans, we’re surprised how deeply the drama affects us. Eckhart does an especially good job as Harvey Dent, whose character is transformed by a horrible fate into a bitter monster. It is customary in a comic book movie to maintain a certain knowing distance from the action, to view everything through a sophisticated screen. “The Dark Knight” slips around those defenses and engages us.
Sounds like it could be a good movie, no? Oh, and when I read Ebert’s reviews before the movie, I try to skip over all the plot details I can… it’s almost better to read them after the movie.
A father who tried to protect his 12-year-old daughter after she was groped while leaving Valleyfair amusement park was beaten, stomped in the face and kicked by a group of young men, police said.
The 41-year-old victim, identified in a criminal complaint only by his initials, was unconscious when police arrived. He suffered skull fractures and possible bleeding on the brain, the documents said.
What the hell is this, A Clockwork Orange? Dammit, Minnesota. Get it together.
An example of Georgian Revival architecture, it holds a famous Tiffany glass mosaic, “The Dream Garden,” made for Curtis by the Louis C. Tiffany Studios. The 260-color mosaic was based on a painting by Maxfield Parrish. In 1998, the mosaic was sold to casino owner Steve Wynn, who planned to move it to one of his casinos. This was blocked by local historians and art lovers who raised $3.5 million to prevent the move.
Honestly, check this thing out. Looks nothing like the stained glass we’re all accustomed to seeing.
My alma mader, St. Thomas, is upgrading its email system. Though I use a dedicated desktop email program, sometimes I do have to check email through a web browser — so, with some trepidation, I clicked over to the tutorial for the new version of Microsoft Office Outlook Web Access.
Oh my God.
It’s a snowstorm of buttons. At least the “Light Client,” which it looks like is the only one I’ll be able to use, has fewer stupid little widgets.
