Month: July 2008

Okay, so according to the Times, “Community leaders are keeping their eyes peeled in Greenwich Village, where burglaries in the Sixth Precinct have increased 26.2 percent. There have been 130 burglaries so far this year, 27 more than last year at this time.”

Beth, who lives on my floor, said there were signs on the street saying that they are breaking in via fire escapes. I have a fire escape outside my window. So what I did was put a lamp in the window, hoping that a thief is going to avoid the window that has a light shining out on him. Light from a pretty little art deco lamp that I bought at a store on Hudson Street about 30 years ago, a store which no longer exists, of course.

It doesn’t look very intimidating, does it?

I’m putting together a presentation and a short movie for YouTube, and I’m trying to gather photographs that will illustrate what’s inside the book. I scanned a bunch of pictures when I was at the Rhine Research Center in 2006, but I need more. I’ve emailed the descendants of various people that are in the book to see if they have any to share, so we shall see. The Alexian Brothers in St. Louis generously sent me a picture of a hospital where an exorcism took place in 1949 (the building has since been torn down). So I’m off to a good start!

Here’s one of the pictures I scanned at the Rhine. It’s of Bill Davidson and the Bettys, Betty McMahan and Betty Humphrey (at a machine they built to roll dice, I believe). I love the expression on Betty McMahan’s face.

Excuse the language, I’m sorry, I talk like this, but Jesus-fucking-christ. I saw this picture of my friend Vivian, courtesy of Samba New York and look at those arm muscles! I work out and I’ve got nothing. Seriously, not even the hint of an arm muscle. I do it to keep healthy (see post title) and not because of how it makes me look, because working out hasn’t translated into nicely defined muscles for me. Damnit.

In keeping with the post title, I took this Well-O-Meter test, I can never resist a test that is supposed to tell you how great you life is, or how long you’re going to live. At one point it asks, “How many years have you lived alone since you were 25,” and I thought, that’s it. I’m a goner. I’m way past the how long you’re allowed to live alone threshold. Pick your coffin. But apparently I’m doing okay overall. My score was 8.96. I feel better now. I’m going to see Mama Mia! to celebrate. Maybe. It’s pretty hot out and I’m a delicate flower.

I wish I had a better camera. This picture is from the Itty Bitty Kitty Committee, the blog of the greatest cat photographer of all time, and I mean all time. If you go all the way into the future and all the way into the past, Laurie Cinotto will always be the best EVER. I’m tempted to buy the same camera she uses, a Nikon D-40, as if that’s going to magically make my pictures as good as hers. For that reason I will also consider the Canon EOS 30D that Shreve Stockton uses over at The Daily Coyote. But then I look them up on Amazon and see that they each cost over a billion dollars and there goes that idea.

I did start out my working days as a photographer. But I remember at the time seeing people around me taking better pictures than I could using a plastic camera that only cost a $1. So not that great cameras aren’t great, but they are not strictly necessary.

That said, when I am rich (hahahahaha) I am getting a better camera. And an apartment with a fireplace. Okay, and after I’ve contributed to all my favorite charities, a new Mac, an iphone, new jeans, a couple of dogs, a head to toe pampering day at a spa, and another one at the hair salon, a thousand billion songs from itunes, a thousand billion books from Amazon, I guess I should get more clothes, a piano, oh and a video camera, and a month long vacation somewhere, I don’t know where but if I had to pick today, Alaska or Mexico. Okay, I’m done. This is part of the reason why I’m not rich. I don’t really care if I ever get these things. Except I will eventually need a new computer. And I am seriously considering get dogs someday.

This is just a test. This is not even close to the finished product, but I wanted to see how the titles were working before I went on.

[Video removed because the link no longer works.]