I became insane with long intervals of horrible sanity.
Edgar Allen Poe

The trouble with fighting for human freedom is that one spends most of one's time defending scoundrels. For it is against scoundrels that oppressive laws are first aimed, and oppression must be stopped at the beginning if it is to be stopped at all.
- H. L. Mencken

Many people would sooner die than think; In fact, they do so
-Bertrand Russell

What I have been telling you, from alpha to omega, what is the one great thing the sigil taught me — that everything in life is miraculous. For the sigil taught me that it rests within the power of each of us to awaken at will from a dragging nightmare of life made up of unimportant tasks and tedious useless little habits, to see life as it really is, and to rejoice in its exquisite wonderfulness. If the sigil were proved to be the top of a tomato-can, it would not alter that big fact, nor my fixed faith. No Harrowby, the common names we call things by do not matter — except to show how very dull we are ...
-James Branch Cabell

October 01, 2013 - 12:02 p.m.

Medel Citizen

I'm sleepy and one of knuckles seems to have arthritis this morning but that won't stop me from writing. That's how much I love My Gentle Readers.

My knee decided to act up yesterday morning. It hurt to stand and teach. When I hit an awkward point in the lesson, I had finished the material that was going to be on the test and the next topic, simultaneous equations was totally different, so I decided to quit when I was ahead and let them out early. I did the same in the afternoon class. That gave me time to blog between classes and stop at Penn Station to buy my NJ Transit tickets I'd need later after class. Then I had therapy. As you know I had something of a tough week so I had a lot to talk about. She always focuses on the positive, how I overcame the anxiety. I'm not sure that help but it feels good.

Then I was off on my adventure in New Jersey. It was my first experience as a photographer's model. The Brilliant Brianne is a film/photography major at Montclair state and needed models for a project. She asked me to do it and recruit other people. Katherine said she would and we went out there together. I thought of it as Beauty and the Beast. It was perhaps my least annoying experience on NJ Transit. OK it was more annoying than any trip on the LIRR or Metro North but for NJ it was fine. Timing was tough and Katherine and I met on the platform. I suggested we sit in the first car. That seemed brilliant as even though I was right there when they announced the track it was hard to find seats together in the other cars. Katherine needed props for her pics, her drums and softball gear so we took up quite a bit of space. We sat down and started talking. Someone came over to us and said in a nasty way that it's a quiet car and that we should move to another if we wanted to talk. There was no sign saying this. After the train pulled out an announcement was made. NJ Transit is clueless. So we had to whisper and for the most part Katherine did the work she brought along and I read the Times on my phone and amused myself. The day I can't enjoy myself sitting on a train next to a beautiful woman you can bury me. I can fly cross country on a plane and never get bored looking out the window.

We got to Montclair Heights and were met by Brianna and one of her friends and trekked to the studio on campus. My pics were first. I have never done anything like this. it was quite the production. Brianne had a whole crew working with her. She told me that they'd be a lot of fun and they were. There was no mirror and I had been wearing baseball cap and I asked if I should comb my hair. I couldn't see it. Brianne said no, "It's you." I am pretty sure that means I looked disheveled. My hair has always had a tremendous respect for entropy. Brianne channeled my mother and had to keep telling me to sit up straight. I got to do photographic geeking, the camera was a Hasselblod. and I pointed out that that was one of the cameras they took to the moon. When I had dream cameras that was one of them.

I'm not sure what I'm at liberty to discuss about the photos. Some were shall we say creative. The first set was portraits but then we got into the message she was trying to convey. I had to take my shirt off for some. Not only am a photographer's model I can truthfully say that I'm a topless model. Some parts reminded me of having x-rays taken I had to be very still. I have mastered that through too much experience. She made me feel incredibly at ease so I didn't worry about the thing that always gets me when being photographed my facial expression. I just acted naturally.

Next it was Katherine's turn. We both wore our work clothes but what Katherine wears performing is a bit more eye catching than what I wear teaching. She didn�t do topless. Somehow the universe continued to exist despite the incongruity of me being the one that went shirtless.

Not only can I now put photographer's model but I can add sound man on a photo shoot to my resume. There were pictures of Katherine drumming and she needed music to drum to. I had Bobtown's "Trouble I Wrought" on my phone and played songs from that.

After the shoot we got some group photos of the us with the crew and Katherine and I headed back to NJ Transit. Katherine had lots of heavy things so I helped her carry everything home. Yes she made it there on her own and yes she's fully capable of handling it but I'd have spent the night racked with guilt and miserable if I hadn't so in effect she did me the favor. Getting home from her house wasn't too bad except that I some got totally turned around and mixed up east and west and north and south. I will blame fatigue for my starting to walk in the wrong direction.

It was a long day, I got home at 1:30 but a fun one. I got to spend time with two of my favorite people and do things I don't normally do.

Today I need to shop and do laundry. That means getting out of bed and making breakfast. It's noon.


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Memories: Not that Horrid Song - May 29, 2018
Wise Madness is Now In Session - May 28, 2018
The NFL and the First Amendment - May 27, 2018
On The Road Again - May 26, 2018
Oliver the Three-Eyed Crow - May 25, 2018



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Horvendile October 01, 2013
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