June 22, 2004

The Mahtay Mississipp: A Stolen Picture.

An old man contemplating the Mahtay Mississipp, er, the Mississippi River, Cape Girardeau, Missouri. This is what I like to think of as a Stolen Picture. I turn off the sounds and focus-assist and flash on my camera and steal pictures of old men looking at rivers (I have more from Paducah, Kentucky), of men with babies, people's bare or sandaled feet, cool tatoos, big hairstyles at the Hon Fest, nice couples, etc. My Stolen Pictures are of people or things who have no idea that I am taking their candid pictures at all. I like to think of these photos as capturing the small and random things that I notice without corrupting them. This is not, however, peeping. None of my Stolen Pictures are of people in the potty or up ladies' skirts, or of people in dressing rooms. That's not my game, man. Not at all. That's nothing interesting or hard to notice -- and thereby worth stealing a picture of -- anyway. That I leave to dirtier men than me. I have a lot of Stolen Pictures to post, including a recent one of a kitten asleep in Makanda, Illinois and one of my parents in Baltimore, Maryland. My wife's favorite picture of my brother and his girlfriend is a Stolen Picture from New Year's Eve. These will get posted when my new domain and host are all set up. Shortly, I hope.

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