And then I found myself running and running and I didn’t know why I was running and I was too frightened to look over my shoulder to see if I was being chased so I just kept on running and running.  I must have been running for miles because eventually I came to a cliff that was overlooking the ocean.  And on the edge of the cliff was this old wooden shack and there was smoke rising from the chimney.  So I had to turn around and keep running and running.  After a short while I then found myself standing in line at Costco and I couldn’t figure out how I ended up in this line.  It was a long line and everyone in front of me was using coupons so I panicked but I didn’t start running again.  This time I decided to order a quad espresso from Starbucks and then I came home and wrote this post.

Looking back on this, I can’t even be certain that I was actually running.  It may have all taken place inside of my head but I’m kind of tired right now so I don’t want to dwell on the past.

In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode that seeks to portray an individual’s point of view by giving the written equivalent of the character’s thought processes, either in a loose interior monologue, or in connection to his or her actions.

Fabio Cavassini created a slick little tool that will generate a very nice looking, embedded Flickr slideshow on your website.   As you can see from the example above (using my own Flickr feed, of course) it is a nicely packaged slideshow within an iframe.  I know from professional experience that many of you budding website designers struggle when it comes to working with images and slideshows so hopefully this little tool will help you in the future.  As a professional photographer I can tell you from firsthand experience that this little tool can make life a lot easier. It won’t take your crappy photos and make them nice but it will give you an easy way to share your crappy photos with the world.  Enjoy!

So what about you?  How are you doing?  You know that I am always interested in what you have to say even if it appears that I am ignoring you.

I don’t know, I think that I’ll be getting a new tripod for my camera soon and perhaps some additional strobes or flashes.  I haven’t decided yet.  I also need some new lenses but they are pricey so it’ll be a while before I get around to new lenses.  Now that I think about it, I could use some more radio triggers for my strobes.  Ugh, and I also need a new photo printer because the one I have now always has banding even though I have cleaned it and aligned the print heads.

Wow, now that I think about it there is a lot of camera gear that I need or could use.  Don’t even get me started on bicycle gear because that is a whole other animal.  At least when it comes to my current cycling needs it is a case of want and not a true need for anything.  But if I absolutely have to I can convince myself that I “need” a new bicycle.  But enough about me, what about you?  What do you need?  Is there anything that I can do for you?  Just ask.  I am here for you.  This is a two way street after all, I don’t want to come across as selfish or overbearing.  Talk to me.  Don’t hold it in.

Okay, I’ll back off for now.  Remember, Sunday is no longer the new Monday.  And black is always black.  There is no such thing as red or some other color being the new black.  And no, forty is not the new thirty.  It is what it is.

The highway stretched out in front of me for what seemed like forever but I was living life one mile at a time.  I remember that the moon was full and the sky was clear.  Mile after mile went by and there was no sign of another car in any direction.  I pulled into the rest area and realized that I was alone and in the distance we heard the howl of a lone coyote.  At that moment it hit me, I was free.  There was nothing left for me back there and I had my entire life ahead of me, wherever that might be.  I lit a cigarette and then grabbed a beer out of the bed of my truck and wandered out into the desert.  It felt good to be out here all alone.  Something told me that I should go back and lock the car but there was no sign of anyone else around and when I gazed out into the distance I didn’t see any headlights approaching.  Good enough for me.  On a night like this I knew that nothing bad could happen to me, I was untouchable.   Remember what Dostoyevsky said, “The secret of man’s being is not only to live but to have something to live for.”

Looking out over the bay, I can see several small boats being tossed about by the waves and the wind.  This is not a good day to be out on the water.  I’m playing it safe and will be sitting by the fireplace all day, sipping on hot coffee and listening to music.  If the mood strikes me, I may wander along the beach later today and see what the ocean has washed up on the shore.

Wait a minute, I don’t live on the coast anymore.   I’m actually going to be working all day.  Silly me.  Welcome to the beginning of another week.

And so the evening ended on a positive note as I crossed the parking lot and found my bicycle safely locked to the rack.

THE END