A Picture is Worth?

I wish we had been able to get picture CDs at Eckerd (kudos- otherwise, to the Eckerd at Memorial and Candler in Decatur-they do an EXCELLENT job with pictures and the lab tech is always very helpful, and it is inexpensive) but their machine was down when we went to get the pictures developed-so it is going to be more complicated than need be for everyone to see the pictures that I am going to talk about. But we got some pictures developed last week- two of the rolls turned out to be rolls of film Trey took with MY camera- so he wasn't able to screw them up by not focusing the camera or winding the film incorrectly.
That meant that they turned out VERY well. So well, in fact, that we had some of them blown up right then with the intentions of framing them and selling them. So he has nice 8" by 10" pictures, and I wish I could post them- perhaps later. At any rate- after we got the pictures blown up, we showed them to Daniel, who wanted one- with the blow up doll and the kudzu- and we went to Michael's and got frames and mats and I bought some frames myself for my own flowers on glass artwork. The upshot is that Trey is going to try selling some of his work in coffeshops and <> places, and I think we are going to try to get enough work together to have a booth at some different arts festivals- not Yellow Daisy because that's too $$$$ but perhaps Decatur, Oakhurst- Candler Park, Inman park, and I can sell flowerpots and paintings of flowers on glass, and those windows and he can sell his photography. Also Trey had a fit for reasons I still do not understand about whom he wanted to sell his art to and whom he wouldn't sell it to, something about how I was trying to control his artwork by insisting on selling it to my friends. Well, Daniel DID buy a piece of his work, and it wasn't a Pity Purchase, either- he should sell it to whoever will buy it. The more people that see it, the more that might buy it.

I had the most- well- astonishing sort of conversation with a lady in the German School parking lot Saturday- she saw my Bush sticker on my car and wanted to know how it was that I supported Bush. I was not expecting a political discussion at the moment and said something about how I thought he was a strong and principled leader and one could believe in what he says. He scares me, she responded, and asked, do you think it's right that we tell other countries what to do?
Of course, I said, they're nasty, brutal, repressive regimes.
He scares me, she repeated, and then-UNBELIEVABLY- went on to say- well, there are people fighting for those causes- so doesn't that make it right?
I was appalled- But the people in North Korea are forced to eat tree bark, I responded (the height of eloquence! not!) Well- she said, and then said that she thought that if that was what the people wanted that was what they should have-
But they DON'T want it, and that's the point the president was making, I said.
That more or less ended the discussion- it was very pleasant, I must say- but rather astonishing. It is exactly the equivalent of arguing that since people fought to keep slavery, they should be allowed to enslave others. This is a highly disturbing proposition for me; I, personally, am OVERJOYED every morning when hot water comes out when I turn the tap and will NEVER "get over" the fact that I live an absurdly luxurious lifestyle as compared with 9/10ths of the world's population. I would like to see as much of it spread around the world as possible- why isn't everyone entitled to it? Granted, that's something of a simplistic attitude, but surely we can help set some of the forces in motion to make that happen to some degree for all of the world. I believe that it starts with our moral leadership and our refusal to sanction dictatorships and oppression- at the very least, we can make the gesture.
But this is what disturbs me to some extent about certain aspects of the left- there's a certain aspect of underlying elitism in it- what's good for you and me is not necessarily good for Indigenous People Who Have Their Own Ways of Being which is a polite way of saying Benighted Blackamoor Who Couldn't Understand and We No Longer Wish to Take the Trouble to Educate. As I recall, there were a number of petitions sent round shortly after the Taliban took power in Afghanistan urging what action beyond signing the petition I am not sure, but the petitions were complaining about how bad the Taliban were, and I don't recall receiving any such from people I would consider Conservative. Of course not- no Conservative would really believe that signing a petition against the Taliban would make a difference. Yet when Bush sent forces into Afghanistan and actually DID something about the Taliban, I don't recall hosannas from the Left-
At any rate, I think that this windily gives some explanation for some of the reasons for our political divide- I welcome comments on this idea.

Then, on the other hand, there are idiots like Dr. Dobson, who seems to have alleged SpongeBob is gay- well, if he were gay, his boyfriend would be HOT, not a lumpy pink thing. His boyfriend would be a shark, or a manta ray, something sexy with a hint of menace. Apparently, though, Dr. Dobson was upset because SpongeBob is to appear in a video encouraging tolerance for others, even up to !sexual identity!
Based on Dr. Dobson's exhaustive research into the topic, I had to think about what cartoon characters in my past might have made me gay- this is in direct contrast to my mother's theory which is That Woman (Annie Lennox) made you - and she flaps her hand, because she can't bring herself to say the word-
Well, the cartoons I watched and loved were Scooby Doo- Ok, Velma and Daphne were obviously lesbians- Velma being the butch one, and Daphne being the lipstick one. Fred paid to watch them when they "split up"
The Jetsons: Mrs. Spacely was actually Truman Capote.
Duck Tales: Scrooge had "nephews" without mysterious parentage- and they were also Donald's "nephews" Scrooge was obviously the older rich man who kept Donald as his trick.
Gummi Bears: Gummi Berry Juice was a mixture of cocaine, poppers, and acid. The scenes of them voguing in drag were left on the cutting room floor.
Transformers: The Energon cubes the Decepticons were always after were actually robot- well, white, glowing, you figure it out.
Rocky and Bullwinkle: Puns galore, reedy voiced bosses (what about Dudley Do-Right's boss? Is he flaming or WHAT?) and Rocky and Bullwinkle- not only gay, but interspecies gay. Fairy tales-
Sesame Street- Why do you think Big Bird had an "imaginary" friend? The love that dare not speak its name! And a trunk, besides!
Lamb Chop's Play-Along- The woman had her fist up the puppets' rears. The joy of fisting.

Let's just not get into the whole deliciousness of Disney Villainesses- the best of all time being Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty. Show me the little boy playing house and making tea who doesn't want to grow up to be Maleficent and I will show you a Governor McGreevy in training.

If anyone else has any ideas about this, please share!