The Dangers of Selfies

It's really strange to find out what people do with the selfies we post on social networks. I usually only post selfies of my face because I'm self conscious. I post a lot of selfies though and I often think I shouldn't post any. A friend of mine photoshopped a couple of photos of mine without asking once. He changed my lipstick and hair color to pink. He made the other look like a character from Avatar. I liked what he did but it made me realize that people can take our photos and do whatever they want with them and we'd never know it. 

I was really creeped out when a man told me he was using one of my selfies as the background on his cell phone. I thought....why??? I'm not a model. I'm not famous. I don't think of myself as all that attractive. I kindly asked him to not use my photos for personal reasons and told me to, "take it up with Facebook".  That infuriated me. I blocked him. 

A while back a couple of men used my photos to make creative collages of my face with hearts and doves and crap.  They did so without my permission and I really didn't want my image in such unoriginal works of "art". 

Today I was shocked to discover a friend posted one of my selfies on his Twitter account. Once again, I though "why?".  This is a married man. I'm sure his wife would like to know "why?" as well. I'm hoping he meant to share a photo of Scottie's art and just chose the wrong image. 

All of this makes me realize that nothing we post belongs to us. Once it's public people think they can do what they want. They can photoshop our faces onto naked bodies or onto people doing questionable things. They can glorify, make fun of, or do nasty thinks with our images. Just think what all they can do with our words. 

More About Prince At Essence Fest

I was told by someone who had flown in from Oregon that her flight was full of people flying in to New Orleans to see Prince.  Their flight was delayed but at no time did anyone get upset.  They stayed calm.  :-)

Essence Fest with Prince

So, my sister and I went to see Prince at the Super Dome in New Orleans.  I still don't believe it finally happened.  I was in shock the whole time.

Janelle Monae was the opening act.  She was energetic, as usual.  What I noticed about her mostly is that the girl can sing.  I really had no idea.  Prince joined her playing his guitar when she did Let's Go Crazy.

Doug E Fresh was the emcee between acts.  He played old school hits.

Then, Nile Rodgers played.  He was in the disco band, Chic.  Interestingly, my parents tried to get into disco once and bought one of their 8 tracks.  I had memorized it as a kid.  He played some of that.  Apparently, the man has produced and written a whole lot of music, in which he played.  It included Let's Dance by Bowie.  Prince joined him on that one. He's written a lot of damn songs (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nile_Rodgers).  Rodgers seemed humbled and grateful about the whole thing.  He was joined on stage by two women with awesome voices.  I think one was a member of Sister Sledge and the other a member of Chic.  Forgive me for not knowing.

The night was all about recognizing writers of original music obviously.  When Prince came out, he announced he had (14,17 I don't recall specifically) hit songs and he was going to play them all.  He has more hits than that and he didn't play them all.  I was saddened by this at first because I'm a fan of his B sides and earlier 70's music before the 1999 album. I almost fell out of my chair when he played Controversy (one of  my favs).  He also did Little Red Corvette which thrilled me as that is the song that made me fall in love with him.  I damn near cried when he did Sometimes It Snows In April as that song has significance to me.  He didn't play instruments all that often.  His singing was stellar, though.  He played the guitar solo to Purple Rain.  It was a religious experience.  He also did Nothing Compares to You and songs he's written for other people such as The Time. He let it be known he wrote them. 

What Was

I want to write through you, for you, into you, onto you.
I want your words to write through me.
I want to write with you on the floor
with spread out magazines and open

cd cases and Hendrix and patchouli flowing

around us and through us.

I want to hear you in the next room
strumming your guitar so quietly

that I'm not sure you're really there.

I want to hear you singing with the Black Crowes

when you think no one is listening.

I want to catch your hair on fire
while lighting your cigarette.

I want you to walk through the room
and not be transparent,
not be just a scent,
a memory,
a trace of something
that once was.

I want to wake up from dreams of you
to find you really there
breathing your slow breaths,

your skin so white
and inked
with imprints of my lips.

I want to dig you up,

hold your bones,
to prove you exist
somewhere

instead of captured inside

a skull that ages and forgets

what was.

kmt 7/9/14

No More Cliches by Octavio Paz

http://m.poemhunter.com/poem/no-more-clich-s/

Patterns And Time

All things can be proven or disproven with time. Well, not all things, but patterns are. 

Another start

So, this is where I'm going to try blogging. Again.