Down in Denver, down in Denver
All I did was die
-The Masterful Jack K.
Yeah, so life goes on and shit. Went by the textbook exchange place today to take this computerized aptitude test or something. Everybody was at some holiday luncheon, though, including the human resources people, so I’m going back tomorrow. They seem to be a pretty cool company always looking for people, so maybe with a little luck they can find something for me to do. Hopefully with the option of doing overtime.
A little earlier tonight I set up a basic studio arrangement in the basement to take some Polaroids of my beloved Linhof 4×5. It has served me well and I wish I could keep it forever, but the general unavailability of replacement and explansion parts and accessories, and the absurd collector-driven prices of those things when they do show up on the used market mean that it’s time to move on to another system. A used Sinar P seems to fit the bill. All geared movements, rock fucking solid, and the used market is absolutely saturated with Sinar gear now, meaning I can get some good deals. I’ll be able to sell my Linhof for at least $1,200, and for that price I should be able to pick up a used Sinar P (not P2, as a P2 would cost about 5x as much with essentially no big improvement over the P) and some extras, perhaps even a lens and a couple lensboards and an extension rail, for about $1,200-1,400. I just need a system that I can get accessories and expansion pieces for when I need them. And not only is the used market saturated with Sinar gear, but it’s also the single most readily-available brand when it comes to rental equipment. So if I find myself on a shoot somewhere and need an additional bellows, standard, and extension rail for some macro work, it would be very doable to rent those things. On the other hand, if I were shooting with a newer Linhof or Arca Swiss (both excellent brands), it would be almost impossible to dig up rental equipment.
So here’s something I don’t think I’ve written about here before. Something very, very interesting has started happening with my dreams. I’ve begun to dream in specific styles. That is to say, some of my dreams look like a specific kind of film (ie film noir) or like a specific kind of anime. And when my dreams look like a specific anime, it really looks like the actual animation and not something translated into more reality-based forms. Last night I dreamed in the style of Cowboy Bebop. Complete with the music and everything. Night before I had two dreams – one that looked like film noir and one that looked like Serial Experiments Lain. For a big visual junkie like me, this is mind-blowingly cool. Granted, my dreams have always been like going to the movies every night, but this is a step up from that, even.
And yes, I know, having anime dreams is probably like the last sign of the otaku or something, but oh well. Usually it’s just a dream that looks like a particular anime, and doesn’t actually pertain to the anime itself in terms of people in the dream or events that take place. Once in a while I’ll have a dream, though, that actually does fit in with the characters and premise of a particular anime. Again, call me a big fat lifeless geek, but they totally rock. I mean, why wouldn’t it totally kick ass to have a dream where you’re a character in someting like Evangelion or Love Hina? I dig it.
Finally, if anybody is looking for ideas for a last-minute birthday or Christmas present for me, this would be nice. And one of these to put it on. Yes, it is appropriate to laugh. You can laugh at the prices, anyway. The gear itself is to be considered all-holy and any laughing in the direction of that beautiful Zeiss glass will result in being pummeled with worthless APS cameras.
