I'm not saying

that i'm coming back to it, because really, i'm not. But there have been a few notes and visits and messages along the way that caught my attention.

One factoid that may or may not be of interest to folks who check back from time to time for the hell of it, is that the number of hits has only decreased by maybe 20 in a week which doesn't make any difference really to me. 100 hits in a week, goes down to 75, and I still think it's the same thing. If it was 10,000 hits in a week, well. Then maybe I wouldn't have put the dTown thing on the skids. But it was interesting to see, a month later and the viewership is basically the same. (painfully low and discouraging)

That said, I'll say this. I've also kind of stopped taking pictures. It's an interesting phenomenon. For instance, I'll be walking along, same as always. Camera at my right hand side there in the little water bottle pouch on my backpack. I still carry a back pack just so there's a pocket with the camera in it. Even if i've got nothing else to carry. I mean, sure. There's dental floss inside the bag. There's a pair of tweezers in the bag. There's a ziploc bag of nicotine patches in there, in case i want to really step up the intake. There's some of those chewable pink bizmuth tabs in there, for those times you get caught short and need the cork. I've got glitter for sprinkling on dogshit found on the sidewalks. Those things are always in the bag. So i guess it's like a purse. But certainly not enough stuff to warrant a back pack.

Well i'll be walking along, and i'll see something that i would normally have to take a picture of, and i'll look at it. I'll absorb the information, and I'll say to it, "fuck you". And I'll start walking. And what's funny is, when i look at the little bit of street art, or the little bit of Urban Irony, and no sooner do the words tumble from my lips, or at the very least, my mind's lips, then i think of Kevin Bacon. And i say again to myself or out loud, "fuck you too." And then the waves of rage splash over me, and still I walk.

So, i'm guessing something got broken. Some little connection in my mind no associates the things that I used to enjoy with the phrase, "fuck you" which of course reminds me of this fella, Holden Caulfield, from the olden days. You know the bit about "there's always someone writing fuck-you on the walls..." And all of these things go through my mind in a matter of seconds, and I ask myself a few paces later, "Jesus dTown. What the hell was that all about?"

Anyway, even with all the Fuck You's flying around in my brain over it, i'll come home time and again, and dump the card from my camera, sure as hell that i haven't even turned it on in weeks, and i'll be damned, but there's always a hundred or so new pictures on that card. So the pictures are still "getting took" even when i'm consciously trying not to. But i can think of several that i KNOW i didn't take, and that isn't as satisfying as i thought it would be, but it shows there's some control somewhere. Something is in my hands. I am deciding for myself about something

So i'm at this party the other night, and this Vet from Iraq rolls up, and he says he's seen every picture on my site, and how he's been following along for years. Loves the stuff, but wants to know why i drive a Mercedes. Why don't i drive an American Car?

Well. That's easy, but I think he was hitting at something else. There's a bit of the Buy American that gets instilled in a man serving the country, and i understand and respect that, but I don't think that means I want to Buy American. First off, Mercedes makes a nice car. I can't think of any nice American ones. I mean, you can go on about your muscle cars. Sure. there's nice ones. But they don't handle. they drink gas. They're over valued. They're fucking BIG and a pain in the ass to park. The interiors are poorly crafted. The carpeting is as cheap as can be found. And these days, even the american cars are made somewhere else, and in the end Mercedes is made by Chrysler.

But the real reason i drive a mercedes? (well. i don't drive it. it's been sitting under a tree in long island for 5 years now) But if i did drive it, why would i drive it? Well. I OWN it. And it only cost about $2400 when I bought it. And i guess it's nice looking.

Anyway, in talking with him he was telling me how i HAVE to keep doing it. The website i mean. And as he was saying the words, i flashed on how many times i've heard that from people since i stopped. (Quite a few actually) Thing is, i don't HAVE to do a damned thing.

Today i went to that Elbow Toe /dFace/ You Name it hoooze hoo on Spring and Elizabeth, you know, the 4 story Street Art Extravaganza. I saw more "danconnortown" style photographs being taken by more people than i'd seen street art altogether in the past 4 years. Everyone with some sort of 600 to 3200 dollar digital camera. It was like Japanese Tourists outside of a Hello Kitty Store in Manhattan circa 2003. So i know the torch is being carried. They can't ALL be bad pictures. I mean, everyone's shooting the same god damned thing. And then, i caught myself doing it too.



Which was funny. I was suddenly the ironic element of my own photography.

Circle the wagons boys, thars injuns in them thar hills.

I saw a video tonight, it's an episode of doctor phil, and he has the "bum fights" guy on. And he's basically kicking the guest off his own show. Which is stupid. If you don't know anything about what your guest does, at least have the courtesy to hear him out, he might have something interesting to say. What i thought was interesting came in a few points.

A. he had shaved his head out, male pattern balding style. That's funny.
B. he said he'd made literally MILLIONS off of the whole Bum Fight business.
C. his points although brief, were all completely valid.
D. he handled his dismissal all wrong.
E. he had a golden opportunity to turn that whole thing around, and blew it.

I saw another little tidbit the other day, about this same sort of thing. The whole, Girls Gone Wild empire, BangBus, all that kind of crap. It's true. People love it. It sells better than the real deal. Better than what's really going on in the world. It's old news. it's not a new discovery, but as time goes by I'm always amazed that it still holds true. This guy had figured out that a blip about a blown sphincter made his website go monster, almost overnight. With a diagram to back it up.

That's the kind of stuff that makes me realize i'm just barking up the wrong tree. If i had a video of a girl crapping in a hot tub on my site, I could probably get pepsi to sign up as a sponsor. I'd blow up to 100,000 hits overnight. Go figure.

Well. I thought about it. I don't wanna. that's not how i want to do it. I was surprised to see a fellow who had served in Iraq that was familiar with my work, on account of the subversion. I would think that my site would have been blocked. So, Thank you George Bush. I guess you're okay after all. What the hell did I know?

And for any of you cats over there in Iraq, well, anywhere abroad for that matter under the current administration's orders, I'm with you. You're doing what you gotta do, and you know now that you were lied to, like the rest of us, but i appreciate you're accepting the consequences of those decisions you made when you thought it was all about "finding" those responsible for 911. Your hearts were in the right place. You were young still, and didn't get the whole story. Now you know. I want you to know that here stateside, nothing has changed. People still like poopoo cucka jokes. Bums fighting is funny, and hummers are still selling like hot cakes. Gas is still cheap, and now you know exactly why that is. Thank you.

I'm wearing one sock right now. Thought i had a splinter in my foot, but can't seem to find it. you know, in that crease at under the knuckle of the big toe. Gets my attention from time to time, but there's nothing there. Plus i'm out of cigarettes.

I'm going back to california on tuesday morning. Gonna stay there for a minute. try and recalibrate the ol' brainstem. When i get back, it'll be a new year, and maybe i'll try a different approach.

And when i come back i'll tell you what i thought of that new Christian Hosoi movie i saw. I really liked it. I can tell you that. Brought me back. Sometimes i'd like to go back. A lot of people say they'd never do it again, being a teenager. I'd do it. Why the hell not? So i'll tell you about that when i come back. I'll tell you my headphone story too. Had another Great Skullcandy / SkullCrushers episode. Every now and then you will run into someone working away at a company, and they'll surprise you with their understanding of The Right Way to do business with people.

And i'll tell you what i think of the new photoshop CS3. Which i like. and you should try it out yourselves.

For now? I'm going to go lay down on that bed. If i can make it through one more day, I get to go west. So just keep me off the tracks for 32 hours, and it will all be better.

I miss you too.

danconnortown | listening to Regina Spektor | 51˚