Tag: photography

Silent Voices - where I got to play a complete jerk. Conservatives would say this would influence me to become one.

Weigh-In Wednesday – All This, and More

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

For those who need to hear it – the nicest people generally get a lot more hardship thrown into their lives. It is one of the things that makes them the nicest people.

They know what it’s like to struggle. They’ve fought battles, and those battles have built their uncompromising character. They have empathy for the struggles of others because they’ve struggled, and don’t want to see others struggling. They have big hearts, and tend to be extremely generous because in the end everything they’ve fought through teaches them the most important things aren’t money, or material possessions, but love, and seeing those they love live fulfilling lives. They understand true morality isn’t found in a book of fables, but in the way you treat someone who can do nothing for you in return.

This concluded my text based, non graphical internet inspirational meme.

Pride - And my Views in Buffalo Rising

Weigh-In Wednesday – Walking The Line

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

No, the Red Party isn’t our local communists. Let’s be honest, most communists are only called communists because that’s how the conservative right wants to define anyone with socially altruistic ideals, and demonize them for it.  This Red Party is about  raising funds for local organizations that provide services to underrepresented populations in Buffalo, specifically women in situations that may prevent them from being able to afford, or procure sanitary products when necessary. This is actually a major problem for many populations, whether the women are members of refugee groups that make it to America with little more than the clothes on their back, homeless women trying to get by, or women escaping domestic violence relying on the help of others to figure out where to go next.

It is a serious social issue, and for women in these situations, it is a matter of healthcare, and dignity. 

Shaving a Bit Close to the Bone

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

When you’re at that age, so few people have the ability communicate such complex feelings; the dark, and dismal thoughts that you know won’t result in understanding, but a trip to the doctor, or worse. People only hear what they want to hear. You’re supposed to do what you’re told. You don’t often get options, and these days, what you get are a diagnosis, a label, and drugs. We understand more but everything is a diagnosis, and the end goal is to make everyone a “productive member of society” rather than a healthy person, who is right with him or herself. Suicide prevention is so often pasting a list of phone numbers on social media, when what people really need is empathy, listening, better healthcare, a hopeful future, love, and to know that they are important enough to others to get their time, their patience, and their best efforts at understanding each other. We’re told to take better care of ourselves: get a gym membership, eat healthier, drink 64-ounces of water every day! But no where in our society do we get told, you’re emotionally exhausted? Take a day off and nap, read a book, and talk to your friends – it’s ok! Feeling like you’re going to have a mental breakdown? Take time for yourself, and do something enjoyable. Focus on you, and what you need, not your job, or kids, or bills… it’s ok!

Weigh-In Wednesday: Still Recovering

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

It’s the end of an era. I bought that house in 2008 (the process started in the autumn of 2007) , and moved in shortly thereafter. It was a house, a meeting place, a home, an office, and a photography studio. With my technology business, we helped dozens of local businesses on their path to success, and modernization. We worked multi-million dollar projects for an international medical manufacturer, hosted technician training for their contractors, developed wireless network assessment calibration , and reporting techniques, and policies, software R&D for their products, and customer support, all while implementing their solutions at hundreds of hospitals across North America, and Australia. I hosted monthly networking meetings for over four years to bring Buffalo businesses, entrepreneurs, and clients together.  I designed creative photography concepts, and hosted collaborative photography sessions involving photographers, models, and other artists. That house saw fund raisers that raised thousands for organizations like the SPCA, Family Justice Center, and Buffalo Animal Shelter. I hosted marketing events for Xerox, and other local businesses. It saw mimosa Sundays, and New Year’s Day gatherings for friends. It hosted meetings for 48-Hour Film projects, and outdoor movie nights on the back deck. I raised chickens, and gardens, and provided a place for my kids to explore, be artistic, play games, and have fun. It gave a home to friends who needed a place to land, and most recently, Rika, who also needed a place to land. It experienced joy, and happiness. It experienced sorrow, and heartbreak…

Weigh-In Wednesday – Going to Heck

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

…in western cultures particularly, we have this perspective on monetary wealth, and prestige where we place those with money, and titles as being, in our minds, as more important. Hence, the wealthy can easily be forgiven in society for their transgressions. Catholic priests aren’t prosecuted for molesting children, because they hold some mystical prestige on our society’s mind, so they just get “relocated” while the church covers up  their transgressions. 

Weigh-In Wednesday – Progressive Thinking

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

The very notion of conservativism is based on fear: fear of change, and the fear of death, and with that, the desire to stop evolution in its tracks. They want time to stand still for them, not realizing that there are generations that exist, and will exist far beyond their own lifetimes, that depend on evolution. Conservatives want to restore some imagined past glory, but stopping evolution means cutting off our future.

Weigh-In Wednesday – It’s Only 10:00AM?

Posted on by Paul In The Buff

If your car is dark gray, and mostly covered in snow, congratulations! Your car is perfectly camouflaged for the environment you’re driving in, and could be nearly invisible to other drivers! Please turn on your lights. You’re not doing yourself any favors driving in stealth mode.