No 6. The Upskirt Shot

"I wonder," I thought. "Is a provocative title for a post more likely to attract the wrong sort of surfer, or will it lead to fame, infamy and fortune?"   Let's find out !

Today's slide is a beauty, and as is traditional, it raises more questions than answers.  The two obvious questions for me - "Why?" and "What?"    Specifically, why was it taken, and what is that on the left-hand wall. To me, it looks like a feeding hatch big enough for a tray. Is Cousin Hunch Addams locked in a room, fed daily via the hatch, and scaring the neighbours with his unwordly moaning all night.   Could be !

So You want to work for us ?

"Come on in, sit down, and tell me why we should employ you."

Ah yes, the excitement of the job interview. Or at least that's what I think this photo is for. Why else would someone take a picture of the world's most depressing office manager, in the world's most depressing office? Not only is he so important that he doesn't have a telephone, but he does warrant an ash tray.  His biggest worry is whether he can stay awake from 9 to 5...if he doesn't, it's likely his eyes will be skewered on the two pens.  Nice !

NB : All slides deteriorate over time, and some worse than others. This slide was very faded, and had a strange red cast, so apologies for the not-great quality.

A Trip to the Sea

An earlier posting today, due to my forthcoming Bar-B-Q (you are coming, aren't you?), so keeping in the mood of summer and get-togethers...

Ah, some things don't change. A nice relaxing trip to the sea-side, with just a few friends. The bracing smell of the ozone. The healthy UV rays of the sun. The skimpy bikinis of the young moms, in competition with their precocious daughters. At least the photographer managed to squeeze a little of the sky into the shot.

Would make ideal Xmas present...

Christmas morning, and a boy's first instinct is to rush downstairs, check under the Christmas Tree, and see what Santa's brought him.  He unwraps it carefully, hardly daring to imagine that he's really got what he asked for.  

At last, the wrapping is off. It IS a small wardrobe.    Or a small display case for...umm...something.  Or perhaps a gun cabinet that's easily broken into. Or a gimp-store. Hmm. Santa does know best.

And best off all, Donner (or is it Blitzen?) is still up on the wall from last year.

Two Creepy Daughters

One of these girls grew up to be a happily married home-maker, and member of the local church's Women's Guild.

The other murdered her parents with a food blender before strangling her pet puppy, and was kept in solitary confinement for 32 years.

Can you you figure out which one is the mass murderer?

( Warning. The preceding comments may contain up to 100% of supposition and invention.)

Street Scene with Mommas in Black.

So many questions, so few answers.  Who, what, where and when? are the obvious ones.

To me, I suspect "other people at a parade", "ditto", "Spain" and "The 1960's", but I really don't know.  People need a little uncertainly in their lives.

Raindrops and...blood?

But not every slide is a picture of people. Oh no; a majority are scenic reminders of where the last holiday was, and a vast majority of those are basically dull.  DULL, TEDIOUS and BORING. Don't worry, I'll post some in a few days.

But every so often, I find a few that are just...  well... artistic. For example, the one above. Why it was taken is a mystery. Pretentions of artyness?  A students portfolio ? A trial of a new lens ?  Who knows.  But...that's the wonder of randomness.

The Mushroom Hunters

What's fun about this hobby is that you generally know nothing about the story behind the picture. Sometime you know when te slide was processed, and occassionally there will be a few words scrawled on the slide. And that's it.

So your brain starts looking for clues, making stories, trying to make sense.  On the slide above, I'm guessing that they're out collecting wild mushrooms...gumboots, baskets, woodland. Yes, it seems likely.   And yet, some people seem not to be dressed for a day in the country. Were they kidnapped by an errant band of mycologists ?  Have they been over-indulging in 'shrooms already.

If you have a better theory, please...speak up !

It's Wild !

Yes, it's every mother's nightmare - a stuffed buffalo is terrorizing the kids, and Mom just has to leap in to protect them.   It's difficult to begin to analyse what's wrong with this picture.  The stuffed buffalo seems to be made from an old carpet, while Mom's hat is just plain wrong. How about the two-headed calf? And yet, there's something about the daughter's polka dot blouse and shorts combo that is oddly endearing.   The picture was taken at Hulstead's Wall Drug Store - a truly odd roadside attraction in South Dakota. Very odd.

Uncle Billy Goes Native

It's easy to sneer...I know, I've been doing it for years... but why do some of these people take pictures ?   Here Uncle Billy had travelled south to Mexico for his prescriptions, and must have been slipped a hit of Peyote. So what does his caring wife do?  Gives him the old horse blanket and a daft hat, and persuades him to act like a complete pillock.   I only wonder why Billy didn't just burn the slide when it came back from Kodak.  (But, he'd get his revenge later...)

The Blog Begins

First post, so I'd better explain.  I Buy Slides.  35 mm slides from years ago.   Why ?  Well, someone has to. When Great Uncle Fred shuffles off his mortal coil, and the kids descend on the house to clear it and sell it, no-one wants a collection of random, old, unwanted slides, so they're chucked. Or sometimes sold.

I want them.  Correction, I want some of them. Some of the slides are so evocative of the era, especially if I have no clue of the story behind them, or the subjects.  So, me and some buds will meet every so often, crack open a few bottles of wine, and spend the night sneering at these ghosts from the past.

For example, the slide above. Who are they ?  Are they middle-aged swingers, or are they off to a prayer meeting?   Which gal is the guy married to?   Am I the only one who suspects that Doris (on the far left) is completely naked under that trench-coat?   Feel free to speculate...