Day VII

Returning from an impromptu visit to London and Reading at the weekend, today thrust me back into the blog with all the force of an arthritic grandmother of 6 ... a bit like my grandmother really.

It had to happen sooner or later, and despite the notable distraction of a headline in The Guardian involving the positively alluring topics of Scientology AND Nazism, I still couldn't resist going with the Daily Mail!

My truly ironic 'love-affair' with the Daily Mail is well publicised, primarily by myself but, I was told it would be appearing in a comedy show at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival by William Hanmer-Lloyd entitled "All Daily Mail writers must die!" after telling the man himself the hilarious anecdote of Daily Mail Danger: one man's battle against pensioners; time; and, in the secondary (Double Danger) and conculding (Do or Die) of the DMD Trilogy, all conceivable odds.



Today's photograph is the first to be available in Gert Lush High Resolution, innit? (I believe we have already established that it is.) Be warned, it is larger than the entire of Staffordshire but, this burgeoning increase in resolution should allow those who wish to read what is on the door the opportunity to do so!

Today's headline, as has already been mentioned is courtesy of the Daily Mail and concerns Home Secretary Jacqui Smith and the issues of Law and Order (not the long-running American crime drama shown on Channel 5 after people have switched off following the conclusion of C.S.I. Grimsby), as well as the far more important issues of Kebab Shops; what she eats and with whom.

The headline, trimmed slightly of extra words, reads: "Home Secretary admits streets are not safe." although the lack of direct quotations within the Mail's sensational headline (and subsequent article) indicates that it is unlikely she actually said that and the whole thing based in a Kebab shop in Peckham has been blown out of proportion like a deformed balloon filled largely with hot air.

Today's location is in honour of these take-away origins of the whole story and is Captain Cod, a local Fish and Chip providing establishment. Sadly they don't wrap fish and chips in Newspaper anymore, absorbing grease is one of few suitable purposes for the Daily Mail!

A(nother) totally irrelevant (surely not!) aside from my weekend away takes the form of this charming blog: It isn't serious; it isn't really related to Photography either but, in bringing it to you within days of it's foundation, I am showing you something from the cutting edge! You saw it here first: Animals in Suits.

Day III

Responding to what Tom and head-honcho Hugh (if this were an English project I could have hit the Amazing Arizona All-Star Alliteration ... err, Bonus) put forward after the first couple days of door based bloggery, I have today started trying to link my photographs with the news in a visual way. This may not always be feasable due to, amongst other things, the logistical concerns involved with moving a door that weighs nearly as much as I do around using just my own limited physical strength, but I will be trying!

Today's news story is brought to you fresh from the environmentally conscious pages of The Guardian and reads as follows: "F.B.I. wants instant access to British identity data."

With this story it is fairly obvious that the underlying issue is with crime; the targetting of criminals and international crime, no doubt placed under the umbrella (ella ella ella eh eh eh) of Terrorism. I'm going to risk life and limb to make the presumption that the F.B.I. want to be able to access the data of known or suspected criminals and not just everybody including, but not strictly limited to my Nan who; unless she has been secretly wiring her pension funds to Al Qaeda is of no more interested to the Bureau than her rants about the youth of today and their taste in clothing and music are to me!

With at least parts of that in mind; to bring some relevence to my scene I decided to bring along one of my many commendeared pieces of signage; this one with the greatest of irony warns thieves of new crime-preventing technology!

Today's location was also chosen with some consideration of my news story; a dark, somewhat clandestine industrial building under lights after the darkness of night has ensconced (alright Thesaurus, that's enough from you!) all around. I felt the unavoidable inclusion of my own shadow from the bright light illuminating the scene actually aided the criminal element, my shadow imposing on the scene like a miscrient youth on the elderly at a bus stop ...