Lights, Camera, Showoff!

I thought I would play around with lighting and LifeCam today with the idea of maybe doing something a little fashionable. I didn't accomplish that but I did learn a few tricks. For example the makeup look I use day to day, even the dramatic one, just disappears in artificial light and CCD chip. So I did some touching up and was none too shy about it. Here's a sample of things to come!

Guilty!

I have not done anything on my blog  for a week!  I apologize to those who actually give a shit and make my apology.  Mea culpa. Truth is this body, this piece of flesh and blood I call home has been giving me fits lately.


We've all had our moments.  A bit too much to drink..  Our boy friend or girl friend gives us a shove and we're on our way to terra firma!  What I have isn't like that.  It's worse.  Life keeps throwing things at me and I keep dodging them but once in a while it lands a blow.  That's what happened on April 18.  I went to see a neurologist because I've been having syncopal events which means I have sudden loss of consciousness.  These are accompanied by convulsions.  My neurologist told me I have epilepsy.  All this has scared the hell out of me!  I'm starting to get used to the idea.  Hopefully it can be controlled by medication and possibly by tweeking the many meds I already take, it may go away all together.

In the meantime, I'll go back to being the little Darkling I've always been.  Hopefully I'll be up a tree by next Friday and back to the Cat Club that night.


Oh yea, I decided on tree # 1  

Location Scouting in Colma

Hard as I try there are times when I just can't avoid going out in direct sunlight. Scouting locations in cemeteries is one of those occasions. So while I was slathering on sunscreen this morning I noticed the zinc oxide in the lotion gave me a nice pallid complexion. Then an idea came to me. Set this stuff with translucent powder and you've got an SPF 30 foundation!  I did and managed to maintain my deathly color all day.

I mentioned a few days ago that I wanted to do a Goths Up Trees photo to submit for publication.  Points are scored for appearance, where it was shot, time of day as well as the subjective tastes of the blog owner.  Hey, it's his blog.  He can do what he damn well pleases!  That's the beauty of blogging.

For costume, I plan to wear a skirt, fishnet stockings and high heel boots which will add points for being able to climb a tree so attired.  Height is another factor but one that can be diddled with by camera position.  Big bonus points if you do it in a graveyard at night or near night.  My goal in scouting was to find a tree in a graveyard that I could climb in skirt and heels while the sky is darkening.  So, I needed tombstones in the background and a camera angle facing east. This was more difficult than I expected.  I scanned over the Italian Cemetery but found nothing suitable.  Then I went to Jewish cemetery, Hills of Eternity and found a couple of trees I thought might work.  One even had a handy sarcophagus underneath to help me into the tree.  I decided not because desecration of Jewish cemeteries has been a problem, not in Colma, but still I didn't want to upset anyone.  That left me with my favorite bone orchard, Cypress Lawn It's larger and older than some of the others and designed in the late 19th century when large, park like cemeteries were in vogue.  There I found several trees easy enough to climb with the right background with the proper camera angle.

Please vote for the tree you would most like to see me in.  Leave your vote in comments!

Tree 3

Tree 1

Tree 2

Tree 4

Dark, Sick, Twisted

I belong to a Facebook group called Love Your Liver. It's a place for people that are involved in the transplant world to support each other. At times it's difficult for me because there's a fair amount of praying as well as Christian imagery in some of the posts. While I have a spiritual practice it's Pagan and I identify with the ancient Egyptian pantheon and feel a special connection with the Goddess Bastet. But I ramble... April was National Organ Doner Month, a campaign to get people to become organ doners at lifes end. A worthy cause indeed but me, being dark, sick and twisted immediately thought of Monty Python's The Meaning of Life and it's segment titled Live Organ Doners. I've restrained myself there but, hey, this is MY blog and I can do any damn thing I want! This is pretty graphic in a way only MP can be. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- - -

Live from the Fabulous Cat Club - Dark Shadows

This place is truly fun!  Sort of like a really good Halloween party.   From a woman whereing a cape, a belt, a Darth Vader helmet and nothing else!  Complete with a platoon of storm troopers.  Most women are wearing very skimpy outfits, showing lots of flesh and you don't have to be a stick insect.  My only regret is I didn't bring someone with me.

The Hut of Baba Yaga

Call me lazy. You won't be the first. I did say as part of my series of dark classics I would find a video of this.
 



If you watch no other videos today you must watch this one. It's short,  about 2 and a half minutes but very clever.