[Leica] Conformity in Athens NOW BEING A SHOOTER!

[tedgrant at shaw.ca (Ted Grant)]

B. D. Colen said:
Subject: RE: [Leica] Conformity in Athens NOW BEING A SHOOTER!


> People's view of what that life is like reminds me of the view people
> have of my traveling as a reporter....Wow! You got to go to Amsterdam
> for 10 days? Wow -<<<<<<,

Hi B.D.,
Same here... "Are you ever lucky going to the Olympics, I bet you had a lot
of fun watching the games!" "Yeah right at 4 a.m.! waiting for swimming to
start at 10 a.m. ! :-(

And it doesn't matter where you go on assignment it's the same thing...
"WOW! Man are you ever lucky to go with the Prime Minister to Paris!"  Yeah
right again! :-(

The plane lands, you're first off to get the glad hand arrival pictures, you
jump in the crew car and are whisked off to where the first meeting in three
countries and you have to be where he's going before he gets there... more
meet and greet hand shake pictures. Inside to wait for the VIP's to sit down
at the round table, more pictures and out the door to the waiting room where
you have a pee and coffee and wait until the meetings over. More hand shake
stuff, out the door back into the cars to airport and off to another
continent and the same routine!

Oh yeah we had a neat time in Paris! I had a cup of French coffee, a pee and
some cookies! :-)

How about in the really good old days when a magazine photo editor would
call and say... "You and Bob are leaving for Paris Monday evening from
Montreal, arrive at dawn Tuesday Paris time, go to the hotel clean - up and
shoot right away until about supper time. Finish the shoot Wednesday morning
and catch the 1 pm flight back to Montreal!"

And with an over the phone you knew he was being smirkingly sarcastic
with... "Oh ya and behave yourself with those French girls!"  Like yeah
right, and when the hell was there going to be any "fun time?" ;-)

People who travel only on their holidays do not relate to the fact that we
work when we are on the road as they only think "holiday time."  When in
fact we work harder on assignment in foreign locations than we do in our
home cities. Different bed, different food, different climates and people
customs. Thieves and hookers constantly. ;-) Well I don't mean we partake of
thievery or hookers, they're just a pain in the ass bugging you all the
time. :-)

My wife was a nurse and responsible for the main raising of our children,
while I of course had nothing but fun with my Leicas bouncing about the
world. Well that's what many of the nurses and neighbours thought.
Irene was always plagued with the question "don't you go with your husband
when he travels to all those wonderful places in the world? Boy I'd never
let mine go without me."  In complete exasperation one day she came up with
her standard answer when asked the dumb ass question.

" No! Do you go to work with your husband every day?" She even had one
person say to her... "oh you mean he works when he's taking pictures?" ;-)
Yep there really are some pretty stupid people on this planet of ours. :-)

So B.D. you and others on this list who travel in their profession can
relate to this very easily.:-)

ted