Gay Jail

"For at least three decades, gay and transgender inmates had their own housing unit inside Rikers Island's sprawling jail complex. To be admitted, all a new inmate had to do was declare homosexuality, or appear to be transgender, and ask to be kept out of Rikers's main jails." [via The New York Times]

A gay jail. I could be wrong, but I think I've seen a couple of movies like that. If I remember, even the warden got in on the action.

Travis

I missed this -- Travis Ruse, New York photoblogger, was in The Times.

Take a look at this image. I shot it last winter.

Then go to http://jordancarlyle.com/ and click on portfolio number two. Look at the third image down.

Look familiar?

Just in case it doesn't, I cropped the photo I took.

I only noticed the image because I received the following e-mail, with a cropped copy of my image attached:

From: "JORDAN CARLYLE"<jordan@jordancarlyle.com>
To: me
Subject: I had a question
Date: Thu, 29 Dec 2005 16:44:46

Hey Eric,

I would first like to start off by saying I think you site is great. I am a college student studying architecture. well I came across you website a while and back and have been checking it out for a while. and one day I came across you're the photo of the sticks...I think that It is so cool. I have for many years collected pictures and have had them print really large on my dorm room wall. I tried to do the same with this one.but noticed that the PICS image size was only 1" by 1". I was really hoping that you would let me have the picture at a bigger size.so that I can add it to my collection of pictures. I really do admire your work.. I hope you realize I am not trying to steal it from you and say its mine. I swear. I just want to print it really large.. Well I hope this email finds you well..keep up your good work.. Can't wait to hear back from you. take care.

Jordan Carlyle

Mr. Carlyle claims to be an architecture student as well as the Director of Creative Touching. Busy man.

He can also add shameless image thief to his curriculum vitae. It takes real balls to steal another person's photo, sign your name in the corner, then ask the person from whom you have stolen for the full-res image.

Mr. Carlyle is lucky he lives far, far away from New York.

French

Can someone please tell me why random French people are sending me instant messages?

It is starting to freak me out.

POTD

Self portrait.

click for high-res

By most standards, this has been a weird year. I'm really looking forward to a better one in '06.

Rant

Wow -- good rant from Joel Spolsky.

Top Fiddy

Top 50 music videos of '05. Cool.

POTD

click for high-res

My friend bought a new digital camera this week. He seems to like it so far, with the exception of noise in the images.

After he mentioned this, I started thinking how much I like noise. With film, I preferred TRI-X to T-Max. With digital cameras, I often add noise back into the image in post processing.

Grain or noise gives depth to images. Like fog, it makes the atmosphere part of the photo. Completely noiseless images, to me, seem odd, unsettling. Feel the noise. Love the noise. Bring the noise.

Quarlo

Quarlo's photos are so good. Intriguing. They draw me in.

AOL

'06 Predictions:

"AOL, after months of extensive market research on the effects of the walled garden model on the distribution and consumption of interactive media, will rotate its logo by another 90 degrees. Chairman Dick Parsons will boast that the new logo “reflects the new direction of our company,” but founder Steve Case will make an impassioned plea in the New York Times to break up the logo into a circle and three triangles."

Updates

...And speaking of moving, it is always nice when software actually gets better over time. In the process of migrating, I updated a few 'blogs from MovableType 3 to 3.2. Lots of nice changes, and I was able to do the whole installation and upgrade without dropping to a shell. Good stuff.

Additionally, I had to change the DNS records for bitpuddle.com, requiring me to log into Network Solutions' site. That, too, was nicer than I remember. Clear, simple steps, no wacky password problems, etc...

Moving

It is moving day. I just started the painful process of moving bitpuddle.com to another host. All the data was migrated, but if you get weird bounces, this is what is up.

POTD

click for high-res

I'm glad you are back.

Lie

The U. Mass student who said he was visited by DHS agents after requesting a copy of Mao's "Little Red Book" made the whole thing up.

Weak.