Goddamn do these prints look slick. They're printed on a professional quality EPSON on heavy watercolor paper. They're matted and behind glass in metal frames… For anyone that gets to see them in the next few days, I think you'll be very impressed. All that's left to do is to have Phil sign them.
If there's an interest, we could auction some interesting things… how about a couple of one-off art prints, signed by the photographer? How about a pre-master DVD from the ModCon book? (It's just an idea, so don't quote me yet.)
So it turns out Central Corvette did have a mirror afterall, so I whipped up there (it's about a forty minute drive) only to find out that while they had the mirror, they didn't have the mounting hardware. So I put that on order (it's all of $2.00, but because it's discontinued, it has to be ordered from the US), as well as a pair of sidepipes.
On my way home, I find myself passing through one of Toronto's few black suburbs — not a Jamaican community like where I've lived before, but black in the African American sense of the word. Now, I don't know if tattooed guy in an old Vette screams out “here's a piece of white trash to fuck with”, but that's certainly the effect it had. What I'm about to describe was happening only to me as far as I could tell. (I had similar stuff happen to me in Quebec, thanks to having Ontario plates, but that's another story).
It was stop and go traffic with moments of open space. Whenever I was trapped inbetween cars, black guys, most of them in import racers, would pull up beside me and rev their engine as if they wanted to race and look over and glare at me. Seeing that I was trapped and clearly couldn't go anywhere, they'd squeal their tires and take off. Then of course my lane would eventually take it's turn to move, and inevitably I'd move ahead of their cars. I guess that was some affront to them — the first time they'd just pull up beside me and scream at me from their car (I couldn't understand though because they were blasting rap at top volume). Then it escalated into them faking ramming me with their cars… Pretty fucked up stuff.
As this was happening there was a full-on Rasta guy blasing reggae out of his SUV bemusedly watching it all, clearly wondering what was wrong with these idiots repeatedly posturing at me… For all I know it wasn't a racial thing, it may even have just been a macho thing related to Vette-envy. No matter why though, it was very very strange.
Finally I made it back downtown and picked up all the frames for the ModCon prints. They taught me how to put them together, so that's part of my night's to-do list. I'm also editing a video for BMEradio tomorrow! There will be a low-resolution video posted on BMEradio, as well as a high-res video. The low-res one will be free to download, and the full quality one will require a BME membership (sorry, I can't keep giving away 40 meg downloads!).
Oh, and if you didn't notice, the update is done. Through some miracle it didn't crash while I was on the road.
The following letter was just delivered to me (excerpt):
It has been brought to my attention by my insurers that you have installed a steel structure on a concrete wall that belongs to 241 Bthurst Street. This wall is not your property nor is it the property of the your [sic] landlord.It has been further been advised by our insurers that you must have this steel structure removed immediately due to liability. Please expediate this request immediately as directed by our insurance company.
It has also been brought to our attention that on Saturday, August 4, 2001, you used the property for parking vehicles due to a party that you had at your rented premises. In future, you do not have our authorization to park any vehicles whatsoever nor do you have our authorization to drive or use this lot for any purpose whatsoever. Please to not trespass or use this lot for any purpose whatsoever.
I don't know what they're talking about as far as parking or a party on the 4th… Plus the letter is not signed and has no contact information whatsoever except one word, “Management”, so it's far from any sort of legal warning. In addition, it is addressed to “Mr. Shane”.
That said, it leaves us with no choice but to take down the tower. However, that's not all bad — I'm already drawing out sketches on how to convert it into a free-standing structure. All we have to do is move it about ten feet closer to my house and it becomes legal.
This does mean a few important things though for this weekend:
