I can't front, Camera Lucida is one of the most frustrating books I've ever read. I understand most of Barthes' points, such as how he notices minute details in photos that are meant to emphasize something on a much large scale. For example, in a photo by Lewis Hine of two retarded children in an institution (1924), rather than focus on the children's disfigurements, he focuses on the boy's huge Danton collar and the girl's finger bondage. This much I can understand, but why must he explain everything in such an excruciating manner?! Maybe I'm just an impatient reader.

In front of the camera, unless one is a complete natural in the spotlight, he or she changes. It’s normal for people to pose in front of the lens. I tend to smile, make a funny face, or just glare at the camera. A photograph captures a moment in time, and no photograph is exactly like another because time is constantly flowing. We’re constantly changing too. We’re never the same as we were when the photograph was taken.

Today I received a text from my friend, Adam, who invited me to an off-Broadway show. The whole thing was very last minute, as he had gotten 2 free tickets to a show at the Algonquin Theater, which is right around the corner from the 23^rd street building of Baruch. We got there and were given our tickets to An Evening at the Carlyle. We were told our seats were really good because they were in the 5^th row! Yes, we were seated in the 5^th row… but they forgot to mention that there are only 7 rows in the theater.