Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Peeping Tom

I think I might have a problem. The DSM-IV might call me a voyeur. The layperson might call me a peeping Tom. Though, both of those connote viewing sexual things. That's not what I'm into...but I've recently discovered that I like peeping. I realized this today when I discovered Blogger Play. It's essentially a slideshow of all the photos being uploaded to blogger on people's blogs. And it's amazing. I can't tear myself away. There are cute babies, travel photos, paintings, crafts, beautiful scenery, and just random shots of people. It's fun to watch and get a glimpse of what people think is important enough to share with others. I also like imagining who these strangers are, what they are like, and what the heck they are smiling about. The pictures are sometimes hilarious, sometimes moving, and sometimes totally boring. But putting them together somehow makes them great. Check it out! Like Blogger says, it's "fun, often beautiful, but above all, compelling." You can click on the picture and it will take you to the blog on which it is posted. I like playing a little game where I guess what kind of blog it's going to be and then click on the picture to see how close I am. What do you think about this kid? Any guesses as to the blog this was posted on??

What about this?
Or this?
I think I just really love getting a "snapshot" of someone's life. There was once an exhibit at the Getty that was a collection of old photographs. To this day it remains one of my favorite exhibits ever. I just remember being enthralled by the images. There were collections of photos of people with their cars, people in hats, people in uniform, families, houses, ladies, men, and kids. I had this overwhelming sense of nostalgia and I felt a little like a peeping Tom, getting a glimpse of some moment of happiness or silliness or sadness or seriousness.

So, am I a full blown voyeur? A peeping Tom? Am I alone here? Whether it's lurking on a blog or reading post secret I know there have to be others of you out there who peep. What's the fascination with other people's moments and stories?

4 comments:

John White said...

Oh man, that is incredible!

Amy said...

The mere mention of that Getty exhibit brought tears to my eyes. I feel like seeing that exhibit changed my life. This blogger play thing might be my new addiction. I always love looking at photos, regardless of who they are... I think I'm in trouble.

Evan said...

I'm going to go ahead and throw up the 'creepy' flag (I don't think it has to be sexual to be creepy). It's just too close to that movie with Robin Williams working at the photo-lab... creepy...

However, there's an exhibit in the Hammer's lobby gallery that is a bunch of paintings that look like a bunch of random photos someone took on their cellphone or something. Very cool.

Ryan said...

watched it for a few minutes last night. Its kind of reassuring to watch...to see that people care about the things around them and others and like to show it in pictures.