Photograph

[osprey_archer]

I'm home for the day (just for the day; tomorrow I'm trekking back to Wisconsin for Russian boot camp). Lilies in the lawn, the trees all still standing, the neighbors cutting their grass. My house is much as I remembered it - nothing repainted, all the furniture in its place. New teakettle, though; but I have decided, as it's night-sky blue, that I approve.

The house has seen one other addition: a photograph of my brother, wearing his graduation cap and gown. The photo studio sent us a roll of pictures and my mother picked a nice photo of my brother smiling and looking rather like the fellow who is Jeannie's master in I Dream of Jeannie.

Tragically, the studio sent us a different photo, a photo which could frighten small children. The camera caught my brother mid-blink, so his eyes are half-closed; I would say he looks stoned, but that doesn't really capture how awful this picture is. His irises are totally covered, so only the whites of the eye are visible, and his eyelids are at uneven heights. It looks like he's possessed by a demon or an alien, or possibly both to account for the lopsidedness.

The studio is extremely apologetic, and sending us the proper photo post-haste.

It's good to be home.

Comments

[entwashian.livejournal.com]

I really hope you got to keep the first photo they sent, too.

[osprey-archer.livejournal.com]

Just in case I ever need blackmail material, right? Or to chase away any of his girlfriends who don't seem like promising sisters-in-law. "Oh, yes, this is what my brother looks like at the full moon..."