It's Just Sort Of A Strange Looking Photograph

They were tabulating the votes in the city council chambers, the place was overflowing, standing room only. Out here in the lobby there are two big TV monitors. Since they can zoom the cameras in for nice tight shots of the goings on you actually get a better look-see than you would in the council chambers.

Years ago there were ashtrays on the backs of the chairs inside and most of the city officials smoked too. At some point they restricted audience smoking to just the rear of the room. A few years later smoking indoors was banned completely. Now if you smoke you can go through a door in the back of the room to a rooftop patio, complete with a picnic table, some chairs, and the ashtrays! If it's raining tough shit. Smokers don't count. If we did they'd figure out a way to put a TV monitor, or at least a speaker, out there.

Anyway, a few of us were sitting in the lobby keeping tabs on the vote count. One council candidate lost by only fourteen votes so there was a recount for that seat. As I looked up at the monitor the photo of me on my shirt stared straight into the lens. I thought the shot looked kind of cool. I might have looked happier if one of Wannabee Councilman Marcellus's goons hadn't beat the shit out of me at the polls a few hours earlier.