And this isn’t the first time this has happened. A few months ago, I was hired to shoot a Fall catalog for a small clothing company called IDI. They hired me. I was hired. I spoke with Melissa (several times) and another person named Richard, who confirmed I was hired. I even booked models per their request. I kept them updated every step of the way and waited to hear back. A week passed. I called the company and inquired about the shoot. A receptionist informed me that the shoot had already taken place and they had used another photographer. When I complained to Melissa, she told me that they never actually made a commitment to use me and that they were waiting for ME to get in touch with them. In fact, she acted as though I were imaging they hired me. Because everything had taken place over the phone, I didn’t actually have any proof. Now, I’m not sure why they went ahead without me after verbally committing, but it doesn’t matter. They should have let me know. I even complained to the head of the company who treated me like a nuisance. Later, just to be a bitch, I sent them an invoice for my lost time. Obviously, they never paid me.

Needless to say, in this, the age of communication, why do people find it difficult to communicate? How hard is it to send a one line email that states you’ve changed your mind? Furthermore, if you actually hire someone and end up not being able to commit, it’s only common courtesy to let that person know. What these inconsiderate assholes don’t understand is that they’ve hung me out to dry. I book the time, I hire talent, I set aside time, I prepare, I make plans, I lose money. I shouldn’t have to say it, but it’s rude and unprofessional. It’s just plain rude. If you make plans and can’t keep them, have the decency to cancel! It’s never OK to make someone wait, to put them out, or upset their schedule. I’m a human being and I think I deserve better. I realize that you’re busy, but it literally takes two seconds to send an email. There really is no excuse for ignoring someone you’ve hired to do a job. Besides the fact that I was really looking forward to each of these jobs, there is of course, the big let down.

Now, I understand things happen. Maybe the head of the clothing company promised his cousin he could have the job. Maybe the wedding got canceled. Thing is, I don’t know. All I have to go on is silence. To ignore someone as though they are insignificant? Why do people do this? I could answer this question simply by expressing that people are assholes. But I just don’t get it. I really try to reply to all the email I receive. I know what it’s like to be on the other end. I ignore the occasional email, but if I’ve made a commitment to someone and can’t keep it, I apologize left and right. I let them know I’m sorry and I try to make it up to them. I hate letting people down, even if I don’t know them. It’s just not cool to treat people like dirt. They should be ashamed of themselves.

I guess the internet makes it easy. There was a time when people RSVP’d for parties by hand written letter, when it was considered impolite to ignore a written request, when your word was your bond. In this day and age, people are just screen names and common courtesy just isn’t that common anymore.

Dear Rat Family,

What you don’t know is that today is the beginning of the end. You may have noticed a chubby man in a yellow shirt walking around the house yesterday? His name was Tom, but you can call him “The Exterminator”. He, or one of his co-workers, will bring about your final judgment.

I’m so sorry that it had to come to this. I called every pest controller in the area and tried to have your family re-located, but they all agreed you had to die. No one would capture you in humane traps and take you to a new home in the forest where your children could run around, climb trees, and nibble on things. One guy even laughed at me when I asked. I looked into natural remedies that might annoy you so you’d leave on your own, but it’s more work than I can put into it. It also means going into the creepy attic and scary basement, which I avoid if I can. I also understand it’s illegal to save and relocate rats.

I don’t blame you for setting up camp in my house and I’m not mad at you. My house is pretty great and there are a lot of nooks, crannies, dark spots, and shrubbery to make a fine home in. You, like me, just want to survive, be happy, and live your life. However, I must face the fact you’re not a little chef and you don’t wear clothes or talk. You have the potential to carry disease, you breed like rabbits, you poop all over the place, and you’re probably why my allergies have been off the hook lately. I know you’re just doing what you do, but the cons outweigh the pros.

Today traps will be set and the slaughter will begin. You’ll go about your merry way, spot a tasty treat and go for it. You’ll think you’ve hit the jack-pot. After struggling to feed your family all these months, you’ll attempt to grab that tasty morsel and within an instant, a metal spring will snap and a bar will come crashing down on your skull. If you’re lucky, it will be instantaneous. At least one of your kin will encounter the trap and find that he’s pinned with a broken spine, still alive, dying slowly. At night, I’ll hear the traps snapping and cringe. I fully expect to cry. But what are my tears worth when I am essentially playing God and bringing about your doom?

As one by one, your family members take the bait, die, and are removed, you won’t learn anything. You won’t see the tiny corpses of your children and think to yourself, “I might not want to go after that delicious treat.” You’re smart, but you’re not that smart.

It’s not fair and nothing I can say will take away from the fact that I gave the order to have you killed. I wish there was a different way, but like you, I must take care of my family first. I’m sorry I’m not a better person and despite all my talk about saving the planet, loving animals, and being a vegetarian for 17 years, I am a failure. I failed your family.

Good-bye little rat family. I can’t say I’ll miss you, but I am sorry.

Within minutes, I had several responses:

Great post.

I had rats once at a house I lived in in Venice on Walgrove.

We set the traps and we listened to the SNAPPS!! It was rough. Rats are strong smart animals.

One of the trapps snapped and you could hear the rat crying and screaming for a long while. My girlfriend at the time was an anamial lover and she freeked out and was ugly.

I am going to move into an old family house w/ skunks and rats in a few weeks. As much as it hurts, all those skunks and rats are going to die, and thats just the way it is.

….AAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHHH*@#$%!!
That was great.
Now substitute the subject “rat” with “illegal” and it would take on a whole new application.

Dear landlord,

I am dismayed that you are choosing such a hostile act as poison to evict my family and I. If you continue in this course of action my family and I will be forced to declare jihad against you. Die you insolent american!! We will do our best to die inside walls where the stink of our moldering corpses will be as the sweet stench of Allah’s breath, and the most bothersome to you yankee scum. The kitchen wall behind the oven will be first, then the wall behind that new 52″ lcd flat panel sounds about right. Ohh, the irony. Imagine trying to watch my movie star cousin Ratatoulie while little abdul is stinking just inches from that nice warm lcd tv. Next would be where your bed goes against the wall. Every night you will be thinking of me, as you you try to go to sleep. Sleep well american scum.

Fiesal

I had to email you and express what a fantastic writer you are. That was amazing. You had me giggling, choking up, and feeling such empathy for your plight. Very sincere and blunt at the same time. You’re doing the right thing, rats are definitely a danger to your health. Good luck, I hope you don’t hear the traps going off too much.

The guy who wanted to exchange “rats” for “illegals” is apparently a racist sonofabitch. The guy that wrote the Jihad response is obviously thinking of Fieval from the animated film “An American Tail”. People are so funny.

Anyway, I do feel guilty, but like cockroaches, you can’t mess around. Once they’re in your house, it’s us or them. *sigh* Sometimes life isn’t fair. I have to do it, but I feel really bad.

I found a guy on Craigslist selling his used backdrop support system for well under market value. He claimed he’d only used it once, but I could tell it had a few more miles on it than that. Either way, it’s in good shape, it’s good quality, with the added bonus of recycling. I then bought a 15 llb. sandbag – which is used to keep my stands from tipping over. I then realized that I wouldn’t be able to afford any serious overhead sunshades (known as a Scrim Jim) and didn’t have time to make one, so I did some serious thinking about an alternative. I went back to Samy’s, asked them about an affordable alternative and bought a sunshade holder…or sunshade stand. Not sure what it’s called exactly. It’s basically a stand that holds my sunshade – which is pretty much like those car shades you put on your windshield to block the sun. Aptly titled, the sunshade shades the sun. They can also be used for reflecting and bouncing light. Neat huh? I’ve never used a sunshade stand before, so I’m hoping it will do what I need it to. Either way, it’s something that will definitely come in handy.

The bad news is, I’m broke. Photography is allegorical to a nasty drug habit. You always need one more fix and you always need one more piece of equipment. And it ain’t cheap either. The cheapo sandbags run about 20 bucks. Times 3, you’ve just spent $60 bucks without blinking. The sunshade stand runs about $80 and it’s not even what I really wanted. I really wanted a super-clamp which is the “all purpose clamp things to your stand” clamp. They don’t call it “Super” for no reason. It really is. The super-clamp runs about $150. So there you go. I’ll make due with the sunshade holder thingy and I’ll get some good use out of it.

Tonight, the major prepping for tomorrow begins. I’ve gotta take stock, run the day through my head, pack everything up, charge my batteries, and wash clothes. I’ve got 8 people coming to my house at 8am. I might want to wash some dishes too. I checked out the location this morning and it seems I might have found the one place in Old Town Pasadena you’re less likely to get busted shooting without a permit in. Here’s hoping.

Read this:

I have been a photographer for the past 5 years. (www.rachelkemper.com) I have recently been involved in a car accident where not only my car, but by resources for creativity, and income (laptop, harddrive, camera) have been stripped away. Although I know there is always a way through and out of seemingly disasterous events. This one it seems, is not the event I can not escape, but the state of mind it has thrown me into. For with the right mindset, anything and everything is possible.

We all come in to a point of our lives where depression can take over and everything seems meaningless. This time has throughout history been a time where creativity seems to be the only antidote.

While photography has been my source of income for the past 5 years, I look at this place of emptiness as an opportunity to embrace other talents I have yet to explore.

And so I ask of this.

If you, or anyone you know may have any kind of art supplies that can be donated to help support the recovery of a human mind. I need help.

I need to work. I need to feel like I’m creating something beautiful, regardless of how I feel..it is through creation and sharing that darkness can be transformed into light.

I am asking for donations. My goal is to gain help in the therapy process so I can then bring myself to a place where I can pull myself through and out of the situation and get myself working again.

Self reliance, I believe is a key character trait in any strong human being,
as well, I believe, is knowing when to ask for help.

Thank you.
Rachel Kemper
904.501.4124
www.rachelkemper.com
myspace.com/artistrachel

If you can help her, you should. I can’t imagine what it would be like to lose all my equipment after a horrible car-crash. I feel for her because she, like all artists, needs to remain creative. And oddly, it’s when we’re down that our most beautiful work blooms. She’s an amazing photographer and while I don’t know her personally, I sort of feel like we shutterbugs need to stick together.