I'm updating my galleries in August of 2023.

The original (2010) commentary for this photo was cryptic to the point of sounding slightly unhinged to those unfamiliar with its background. It was all about bad choices, and coming back from bad choices. It even made reference to Canadian folk singer Stan Rogers and his song of redemption The Mary Ellen Carter, a song which I had not thought of for some time.

But 13 years is enough to be able to say "who gives a ship", so let me give you the background to this rather stark shot with its message of going separate ways. Back in 2010 I was mired in the cesspit of online dating. And this was even BEFORE Tinder. I was contacted by a woman, we chatted for a bit, we seemed to get along, so we went on a date at a (later demolished) restaurant in Darling Harbour, followed by the movie Avatar, as you see here. The date went really, REALLY well. We both had military backgrounds so there was a bit of shared experience there, we chatted, we laughed, we went to the movie and enjoyed it, and while nothing happened (as in, "happened" with a capital "H", I'm sure I don't need to spell it out) when I dropped her off, she was all over me until I left.

Juuuust... one small thing. She was still "really good friends" with her recent ex. The following week she was telling friends and family all about me. Including the ex. The ex, who then decided that he had made a big mistake breaking up with her. You know where this is going, right?

So she ended up back with the ex? Hmm. Two weeks afterwards her profile had been reactivated on the site so... I suspect that she's still wasting people's time and living with her cats.

If you find yourself in the same cesspit, learn from my experience. If you are looking for more than a Tinder leg-over and you hear the words "Yes, my ex and I are still really great friends", do not walk away. Excuse yourself, go to the bathroom, dive out through the window and RUN, RUN AS FAR AND AS FAST AS YOU CAN so that you don't end up taking a shot like this.

But the good news is that when you are reviewing your old galleries many years hence... you really couldn't care less, save that you can see the (somewhat pathetically) funny side to the experience. It's true that I really, really can't bring myself to ever watch Avatar again or its sequel, but to be honest these days I can say that the reason is more about the movies than the date.