The Apocalypse is for Lovers

I’ll be the first to admit, I love me a good post-apocalyptic thriller. Dystopian futures are my favorite fictional futures / a terrifying foregone conclusion. Being well-versed in the variety of fictional circumstances, I’m also familiar with some of the constants. You know:

• The nomadic nature and eventual need to team up and work together – shenanigans!
• The sudden ability to wield all manner of weapons
• Dirtiness, filth, no showers, and yet everyone still seems like they’re wearing makeup and don’t smell so bad that no one wants to be around them – everyone just ignores the lack of hygiene because they have bigger fish to fry
• Unjustified element of hope for the future, against all odds (PHIL COLLINS!) – the “life finds a way” complex
• General loss of ethics (stealing, violence, etc.), and yet a strong sense of having a moral code – like you’re shoot a guy in the face and take his water jug, but you wouldn’t hurt an old lady, old ladies are where you draw the line (and that’s why you end up dead, killed by an old lady - the end of days are nothing if not ironic)
• The separation of family and friends but eventual discovery of someone from “before” – friend or foe

The last one of course is usually marked by a photo that the hero (or heroine) carries with them. Old and tattered, folded and hidden in the deep confines of their ratty jacket pocket, it is the most valuable thing on their person, as they cling to their long lost (or dead) family, friend, lover, child, etc. It’s heart wrenching and beautiful. And thinking about it made me realize… I don’t print photos anymore. If the end times were to hit RIGHT NOW, I wouldn’t have a photo to just grab and run with. No locket. No wallet with little picture flaps. They’re all on my laptop, camera or phone. In the constant rush for one’s life, a charge may not be handy, and if the grid goes down and we slowly are forced to resort to a pre-technology age (which is of course what always happens), then all my photos  become worthless. Trapped on devices from which I can’t access them. They’re right in my hand, but basically lost. The Time Machine scenario.

So I decided it was high time to make an Apocalypse Album. A photo album that, should the need arise, I could grab and go. Given that I wouldn’t have time to prepare one in case of emergency otherwise, I made it in a quick hurry. 30 minutes to dig around my digital albums to pick out pictures. Approximately 70 images total, divided into a few easy categories: faces and places. Incorporating in family, friends, lovers, locations and childhood / family heritage shots. Beautiful images of people and locations of great importance to me. Loves of my life. Memories worth treasuring.  And in an additional 30 minutes, I quickly sorted them into an online book maker thing, to have it delivered to me at a later date.

Looks like Judgement Day is on its way! 

The book arrived, so I’m set. It may not be pocket-sized, but I figured with the glossy finish it could be used to protect me in the rain and the hard cover / sharp corners could make a decent weapon. Not that I want to bludgeon a marauder with photos of my loved ones, but that I’m sure they wouldn’t mind helping protect me. And while of course I’ll make a point of grabbing the book when the shit hits the fan, if I should forget, the memories will linger for years before the hard times eventually cause them to slowly fade. I promise that I’ll cling to them. Or, if I should forget, I promise to fill in the details with really cool ones so that way y’all live on as legends. Like the story of my friend, the blue-collared oil driller, who got sent by NASA to land on an asteroid to blow it up before it could collide with the earth. He saved humanity, back in ‘98.  Or the story of my cousin who escaped the alien attack in DC and went on to fight along their pal Will Smith to save the day in ’96. So… basically I’ll tell the tale of how the 90’s were a very dangerous time in earth’s history and all my loved ones were heroes. Very close to the real story for sure. The tales will be told for generations to come.

Let’s just hope the book stays by my side so I don’t have to be entrusted with the memory keeping. The question is – what or who will you chose to preserve when the end is nigh and doomsday arrives? What photos make the cut for your Apocalypse Album?