Fill In The Blanks.

fillintheblank1It’s not exactly aesthetically pleasing but I like the way this work works on my imagination. This isn’t really an example of pareidolia but there’s just enough there to imagine a face to go with the hair and eyebrows. And I’m pretty sure it’s meant to be Steve Martin’s face. That’s based on the fact that person or persons unknown has painted Steve Martin’s face on a wall along I-40 (which I wrote about previously) and placed metal cutouts of his face on various bus stops around town. I don’t know why they picked Steve Martin although he does have a bit of history here in Nashville and even mentions Exit/In in his autobiography Born Standing Up, but that’s another story.

What really intrigues me about this particular work though is its placement. It was hard for me to get a picture that would give you a good idea of how unusual its placement is but it’s on a solid concrete wall next to a fast food place. It’s just off Hillsboro Pike in Green Hills, a pretty affluent area of town that’s known for its massive traffic snarls. At almost any time of day if you go to Green Hills you can count on a lot of time just sitting around in traffic. For the record I did not take this picture while driving but parked and was standing on the sidewalk across the street.

In the midst of all this overcrowded space someone saw this stark empty wall and decided to add something to it, and what they added encourages us the viewers to think, to imagine, to fill in the blanks.

Seen any graffiti? Send your pictures to freethinkers@nerosoft.com. You’ll get full credit. Or not. It’s up to you.

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36 Comments

  1. Margot

    Thanks, Christopher. All I need to do now is to figure out exactly where this is, drive the 3 hours to Nashville, and camp out there for however long it takes for you to pass by again. Beware of any 50ish year old women you see carrying the size of dictionary that formerly resided on library podia. And I’m still too upset with you for making me feel stupid with your last quiz to even consider clicking your “pareidolia” link. That’s right—I’m not going to learn a new word ON PURPOSE!

    I really need to get over this. It’s becoming exhausting and there’s no telling what I’ll do next.

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Since it’s in Green Hills the trip will actually be five hours, factoring in the time spent stuck in traffic. I just hope that the dictionary you choose to hit me with is one of Webster’s rather than Samuel Johnson’s which is not only larger but is also like a linguistic scavenger hunt. You look up the definition for one word and then you have to look up half a dozen of the words used in the definition, and it just sort of cascades from there.
      Take some deep breaths and calm down. Put on some Bob Marley and every little thing gonna be all right.

      Reply
      1. Margot

        I predict I will recover from my bruised ego by sundown today—or sun-up tomorrow at the very latest. I actually managed to put down the dictionary a few hours ago, and am feeling calmer now. Thank God, because I hate Reggae and the repetitiveness of listening to Bob Marley would almost certainly wind me back up. And like most people I’m not at my most Zen while sitting in traffic. Phew!

        Reply
  2. halfa1000miles

    That is a Rorschach test and it is definitely dirty as hell. I think your PG-13 bloggy friends are rubbing off on you. NSFW!

    I did take the click to learn a new word and decided it means all the people down here seeing Jesus in the kudzu.

    If this really is supposed to represent Steve Martin it would make me happy. The Jerk is in my top 10 movies.

    Reply
    1. Margot

      Dammit, halfa1000miles! Now I’m going to have to click the link after all because your definition is just too irresistibly intriguing.

      Reply
    2. Margot

      You nailed it, halfa1000miles!

      Reply
      1. halfa1000miles

        Sometimes I stop talking about bodily functions for a second to try to learn something 🙂

        Reply
      2. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

        Am I going to have to seat you two on opposite sides of the classroom?

        Reply
        1. Margot

          Possibly. I am truly sorry Mr. Waldrop and promise to try harder to wait my turn to speak.

          Reply
          1. halfa1000miles

            Eh. No such promises from me.

            I did want you to know, Christopher, that I submitted this post to Stumbleupon (I wish someone told me when they did mine. I spent a ridiculous amount of time till I figured out how to see who submitted it). When someone submitted “Like Oprah Loves Bread”, I got 892 views in two hours. The traffic was exciting and pretty non-sticky, but I did get at least 4 actual new subscribers. There’s several more that got added that week that I can’t trace back to that directly. The 4 are just the ones I know for sure came from there ~Linda

            Reply
            1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

              Thank you so much for submitting this to Stumbleupon. I only got 79 views, but, hey, that’s twice as many as an average day, and more is always better. Who knows? Maybe some of ’em will even come back for more. I should bake cookies and have a plate set by the door.
              Oh, who am I kidding? I’d be doing well to buy cookies.

              Reply
              1. Margot

                Submit the coffee one please!

                Reply
          2. Margot

            Linda, one of those new subscribers was probably me. I can’t pinpoint exactly when I subscribed, but your current post was definitely “Like Oprah Loves Bread.” If it’s helpful you can contact me and I’ll send you my email address so you can check. And I didn’t discover you via Stumbleupon, I just started noting your witty comments on other blogs I follow and decided to check out your blog.

            Reply
    3. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Now I can’t stop looking at that picture trying to find the dirty part. And no self-respecting Jesus would appear in kudzu.
      Anyway I knew there was a reason I enjoyed your sense of humor so much. It would be nice if you worked in my office because then at least one other person would understand it at that time of year when I start yelling “THE NEW PHONE BOOKS ARE HERE! Things are going to start happening to me now.”

      Reply
      1. halfa1000miles

        I’M SOMEBODY NOW. MILLIONS OF PEOPLE LOOK AT THIS BOOK EVERY DAY!! The Jerk has more quotable lines than any other movie to me. HE HATES THESE CANS. YOU WANNA HANG AROUND FOR AN OVEN MITT? I JUST WANT ALL THE STUUUUUUF. We quote this movie daily.

        Reply
  3. Ann Koplow

    Thanks for leaving such intriguing blanks for us to fill in, Chris.

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Thank you for helping fill in the blanks with this comment.

      Reply
  4. mydangblog

    For some reason, it puts me in mind of Elliot Gould. Just about to peek over a wall, and I wonder what he’s going to be looking at. I like it:-)

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      I like it that you see Elliot Gould. That takes me back more years than I care to admit to when I would stay up late and watch Saturday Night Live on my twelve-inch black and white TV. Maybe it’s fitting that he’s facing a pharmacy. Or maybe not. Nobody used drugs in the 70’s.

      Reply
    2. Margot

      Excuse me again, Mr. Waldrop, but I just have to say that I also immediately identified that image as Elliot Gould. I was just too preoccupied to say that in my initial comment.

      Reply
  5. halfa1000miles

    So…CW, something I stumble on with Stumbleupon is what category to put posts it. What would you suggest for you?? I find you between humor with some psychology thrown in. I can only pick one…

    Reply
    1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

      Humor, please. I get fairly heavy sometimes but I’m happiest when I’m makin’ people laugh.

      Reply
  6. Margot

    I can answer that. CW hasn’t authorized me to but he knows that I’m currently having some trouble being a fully-functioning adult right now. Hopefully he’ll forgive me.

    Let me try that again. May I offer you a suggestion, Linda? I think you liked the taint smegma suggestion I made on your blog, so… In my humble opinion, I think the category should be humor and the post should be the coffee one. But that’s just my two cents.

    CW may disagree with me and that’s OK, but he will never be able to separate you and me in his classroom. NEVER!

    Reply
    1. halfa1000miles

      He’s not the boss of us, so let’s just do it. I will stumble that one. Inseparably yous.

      Reply
      1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

        If I could figure out how I’d give people the option of editing their comments so they could go back and fix typos. And of course I would never separate you two even if I could.
        And, since I’m not the boss of you, this is obligatory:

        Reply
        1. halfa1000miles

          This is my actual current ringtone for when my boss calls my cell!

          Reply
          1. Margot

            Bwahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!

            Reply
          2. Margot

            BTW, Linda, I see you have a new post, but I can’t read it yet. After reading your last one I laughed so hard that I pulled a muscle in my neck and broke a few blood vessels on my face. I’m honestly not kidding or trying to be funny. Just had to let you know that I love you forever, but must regroup both my body and my mind before I even click that link. xo

            Reply
            1. halfa1000miles

              Nah. It’s a very mild one. I have to act nice sometimes.

              Reply
          3. Margot

            I’m totally in love with you, Linda, even though I don’t know you and just met you online a few weeks ago. I don’t know if you are aware of how funny you are. I’m not going to take the chance yet. My body is too feeble. I love you, but I don’t trust you yet.

            CW: Sorry for all the cross talk. It’s just that sometimes it’s safer for me to communicate with Linda via your comments section. I’m afraid if I get anywhere near her blog I may literally die from laughter. There is NO WAY I will ever meet her in person. I refuse to orphan my children. I promise I’ll stop now.

            Reply
            1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

              Hey, cross-talk away. I’m throwing a non-stop party here and like any good host I’m cool with guests going off and talking to each other. In fact I encourage it. Eavesdropping may give me an idea for something else to write about.

              Reply
          4. Margot

            CW, Re: cross-talking. You are a true Southern Gentleman and also a very kind person, sir. Why is it eavesdropping if you invited us to this awesome non-stop party you are so graciously hosting?

            Also, do you think you are either able or willing to stop being so prolific? It’s not a request, btw, just a question. I’m asking because I can’t keep up with your posts right now since you are some kind of writing wizard rock star and I don’t want to miss out on any fun.

            Reply
            1. Christopher Waldrop (Post author)

              I can’t tell you how much it warms the cockles of wherever my cockles are to be called a true Southern Gentleman. I just feel a little guilty reading conversations between people because I’m slightly neurotic that way.
              And I doubt I could stop being so prolific. Actually it feels kind of weird to be called prolific because I feel like I go through long dry spells, but WordPress has this nifty feature that allows me to schedule posts so when I’m feeling flush I can write a bunch and space them out. It works great for upcoming birthdays too. Anyway take your time catching up. And let me get you another drink.

              Reply
        2. Margot

          CW: I understand. Apparently you are as neurotic as I am. And you also have the “can’t stop being a goody-goody” & “The most uncomfortable emotion for me is when I make someone upset accidently” problems as I do. Am I correct? If I knew how to put the following in bold I would: Don’t feel guilty about reading the comments on your own blog, please. Your blog is your own property, you are in charge of it, and I’m pretty sure you are incapable of hurting anyone on purpose. And, you are also a TRUE SOUTHERN GENTLEMEN, so I hope you can accept it and get your cockles—wherever they reside in your body—even warmer, but not so warm that it makes you uncomfortable. It would make my day if you can manage to do that, in fact.

          Pretend I’m your mother if you need to or if it is any help. You can’t see me, but I am an excellent mimic, and if your mother is still alive and I can spend 10 minutes speaking with her, I may even be able to convince you that you are talking to her. I will honestly do that for you if it helps. That is how much I like you. Watch the “It’s OK to do and feel things” video if it will help.

          I don’t know if we share this particular problem or not, but good news freaks me out and either causes me to become completely unhinged (which is what is happening to me currently), numb or paranoid that it’s not true. Almost every piece of news that I’ve received since 1999 has been awful. I can still feel happy for other people, but not for myself.

          I just got another piece of good news that I haven’t even been able to share with my husband yet because he’s not home now and he’s too busy to talk to me by phone. Gina W. will call me later this afternoon to try and help me not hide myself in the closet until Baylor (the hubs) gets home.

          I am OK, but I may have to email you and share it with you to help myself calm down. Doesn’t matter when you read it, and I’m not sure when I’ll have the time to write and send it to you.

          These cookies are delicious by the way. Are they homemade?

          Reply
  7. halfa1000miles

    And I meant to do that typo.

    Reply
    1. Margot

      Awesome! I hope CW doesn’t block us or kick us out of the classroom for completely railroading him. I’ve know him a lot longer than I’ve known you and am pretty loyal to him, but you are growing on me at an alarmingly quick pace, too, dag nab it! Please don’t make me choose between the two of you, Christopher!

      Reply

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