pretty girls are on the prowl

Massimo Vitali, Sacred Pool Russians. Hierapolis, Turkey, 2008

Over lunch, Massimo Vitali's photo series "Bathers" in the Winter 2009 Paris Review totally knocked me out.

Right before that, I witnessed a spectacular skateboard wipeout in one of the arched walkways that form the perimeter of the Quad on campus. A pretty girl walked by, he craned his neck like we do, and down he went like a brick chimney under a wrecking ball. His skater-loop of keys became un-cabinered in the fall and scattered everywhere. She paused for a second to see if he was OK and he was too dumbstruck to speak. He lumbered up once she left. Not even that pretty but pretty enough, I suspect was his assessment.

So skateboarders and readers of highbrow lit journals alike, beware! for pretty girls are on the prowl today, ready to disrupt your mundane pursuits at any moment with their prettiness!