Thigh high in rubber and balls deep in shit
Sedentary lives, the 9-5, scurrying through mazes of tedious bureaucracy, reality tv; our lives have become so boring we watch other peoples' shit lives for entertainment. From active to passive, from creation to consumption, from adventure to another night in front of the TV, from lives built around experiences to lives built upon accumulating stuff. Is this the pinnacle of our short existence, why we're here? I didn't think so.
So what's the problem?
We're holding life's handrail tightly while plodding along the nice safe path to death via the socially expected and predicatble pit-stops of our pissweak existence. We've absorbed the rules posted at the start of the path, read all the warning labels and hedged ourselves against any danger, liabilities and what-ifs with our big houses, big cars and big bank accounts. Life, health, income, car, boat and home insurance, we're protected againt everything just in case, as if all the world's danger can be averted with the money we've broken our backs to scrape together. We've filled all our needs and bought everything the marketers convinced us we must have and more. Life is easier than ever- choice abounds, entertainment offers itself at every turn. So what's up?
Our lives are boring, repetitive and pointless. We gamble away our best years by
enslaving ourselves to corporate overlords in the hope we can amass the crumbs they drop and make a cake of our own. We struggle with status and try to keep up in a race of dubious importance. But
there's no clear finish line, no payoff or gold star for effort; just shoes with tassles, cruise ships and icy fruity
beverages before descending into alzheimer's, disease and pissing into a bag. When we're not working to keep up we demand entertainment because we're too tired, helpless and useless to entertain ourselves. Movies, tv, music, watching sport, inane
stories about celebrities and their irrelevant lives instead of stepping out and living ours. Why worship another's when we've the
lead role in our own? If consuming those things and celebrity gossip sound like your bag, maybe this site isn't.
The solution?
Years ago I decided the requisite prescription was adventure, excitement and maybe even a little danger.
I'm tired of watching, feeling safe, being scared of life and taking chances. Life is for participating not spectating. Exploring, squatting, dumpster diving, freight hopping, sleeping
on rooftops, hitchhiking, climbing, caving, train surfing, roadtrips, adventures. The playground of the city sits at our doorstep overrun by advertising chasing every piece of eye realestate and ruled by people intent on telling you what you can and can't do.
Life is waiting for you, this isn't a practice run.
I've accepted there is probably no god and we're all destined to rot in a box. I'm okay with that, this life is my one shot
and I'm going to take it. So shed
your bubblewrap suit and live a little. You'll hurt, you'll bleed, you may find yourself crouched
in an tunnel alcove nose to the third rail as a subway train whistles past, leaving you wondering how you
ended up there. For what? Knowing you had the balls to take life by the balls and live it.
What now?
Close your browser, toss the computer out window, quit your dayjob, punch the boss, torch your stuff, pack a bag and get the fuck out there. Adventure awaits. What have you to lose?
Contact me
To contact me, try the following: info@sleepycity.net, facebook, flickr or twitter. To engage me, well make it interesting.
Who's this dsankt fella?
Like you he's a small piece of insignificant organic matter in a vast universe trying to
make sense of a world full of struggle, bullshit and tedium. Unlike you he's on a mission
to squeeze everything from it because one day he'll just be piece of insignificant organic matter rotting in the ground.
Everything else is irrelevant and frankly, none of your business.
Tell me of the places
The haphazard and incremental growth of our cities merged with economic rise and fall
has left a scarred urban landscape packed with explorable pock marks and craters.
We leave industry and inner-city neighbourhoods to rot until gentrification is profitable and
bury the invisible infrastructure upon which our cities are dependent with tonnes of concrete and forget about it.
These
root like tunnels feed the city water, power, gas and transportation allowing us to scurry like ants around
our hectic metropolis, going about our business blissfully unaware of what lies hidden around us.
Every place you've ever been has secrets you've never seen. From the deepest of
these tunnels to the tips of the spires which stand above reaching for the starts is a playground of opportunities,
a parallel world of adventure and excitement. All one needs is some courage and a curious spirit.
Finding these places isn't difficult as they're all around us. I'm not going to tell you where they are,
or how to get into them because the fun is often in overcoming these challenges yourself. In the process lies
the hardship and subsequently the reward. The secret to success is naturally to get involved. Of course you're welcome to email me,
or try your luck with the request page.
I love the photos!
Firstly, if you're interested in big prints send me an email, I don't sell postcards.
Secondly, to those interested parties it should be obvious that sleepycity is Not A Stock Photography Site.
Consequently licensing of images will not be at stock photography rates.
These are uncommon photos of uncommon places
shot at great personal peril.
My email is at the bottom of the page.
- "What do you know about hopping trains?" I asked.
- "Git on 'em and go" he said.
- "Which ones?" I asked.
- "The ones that move."
The words thundered like the voice of God. [Evasion]