...more than meets the eye!

China has lost 50,000 people in a natural disaster, but, Chinese and other "Asian" people are needed to be extras in the sequel to Transformers, a part of which will be filmed in my town.  So, I don't know how many the production needs, but I hope there are enough.  [Sick, right?  But I need to put things in perspective.]

I was just at a press conference announcing this announcement which had already been announced.  Regardless, it was fun.  Press conferences around here are typically a public official, one or two other representative speakers, a handful of people who already know what's going on, and 6 members of the press. 

After the big news, one local reporter asked to take a photograph of our mayor along with the crew from the local film festival, of which I am a part. 

The film festival has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Michael Bay and Dreamworks people have chosen the old Steel brownfield-soon-to-be-a-casino-resort on which to shoot big Transformers and extra Asians. 

But festival members were interviewed anyway, which is good for the festival.   I think.

Then a reporter guy asks for a group photo of the mayor and the festival crew.   

I get in the group picture.  *click!*

The photographer says - and my friends who've known me will laugh at me - "Wait, we have to take another one, Laura's eyes are closed.  Keep your eyes open. Think, deer-in-headlights!"

If I'm not drunk, I either look like Terry Schiavo or like this: 

I even close my eyes if there's no flash. I wonder what happened to me as a child to make me do this for 40 years.  Maybe I had some kind of alien visitor in my crib who said that looking directly into a camera flash would drain my soul.

The mayor played this video as part of his presentation.  I do not know why, perhaps to express his awe of Michael Bay.

It was also implied at the conference that there will be on-site explosions during the night filming, and that strict safety measures will be in place.  A hush fell over the room.  PYRO! OMG!  Like an old steelmaking town is afraid of a little fire and molten metal.  And yet I know there will be an alarmist headline, something like, "Blockbuster Movie Production to Blow Up Historically Significant Site:  Mayor Trades Citizens' Safety for $1 Million Jackpot."  That's how I would do it to incite panic on a slow news day.