you dress to the nines. spent hours and hours trying to make yourself look beautiful. manicured nails, styled hair, flattering make-up, sexy dress, stiletto heels and a glittering pouch. not half bad. you stand there with the rest of the beautiful people in the room. smile, the cameraman says. thousand-watt smile, click. you are frozen in time with a beautiful photograph. at least you think it's beautiful, because you never ever get to see the photo!!

why is it that people always ask you to smile, to pose and to take photos but nobody ever sends you the copy of that photo? for all you know, you look wonderful and someone is doing something really weird or distatasteful to that photo of yours. or contrary, you smile and you have this huge spinach stuck to your teeth. you'll never ever know, will you, because nobody ever shows you the photo you took with that killer-watt smile of yours?

not the first time, probably will not be the last. it will join the other lost photos in the sea-of-dead-photos. not just weddings or formal events. gatherings, birthdays, parties, anywhere that the camera will travel. i have half a mind to stick my tongue out the next time someone ask me to smile. there, you can freeze me like that for all i care. i don't ever get to see it anyway.