Photobombing in a place of peace

Once in a while I learn an expression or word that makes me nod slowly in approval. A few favorites that come to mind include:

• 'ikaw na!' (applicable in so many situations); 
• '___ fail' (eg, 'outfit fail' or 'tinola fail' ... but this particular phrase is getting old)
• the rather profane but perfect 'clusterf**k' (you who introduced me to that word, you know who you are);
• 'sporn' (those who frequent tennis fan sites should know this); and
• 'humblebrag' (love LOVE this one!)

Another one I particularly like is 'photobomb'. There are entire websites dedicated to photobombing, some more interesting than others. If you still don't understand what the term means then you are probably over 60 years old. I was imagining trying to explain it to Dad and my head hurt.

Interestingly, I've always been prone to photobombing long before the word was invented. Sometimes I do it consciously (ironically, because I get very photo-conscious) but more often, I ruin an otherwise decent picture without really meaning to do so. Sometimes it's just forgetting to take off sunglasses or being the only one with closed eyes, or something harmless like that. Other times, it's downright stark.

One of the more recent examples took place early in 2010 at a wedding of a friend. This was the picture after we all composed ourselves (and possibly after a round or two of photo-editing):

Nice, right? Decent. Acceptable. Smiley. I'm second from the left.

And then there was THIS:

Inappropriate reaction, anyone?

Oi.

In fairness to me, no one was ready for that picture anyway (see fish-lips on leftmost friend), but what was that anger flaring from the whites of my eyes? Why was I so enraged? We were at a pretty wedding at the lovely Tagaytay Midlands and we were all in a great mood. What the heck was wrong with me? (Not that I don't ask that every day)

When we analyzed the pic days after the wedding (after my friends recovered from laughing themselves silly over this picture – thanks guys), we realized that there was nothing and no one in the spot where I was looking. We were on an incline, and to the right of this picture was a nice view of mountains. Was I mad at those? Maybe Djokovic was waving on a mountaintop. (*Deleting joke about resisting the urge to push him off*)

So there. Once again I have offered myself up as a willing target. Feel free to laugh in my face the next time you see me. That is, if you want to see that look in real life.