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“The Ruby Show”
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As many of you noticed, at 2:44pm a little "story" starts on the clock site. Sometime around December 2004, three different people from Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Virginia started sending in photos responding to the previous minute's photo. This went on for the next six months. Much like an overpriced anthology book, all of the photos are collected here (sorry, no outtakes or previously unreleased photos) with each partipant talking about the photo. A big thanks to John, Camille, and Leanne for putting time and effort into this.
  - Craig
      12/1/05

John: "The Ruby Show" started purely by accident. Camille in Cold Harbor had sent in many good photos and I wanted to acknowledge her with a greeting card in 2:44pm. She promptly responded back and I was wondering if anyone else might send in a greeting. All of a sudden Ruby showed up. By her second photo, I realized it was a challenge for her attention and who had the most dog treats. I don't think Camille knew that she was going to be dragged into a very slow moving adventure. Once she realized she was a part of this mess, she joined right in with some good comebacks. The fun part was trying to anticipate what was going to happen next. I would think of different directions the story could go, and then Ruby or Camille would change directions, and new ideas would be needed. The others were probably doing the same thing. The show stretched everyone's creativity about what can be done with clock photos and sometimes not cooperative pets. I was asked how we got Frances to stay still for all the photos. It was easy!? All we needed was a lot of set-up time, lots of patience and dog treats, and take lots and lots of photos. There were many waving, tapping, and helping hands just beyond the camera frame. It became a family project, and needless to say, most of the photos didn't make it to the Ruby Show screen. It was fun with the three main characters, but I was really hoping that additional people would have joined in. Maybe the clock audience is smarter than I realized (unlike the three main characters)! I hope the audience enjoyed wasting about 45 minutes of their day watching the show, and even if they didn't enjoy it, they still probably wasted about 45 minutes of their day. The beauty of the Human Clock is that you can waste ALL day if you choose to. I would like to say a special thanks to the Cold Harbor crew and to Ruby and her humans. They didn't realize what they were getting into, and I bet they're sorry for it now! They were all good sports about being picked on, and were very creative. Good job Cold Harbor and Hudson! John and the crew in Brooklyn Center. Camille: I, for one, am not sorry at all to have been inadvertently dragged into The Ruby Show. I have learned geography (where in the heck is WI again?), assertiveness (may I stop your work to take an incomprehensible picture with your business in the background?) and humility (yes, I know I look foolish. Don't rub it in). Those are the ones right off the top of my head. I'm sure there are more. Craig, bless his heart, (we say that a lot here) was right in the middle from the start. Stirring the pot, as it were. His Humanclock.com has been such a hoot to look at and participate in. Like John and Leanne's crew, I tried to figure out Frances' or Ruby's next move. One of the three of us would post a pic and wait patiently for the others to take off with it. I was saddened to hear that "our" Frances passed away. She was special even to ones who didn't know her in real life. Just like the people who were a part of this adventure on Humanclock.com. Thanks, buddies, it's been a real trip without luggage. Leanne: I never dreamed Ruby would have her own show! The best part for me was waiting anxiously to see each new photo and then the excitement of coming up with ideas for Ruby. I've taken a lot of pictures of Ruby over the years, but never quite like this. Some of these photos took forever to get "just right." I'd get the scene ready, bring her over and hope for one picture out of thirty that worked. I don't think my husband ever figured out what the heck I was doing with all the signs and paper. I sure enjoyed spending WAY too much time on the Ruby Show™. Sorry to hear about Frances! Fortunately this experience left you and yours with many memories for years to come. Many thanks to John, Camille, all the helpers and Craig! What an adventure.

John: The Ruby Show sure started out innocent enough. Cold Harbor submitted a lot of good photos, and I wanted them know they were noticed and appreciated. We took this photo in the wetlands just down the street from our house. It stretches around many neighborhoods and is a good place for walks to see birds, deer, and even fox. Camille: I felt famous! A pic with Cold Harbor mentioned, right on Humanclock. Leanne: This place looks cool. Can you fish there as well? photo submitted: 12-5-2004 by John

John: I was surprised how fast Camille responded to my greeting. That may explain the "GROSSLY BLATANT" type-o on the sign. It's o.k., Camille. We have brooks and wetlands in our area, so it's still an accurate name. Camille: My first reply and I misspelled Brooklyn. Leanne: I had to look up the spelling of Brooklyn Center. photo submitted: 12-8-2004 by Camille

John: I liked the "Watch for Rudolph" sign. I didn't realize Ruby was soon going to be a key player. Camille: I think this was the first Ruby sighting for me and it took a couple of viewings to see Ruby in it because she blends in so well. Leanne: After submitting this photo, I noticed the photos from B.C. and C.H. and hoped to get in on the action. photo submitted: 1-5-2005 by Leanne

John: At this point I realized a challenge was offered! Ruby was pointing toward BC, so I knew I had to get busy. Camille: Cold Harbor mentioned again! My Mother suggested using this small area where I live instead of the larger town's name, Mechanicsville. I didn't want Humanclock.com folks to think I had grease under my fingernails. We are actually just twenty minutes from Richmond. Leanne: I took this right behind my house. I just let Ruby go and hoped she would be looking at the sign at some point. photo submitted: 1-16-2005 by Leanne

John: This photo was the beginning of turning our house into a photo studio, and dragging the family (kicking and screaming at times) into the challenge. Camille: My "Ah HA!" moment... BC was going to get sneaky! Leanne: This is such a creative photo! Ruby couldn't resist taking this bribe. photo submitted: 1-19-2005 by John

John: If it wasn't Ruby..... then who WAS lurking around Camille's house in the middle of the night? Camille: I don't have a dog at this time. I stepped outside, saw this on the driveway and grabbed a magic marker and camera. Leanne: This one is neat, kind of dark and scary. photo submitted: 1-21-2005 by Camille

John: This photo was taken on our kitchen wall. It might have been a little too cruel to Cold Harbor. I heard a couple of comments about not being able to resist those adorable "dog eyes" (meaning Frances, not me). This collage has some of our favorite pix of Frances, with her one crooked ear and big eyes. She is wearing Christmas bells around her neck in the bottom right picture. Camille: I wondered who these strangers were and figured I'd never know. I recognized John but didn't know his name till you had it on the homepage recently. Had seen his wife? and him on other pictures. So who was from Hudson? Leanne: I wasn't sure who all the players were at this point either. I never dreamed there would be so many. photo submitted: 1-25-2005 by John

John: When I saw this photo, I assumed Camille was gracefully bowing out, and felt bad. Like Leanne said, "Boy, was I wrong!" Camille: A friend said of this pic in my kitchen,"Sounds like Cold Harbor is near Brooklyn Center." She hasn't been invited back. I am an artist! Leanne: I was worried that Cold Harbor was giving up here. Thankfully I was wrong! photo submitted: 1-26-2005 by Camille

John: Frances was ecstatic, and I knew we needed to get more dog treats. And yes, Frances does like to dig up stuff on occasion also. Camille: Crushed! Leanne: This was a hard shot to get. She was either playing in the snow, chewing on the paper or trying to run away. photo submitted: 1-28-2005 by Leanne

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“The Ruby Show”