No-Thankyouverymuch

Sorry this is horizontal. I can't figure out how to edit the photo to get it right. But it's Elvis, and contrary to popular opinion, he's been horizontal for a couple of decades anyway.

This story from last month (http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2005/10/26/MNG62FE3821.DTL) made me think about the Elvis impersonator we ran into on our honeymoon in Vegas.

You see, this is either "street performing" or "aggressive panhandling" depending on how you look at it. People go to tourist spots dressed in colorful costumes, then charge people money for photographs.

Myself, I agree with the "aggressive panhandling" definition. How can you expect people to pay for taking your picture when you're in a public place? (Especially as in the story above, where foreign-speaking tourists allegedly got the shakedown from people in masks.)

This Elvis guy was doing just that, all friendly and even in-your-face solicitous until someone raised a camera without forking over some green, whereupon he'd cover his face.

Trouble with this guy's shtick, though, is that a picture of "Elvis" is actually just as entertaining if he covers his face. (As in, "Can't let that reporter from the 'Weekly World News' know I'm still alive.")