I came face-to-face with Daniel the other day

Now, understand that it wasn't really Daniel... But, to see that face just as I imagined it was mind-blowing! I was walking through my local Target store when I came around the corner and there he was up on the wall above the men's department. I presume he is there as part of the Spring collection promotion.

So, please realize that Daniel is a composite of a number of influences and only existed as a general image in my head. So, to see his face there many times life-size will just twist you in knots. The model is admittedly not as beefy as Daniel is in my head. However, the head-and-shoulders shot reveals so many check boxes have been ticked off... The hair is perfect as is the mocha skin color. He even has Daniel's sweet sprinkling of freckles from his left cheek to his right and straight across the bridge of his nose. Now, the model is younger than I imagine Daniel is today; probably in his early twenties.

If you want to see what I'm talking about, take an excursion over to your local Target store and see if Daniel is there. He'll probably be around until the Summer promotion begins in a month or two.

Post-Christmas update 2021:

"Daniel" has stuck around for the rest of the two years (and I am delighted)!

Still, as mesmerizing as ever, I find myself shopping in Target more often, now. Who woulda thunk it?

Latest update: 

As of a couple of days ago, "Daniel" (and all his play-mates) have flown the coop.  Damn, I wish I had taken a picture of him when I first thought of it.

This is a not-quite-there AI attempt at capturing Daniel from my mind's eye.  At least you can see what I saw, sort of...  Ye gods!

The second try, seen here below was taken with a later version of the same AI as above and with the same specification phrase "His hair is really short and dense. His eyebrows are so full and luscious shielding his notable hazel eyes. His mixed-race background gives him very appealing features. I also notice a splash of darker freckles across the bridge of his nose and spilling onto his cheeks."

You can see the improvement in this second image which just floors me in so many ways.  They have mostly lost what I called the "Loose Ringlet Fetish" and finally got the eye color correct.  It's not perfect (check out the plastic-y nature of his lips which look straight out of a lipstick ad.  It would have been better if the lower lip color had been 50% closer to the top lip rather than what it is.)

And here's a visit from someone who is a surprise to me as well as you: This is my idea of what Randy looks like.  Isn't the new age of AI interesting?

Here's a try at Peter with an impossibly long neck and in one case, two Adam's apples.  I also love the euro-english Lorem Ipsum on the signs which show a fractured bit of the specification used to create the images.  Here's the actual specification:

"An androgynous figure about 5 1/2 feet tall wearing narrow, pegged leg pants and a loose-fitting shirt, 24 years old but appears younger, with moderate-short strawberry blonde hair, in the line at the small coffee shop at Albany Greyhound station."

                                               Who wouldn't want to kiss this guy?

Here are my thoughts about Gerry.  First, the specification: "I see Gerry as built like a high school wrestler but not so developed. He has fair skin which tends to accentuate the reddish tint of his hair in the summer time. He is slightly taller than average but does not overwhelm. Draw in the style of "Archie Comics".

Add some freckles to his face. Give him a friendly smile. Reduce the red color of his hair to just a slight tint. Add a couple of years to his age.

Hmmm.  I could see that...