Big things can't be addressed directly. Reflections and shadows are the only real tools we have
@greenman
Quitting a job is one of the best feelings ever, but just quitting one day is pretty darn good too. On my days off, I plan to hang out in the park with Woody and remember what it’s like to have friends.
So, if you also happen to not work on Wednesdays, or can manage your time in a flexible manner, I would really like to be able to spend time with people again - come visit. It has been too many years since I gave any of my time to the people around me.
If little Woody has taught me one thing ( he has taught me many ) it’s that work is not quite as important as I thought it was.
Quit - a bit.
I never was much of a fan of art galleries, but this one I am proud of. I have always considered the bland white of a gallery to be a prison for creativity, a place to lock it away and stick a price-tag on it, but when the white cube is a toilet, it’s much more my game. In Feb 2005, the Space Hijackers set up a gallery in the loo of a pub, and had a party (as usual). It was actually our second such project, with the first one invading random toilets around london.
See more of the pics at Mike Cupcake’s flickr page.
Hmm, the birth of my son has slowed down my involvement in all sorts of projects, does this mean I am relegated to writing about things I did almost a decade ago?
A small rant about consumerism, the story of Woody’s birth, a little bit of moralising and the obligatory baby photo.
I picked him up, help him over the loo and said “Psss”. And he did. He still does a regular bit of pooing in his nappy, but we do catch him a lot of the time. We’re getting better at recognising his signals. He knew how to drink from his mothers breast instantly, and he probably knows how to swim underwater - but we will wait a while before we test that. Instinct is amazing.
We forget how much comes for free. Our consumer society does not really want us aware of what is actually built in to who we are. Those who have worked to pull the wool over our eyes have conned too many into believing that, if it does not come wrapped in plastic it is not good enough. Food, health, entertainment, education, almost every aspect of life has been systematically dehumanised - at great cost to us all.
How do we raise a child to make the most of what he has within him ? If he knows all this stuff, what do we do to allow him to harness his abilities ? And, where is the line between encouraging a baby to do something and removing his own power to choose ? Am I helping Woody unleash his own potential by pushing him to do x or y, or am I imposing my will ? It’s so easy to become what you hate, in fact, I think it’s more than easy: You always become what you hate.
So, I don’t hate consumerism. I don’t like systems that cripple the power of the individual, but there are all sorts of good things about our western culture. I may generally rally against the medical system, but without it, Loolie would probably be dead.
Loolie’s labour began on Monday and Woody was born on Thursday morning, almost 90 hours later. We had everything set up for a home birth. Pool ready, incense, homeopathy, massage - but nothing worked. After two whole days of pain, we moved to the birth centre and we tried for another 12 hours before eventually going to hospital. Loolie was given an oxytocin drip and an epidural and then things worked… but not quite enough. Eventually the doctors booked her in to the theatre because Woody was just not out yet, and Loolie was starting to loose consciousness inbetween contractions. I was dressed in scrubs, ready for our worst nightmare, when a new shift of midwives decided that Loolie could do it without the doctors, Loolie got a second wind, joked with the small crowd around her, and pushed with everything she had. Woody arrived, eyes open, a little later.
Without the drugs, without the system I am so skeptical of, my life would be very different today. So, no, I do not hate the system, I just think there are ways it can be improved. It’s about balance, and seeing the bigger picture. Modern medicine and the society it is part of struggles to see how all the pieces fit together.
Anyway, that’s my little rant for today. In summary, Woody has been using the loo since he was a week old, I am deeply grateful to the doctors and midwives that helped us bring Woody into the world, and, the most likely reason for the three and a half day labour was the fact that Woody just wanted to share a birthday with his dad!
PS. Aneeta made woody his amazing green jumper. She is also a knitting teacher, so, maybe she could teach you!
Please forgive my very obvious prejudice. I am an African, and I tend to pour scorn on the dancing ability of Europeans. Sure there are a few exceptions, but most struggle to bust a move without being completely out of their heads…. and even then it’s iffy. Anyway, I do feel that there are some serious disadvantages to not being born on African soil, and the lack a sense of rhythm is one of them. (Possibly the biggest.)
People say that Mozart is good for babies. I took a look on Spotify and goddamnit there are a gazillion “mozart for babies” CDs. I could not find one “drumming for babies”. This looks to me like it could be a symptom!
I actually did have a go at playing some Mozart. Unfortunately the advertising world has completely destroyed the poor fellow’s legacy and my head just becomes filled with images of washing up liquid and cars and needless household appliances. I could not take more than a few seconds.
So, instead of playing Woody Mozart, pulled out The Drummers of Burundi and we did some dancing. That felt much better anyway. As long as I am diligent, I can atone for the crime of being born a European. ;-)
I missed this @spacehijackers adventure, but, it truly is another great work of art.
