Emotional gauge: stuck on ‘rueful, but stimulated’
I had a rather trying day today, which can be summed up in the following frustrated, petulant plea: “What the hell is the point of being a fat cat western tourist if I can’t access any of my comfortably-made, unequally-exchanged riches via any of these tin-pot banking apparatuses? And isn’t Brazil supposed to be hot, like all the time, like not with rain bucketing down continuously since 1am and consequently I can’t feel my toes through my not-Explorer socks? Hmmmm???!!!”
One of my exploits today *was* quite successful, that being a meeting with a very kind and supportive man with an enormously useful and interesting perspective on my research question. He speaks English, we conducted the entire meeting in English, it was delightful, and as I just remarked in an e-mail, I have never loved the language of the oppressor more.
Moreover, I am finding that the claims I am exploring are already being disrupted and deepened, such as material determinism, the realpolitik of property ownership, de-centralised and participatory organising, and then some.
There is clearly an interesting journey ahead. If only I could read the map ….
Mang! get with the new empire already!
Comment by ann — 8/31/2005 @ 8:27 am
adrian. when did you turn into leonard cohen?
by the by, there’s an ‘advanced hair’ advert on tv at the moment (during the cricket bien sur) featuring shane warne. At the conclusion (’denouement’ if you will) of the ad he gets a text-message which says something like ‘looking good, shane’. But it’s the look of sheer *pain* that takes over his whole being at being reduced to such self-mockery that gets the tears flowing every time.
Comment by matrine — 8/31/2005 @ 4:30 pm