Hello People of the World;
BAM! Snow, suckas! Yep, the crazy weather went
medieval on your asses and dropped some snow in your neighborhood. I guess the
planet surprised you with that one. Then, just when you get used to the idea of
an early winter. Then world changes its mind again. BAM! How-bout some rain,
suckas!
I hope you are well and not too scared by the wacky
weather out there. Today, as I type this, I was near struck by lightning as I
walked home from a presentation. I was walking beside my apartment building
when a white flash filled the sky. I smelled the buzz (if that makes sense) in
that silence in between, then, KA-BOOM! Sorry this is late, again, but as it
turns out every year, November gets very busy for me. I don’t know why.
Let’s get this edition started, shall we?
1:[ First
Item of the Month:
Gaining Trust
I find that meeting some one you trust is becoming
a very rare thing in today’s world. I have met very few people I can really
tell everything about myself to. Yeah, as much as I brag on about me, no one
has really heard or knows everything about me. Recently though, I was giving
trust in return. It is something very big, to gain that kind of trust. It is a
big responsibility from someone whom you love to receive such a gift. That is when
you know someone really loves you. I just hope that I prove out worthy of the
type of trust that I have been recently bestowed….
2:[ My Truthfulness Stuffs:
My Useless Self: Ego and
Talking About Myself
I have had the pleasure of running into an old
friend that I have not seen in some time the other night at the film festival.
It was great to see her again after this long while and though we had barely
enough time to catch up, I always find that my ego gets the best of me and I
talk about myself a bit too much. Of course, my friends are too polite to say
anything and when I finally get around to asking “And how are you doing?” they
reply with considerate grace.
I know. I get it. I have a big ego. Plain and
simple. I guess most of you have figured that out, seeing that I write a
monthly web log expressly dedicated to share my super, Mc Awesome thoughts with
you. I don’t know. I just end up blathering on about how awesome I am. I always
feel like I am being rude for going on and on about me when I talk to friends
or acquaintances. But some times, I know, I have not seen some people for so
long that I want to tell them as much as possible because I do not know when I
will see them again. You see? I have told you before that I am an introvert. I
do not go out much. So, whenever some one asks what I have been up to, I feel
it rude not to give a complete answer.
Besides, I’m awesome. Right?
Updates from my other Truthfulness Projects:
+ NAMELESS: The Authentic and Magical Ledger Art of EW3
A Treatise on
American Indian Art
“All you care about is money. This city deserves a
better class of artist. And I’m going to give it to them.”
I really enjoy giving my sketches away. Just as a
rule I keep a number of them, about 20 or (Out of 75 and growing) to run as my
primary exhibition images. Plus, I only give away the images I have already
scanned into electronic files, which is about 60 or so. Also, I give away
drawing that some how reflects the person receiving it and that the drawing has
to be good in my own judgment. The image may not make much sense to the
person/people receiving it, but it makes sense to me.
For instance, I recently gave away an image of a
Chinese opera mask depicting Guan Yu. His red, ruddy face is a representation
of valor and high honor, which I think describes the ladies at Title VII to
whom I gave the drawing.
All of the parameters of this project are there to
circumvent the ideologies of the Native Art world and the expectations of art
in general. From the materials used, to the images rendered, the use of cheap
framing and even giving them away are all meant to peel away from this idea
that art is a collectible coffee mug, that its only purpose is to be sent
around and sold off to the highest bidders and that, that, some how gives the
art credibility in our world. Which is a load of sh*t.
People always ask how I can actually give away
these pieces. Simple. I can replace any of these drawings. Doing them is fun.
To quote the great man, ‘It’s not about
money. It’s about sending a message…’.
+ The Five Six SEVEN Hypocrisies of Native America:
(Because Seven is a sacred
number):
Presenting the Three Things the Redskins can do to
gain Native American Support:
1) Change their name to that of a great Native
American leader: Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse, Tecumseh, Red Cloud. So when you
look at that sh*tty, cartoony Indian head, you will be reminded of our heroes.
You will be seeing our leaders. And that will make it all right.
2) Give a shit-ton of money to the local Native
American organization. In DC, I believe that would be the National Museum of
the American Indian, lovingly called the NMAI because Natives luuuuvs us some
acronym.
3) Most Importantly: Keep winning championships.
This will make all the Natives in town wear your jerseys. Because nothing
spells “Honoring Natives” like patting a huge silver trophy.
How do I know these will work for the Washington
Redskins?
It works for the Chicago Blackhawks….
With this whole Washington Redskins Flap happening,
I see that many people are taking up sides in this debate. Yet, I do not think
many know what it is really about.
Well, it is not about money – because NFL teams
change names all the time, shoot, they even move teams around: Browns – Ravens,
Cardinals – Rams, Oilers – Titans, and so far, the NFL has not collapsed. You
see? People support the home team, not the names.
It is not about Honoring Natives either, because
you just have to look at those cartoony Indian heads to know, that isn’t
honorable. That is just common sense.
It isn’t even about Native Americans having the
right to represent them selves accurately. Because a shit-ton of Indian schools
use Braves, Warriors, Chiefs, even Indians as their mascots and have some
Indian kid dancing around in a headdress. So, no, it’s not about accurately
portraying Native Americans.
In the end, it is about Power. The power they have
over another race. You see? For so long the dense and depressing history of
American colonialism has never been taught in schools. The whole Myth of
Conquest that the Natives had to be destroyed for our great nation to flourish
has been indoctrinated into every school kid that moves through any era of our
Nation’s school programs. (Yes, even Native kids.) It shows that their history
is the correct one, that their version of democracy works, that Manifest
Destiny is the right destiny. An accurate history of the conflicts and
genocides and the broken treaties has never ONCE entered the head of the
American Student. Therefore, we all grow up with this idea that Indians are
“Always the Enemy” and they must be put down, segregated or defeated wholly for
our democracy to sprout. You see?
They will NEVER give up on the Redskins logo or
name because that is their “reward” for their ancestor’s “defeat” of the
Indians. That power to say, we “conquered” you and now you have NO say in this,
is what is at the heart of this issue. So, how to change it? The biggest change
in our histories has always come though confrontation. As uncomfortable as that
sound, how scary it seems. It is how change, real change, has come about in our
society. Not this silly drumming a thousand miles away….
+ No One Ever Sees Indians – Native Americans in Media:
I have had the opportunity to present my revamped
Native Americans in Media presentation “No One Ever Sees Indians” at several
locations in the past few weeks, mainly due to November being “Native American
Heritage Month”.
The first place I presented was at a Wheaton
College Seminar. It was the first time I had to do this and since there is an
element of performance to it, I was a bit nervous. Now, this was the
full-length version of the new presentation and it worked out very well. So
much so, that some teachers told me afterwards that they would have to change
up how they teach about Native cultures. Some still want to hold on to their
authority by constantly asking how to give Natives their voice. So, I’ll take
it one step at a time.
The next presentation was at the Midwest ECO
Conference at UIC. Here, Community Psychology Doctoral Students were present
and the workshop I was a part of was on open discussions on racism. I did a
short 15-minute version of the presentation and got a good reaction. I had to
cut a lot of what builds up the tension in the regular presentation but I was
still able to get my points across. Still, some have to show off their
authority and expertise by droning on endlessly about their choices for things.
This morning, I did another, even shorter version
of the presentation at the Third Unitarian Church on the Westside. It was a
group of elderly parishioners and they took the message very well. So, working
out this presentation on various group can only help in my presentation of the
idea that in media “No One Ever Sees Indians”….
NEXT MONTH’S TRUTHFULNESS:
Ego and _____?
Let me know what I should
cover next in my series on Truthfulness.
3:[ More MOVIE TIME ADVENTURES:
+ Rifftrax Live: Night of the Living Dead: Bonnie and I took in the
latest offering from the guys at Rifftrax, this time taking on the “Classic”
Night of the Living Dead. It was hilarious. The fact that they take on such
“classics” is to be admired. There are no sacred cows when it comes to riffing
movies. It is not like movies are art or anything. Strangely enough, this
“classic” touched off the whole Zombie Zeitgeist. Before this film, zombies
were NOT the living dead. They were peoples rendered mindless through curses.
The idea that the dead would rise, according to George Romero, came from the
story of Anubus. In fact, the working title of the film was “The Night of
Anubus” about the dead rising again. Plus, it does not have that now-trite
ubiquity of the zombies eating brains. In this film, they ate flesh. Weird how
a concept changes, but still great to watch Mike, Kevin and Bill rip it apart
for all its eminence.
+ NT Live:
Macbeth: I
just saw this yesterday. (As of this typing.) I saw in the Music Box’s
newsletter that they were screening the National Theater’s production of
“Hamlet” and was very curious to see it. But I also saw that they were screening
Kenneth Branagh’s performance and co-direction of “Macbeth”, which intrigued
me. I am a fan of Branagh, as a filmmaker. He does or at least tries every
genre there is: Shakepeare, mystery, horror, comedy, opera and in a few months
political-action with the latest Jack Ryan movie entry.
So, seeing this, I was amazed to discover just HOW
LITTLE both Macbeth and Lady Macbeth are in the play titled “Macbeth”. I came
in about 10 minutes late. But I watched as the witches prophesied for Macbeth
and Banquo, then, Macbeth’s power play against the King and assuming the
throne. Then, he disappears until the final act to be killed by Macduff. Sure,
the sexy Alex Kingston as Lady Macbeth is there to have her nightmares, but she
never once egged Macbeth to his deeds. SO, I do not know where the Evil Lady
Macbeth Trope comes from. The Macbeths are just there to move the plot along.
I am sure they cut out a lot to make it fit the two
and a half hour production. Of course, I also nodded off more than once
whenever the Macbeths were not on screen, so maybe I missed something. Also,
Branagh was just being Branagh saying Macbeth things. So, all in all not really
worth the ticket I paid for, which was very pricey. Now, I am really not sure I
want to see the National Theater Live presentation of “Hamlet”.
+ The
Grandmaster
and Citizen Kane are playing again soon
in Chicago. The Grandmaster will be
playing again at the Gene Siskel Center and I will be there to see the best
film of 2013 that I have seen so far. Citizen
Kane will be screening at the Music Box very soon and I will not miss a
chance to see it on the big screen. Join me, won’t you?
4:[ Lately, in addition to my
continual reading of “Three Kingdoms”, I have been reading a little tome called
“Star Wars and History” (I know, even Char calls me a Geek.). It is about how
much of history is reflected in the Star Wars movies. (Yeah, all of six them.)
Some the first few chapters have been about the Rebellion and what is called
“The People’s War” and how a smaller, less-technical force can overcome a
larger Imperialistic force. For their historical examples, they used the
American Revolution and the Vietnam War. They stressed the idea of a small
force outfighting vastly superior numbers. Also, using a shared cause and guerrilla
warfare to defeat your foe both on the field and ideologically was discussed at
length using these two examples.
Of course, this is all told through a largely
European lens. “It’s Star Wars” you might say, and rightly so. Sure, they
mentioned the Viet Cong and the US’ impotence in stopping them, but through the
usual liberal lens that pats itself on the back for recognizing that the US was
the Empire in this instance and possibly many more instances in history. But
never once was there mention of Geronimo’s War, Blackhawk’s War, Tecumseh’s War
or even Joseph’s Flight. Not even a mention of Little Bighorn. So, history
still has a lot of catching up to do, even in a galaxy far, far away….
5:[ Ah yes, settle in Dear
Readers for more of:
Adventures at
the Coffee Shop!
+ Is it a corporate rule or something that states
that there has to be a f*cking, hipster mustachioed buffoon on staff? At
my usual spot there is a barista there who is a magician, so I can kind of
understand the whole “handlebar moustache” thing. So, I go to a meeting at a
shop in Andersonville and lo and behold, another mustachioed barista behind the
counter slinging coffee. Really? I hate that mustaches are becoming the next
hipster-cool zeitgeist. That trend needs to be cut down before it grows. And
why a handlebar? When I see them on dudes, I just know they are just judging
sh*t they didn’t earn, when they should only be talking about slinkies and
kazoos before they jump on their big-wheeled, olde-tyme bi-cycles and peddle
off before crashing into a mountain of antique typewriters…. Or maybe I’m just
generalizing….
+ I haven’t had the opportunity to go to the coffee
shops as often as I would like and when I do it usually is the same places.
However, I did go to a Caribou Coffee the other day before my trip out to
Wheaton. I order a hot apple cider, which is just steamed apple juice, which
for some reason, NO ONE can get right when I order. When I state I want a
steamed apple juice they ask, “You mean a Hot Caramel Cider Something or Other?”
“No, just a steamed apple juice. …Hot, HOT apple juice! Thank you.” Sheesh.
So there I was sitting at a window seat facing the
order counter. I notice the very cute lady barista was giving me the eye. I
would catch her look at me from time to time and I though wow, she very pretty
in that Diane Franklin sort of way and would smile back, trying to play it real
smoove. SO, I decide to get up and order a refill and when I do, I look out the
window behind me to see that a car accident had happened and that was what she
was looking at the whole time. When I get back to my seat, I have to think
“yeah, that’s about right….”
6:[ I have come around to the
Dry Brushing method of tooth care. I read an article on how dry brushing your
teeth before you use toothpaste actually gets them cleaner than using
toothpaste alone. It removes more plaque. So, I have a ton of tooth rituals.
Rinsing in hot water, dry brush and flossing. I floss because I wear a bit a
couple of times a week when I sleep. Yeah, I have a retainer. I’m a geek. It is
a new, invisible type that needs more upkeep than my old, Old West retainer
that my orthodontist screwed into the back of my bottom canines, which broke a
year or so ago. I am sure I told you that story already. I wear a bit, it what I’m
trying to say….
7:[ And now Wisdom of the
Sages presents:
“An Ever-growing List of Things That MUST Stop!”
+ Electronic devices are now allowed to be on
during take-off and landing according to this article. It seems that the FFA
has relaxed the rules on when passengers can turn on their phones and stuff.
Twenty years ago, talking on the phone was not even a remote possibility and
people seemed content to take part of the miracle that is human flight without
having to check their texts every ten seconds like they are important. How big
a babies have we become now when we cannot be away from our f*cking binkies for
20 minutes….
+ My Fans: How do we get attached to pieces of
junk? I have had a couple of fans in my place. One was a fan I owned when I was
living back in Wyoming. The other, a large fan that Bonnie gave me when we
separated. Recently, both have become broken through falls to the floor, breaking
of blades and making the machines wobbly when turned on. Now, a sane man would
have thrown them out. But I stuck them in my closet and hold on to the out of
sheer sentimental value. The attachment to Wyoming and my life with Bonnie and
the Girls are packed into those scraps of metal and plastic and I am loathed to
throw them away. Can someone show up and take them out to the dumpster for me.
I feel that I will just go back and grab them again.
+ Have you ever noticed that people on the trains
just talk and talk and talk about f*cking nothing!? Me too! I was on the Red
Line the other day heading out to one of my presentations and I guess there was
a Bears Game happening. So the train filled up with tons of people in Bears
gear. But none of them had anything really important or deep to say. They
talked about shopping for something, or eating somewhere, or just sports in
general. Some Bears Dudes began flirting with the cute Lions Fan, even delving
into the 12-year-old handbook of yelling “LI-YONS SUCK! LI-YONS SUCK!” over and
over to try and get a reaction from her. Plus, there was the usual job nonsense
that can be taken care of when you get there, but nooooo, you have to sound
important. But mostly, people tended to talk about are other people behind their
backs. Why can’t people just shut up unless they have something to say? Or
maybe I am just an unsocial ass….
8:[ A little note on Giving
and Getting Directions: Last month, some time, a man and his grown son
approached me on the street. Through the thick eastern European accent the
father asked directions of the nearest “Walgreens”. His son stepped in to ask
if there was one nearby. Now, we were on Western and Touhy. I told them, yes,
one was right up the street, maybe two blocks. They thanked me and went on
their way. I turned east on Touhy, heading home when I realized that I might
have given them inaccurate directions. See, when they asked I immediately felt
the pressure to get the directions right. I counted the stoplights in my head
and used that but failed to realize that there are many side streets and
off-center junctions that come in-between Western and that particular
Walgreens. Man, I felt stupid for feeling rushed.
But about a week ago I found myself looking for the
Ogilvie Transportation Center, on my way to Wheaton, to which I never traveled
out of before. I found myself lost on Madison and walked north to Randolph but
not seeing the station where it was shown on Google Maps. So, I stop a fellow
and ask him where it was. He points down the street to the very obvious train
tracks and said the station is on the next block, but if I am heading north,
the station I want will be on the north side of the street. We were on the
south side of Randolph Street. I thank him and proceed towards the station
wondering where the north side entrance is. Only when I reach the junction do I
realize that there is only ONE entrance on the south side of the street and
yes, by entering there I did find my track and train but it made me wonder if
we all feel a bit of pressure to answer queries about direction quickly or
accurately?
9:[ From the “This Just In” Department: So today I
was told about this phenomena of parents buying children’s picture books about
Native Americans of late. They would come into the store asking about such
books as one called “I am Iroquois” and others, usually last minute month of
November projects that they would be freaking out about because they cannot
find any kid’s books on Native. Most parents would just be content to buy a
book that was felt was practically interchangeable whether it was Cherokee or Iroquois.
One dad even stated as much to my friend.
That is annoying in itself, but here is the clincher:
the project almost all of these parents were freaking out about is that they
were buying the books to cut up for various projects: dioramas, mobiles, and
popsicle stick figures. Cutting up the books. I’ll write that again: They were
cutting up the books. Now, my friend who told me about this stated that this
all happened in one evening with about four different groups of parents coming
in, in a rush to find a children’s book on Native that they could cut up.
I am very aware that Native American history is not
taught AT ALL in any school in American but this sort of brings the whole of
Native culture down to something that is practically disposable….
10:[ Last Item of the Month: Ironically, it is NATIONAL ADOPTION MONTH!
Yep, in addition to being National Moustache Month or “Movemeber” (F*cking,
YUCK!) and Native American Heritage Month, it is also National Adoption Month.
So go out and find a cute, lost white woman who has
stupidly dressed up like a cartoon Indian and adopt them. If we can forgive
white dudes for doing it because they are famous, then surely we cannot be
hypocritical and do the same for women. Because, adopting a famous white man
for stupidly dressing likes an Indian? Apparently, that makes it okay, I
guess….
That will do it for this month. Let me know what
you think about any of the items that appear here on Wisdom of the Sages. Feel
free to comment, correct or contradict what you read here. Because my opinion
sure not be the last word. I hope this finds you, Dear Reader, doing well and
safe from the harsh winds and rough weathers. I will work a bit harder in
getting this out on time. We’ll see.
Until Next Time, “I try to show the schemers how
pathetic their attempts to control everything really are.”
2013 Ernest M. Whiteman III
