Lately, I’ve started noticing how very common it is to refer to the African continent as if it was a single country, with one people. Maybe you’ve already come across this graphic by the designer Kai Krause, (the man who brought us Bryce in the 90’s.) Anyhow, he calls his visualisation of the African continent a small contribution to the fight against his own term, Immapancy.
Africa is huge, much larger than it looks on our distorted maps, and narrow-minded generalizations are not only stupid but can also be quite offending.
Click the picture for a bigger version with great tables and explanations.
And sure, I couldn’t say I’m completely innocent of the above accusations. I’ve been dreaming about going to Africa lately without being completely able to make my mind up on where to. South of Sahara is all I know with some countries and specific areas in mind, but I am still very open for suggestions. For what? Well, mainly for understanding and trying to get my mind around it. This big, big place.
My dear roomie came home yesterday evening and looked at me as I was laying across our couch, staring bluntly into the ceiling. “Poor sweetie, you look like shit.” she said. Confirming what my body had been telling me all day.
Today I woke up without feeling any better, but with an urge to work from home. So I did. I think I’m just really bad at being sick, it’s not exciting enough.
Later on I spoke to a friend. “Real strength is being able to admit to weakness” she said. Cheesy but true. So I finally let my mother convince me that I would be better off with her in Malmö. It didn’t cure me but at least it’s warm in this room. There will be chicken soup. And I’m attending an interesting conference tomorrow.
It’s being broadcasted online as well so I promise not to go there. I might even rest a little. I think I have to learn this skill.. Seriously, what do people do when they are sick?
Today is one of those days when you feel like your body is falling apart, along with your mind. And all you have for company is tea and blankets.
Milan Kundera’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being is one of my favourite books that affected me tons when I read it three years ago. Let’s see what the movie will do to me.
In the end of my trip around South America in 2008, I teamed up with a Chilean theatre company that was touring Bolivia and Peru. They were setting up their show for free, inviting less privileged children and families to share the art of clown and comedy with them. By printing posters, spreading the word and simply inviting people directly from the street, beautiful venues would be filled with people of all ages that normally wouldn’t visit, or never had been in a theatre. They wanted to share smiles, they said. Because all children deserve to experience clown at some point. Also, this was not the circus kind of clown, it was the mime kind of clown that plays on the art of communicating emotions to the audience using carefully directed body language and dynamic improvisation. Without words. Accompanied only by sound effects and the direct feedback from the audience. It was a great show.
At one point, shortly after I had met the group, the sound technician had to go back home. There, in Peru, I suddenly had a job, controlling the sound and lights for a one hour clown performance. I had seen the show once before and I was guided through the acts in terms of: “when I put my hand up, the lights fade to red and this track starts, ok?” that was kind of it. With my notes and vague understanding of sound controls I was completely in charge. And it was just insanely exciting and fun.
Stand Getz & Charlie Byrd Jazz Samba LP (1962)
I discovered The Jazz Samba disc by Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd many years ago. With this experience, however, it now has a priceless nostalgic value that strikes me every time my iPod shuffles to it. At the minute 9:27 in the video above, “O pato” starts. This was the song that was used between the acts and in the intermission. I must have heard it hundreds of times over without ever getting tired of it. And today it reminds me of how simple and beautiful things can be.
Working as a sound technician and travelling with clowns was a time of contemplation, where I learnt to accept that happiness and having fun is all that actually matters in the end. No matter what they tell you.
I’m on my way back to Copenhagen now, with a short stop-over in Malmö.
I was in a UN-school in Gothenburg today, introducing the WFP in a beautiful auditorium together with lovely Janerose Alvers who used to receive school meals from WFP when she was in school in Kenya. The spotlights were preventing me from seeing my audience well which would have been much nicer but I had a really good time anyway and they were really great.
Also, I received the most awkward of emails today. It was a person I met at a conference once who ‘just wanted to tell me’ how evil I am, based on his deep understanding of behavioral psychology and human interaction. I never interacted with this person more than at that one point and with one email confirming my contact details. True story.
So I took a very evil-looking picture and now somebody who met me more than once maybe could confirm this accusation? Or should I start worrying?
Not much time left of my trainride.. time for contemplation and James Blake.
I’m going to Gothenburg and I’m very happy to be sharing this trainride with my new headphones.
The frequencies that are audible for the human ear range between 20 and 20.000Hz, which is the excuse most headphone producers use for only covering that range of frequency response. However, what happens when you get hold of a pair of headphones that respond down to 5Hz, is that you can actually feel the music.
The pleasure of deep sound is a sweet priority of mine, and I’m on this train with my new love, Bersarin Quartett.
My boss took a photo of me earlier today when I showed her some of the goodies we would be having for breakfast at the office. This week was our turn to prepare it – and I’m still wearing that pen in my hair! Happy Friday! :)
