Holding The Pose

Image is everything. It's shorthand for your brain. In brains raised on television, shorthand is all they know. Perception, introspection, intuition, and even memory have gone by the wayside in favor of an endless supply of image. Fast food for your eyes. They come refined like fast food, retinal sugar and grease.

And you are what you eat. What do you do? Well I maintain my image. It's everything. It's what's for dinner. Got image? And with image then why do you need imagination? Why let the mystery of your brain formulating idea and form impinge on your daily life? There are huge media conglomerates out there who will do all of that for you. They will provide all of it prepackaged in handy to use choices and styles. Be the first on your block to try the latest one, the sporty one, the classic, the rugged individual. What's your pleasure? Want to do something really far out? Come up with a new image and we'll package that and put it out there and supersize it. Hip Hop anyone?

It's all good, you pay your quarter and it's part of the video. The cracks are only getting wider. I steer my life through them and as long as I'm left alone then why do I care? Other peoples choices are theirs to make. I don't need or let them make any for me. The only rub is when I brush up against an image or two. Sorry I smeared your paint, I tramped mud on your rug, I pissed in your soap bubble. Or not. The deal is that your movie ain't my reality. It's a movie at best. A stream of carefully collated looks that may or may not have been worked on and agonized over. Is this look right for me? I so want this look.

Having achieved a precious look I suppose it's only natural to make it sacrosanct. To align it with as many other sacred looks and causes as possible so as to engrave it on the moment. The portrait of a young artist as a vegan, meterosexual, environmentalist, free Tibetan, pilates twice a week, open minded, fair trader who someday wants to build a straw bale house and grow all his own food.

Go to a war protest and it's not about the war, it's how they look as war protesters. Boycott China? Sure throw that on my tab too. Earth First tree sitters forever! I'm totally down with the image of your cause.

Do you want me to take your image seriously? Carve it in stone. Short of that, base it in experience, in talent, and in commitment. Get real. I don't have time for your fake Internet profile, for what you are someday going to do, for what you feel the planet needs to survive. You've got smaller problems. Weaning yourself off the media tit would be a good start. Break that addiction and get clean and lets focus on our experience of our life instead of images of a pseudo nature doled out to us at our own expense.