Happy Emo Friday!

pladd — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 22:51:09 +0000

While archiving my old journals, I have come across two stellar premiers that have heretofore gone strangely unnoticed by the artistic and literary communities.

The first: my invention of emo comics in 2006, after a coworker at the library invited me to join the “Spinster Librarian Club”. Here was the comic response I drew in my journal of myself exiting the “Interstate de vie” (“writen in French b/c it’s classier”) onto Rural Route Spinster Librarian on the way to Scenic Alonesville. You can see my two library coworkers already ahead of me on the road:

You'll note that I include an explanatory note for our SE friends. Oh, past Patricia, always considerate

Then, a mere year later, I first broke into the field of emo poetry for a THE 434 Emo Poetry Contest with this gem:

The Blind Gravedigger

By Circe Bloodtear

Ever waking
Never sleeping
Always weeping
Just in hearing
The sighs of desolate sorrow
They rend my heart
They plumb my soul
Wondering if there’ll
Be a tomorrow…
Tomorrow
Tomorrow
Tomorrow
When the rain will wash away
Wash
Wash
Wash away
the blood
The blood you tore from my heart
As you crushed it in your fist
And threw it to ravenous swarms of
VICIOUS RAVENS!
They also pecked out my eyes.

I don’t remember what the other entries to this contest were like or who won or even why we were having an Emo Poetry Contest to begin with. These were the early days of THE 434, before we chronicled our exploits in list form.

Misguided Travel Guides: The Grand Canyon

pladd — Sun, 17 May 2009 16:04:48 +0000

From the way everyone talks about the Grand Canyon, I was expecting some deeply moving, life-changing experience. Which, of course, is always the first mistake. Instead I could never quite shake the sensation that I was at Disney world. True, there was much less waiting in line and touristy souvenirs to waste money on (at the actual park, anyway; the Denny’s we stopped at for lunch 30 miles away had a gift shop with “Grand Canyon” hats and snow globes). But the hordes of people, the system of shuttles and the countless colorful displays showing different parts of the canyon and cajoling passers to “Choose Your Grand Canyon Experience!” just seemed too commercialized, too fake. The canyon itself is, of course, huge and gorgeous–so big that it’s almost hard to believe it’s not a painted backdrop or a special effect off in the distance, which only added to the sensation of being in some kind of corporate-constructed microcosm. Naturally being surrounded by thousands of people trying to photograph themselves with the canyon at every angle didn’t help. Or the hundreds of people making exactly the same kinds of home videos, just in a variety of different languages: “Look! It’s me at the Grand Canyon!”

In conclusion, the Grand Canyon was probably a great experience once. I think I would have been overwhelmed if I could have seen it alone, so vast and silent. But being surrounded by tourists pretty much dampened any great emotions I may have had. So, not wanting to add to the problem, I took no pictures or documentary videos (sorry for the graphic-less post–clearly this will give Bova further ammunition for her blog war campaign). Instead I walked down and away, as far as time would allow, to sit on a rock on the edge and watch gigantic ravens flying thousands of feet above the ground, but still far below me.

The Plaid Pladd Blog » so emo right now

Happy Emo Friday!

Misguided Travel Guides: The Grand Canyon