Included Below: My Pillow Guy / The Grid / Rothaniel / Guest Blog / Stories We Don’t Tell Redux. Click HERE for further information about this newsletter. To those from before and those who are new-
I. WELCOME!
My Pillow Guy.
A couple weeks ago I bought some throw pillows for my couch. I like throw pillows, so sue me. Originally, I wanted pink or red throw pillows for my grey-ish couch, but all they had were navy blue, so I went with it.
About halfway home, I came across a gaggle of old men standing outside a bar smoking. You know the kind, one of those sports bar / dive bar kind of joints. As I cut through the cloud of smoke, one of the men said, sarcastically: “Do you want some help with your pillows?” I mean, he was even that articulate, I’m helping him out here. He laughed to his friends and they joined in. Now, I’m a lover, not a fighter, but I stopped and pretended like I was confused and said: “Why would you want to help me with my pillows?” I was ruining their fun. Things got awkward. But I tried again: “Actually, they are very heavy and I could use your help carrying them. It’s a shame, I was hoping to get pink ones.” He waved me off and I shrugged and kept walking.
You know, I can be naive about things. I can get caught up in my own bubble of people who don’t subscribe to this kind of thinking. I forget that there are still men out there who have a certain interpretation of what masculinity is and what it means. I don’t want to get into much more then that here - there are many more people out there much more suited to explain this. All I got is my own experience. And really, this kind of thing is more sad than anything else. I’m not sad over the smoking guys, they are dumbasses. It’s just this masculine construct is made up, right? You can just chose not to participate. Because by, say, being afraid of pillows, there’s a part of you that is scared of being a vulnerable person, and to me anyways, you’re robbing yourself of the full spectrum of human emotions. And the people in life are probably exhausted having to navigate around or manage you.
But sure, go ahead and make fun of my throw pillows if that makes you feel better. I’m man enough to not get hurt and am pretty secure with my life choices.
II. TALES FROM THE DREAM ROOM
Each month welcomes an exclusive story from a parallel world.
The Dream Room is a place that where everything is interconnected. The sights and sounds and people that inhabit this world feel familiar. The tales pulled from the Dream Room are sometimes true and sometimes fiction, they may scare you or make you laugh. The Dream Room is a place not to be taken lightly and if you’re ready to enter, read the excerpt below and click on the link for the full story.
THE GRID: The Grid was the next logical evolution of the Metaverse. The internet has always been a curious place - it is simultaneously represents both the most incredible amount of freedom and the most cynical type of control. We had a moment in between these two iterations where we could have gone more in the direction of the internet representing freedom. Unfortunately, the company that built the Metaverse had already established the rules. And since they made the rules, they could break them and continually change the goal posts.
You could still unplug from the Metaverse. It was the alternate reality where you did everything - worked, socialized, etc. - but at the end of the day, you still had that ability to remove yourself from it. However illusionary that control might have been.
The Grid was the obvious next step. There would be no unplugging. There would be no ability to remove yourself from the system. The system was rigged because if you tried to leave, you died. Fusion Technology brought together flesh and nearly invisible nanowaves. When you plugged in, you now relieved on the The Grid to live.
Some tried to leave and they perished. But it didn’t take long for people to comply. There aren’t many of us left. Those who didn’t plug in and who live off The Grid.
Read the whole story at this link.
Q - Have you ever just wanted to get up and leave everything?
III. PAUL’S PICKS
A recommendation of something watched, read, or listened to.
An ongoing conversation with some friends is how many artistic formats are in a transition phase. Streaming companies have really confused things: is a television show just a long movie? Did that story warrant an entire series or could it have been a tight movie? And what is a movie anymore? Or a television show? This goes for comedy specials as well. Just as Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette sparked an existential crisis for comedy, Jerrod Carmichael’s Rothaniel is part of that transition. This isn’t quite a comedy special, although it is very funny. It’s not a one person show, although it has elements of that construct. And there’s an argument to be made that just says: Who cares? It’s a brilliant piece of work that is hilarious, poignant, sad, and left unresolved.
Anyway, if you haven’t seen this already and don’t know what it’s about, I strongly suggest you don’t read anything about it going in. The conceit of the performance hinges on a piece of information that has surely been written about. As a companion piece - to totally listen to after watching the special - Carmichael was on WTF Podcast with Marc Maron. They have a respectful and (affectionate) disagreement on a few things. I actually really appreciate that in a world where people are required to have a fully formed identity, Carmichael hangs out in the grey zone and is full of ambiguity - not out of pretension, but out of a desire to explore and be curious.
The other thing that really got me with the special was how it was shot. The camera angles are very close, which brings us right into the intimacy of the performance and the reactions of the audience (which is very important). Plus, Carmichael is just a master of the pause and has a great laugh.
Q - Have you watched anything lately that has surprised you?
IV. FROM THE ARCHIVES
An old story from my blog brought to you in a new way.
STORIES WE DON’T TELL BLOG: And now for something completely different. This section is usually reserved to highlight a blog post from my past: some are cringe, others I stand behind. Really, the idea was that I actually spent ten years writing all that stuff, might as well use it.
Anyhoo, on to the different part.
As you’ll see below, we’re finally getting around to doing a Stories We Don’t Tell live event after a few years. We’ve got so much content over there on the SWDT website that I keep bringing it up. Now all that is something I really stand behind. So, instead of something from my own blog, I wanted to make this about the SWDT Blog. Over the years, we’ve done a number of workshops, podcasts, and articles about the craft of storytelling, which you can check out HERE.
To enhance this, I also wanted to share a quick story. I have been thinking so much about Rothaniel and how it really does take a lot of time to find your voice. Lots of people talk about finding a writing voice. But, I also think you need to find a performance voice as well. This also takes time.
Below is a photograph from a Stories We Don’t Tell where I performed a story with Monica Hamburg. The story was about how we moonlighted as private investigators, but when explaining the case we were working on, we kept diverting and telling personal micro-stories. After a few years of performing on stage, this was the moment where something just clicked in for me. My cadence slowed down and in my head I adopted the perspective of: “I don’t know why you are laughing at what I’m saying, I’m just to be very serious here.” I’ve basically been doing a variation of that ever since. But, I couldn’t just have figured it out at the beginning, I had to do a lot of work to figure it out.
Here’s an article from the SWDT Blog about finding your performance voice.
Q - When did you find your voice (interpret this any way you need to)?
V. WATCH, LISTEN, READ, OR DO
Something to take with you.
Alrighty, here it is: Stories We Don’t Tell. We’re finally getting the gang back together again. For real this time. We’ve had some stops and starts, and not going to lie: disappointments. We desperately wanted to get back at doing events, but our number one priority was being able to do so in the safest possible environment.
In case you don’t know: There are some stories that we get really good at telling, we tell them to our friends, our coworkers, and even strangers at parties. We tell them because they are a part of us, and in doing so they build up our sense of self. There are also stories we don’t tell, maybe because they’re sad, or weird, or just a little too intimate. These truths are just as much a part of who we are, despite being erased from our day-to-day conversation. The Stories We Don’t Tell is a monthly live event that gives you a window into experiences that are so often left unseen.
As usual, this is a free event, but we are requesting you to register. This is so we can have a very clear idea of numbers. It helps us to organize the safest event for you. Use this Eventbrite link to register.
Q - Are you as excited as I am for Stories We Don’t Tell?
You’ve probably noticed that I’ve included a question at the end of each section. No, this isn’t required homework. However, if you are compelled to write to me with your thoughts, I would love to hear from you. Who knows, I might even share some of the answers in future newsletters (anonymously, of course). Email me here: jpd@pauldore.com.
August 2022 Edition: Banana Gardens / Institute of Madness and Confusion / Crying in the Bathroom / Crybaby / Stories We Don’t Tell.