Traveller
Traveller was Robert E Lee’s primary horse during most of the Civil War, and for the rest of his life. Lee and Traveller were seldom parted until Lee’s death. No matter what front, what battle, what generals or armies, if Lee was there he rode in on Traveller. So, Im calling the chair that I am sitting in now Traveller in honor of that noble horse. Traveller (the chair) is a green, leather bound, club style chair that belonged to my grandfather Sidney Montague. Most of my memories of grandfather Montague involve him sitting in this same chair smoking (drinking?) and probably watching golf on tv. Traveller (the chair) is showing the ravages of time & hard living, but is still remarkably comfortable.  Iv had Traveller (the chair) with me through 5 or more offices, three distinct career changes & various desks- computers – etcetera. Traveller (the chair) like Traveller (the horse) doesn’t have a direct impact on the job at hand, but is still an indispensable constant that makes everything else just work better.

From time to time I toy with the idea of having Traveller (the chair) recovered, but Im not sure I can part with him for that long…

Lee
If you were looking for a single figure to represent the tragedy of the American Civil War, you could do a lot worse than picking Robert E. Lee. Lee was a loyal American, and he was a high ranking officer in the American army, but he was a Virginian first. He did not want Virginia to secede from the union, and he did not want Virginians to take up arms against the union, and even initially turned down the offers to lead the confederate forces, as well as Lincoln’s invitation to lead the Union forces. But the war happened anyway, and there he was running around with Traveller from battle to battle – trying to do a good job and secure Virginia’s and the south’s freedom. Its important to take a closer look at that last bit. The south was fighting for Independence, not to subjugate the north, I don’t think Lee would have gone for that. But even that apparently noble cause is flawed, because the freedom that sparked the conflict was the right to own slaves and perpetuate slavery. Lee’s personal tragedy in the Civil War was compounded when his personal Estate, Arlington House was turned into Arlington National Cemetery. Lee never went home.

Grant Vs Lee
Lord – are we going to go there again? OK – lets not. Cinderella? Oh yea – I’m working on a new sculpture and its causing me fits. I’m on the third major overhaul. After the first try bogged down I started something *new*, but  *that* turned back into: Cinderella 11:59

wellyoucankeepthepunkrockskarapbeatsandhousefuckmei’mtwee – yes I am

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• I’m Pretty Sure Swimsuit Models Are Sexy
• Are You Ready for Some…Er…Um
• Housing Booshit
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• This Week’s Tweets

This entry is divided into two parts, with a little rant in the middle to tie them together. The first part is about modern Animism.(I hope my new bike has a soul) The rant in the middle is about the salesman that did not sell me the bike, and the second part is about said bike & touches on some ideas concerning Arthurian legends. Lets start with the second part first.

Siege Perilous
I just purchased a new ‘road’ bike to replace the ‘cruiser’ type bike that I have been riding for the last year or so. The old bike is fun and extremely comfortable, but very heavy and slow, a real tank. The new bike is like a jet. I got the new bike in anticipation of doing some bike touring later this summer, as well as some lunch break exercising. I’ll be riding the new bike as part of my quest to get into shape, so it seemed fitting to name it Siege Perilous, after the empty seat at King Arthur’s round table. Although the Arthurian analogy breaks down fairly fast, the name stays because it means The Perilous Seat, and my bum will soon be sore enough for the name to be apt. The original Siege Perilous is a chair that you can only sit in after you have found the Holy Grail (I seem to have misplace mine – it was here a moment ago) which only Galahad can do, and things are pretty much over when he does. That’s probably why Ikea does not carry the Siege Perilous.

Bikeshop Rant
ME: I like to buy a bike, I looked online and I want something between the Syrris and the Globe…(suddenly I came over all peckish)
Salesman: OK What did you have in mind? (Peckish, sir?)
ME: Id like to get a bike for commuting and some light touring. (Eee I were all hungry, like!)
Salesman: Did you see a bike you wanted? (Yes certainly, sir. What would you like?)
ME: I like this Vita… (Well, how about a little Red Leicester.?)
Salesman: We don’t have that in your size, plus its a GIRLS bike. (I’m, afraid we’re fresh out of Red Leicester, sir.)
ME: You guys are listed as a Specialized dealer, do you carry the Syrrus? (Any Norwegian Jarlsberger?)
Salesman: No, but I can special order it. (No)
ME: Do you have any bikes comparable to the Syrrus (You do have some cheese, do you?)
Salesman: Yes, we have the Cannondale in stock. (Certainly, sir. It’s a cheese shop, sir. We’ve got…)
ME: Great, can I try it, I brought my helmet…(Hand over le fromage de la Belle France qui s’apelle Camembert, s’il vous plaît.)
Salesman: No, we don’t have one in your size (The cat’s eaten it.)
ME: Do you carry any bikes that are comparable to the Syrrus? (Venezuelan Beaver Cheese?)
And so on. I had to drive to Chappell hill to buy my bike.

Modern Animism
Animism is the idea that plants, animals and even inanimate objects have souls or perhaps more appropriately, spirits. Animism is one of the few ideas is not only entirely at odds with both Christianity and Science, but also alive and flourishing in the modern world. Think of all the machines we interface with, machines that we control and which control us. Elevators, subways, cars, phones, and computers: all take on an existence greater than their mechanical sum. Animism seems strongest when machines have greater and more arbitrary control over us, like the one traffic light that always catches you.

Traveller
Viva animism! I have decided to name my office chair: Traveller

Try A Little Something Different

• All Plans Go Boom
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• Stumbling
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Me
Greetings, Im Andrew, known to my family as ‘Drew’ and logging into this blog as ‘Drewl’ which, of course, is pronounced as ‘drool.’ I don’t take myself too seriously, but I would like to cover some fairly serious concepts in this blog, so you may only continue to read on if you promise bear with me. We have a lot of ground to cover, so lets get started:

Heroes
For me, a hero is not a perfect and untouchable ideal that is inspiring and vague, but more of a concrete reference that has a direct relevance to me. Ulysses S Grant was my first adult hero and he helped me thought a tough period of my life. He had a little help from H. Nelson later on, but for the first few years he was going it alone.

Ulysses S Grant
Grant is my hero because he was such a complete mediocrity at best and often a total failure: with one shining exception. Grant graduated in the lower quarter of his class at West Point, and did not seem fitted to be an officer in the peace time army. Leaving the army under dubious circumstances, (glug-glug) Grant tried several occupations and failed miserably. He could not even farm, and his record as a president is even worse: scandals, corruption and panics. After being president of the United States for two terms, Grant was swindled out of all of his personal assets and went bankrupt.

Horatio Nelson
I found Nelson a little later on, but its basically the same deal. Nelson is almost as bad as Grant but his failings were of a more private nature and did not have as broad an impact as Grant’s scandals. In his personal life, Nelson was extremely vain and flamboyant. He openly carried on an affair with the wife of a good friend (she was a woman of ill repute, and had even been an artist’s model at one point) and had a child with her. Although he was loved by the common English people, Nelson was often snubbed in ‘society’ because of his ridiculous behavior.

Huh?
Some heroes. Well, let me explain. In school I studied history primarily, but became interested in art as well, specifically figurative sculpture. I ended up with a BFA in art and a BA in history. Great. I knocked around a bit and did temporary work, but finally went back and got some vocational training so I would know something useful. Then I got a job and settled in to being my own mediocrity. But all that history and art was still in my head. I realized that even though Grant and Nelson were fools in their day to day lives, under the correct circumstances they were extraordinary. Grant fell for every scam that came his way, (Imagine John Edwards as President: “You say these beans are magic?”) but he marched his forces down the Ohio to the Mississippi and fought the battles of Shiloh, Vicksburg and Chattanooga, paving the way for Sherman’s little jaunt. (Im not saying it’s a good thing, just impressive.) Nelson, the one armed, one eyed dandy (he liked to ware ALL of his medals) carried off such a crushing victory at Trafalgar that Napoleon gave up even pretending to invade England.

These two men keep me going through some of my darkest hours because despite all their faults, they each had a ‘place’ where they truly shined. If they can do it, so can I. I just need to find the ‘place’ that is right for me.

Siege Perilous
Im still looking for that ‘place’ and the search had taken on something of the nature of a quest. So, Iv named my new bike:  Siege Perilous

Try A Little Something Different

• When You’re Sliding into First
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• This Week’s Tweets
• I Would Uke Everything I Own (for a zombie sock puppet)