Free. Or does it? Ask your information what it wants....
I asked mine. Mine wanted a drink and a payment before it would even talk. (Note: That should be the first hint.)
So, Info and I walk into a bar and sit down. "Do you want to be free?" I ask.
Info turn to the bartender, "Remy Martin, VSOP, straight." I order beer. Domestic. "Well, we would have to define terms. For instance, what is freedom?" Info takes an appreciative sip. "In essence --"
I cut in. Philosophy's fine, but if I'm nursing a beer and Info's swigging French cognac -- on my tab -- we're gonna cut to the chase. "Do you want to be paid for what you offer; the knowledge, power, entertainment, instruction that you, Info, supply?"
"I myself would be delighted to be offer my services simply for the joy of sharing my presence, but I have...shall we say, bills."
"But don't you want to be free? Because I've been reading -- and it's been attributed to you -- that wished to be free."
Info sighed. "Well, yes, I did say that, but it was taken entirely out of context! I meant free to go hither and yon without barrier or borders. I never meant that I didn't expect to be compensated for my time and effort. It's not just for myself, you understand. I have commitments. A family! A whole lot of little Ideas. Even now, there's a new Notion in the oven."
"I heard there were gambling debts."
"I don't want to talk about that," said Info, primly.
"So, for the record, you want remuneration?" I asked.
Info stared into the beautiful amber liquid -- that was quickly disappearing. He motioned. "Barkeep, one more!" The the bartender came
"Still working this Coors."
"Don't get me wrong, I still cherish the ideals of my youth. But I've discovered that Beauty, not to mention Health Care, Education, and Housing, all charge, so really, I'm simply trying to get by in the world as I find it. Info, breath sweet with expensive -- very expensive -- cognac sang (off-key!) "It's Hard Out Here For A Pimp," by Three 6 Mafia,( http://www.three6-mafia.com/us/hom.) I joined in. What else could I do? And that note...I paid the tab and Info and I went our separate ways.
A stripper I know pointed out that American currency measures six-inches in length.
I make it a point of honor to believe everything that strippers tell me -- at least in my personal life. But when it comes to the responsibility of passing on information via the web -- where accuracy is paramount! -- I had to be sure. So, I did what any reasonable, responsible individual would do to assess the length of something -- I guessed.
Yet...it began to haunt me. Was it truly six inches?
And so the experiment began. I took into hand my ever-ready and trustworthy...ruler.
And yes, indeed. It really, truly, is a perfect-sixer! Plus, it has excellent portraiture and interesting iconic/Masonic imagery. What's not to adore?
Pimp That Muse! is an examination of creativity. From its name, you will have surmised that the tone will be whimsical, playful, and juicily abundant. And you are right.
Again!
Imagine.
That.
Your muse is your very own genius, experience, energy; the way they twine and combine. You know that no two creators are the same, but consider, if you will, that the same artist may entertain more than one muse (most amusing).
From where does the muse hail? Many different loci spring to mind: the quotidian, dreams, sound-color-space, political events, social interactions, nature, nurture, sensual experience, mythology...and places sans name--yet intimate from the first footfall.
Adventure, tryst, ecstatic dance -- with its push and pulsating rhythms -- red wine, smoke, fire, silk, friction, rhyme, drum beat, sighs, have all summoned the muse. So has silence. Memory. Imagination. Inner vision. And the all-consuming desire...to redress a wrong. Since Homo sapiens first scratched upon cave walls, moved around fire, and brought fourth life, the merging of ceremony, art, and beauty is intrinsic to who we are as a species.
Pimp That Muse! is a space. A place to examine your inner calling and its outer manifestation within the context of our social order.
Explore.
Connections fan out from creation, meditation, and making and sharing your art. The work. Calling: "Yo!" I said, "Yo, come out-n-play!"
This is.
For you.
Dialogue, community, caring, courage, and encouragement.
Now, Pimp That Muse!
