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Sublime Destruction
Jan. 31st, 2009 02:36 pmYesterday was one of those days that just feels like an "off" day. When I woke up, I could not convince myself to get out the door to go rowing, so I canceled and then spent the time when I should have been sleeping in a state of regretful drowsing instead. Mornings like this are part of getting back into the groove, though, re-teaching myself what I feel like when I'm not ready to face practice but should go anyway.
After that, I took care of assorted chores around the house, and did manage to have a fairly productive mid-day spate thanks in part to my ever-awesome undergraduates.
The most sublime part of the day came close to the very end--I had ridden over to a benefit party for the Bike Saviours, and spent much of the party hawking baked goods, which was perfect. It meant I didn't have to do too much awkward mingling, but I still got to talk to people. The benefit party included a lot of fun events, much of which I didn't get to see--tall-bike jousting, a couple of awesome musical performances, and an Office Space-inspired destruction zone (you could pay $3 for the privilege of taking out a photocopier with a golf club for 1 minute). There was a bonus round for the destruction zone that![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
gfrancie would've loved: after you'd taken out some fury on the photocopier, you got to smash a plate.
I must admit, the photocopier breakage was a bit violent for my tastes, but I didn't watch much of it anyway because I was too busy trying to sell baked goods. I only really got to see the carnage towards the end, when the room where the damage occurred (a garage-type space with sealed concrete floor) was strewn with fragments of old hard drive cases and shattered china. It was a mess, so I helped A and P to sweep up and clear the wreckage.
When we'd gotten most of the way done with cleaning up, A discovered a few plates that hadn't been broken (yet), so she finally decided to give one a try. Then she offered one to me. Somehow, the experience of breaking it was astounding and beautiful. I put my thumb on the top of the plate, a thin, white thing, holding it from underneath as you would if you were carrying food on it. I brought it up by crooking and raising my elbow, and then I straightened out my arm and sent it smacking flat down on the pavement. It shattered wholesale upon impact, making a sharp sound as china met concrete and fragments skidded off in all directions out from the center.
Generally, I don't find destruction inherently fun or fascinating. That plate was a definite exception. I can't get the sound or feeling out of my mind.
After that, I took care of assorted chores around the house, and did manage to have a fairly productive mid-day spate thanks in part to my ever-awesome undergraduates.
The most sublime part of the day came close to the very end--I had ridden over to a benefit party for the Bike Saviours, and spent much of the party hawking baked goods, which was perfect. It meant I didn't have to do too much awkward mingling, but I still got to talk to people. The benefit party included a lot of fun events, much of which I didn't get to see--tall-bike jousting, a couple of awesome musical performances, and an Office Space-inspired destruction zone (you could pay $3 for the privilege of taking out a photocopier with a golf club for 1 minute). There was a bonus round for the destruction zone that
gfrancie would've loved: after you'd taken out some fury on the photocopier, you got to smash a plate.I must admit, the photocopier breakage was a bit violent for my tastes, but I didn't watch much of it anyway because I was too busy trying to sell baked goods. I only really got to see the carnage towards the end, when the room where the damage occurred (a garage-type space with sealed concrete floor) was strewn with fragments of old hard drive cases and shattered china. It was a mess, so I helped A and P to sweep up and clear the wreckage.
When we'd gotten most of the way done with cleaning up, A discovered a few plates that hadn't been broken (yet), so she finally decided to give one a try. Then she offered one to me. Somehow, the experience of breaking it was astounding and beautiful. I put my thumb on the top of the plate, a thin, white thing, holding it from underneath as you would if you were carrying food on it. I brought it up by crooking and raising my elbow, and then I straightened out my arm and sent it smacking flat down on the pavement. It shattered wholesale upon impact, making a sharp sound as china met concrete and fragments skidded off in all directions out from the center.
Generally, I don't find destruction inherently fun or fascinating. That plate was a definite exception. I can't get the sound or feeling out of my mind.
