En route to 'There is nothing less passive than the act of fleeing...'

posted: 13 July, 2010

I'm stuck on this boat again -- that's not a metaphor -- but it was my own (stupid) personal choice to take the Helsinki to Rostock ferry. I hate flying, I love the environment, etc. etc and it would be a fun way to go to Berlin, right? But then I impulsively ended up driving back from the UK two weeks ago, so I took this very same boat (though in the other direction, from Rostock to Helsinki) and discovered it to be a 29 hour plate of boredom -- starving boredom, really, as Tallink doesn't understand that a vegetarian might not want to pay 29 for the dinner buffet just to eat salad and bread. But yes, I'm back here, sitting in this shitty ferry bar listening to 'Baker Street' over and over and sipping crappy Finnish beer. I no longer have Bill Simmons' mammoth basketball book to amuse myself with, but I'm better prepared for food, having brought my own sandwiches.

Anyway, the reason I am posting this is to alert any potential readers to 'There is nothing less passive than the act of fleeing...', which is a 13-day seminar in Berlin organised by The Public School. I'm only catching the last few days, but greatly looking forward to it. Overlapping with this is a series of programmes presented by Triple Canopy -- so needless to say, I'll be busy. Additionally, it's a chance to formally make the connection from the Public School Helsinki (though I think Kari Y-A is the only other person likely to show up from Hki) and also to get more involved with Triple Canopy, as this will be the first time I'll actually have met most of these people in person since I formally joined the team.

The first of the three 'There is nothing less passive...' days I'll catch is happening in Teufelsberg listening station, a pretty unforgettable place that has been etched into my ears since I visited it a few years ago. It's going to be an amazing place to discuss Claire Fontaine's essay with a bunch of strangers! But Caleb Waldorf, my old partner in Intro to Pterodactyl (a musical group that recorded what is still probably my favourite recording I ever did, still unreleased at large), is no stranger, and he was one of the core organisers of these events -- so seeing him will be great.

As for now, the sea is calm (and boring) and 'Baker Street' just came on again, and this Lapin Kulta was "only" 4, so I'm happy! I have Alexander Theroux's Darconville's Cat to occupy my mind (as well as the Public School readings). See you guys in Berlin!