May you live in interesting times.

This is actually a mistranslation of a Chinese phrase. English speakers have attempted to turn it into a pleasantry, but it apparently is a curse meaning something along the lines of "May horrible things happen to you...". And it is the title of the Cardiff Festival of Creative Technology. And this makes me smirk.

This evening, I went to Cardiff Millennium Stadium with James (my host, Graham's son) to the By Invitation Only viewing of "Tim Davies: Drumming". Okay, so to transport you there, you walked in with your glass of champagne to a space rather like Texas Stadium (this is the place that the Wales v. Fiji game will be in two weeks!!!!! So it is pretty much exactly like Texas Stadium.). There are two screens at either end of the stadium hanging from the roof. On the screens are separate and distinct films running of this guy, presumably someone named Tim?, playing the snare drum, but you can only see the drum and his arms -- the rest is in shadow. Occasionally, one or the other screen will fade out and then reappear from a different perspective -- all the time, the snare drum(s) is/are going MADLY. I got kind of tickled and found it rawther funny. (You can't take me anywhere!) Especially since most of the other people were typical tweedy artsy types (which I admit to trying to be at one point in my life -- and failing) trying to appear appropriately moved by the experience :) This drumming lasted for a HOUR -- ha ha! I felt like we were in Mystery Science Theatre 3000. James did think it was pretty funny, too. Or else he was humoring my humor.

This is the catalog description: " Drumming shows the frenetic beating of a snare drum, which in turn echos throughout the empty stadium and beyond and sets up a cliched vision of valour and bravery, the spur to war, enveloped in a never-ending roar of drums."

Obviously, we are meant to "interpret" this as a (yet another) commentary on American Imperialism. Because everything is a commentary on American Imperialism, you know. Badgers are a commentary on American Imperialism. Clover, magpies, Gerbera daisies, tofu, penguins and BombayGin&Tonics even speak against its evils!

Good Lord, a man told me in the OxFam Shop this afternoon that it did seem like everything in the world started going wrong (using the outstanding example of the hurricanes -- VERY logical) when George W. Bush became President...has anyone else noticed this? I feel sooooo enlightened now.

After the Drumming, we went to an equally populated reception at The Big Sleep Hotel (which BTW is owned by John Malkovich!), had more champagne and a loooovely boofay. John Malkovich was not in attendance.



So now, I shall dream of Imperialism and what a wonderful world it will be once Lisa and I fully establish our Excellent Dictatorship.



Brain: "Are you pondering what I'm pondering?
Pinky: "I think so, Brain, but where are we going to find a duck and a hose at this hour?"