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Strange Whine
May. 6th, 2004 06:36 amBabs just posted her pictures from her trip to New York City. I've never held much regard for the city, although I know a lot of people love the place. I turned down a chance to work there back in 1998, which may or may not have been a wise life decision. NYC for me is defined more by image than reality, I think. It kind of exists in its own little mythic continuum, defined by 1930s movies, 'The Lamb lies down on Broadway', and images of anarchy decay from the 80s. There's something about it that I've never liked.
Among her photos are some of Flushing Meadows, though, where the 1964 World's Fair was held. There's still remnants of the fair in place. I was three years old when they held that, and I'm still unhappy that I didn't get to go. We had a book on 'modern America' that showed pictures of some of the buildings there, most notably the Johnson Wax and Bell Telephone structures. These fascinated me. They remain to this day some of the most magnificent buildings that I've ever seen. Huge, soaring structures with cantilevers, sheer walls, and lots of open space in the 'Populuxe' style. These things looked like the Space Age.
I actually buy SC Johnson products in preference to other brands because of the 1964 'flying saucer' building and their 1939 'red tower' headquarters. Sad but true. I also buy Tropicana fruit products because they sponsored my all-time favourite racing team in 1964. But I digress...
I didn't understand the concept of a World's Fair at the time (the county fair was impressive and overwhelming to me - I was three, after all), but I wanted so badly to go see those buildings. That's stayed with me on a low level through the years, and finally the other day when I saw Babs' pictures that came rushing back.
The 1964 fair is long gone, of course, but it fascinates me how much of the structure is still there, mouldering away in place. I want to see the ruins, and touch them. I'm not sure why. It'd probably upset me to see all that beauty in ruins, but they draw me just the same.
I want there to be another World's Fair, so that I can attend. I want something with strange, soaring buildings like no-one's ever seen before. I want something that glorifies and attempts to define the future.
So, my upset over the World's Fair issue at least has led me to something more useful than just sitting here whining. While poking about the web looking at pictures and accounts of the Fair, I've discovered a committee to organize a World's Fair in Phoenix, AZ in 2008.
I've got my doubts if it'll actually happen. The website looks less than impressive, and there doesn't seem to be any firm commitment. Also four years seems a very short time span for that sort of thing to be pulled off. However, we'll see. The site is at http://phoenixworldsfair.org/home.php, if anyone's interested in helping out. I've signed up to help, if there's anything useful I can do from Ohio. Note that a couple of the website links are broken, but it's pretty easy to work out the proper URLs.
Upon reading further though the poorly-designed website, I do see that they've already got some local sponsors, and a proposed fairgrounds. If it comes off like planned, it's going to be the biggest ever held, at least in terms of space - basically a five mile strip along the riverside. I can see that going wrong too, though, with stuff so spread out that the crowd never quite reaches critical density. On the other hoof, I worry a lot.
The Phoenix people look a lot more of top of events than the group that's trying to bring a World's Fair to New York for 2012. They seem foredoomed by their resistance to corporate involvement. World's Fairs have never made a profit. Also, when we get right down to it, the coolest stuff at the '64-'65 fair was the corporate pavilions.
*****
Tonight I'm focussed on things I feel a sense of injury over. Not getting to go to the 1964 World's Fair is one. Not having brown eyes is another - mine are blue-grey. Again, it's something that's no-one's fault, but it just didn't turn out like I wanted. I want brown eyes.
When I was 21, and coloured contacts were first being widely advertised, I went to the optometrist to see about getting contacts. I needed corrective lenses anyway. I'd worn glasses since I was five or so years old. I tossed them a few years previously because I was simply tired of the bother of wearing them (the constant pressure made the bridge of my nose and the tops of my ears sore), and I could see well enough without them. My mother was unhappy about that, and kept after me to get them replaced. I finally agreed to wear contacts, if she'd buy them. She was agreeable, so off I went to the doctor's.
I'm not real sure what went wrong that day. I usually have no problem with being assertive about what I want (rather the opposite, if anything), but that day I just wasn't. I made some brief mention of colours, but it got brushed aside and forgotten, and he hustled me right through the exam and order-writing process. I wasn't overly pleased with myself for letting that happen, but I thought at the very worst I'd end up with clear lenses.
When I finally got them, they turned out to be blue-tinted. The concept of 'colour' had sunk in just enough to do damage, it seems. Amazing. Now I had eyes that weren't just blue-grey, but actual bright blue. Since it was my own fault for spinelessness, and since my mom had paid for them, I did make an honest effort to wear them, but it came to naught. My heart wasn't in it, and every little inconvenience was magnified by my discontent. After six months or so I just gave up on them. I think I still have them yet today packed away in my stuff, salt-encrusted in their little storage thingie.
I'd like to have contacts again, but I'm unwilling to buy them for myself. God knows what strange quirk of my psyche leads to that, but I don't want to pay to change the colour of my eyes, even though I want it to change. It's not plain cheapness either, although I'll readily admit to being a cheap bastard. If I pay to have it done, it's somehow not the same. I suppose it comes from the idea that eye colour is something you're given, not something you buy.
Interestingly, since I quit wearing lenses my vision seems to have corrected itself to some degree. I had been farsighted, and I suspect that as I age I'm becoming more nearsighted, so that there's a natural correction going on.
Among her photos are some of Flushing Meadows, though, where the 1964 World's Fair was held. There's still remnants of the fair in place. I was three years old when they held that, and I'm still unhappy that I didn't get to go. We had a book on 'modern America' that showed pictures of some of the buildings there, most notably the Johnson Wax and Bell Telephone structures. These fascinated me. They remain to this day some of the most magnificent buildings that I've ever seen. Huge, soaring structures with cantilevers, sheer walls, and lots of open space in the 'Populuxe' style. These things looked like the Space Age.
I actually buy SC Johnson products in preference to other brands because of the 1964 'flying saucer' building and their 1939 'red tower' headquarters. Sad but true. I also buy Tropicana fruit products because they sponsored my all-time favourite racing team in 1964. But I digress...
I didn't understand the concept of a World's Fair at the time (the county fair was impressive and overwhelming to me - I was three, after all), but I wanted so badly to go see those buildings. That's stayed with me on a low level through the years, and finally the other day when I saw Babs' pictures that came rushing back.
The 1964 fair is long gone, of course, but it fascinates me how much of the structure is still there, mouldering away in place. I want to see the ruins, and touch them. I'm not sure why. It'd probably upset me to see all that beauty in ruins, but they draw me just the same.
I want there to be another World's Fair, so that I can attend. I want something with strange, soaring buildings like no-one's ever seen before. I want something that glorifies and attempts to define the future.
So, my upset over the World's Fair issue at least has led me to something more useful than just sitting here whining. While poking about the web looking at pictures and accounts of the Fair, I've discovered a committee to organize a World's Fair in Phoenix, AZ in 2008.
I've got my doubts if it'll actually happen. The website looks less than impressive, and there doesn't seem to be any firm commitment. Also four years seems a very short time span for that sort of thing to be pulled off. However, we'll see. The site is at http://phoenixworldsfair.org/home.php, if anyone's interested in helping out. I've signed up to help, if there's anything useful I can do from Ohio. Note that a couple of the website links are broken, but it's pretty easy to work out the proper URLs.
Upon reading further though the poorly-designed website, I do see that they've already got some local sponsors, and a proposed fairgrounds. If it comes off like planned, it's going to be the biggest ever held, at least in terms of space - basically a five mile strip along the riverside. I can see that going wrong too, though, with stuff so spread out that the crowd never quite reaches critical density. On the other hoof, I worry a lot.
The Phoenix people look a lot more of top of events than the group that's trying to bring a World's Fair to New York for 2012. They seem foredoomed by their resistance to corporate involvement. World's Fairs have never made a profit. Also, when we get right down to it, the coolest stuff at the '64-'65 fair was the corporate pavilions.
*****
Tonight I'm focussed on things I feel a sense of injury over. Not getting to go to the 1964 World's Fair is one. Not having brown eyes is another - mine are blue-grey. Again, it's something that's no-one's fault, but it just didn't turn out like I wanted. I want brown eyes.
When I was 21, and coloured contacts were first being widely advertised, I went to the optometrist to see about getting contacts. I needed corrective lenses anyway. I'd worn glasses since I was five or so years old. I tossed them a few years previously because I was simply tired of the bother of wearing them (the constant pressure made the bridge of my nose and the tops of my ears sore), and I could see well enough without them. My mother was unhappy about that, and kept after me to get them replaced. I finally agreed to wear contacts, if she'd buy them. She was agreeable, so off I went to the doctor's.
I'm not real sure what went wrong that day. I usually have no problem with being assertive about what I want (rather the opposite, if anything), but that day I just wasn't. I made some brief mention of colours, but it got brushed aside and forgotten, and he hustled me right through the exam and order-writing process. I wasn't overly pleased with myself for letting that happen, but I thought at the very worst I'd end up with clear lenses.
When I finally got them, they turned out to be blue-tinted. The concept of 'colour' had sunk in just enough to do damage, it seems. Amazing. Now I had eyes that weren't just blue-grey, but actual bright blue. Since it was my own fault for spinelessness, and since my mom had paid for them, I did make an honest effort to wear them, but it came to naught. My heart wasn't in it, and every little inconvenience was magnified by my discontent. After six months or so I just gave up on them. I think I still have them yet today packed away in my stuff, salt-encrusted in their little storage thingie.
I'd like to have contacts again, but I'm unwilling to buy them for myself. God knows what strange quirk of my psyche leads to that, but I don't want to pay to change the colour of my eyes, even though I want it to change. It's not plain cheapness either, although I'll readily admit to being a cheap bastard. If I pay to have it done, it's somehow not the same. I suppose it comes from the idea that eye colour is something you're given, not something you buy.
Interestingly, since I quit wearing lenses my vision seems to have corrected itself to some degree. I had been farsighted, and I suspect that as I age I'm becoming more nearsighted, so that there's a natural correction going on.
