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If I should fall from grace with God, Where no Squishtoid can relieve me, If I’m buried ‘neath the sod, But the angels won’t receive me, Let me go boys let me go boys Let me go down in the mud where the rivers all run dry -The Pogues

The Pogues were a definite part of the soundscape in downtown Denver mid 80’s, though the only ones who ever went there then were bohemians, punks and artists. I was more obsessed by the Replacements, Social Distortion and Husker Du, but pre-corporate KTCL played them enough to get me interested, and when a girlfriend gave me “If I Should Fall From Grace With God”, I was pretty much hooked. She was thinking, Irish guy- Irish punk music, but of course as we’ve come to know, The Pogues did much more than single-handedly save Irish music from itself with their almost irresistable blend of Celtic rthyms and punk energy. They probably rival all but the Beatles, Ramones and Sex Pistols in the “number of bands started by-” category, and in fact, are one of a very few bands ( the Beatles and Ramones again come to mind) that can claim to have started an entire genre. And they also invented their own musical instrument- the beer tray (see Fig 1).

Whatever you may think of the Dropkick Murphys, Flogging Molly, and the Real MacKenzies, it’s certainly true that none of them or their 5,000 Celtic Punk brethren would exist with out the Pogues. It’s also true that few have penned the type of song, such as If I Should Fall from Grace with God, or Sally Maclennane, or Broad Majestic Shannon that captures the fun and transgressive spirit of punk, while also being easy to mistake for traditional Irish music. I’m fairly certain no one has written a Christmas standard that features a drunk gambler and his junkie wife. It’s probably true that the entire crowd doesn’t sing along with Flogging Molly songs, though I don’t know; I haven’t been to one.

I haven’t been to a Pogues concert, either, though not from lack of trying. I just haven’t been able to get to Boston, New York or Chicago for one of their brief and infrequent American touch-downs. Now, fortune and Shane MacGowan’s liver permitting, that will change, as the Pogues make it to Denver for their first appearance. I did see Shane (with the Popes) at the Gothic Theatre a few years back- Shane only puked 3 times! Ah yes, Shane MacGowan- poet, warrior, drunken toothless mumbler.

So I’m not expecting transcendent musical moments here, though I’m pretty sure tears will flow, especially when they play “Thousands are Sailing”. Mostly I just want to say I saw them, sing “Dirty Old Town” with 3,000 other voices, and remember the days when Doc Martens and live music were a bigger priority than health care and mortgage payments, and we had downtown all to our (drunken) selves. It was the best decade in rock and roll, and the best decade of my life. I can’t get it back, but- with the help of a wee bit of beer- I can certainly try. Look for me there, I should be easy to spot -I’ll be the drunk guy in Docs.

Whew! Yes, it was a frantic September; yes, procrastination tends to feed on itself, and yes, (oh-no!) the Days-Without-Job portion of the Squish-o-meter is ticking off its final days.

What I like to refer to as Square State Tour ’09 did not provide a lot of cash. In retrospect not so surprising given the economy, and the shows I chose, most in places that like most American cities, struggle to see the value in buying fine art anyway. That was actually part of the plan; unfortunately there is no way to find out if these cities ( Casper, WY; Salida, CO; Albuquerque NM; sorry, UT..) will buy art until one goes and does a show there.

Nor was the timing something I could control; with the corporations racing to gut pension plans before Obama stops the Bushies’ greed-fest, I was in a take-it-or leave-it situation.

But the experience was still a joy and not just for its effect on the ol’ Squishometer. In fact, why don’t we step over and take a peek at where it stands, right now?

Days without job: 190

So I made 6 months, and again, I recognize that I’m certainly better off than most in corporate America, where personal time is viewed with suspicion, and creativity is something that appears only in those tacky motivational posters. Simply put, there is no substitute for time spent on your own goals. Other benefits:

– Got to see a lot of the Rockies, always a plus. Mostly stayed on the 1-25 corridor, from Sandia Peak and early fall Raton Pass roughly up to Laramie Peak, with Pikes Peak in the middle. Throw in South Park and College Peaks, with the late afternoon sun glazing the iconic western pyramids. It doesn’t get much better than that.

– Got positive feedback, and made connections that may be valuable in the future. Casper and Albuquerque seem within a few years of being viable art markets. Casperites in particular seemed to really be pained not to be able to buy art, as if in Paul Westerberg’s words, they were “aching to be” Also saw old friends, including after 30 years, high school buddy George.

-fine tuned my preparation and organization for future shows, and of course, there is no shelf date on unsold artwork. In fact, with all the new work I added this year it’s just more choice to offer when the economy improves.

-Finally, the surprising fact that Denver’s art scene is quite strong. We knew there was good work here, but importantly, Denver has begun to offer real support. The Denver show nearly tripled the other three in sales combined, and I’ve realized that it’s wrong to put down the scene, which only taps into coastal prejudices.

Upshot, for me, I’ll get used to my part time job, and sales will improve, though in 2010, they’ll be improving in Denver only. No other Rocky Mountain city is really ready for fine art. After things improve, I’ll look at other large cities.

Short-term, these positives won’t prevent the necessity of getting a job. Riding out the rough weather a bit. Just as those of us who may have wished for a quick turn around from the dark years in the political landscape are finding out, it’s going to be a long haul. Sunshine on amber waves of grain and purple mountain majesty, eyes open, one foot forward.

Squish-o-Meter: Aching to be

p.s. Squishtoid will certainly continue, though I’ll have to re-calibrate the Squish-o-Meter a bit. Next up: more works-in-progress; approximately 4 solid weeks of Pogues/Detroit Cobras pre-hype, exegesis, and review; and Ohhh Yesssss- pointlessly bitter and scathing remarks about whatever benighted part time job I wind up falling into ( unless it provides health care, of course).

As promised, stage 2 of the aforementioned, as-yet-untitled print I posted a few weeks ago.

The blues and tans give it a bit fuller, more painterly feel, but of course, there is a little bit busier, patchier look now.

Planning an image is a bit tougher when you start from the black and brown ghost of the original drop, then work toward lighter, fuller colors. I’m usually traveling in the opposite direction (lighter to dark).

Still, I think a third drop is in order; probably another brown /black overlay to add detail and, as the Dude would say “tie the room together”.

I’ll post that one when it’s done.

I did say I would post this image, from the plate in “Prelude to a Squish”.

I don’t have a title yet, not unusual for this stage in the proceedings. It’s 42×30″, and contrary to the original post, I don’t think it’s “finished” yet. This sort of indecision is also not unusual. I like to sleep on it sometimes before I make another “drop”, especially on one so big and time consuming.

It’ll be fun (for me, anyway) to compare the various stages when the print is done, so I’ll return to this again.

But you never see the lies
you believe

-Elvis Costello, New Lace Sleeves

Health care reform, without a “re-forming” of the corporate-dominated and profit-motivated system we have now, is not reform at all. It awards maximum profit for minimal efficiency. Americans largely took that fact into account when they sent a Democrat to the White House and gave them a Congressional majority. Its success or failure will define this congress. Yet the people who should be most conscious of this truth are the ones embracing the old lies and myths.

Unfortunately, Republican fear mongers have succeeded in hijacking this debate with their rhetorical warhorses: attack-ad phrases such as “Socialism” and “Health rationing”. This cynical jargon does not serve honest debate at all. It is intended to distract from the real successes of government-run systems in Europe and in Canada, and to intimidate newly elected Democrats, the so-called Blue Dog Dems. Conservatives will try to play the socialism card one more time, and when these new representatives buy into fear, they are abdicating from leadership they were sent to provide. They are adopting as the major defining characteristic of their first terms the fear of not winning a second.

It is sad that these representatives find it easier to ignore the American mainstream -many of whom are unable, or barely able to, afford health care in a system that values corporate profits over medical efficiency- than to ignore the lobbyists swarming their offices, and the demagogues who would deny 45 million Americans better health care that is less costly and more efficient.

The Republican obstructionistas want us to visualize jack-booted Star Wars Troopers click-clacking down the hospital corridors. It is left to the true leaders in Washington to visualize 40 million uninsured, and 14,000 losing their insurance everyday. There can be no doubt anymore that the private insurance industry lacks the skill or the will to efficiently provide for all Americans. Only the Democrats can provide leadership. Tax credits for people who can’t afford to buy health care anyway is not health care reform. The conservatives opposed Medicare 4 decades ago with the same tired negativity that they are using here. Now, Medicare is a documented model for well managed public health efficiency. leadership is needed now, not reflex conservative negativity. Don’t let them Swift Boat health care reform.

A mechanism must in place to protect the battered main street Americans who do not have cash laying around to afford health care, no matter how many tax credits are offered. Tax credits mean nothing to a large amount of citizens who can’t afford the original premiums anyway.

That mechanism is called government, and placing the needs of all citizens in the forefront of health care reform, rather than a distant second behind profit, is called governing.

I urge all Democrats to advocate for a real reform that provides a strong public option for those the health care industry has ignored. Anything less is a failure, and will be remembered at the polls.

Back to the press to work on some larger workSee the finished work here in a few days. See other finished work here. Find out about my upcoming workshop here.

“New day rising, new day rising,
new day rising, new day rising

new day rising,new day rising

new day rising, new day rising

new day rising, new day rising”

–“New Day Rising”, Husker Du

Health care reform is begun in both the House and Senate. Those who are part of the alternative economy, and many who are in the mainstream economy, need to pay close attention now, as bi-partisanship is nowhere in evidence. In the Senate, the legislation was approved by the HELP committee, but without a GOP vote, even though many Republican amendments were included. It now goes to Finance.

In the House, funding issues are causing even Dems to jump ship. Obama has now endorsed Hilary’s plan of required health care, but incentives for cleaning up health care mega-corp inefficiency have not as yet been addressed. Nor is the issue of a public plan safety net, a major Squishtoid talking point, settled. There is hope: some moderate Republicans, such as Olympia Snow, are willing to work on this issue, though she has asked Obama for more time to settle differences.

While Squishtoid is no political junkie, I’ve written enough letters and e-mails over the years to know that contacting your elected representatives with concise issue statements makes one feel good.

And since feeling good is what health care is all about, what better time to do it than now ?

Days without day job: 110
Squish-o-meter: Army of One

“..I speak the pass-word primeval…”

Well, not exactly. Still can’t comment in my own blog, apparently a Blogger issue, but can’t discount Baby Blogger Bumbling yet. I apologize-working on it.

To continue last week’s speculation, during my down-time I picked up “Walt Whitman’s America, A Cultural Biography”, by David S. Reynolds. Whitman aligned himself, in “Song of Myself ” as well as other places, with loaferism, an actual subculture in opposition to the prevailing Puritan/Industrial mindset of 1840’s America. Of course, he also got fired from more than one newspaper job for “laziness”. So I guess it’s in the eye of the beholder, but just as today’s global MegaCorps seek to manage our time for us, so the Romantic/Beat/Hippie/Slacker /Punk ethos has always provided an alternative viewpoint. Ann Powers, in “Weird Like Us, My Bohemian America”, has a more modern take on it. A music critic at the New York Times and Village Voice, she explores, among other things, the alternative economy.

A longtime friend, at Zippidy Doo Da, a very interesting blog from a Large Red State, also suggests “World Made by Hand,” by James Kunstler, and Kevin Phillips’ “Bad Money”. Are there other ” Slacker Manuals” out there? Baby Blogger promises a review or two, after finishing a couple of these. But he’d better get back to his own “alternative economy”.

The decision to leave my day job came in a rush. I hadn’t planned to leave till 2010, but was presented with a use-it-or-lose-it situation as regards the pension. The corporation that employed me, like most in the notoriously venal grocery industry, simply saw inflated corporate bonuses and record profits as being of more value than rewarding employee loyalty.

In my haste to start working for a CEO who exhibits a bit more respect for all my hard work (namely, me), I didn’t really have time to do one thing that the world’s prototype Squishtoid really should do [hangs head in shame] :

Publish a manifesto. And I promise I will do that, one of these eras. Suffice it to say that while my pursuit is one of freedom from insipid corporate stupidification and a quest for real craft, it’s also a pursuit of the meaning and value of time, especially time creatively spent with other people, whether at work, play, or simply in good conversation.

There’s quite a bit needs to be done in the US that won’t get done until Americans cop to the fact that we have conceded too much of our precious time to banal corporate interests who give little but coupon discounts in return. Health care is one issue that sticks out in this regard. We treat it as some kind of separate issue in a list of issues without seeing it as integral to our basic quality of life. Like respect, dignity and the simple freedom to spend time with our loved ones, health is something that corporate America spends billions of dollars creating the illusion that they provide. At the same time, billions of other dollars are spent in making sure that these things are placed well behind profits in public policy making. Making us the laughingstock of cultures that we often, and superficially, treat as laughingstocks. Like France.

And in health care, if nowhere else, he who laughs last…

I intend to move forward, and create a positive place for myself in my new (working) life. And I acknowledge that I AM one of the few who did, indeed, escape (barely) with a pension. But I couldn’t help but notice that others are starting to look at these issues. For now, I’m going to let this gentleman wrestle with the big questions. Out of the Office, a look at workplace wars in the New Yorker.

PS Thanks to you guys who have left comments. I’m having a hard time getting the site to recognize my profile to return comment, though I comment in other blogs all the time. In researching the issue, I see that this is a common problem around here. Hopefully, soon…

I’d like to think of me returnin when I can
to the greatest little boozer and to Sally MacLennane

-Pogues

I found out, to my dismay, that in the frantic preparations for Casper, I’d missed the announcement of Pogues tickets going on sale in Denver Friday. They don’t like touring much, and usually California or Chicago is as close as they get to Denver. So it qualifies as a rare, and possibly once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see them at the Ogden Theatre.

Fortunately, there were still tickets left when I got back ( after all, this IS the city that didn’t sell out for the Beatles)! So now, all I have to do is pray for Shane MacGowan’s liver to hold out till October.

It’s been a momentous summer for my (admittedly, off-the-beaten-track) cultural icons. The US National Team reached its first FIFA Final, A new Pynchon novel, and now the Beatles of Irish-American punk-folk. There will be a review of the show here after it happens.

Days without getting a job: 93

Squishometer: Was feeling A BIT SQUISHED after the Nic show; now, having scored Pogues tix, WARM N SQUISHY.