TRAVEL DIARY

A weblog regularly updated by Jodi Rose.

Friday, June 20, 2008

9:12 AM
Posted by jodi rose

still alive.... just!
this one's for you Joni, yes, a girl cannot live on avocado coffee shakes alone ;)
did I even explain the resonance vibration therapy?
it's so cool, a form of acupuncture, german invention, quantam physics basis. according to which, the human immune system vibrates at a frequency of 67Hz, and so when the doctor measures your - I don't know, resistance or conductivity or something - the machine either makes a fantastic high-pitched squealing noise if the needles goes over 50, and you're ok in that area. Or it wobbles and creaks around 40, then you need treatment - which comes in the form of being recalibrated to vibrate more strongly at 67 hz. I love it. Perfect for a sound artist. and anyone who doesn't like needles. One of my flatmates, momoyo, said I looked like an entirely different person afterwards. In a good way. Energised, focused.

And you know I need it. Yes this month has been insane. There's a phrase I know from up north in australia, 'going troppo'. Pretty much did that. Unfit for human company, except that of trashy intellectuals ;)

Something about the endless meetings, and managing negotiating liaising with engineers, interns, corporate communications managers.... aaaahhhhhhhh

Still, I have assembled quite an impressive team on the project, as usual - Marge joked that I was having my own mini-isea - and things are slowly coming into focus. I even managed to find some local punks, but more on that later (when I find time to scroll through old emails and edit them into a few back-posts).

We had to have military clearance for every single one of the eight engineers who accompanied me to the site visit on safti-link bridge (no signal, no access), and I topped that the next week with SIXTEEN engineers/corporate managers on Keppal Bay Bridge. Very nice location, next to a fancy marina, and new Daniel Libeskind residential building (reflections), there was even talk of hiring a crane to lift the sheathing on the cables so I can get access to their vibrations. That plan is still on the very-slight-possibility-list, if we can entice someone into paying for the crane hire and labour.... anyone??

This week was a trek into the rainforest, for the McRitchie treetop walk - gorgeous, we saw monkeys, and turtles - but only very muted percussive notes on the bridge, and extremely intermittent.

So, it's on to Plan B - C - D, sorting out the back-end of the system, so it can be applied anywhere they will let me play, and stripping the installation to essential components - which will illustrate elements of the work and concept, but maybe not be the fully live, all global, all networked global bridge symphony I was hoping for.

Having great high-levels talks with heads of engineering firms, who tell me that the kind of bridge monitoring I'm looking for is still a few years in the future - good to know I'm ahead of my time!

Here's to the avant-garde!
Found a nice lecture on Nietszche and intoxication, will link when I get back, along with the various highlights of the island so far. Haw Par Villa, took a trip to the ten courts of hell in this fabulously kitsch sculpture park of chinese mythology (it used to have a water ride, but that was taken out long ago); Palau Ubin, where Nigel took us to the Taoist God of Luck birthday party; Arab St, home of punk records, magnificent fabrics, and the joys of murtabak; any art opening take your pick - lasalle, singapore art museum, national museum - where they have good wine and free buffet. I love it, art comes with food in this part of the world. Definitely doing something right, artists always need feeding.

If I was in Berlin now I would sign up to help with tuned cities, for the t-shirt and free dinner. Luckily the french embassy will feed me at tonight's exhibition opening. Then planning to mobilise the air art-posse for a dance night, maybe at timbre, in the old power station, where the singapore arts festival club is, or if they don't get us moving, then zouk, ministry of sound, sentosa....

With an apartment closer to the city, a nearby swimming pool, and some kind of compelling personal/professional context, I could get used to living here! At least it's not landlocked ;)

It's been charming having this chat, and soon, I'm almost done first draft of new blog, where you can talk back. Aha, really, moving into the world of comments, rss, metadata. I dream of metadata. Just need to iron out a few information architecture issues and check that all the fonts are in order, then we're switching teams!!