Dear Marc yes, I agree with Simon and probably all who read your excerpt , this is inspired writing! (I sent it on immediately to an old photographer friend who now lives in London, has given up photography but has developed a new craft, building these tiny tiny indoor lightweight airplanes that are flown to sail in the air, in caves.....). Strange stuff.
I wondered about your book title, «Feral Class», and how to chose this title for a working class memoir, and how to spread the term of the working class? why you do think of working people as an underclass? or outsiders? (in 20th century Europe or the Northern Anglo-American world, progressive era, communist parties, with rich history of unions and collectives and workers solidarity movements & social programs) (you speak of "underclass, & those who see themselves as Feral, including Gypsy, Roma, Travellers and New age travellers"). New age travellers? What I really like is that you address difficult issues such as our strange and dire family romances; I also remember quite a few abusive teachers and priests in my childhood; started writing a performance memoir, but began near the end, not the beginning, going slowly backwards in my repressed flash backs. Where does your book start? with many regards Johannes Birringer On Thu, Jan 2, 2025 at 12:33 PM marc.garrett via NetBehaviour < netbehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org> wrote: > Hi Simon, > > Thank you. I can't wait for it to be out there in the world. It's quite a > shift away from working with others on art, networks and academia etc. This > work is much more personal. The themes covered in the Feral Class book > deal with poverty in the late '60s - early '80s. It revisits personal > memories and experiences on child abuse, bullying fathers, racism, sex > work, drugs, sexuality, identity, punk and post-punk culture, education, > shit jobs, council estates, witchcraft, grassroots activism, and more. > > "This book is an urgent call to those from disadvantaged backgrounds who > have felt like trespassers in a world ruled by elites. The audience is the > working class, struggling parents and their children, outsiders, the > underclass, and those who see themselves as Feral, including Gypsy, Roma, > Travellers and New age travellers." > > Wishing you well. > > Marc > > > > > > On Wednesday, 1 January 2025 at 21:54, Simon Mclennan via NetBehaviour < > netbehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org> wrote: > > This is so great! > I look forward to reading the book! > Simon > > ---------- Forwarded message --------- > From: Alan Sondheim via NetBehaviour <netbehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org> > Date: Wed, 1 Jan 2025, 02:49 > Subject: Re: [NetBehaviour] Barry’s Galleon Ship Disaster > To: NetBehaviour for networked distributed creativity < > netbehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org> > Cc: Alan Sondheim <sondh...@gmail.com> > > > Love this and got me thinking about still sails in wind and turbulence, > what would be an amazing nautical feat.... > > Happier News Year, we could use that yes? > > On Tue, Dec 31, 2024 at 7:23 AM marc.garrett via NetBehaviour < > netbehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org> wrote: > >> *Barry’s Galleon Ship Disaster* >> >> Barry, my father, was a man of varied interests and very much into his >> hobbies. Some of them were illegal. For instance, a few times, he was >> caught exposing himself in the streets to women he fancied. He sold rugs >> and was also a pyromaniac. He would often vanish for days and weeks, either >> because he was in prison or away at a secretive and menacing awayday with >> his black magic group. There are stories my mum told me about him, where >> they’d kidnap individuals in a black transit van. But I’m not sure if >> that’s true. There is so much about him that is so outlandishly >> unbelievable. But, the bits of evidence I know are the events that have >> materially changed my life. He was a local legend, and his reputation >> overshadowed the rest of the family. >> >> Whenever we walked around town, it was a strange experience for me, my >> younger brother, and my mum. Some people who knew about us and Barry’s >> unprincipled activities would keep their distance as if we were about to >> infect them with a dark, evil curse. Sometimes, it was isolating, like we >> were pariahs, but at other times, there was an essence of empowerment due >> to the feeling that people were afraid of us. The problem with being marked >> as different, scary or dangerous is that it attracts the types of >> individuals who find the notion of it exciting for them, and when you're a >> young child, that’s the last thing you need. >> >> It was emotionally reassuring when Barry engaged his talents with less >> insidious ventures. A hobby of his that also involved me now and then was >> his plane-spotting exploits. He would take me to the airport to watch >> planes landing and flying off. He watched it all through his binoculars >> while noting the observed aircraft in his notepad. I was bored, and he was >> always very excited. His fascination with planes extended to model making. >> He was incredibly proud that he made his model planes from scratch, not >> assembly kits. He would buy balsa wood and cut it with a craft knife to >> make model aircraft. He made many different types. Some would be painfully >> intricate biplanes replicating the Wright brothers’ first successful >> aeroplane launched in 1903 to WW11 aircraft, which seemed less detailed but >> still displayed high quality and artful technique. These were the moments I >> remember as notable when he was calm and lost in his craft. He was good at >> it, and you could feel how enchanted he was by the whole experience. >> >> Another recreation Barry enjoyed was painting. Just like he was obsessed >> with aircraft in the singular sense, he spent much of his creative time on >> oil painting. His primary focus was Galleon ships, huge, multi-decked >> sailing ships and armed cargo carriers from the 16th to 18th centuries. >> Again, he was mesmerised by his chosen subject and spent many hours >> painting different galleon scenes in sea-based settings, with large waves >> crashing at the side of the vessels. It was all very dramatic. One day, I >> entered the room as he painted his latest masterpiece with a slow, intense >> dedication to detail. I suddenly noticed something with all the paintings. >> I nervously twitched, knowing how proud he was of them. >> >> I wasn’t sure whether to tell him what I had spotted. But I had to. I >> couldn’t help myself. I told him nervously that the ships had no wind in >> their sails; they were straight, not as breezy as they should be in >> turbulent winds. He stopped painting, slowly gazed at all his works, and >> dropped his arm holding the paintbrush. Barry released a big sigh, and then >> the room fell silent. He turned round and looked at me with a deep hatred, >> and it felt like his eyes were burrowing into my skull. Then, he flipped >> and smashed up all his canvases amongst other objects in the room. >> Thankfully, he didn’t hit me. He may have been talented at many things, but >> painting wasn’t one of them. >> >> A section from the book Feral Class by Marc Garrett. To be published by >> Minor Compositions in 2025. >> _______________________________________________ >> NetBehaviour mailing list >> NetBehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org >> https://lists.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour >> > > > -- > *=====================================================* > > *directory http://www.alansondheim.org <http://www.alansondheim.org> tel > 347-383-8552**email sondheim ut panix.com <http://panix.com>, sondheim ut > gmail.com <http://gmail.com>* > *=====================================================* > _______________________________________________ > NetBehaviour mailing list > NetBehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org > https://lists.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour > > > _______________________________________________ > NetBehaviour mailing list > NetBehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org > https://lists.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour >
_______________________________________________ NetBehaviour mailing list NetBehaviour@lists.netbehaviour.org https://lists.netbehaviour.org/mailman/listinfo/netbehaviour
