Give me Vera, or give me death.

Here is a sampling of Vera original scarf lovelies. I can't remember where I found all of them, so you must enjoy them without any thoughts of possession.





Just look at those adorable radishes.



And doesn't this one evoke either the suit of clubs or the bishop in a chess set? Although I love chess as a motif, I am, at best, spectacularly bad at the game itself. Akhenaten, of course, is a brilliant strategist and beats me every time. Perhaps I should surrender to my flibberygibbet nature and avow that I merely love chess as a design element, and needn't sully my hands with the actual game.

So I have made great strides in my efforts of Philistinism. I have watched 8 episodes of The Prisoner, my favorite so far being Checkmate. About 10 more episodes to go and I am enjoying it immensely. I even tend to get the theme music going in my head while I am at work. But what I most enjoy is the art direction. The use of vaguely nautical-themed attire, dipped in slightly too bright colors, down to the brilliantly-hued umbrellas. The thoroughness of it. Absolutely everyone, even the extras, are wearing white-soled tennis shoes, all the same kind. The 60s globular modernesque technology. The gestures and the lingo.

The themes of mind control and of the individual vs. society have their kitsch elements, to be sure. To shout: I am not a number, I am a free man, with theatrical British elocution, well, Patrick McGoohan can make me titter. And yet, the ideas are still relevant.

In a 1977 interview, at least according to the Wikipedia article (and who knows about the veracity of things posted by 12 year olds and the like), Patrick McGoohan is quoted as saying:
"…We're run by the Pentagon, we're run by Madison Avenue, we're run by television, and as long as we accept those things and don't revolt we'll have to go along with the stream to the eventual avalanche… As long as we go out and buy stuff, we're at their mercy. We're at the mercy of the advertiser and of course there are certain things that we need, but a lot of the stuff that is bought is not needed…We all live in a little Village… Your village may be different from other people's villages but we are all prisoners."
Indeed.

But I must confess the Village doesn't look so bad to me. I'd put up with a little brainwashing to have a one-bedroom with a balcony within walking distance of the ocean, yessir, Cold War or no, just tell me what information you need. I adore Number Six's apartment. But then, I'm not a free man, I'm just a secretary and I've found my life to be one big compromise. I'd sell out in a heartbeat, if there were any buyers.

The Prisoner Appreciation Society is having their annual gathering over the next few days in Penrhyndeudraeth at the Portmerion Hotel in North Wales, the location of The Village. While the resort town is eerily picturesque, the re-enactment looks too Renaissance Faire for my taste.

But I have not been entirely idle on other fronts. I have cultivated a passion for all things avocado-colored. It is my ambition to repopulate my living room with avocado-colored 70s electronics. Of course this is easily ebayable, but that would be cheating. I hope to make all my dreams come true at flea markets, the few that remain in the high rent ghetto I inhabit.

Of course this is problematic since most avocado-colored equipment was meant for the kitchen. My kitchen is dramatically red and turquoise, so what am I going to do with an avocado-colored blender in my living room? Have a cocktail party, I guess.

The date is deceptive on this one, goslings, I am actually posting on 4/3/08, because it was a long, hard March.