I was looking for something to walk
to on Sunday. Found an invitation to this "Save the Egg!" ritual
in my facebook feed. That meant eight miles of walking to get
there and eight miles to get back. Virginia was all over that
idea. We got up early and gooped up our exposed skin with sun
screen. Headed out in plenty of time to get there before it
started. We both took cameras with us.
We passed a lot of typical Palo Alto
scenery on the way up there. From my point of view, that was a
running car behind us. From Virginia's it was clearly a statue in
the park at California and Central.
To make a long story short, we got there just a few minutes before
it started.
Silently the lady stirred the
glistening red liquid and then froze as if waiting for something.
The woman with the bullhorn, Adriana
Varella, got our attention and then explained that she and a
partner had made the digital egg many years ago. It was as a way
to celebrate Palo Alto's status as the home of the digital
revolution. (Her partner in that task was unable to be here with
us today.) Remember the days when everything in many high tech
devices was made in this area? Now we face a crisis. All those
jobs have been exported and Palo Alto has decided the time has
come to trash the egg. To dramatize the need for a better
solution, we are about to participate in a ritual.
The goddess arranged some flowers.
Consecrated the scene with some
solemn drumming. Meanwhile, many documented the experience.
She guided me to a front row spot
where I could participate in the ritual. I watched the binding of
the artist quietly.
Turns out the tea was tasty. Found
myself wanting more, but didn't ask. Instead, I wondered if it was
going to be a crucifixion or something like that.
They passed around a petri dish of
black ink or paint. Some left finger prints on the artist. Others
did something like that to each other.
The artist sat for a few minutes in
quiet contemplation. Then she got up and started cleaning up her
stuff.
Virginia helped out.
After some time passed the artist
started begging to be freed. After she repeated herself a few
times I went with the urge to help out.
The artist interviewed all involved
for her upcoming documentary about the experience.
It used to be that many of the
circuit boards of the eggshell had labels on them. Unfortunately
many, like "globalizing circuits", are now long gone. Victims of
graffiti removal campaigns or something like that. For whatever
reason, the thing still has "HACKING CIRCUITS". We posed for a
selfie with that.
On the way back we stopped at
Dana's. She said that the egg is a magnet for graffiti. The
cleanup bill was starting to get expensive for the city. That's
why they want it gone.
We both ended the day sixteen miles
or so closer to a good finish of our Taji100 month.
The next day this article appeared
in the newspaper.
The egg has been a backdrop for lots
of events that meant something to me. Things like the kickoff of
Carol Brouillet's 2006 campaign for Congress.
(Click here for
a link to that.) I'm hoping it can find a good home.
