An Escapologist’s Diary. Part 8.
Some of our readers don’t enjoy fiscal solutions to The Escape Problem. If you’re one of those readers, you might want to look away now. Sorry about this.
A lot has been written online about Tim Ferris’ concept of Musing: creating a low-maintenance business capable of generating an ‘optimum monthly income’, enough to allow you to fulfil whatever dream you have.
To us, of course, the dream is one of maximum mobility (of not having to report to work every day) and of ending the relationship between submission and reward. That’s how Musing connects with Escapology. It has the potential to replace work and maximise mobility.
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Two websites of note
Two New Escapologist editors have handsome new homes on the web:
Our sub-editor, Reggie C. King has collated his some of his fine works of literature, journalism and musiphilosophistry at The Stuffed Owl.
Meanwhile inside the mind of a turtle, our illustration editor Samara Leibner has opened a gorgeous weekly web comic called Astronaut.
May both sites live long and prosper etc.
Not Local?
Because New Escapologist has a political dimension, people will make not-unfair assumptions about the issues we’re “for”. For example, I sometimes receive article submissions about the importance of buying locally-produced food. Given that we’re associated with the Idler, this is perhaps understandable but culinary issues are somewhat tangential to Escapology and there’s a lot about the “Buy Local” movement that makes me uncomfortable.
In the UK, the sort of people who are most passionate about buying local tend to talk about “English apples” rather than “British apples”, a paralinguistic betrayal of their real agenda. Buying Local to these people is nothing to do with carbon footprints. It’s Patriotism.
If one is genuinely worried about the carbon footprint of importing, it is worth remembering that “abroad” may well be geographically closer than other parts of your country. Apples grown in Normandy are closer to London than anything grown in the North of Britain.
“It’s mad!” they say when they hear about Spanish asparagus being sold by a greengrocer in Solihull. “Mad!” Yet they overlook the logic that if there were no economic incentive, the greengrocer wouldn’t stock such goods. Who knows what other benefits are involved in importing? A single import initiative might be the lifeblood of an entire equatorial village for all we know. Even from a right-wing perspective, isn’t it better to let other nations do the dirty work while we concentrate on being world leaders?
Yes, there are advantages to Buying Local and New Escapologist is all in favour of certain types of autonomy and simplicity. But we’re not in favour of bumpkinism.
An Escapologist's Diary. Part 8.
In the first part of this blog series, I wrote about how I had quit my office job and how I intended to escape to Montreal on a ‘mini-retirement’ with my girlfriend. Since then, we’ve enjoyed Montreal as planned but have also spent additional time in England, Scotland and Holland, hatching various schemes, some of which are already underway.
Five months later, I’ve taken a day job again. I’m working part-time as a contract librarian in Newcastle, England. Don’t squint so suspiciously though: this isn’t a tail-between-the-legs return to employment after a wild period of faux-rebellion. It’s a hobby.
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Issue One extra features
The reformatted edition of Issue One is the definitive one but there’s a bit of stuff we cut out. As a website bonus, we’ve posted some of these ‘deleted scenes’:
The above fresco is by the almighty Pete Thoms. Read the rest of this entry »
Printing problems resolved
Rejoice, for our printing problems are over. Outstanding orders will be shipped on Monday. You’re a very patient bunch. Thanks for not sending us mailbombs or reporting us to Ofcom.
New orders for Issues One and Two can now be placed via the magazine shop without fear.
An Escapologist's Diary. Part 7.
Bobbing for Apples
My podcast partner excitedly reports that he’s ordered a new iMac. Perhaps tellingly, I struggled to remember what an iMac even is. My first thought was that it was one of those total-immersion cinemas (an IMAX) but knew that my friend couldn’t possibly have bought one of those.
It’s a symbollic triumph that the iMac had drifted so far from my consciousness. Back when I started out as an Escapologist, I would periodically visit the Apple Shop in Glasgow to test whether I could be seduced by these sophisticated pieces of technology. If I could remain unseduced by a tablet computer or a slick handheld book-reading thing, I knew I could withstand most of what consumer culture could throw at me. Tom Hodgkinson told me he does the same thing with the Argos home-shopping catalogue. I recommend this practice to anyone: allow the salesmen in, refuse everything and build up those muscles of resistance.
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"Great Escape" photographs
The indefatigable Laura Gonzalez has uploaded a very fine collection of photographs of “The Great Escape”. The event – a talk and singalong – took place at the Glasgow Social Centre on 7th October 2009, hosted by Neil Scott and featuring Tom Hodgkinson (The Idler, How to Be Free) and Robert Wringham (New Escapologist).
Neil Scott and Tom Hodgkinson lead the acoustic singalong.
Neil Scott and Robert Wringham enjoying a pre-show beer.
An Escapologist's Diary. Part 6.
My escape has taken me from Montreal, Quebec City, Ottawa, through New York, to Birmingham, Glasgow and Dudley. As I clean up cat sick in Dudley, I think “I saw the Statue of Liberty the other day”. Such is life when you defeat Bad Faith.
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An Escapologist's Diary. Part 5.
I’m still enjoying my planned escape, far away from home. Specifically I’m in Montreal.
In the city’s commercial districts, bilboards groan with high-profile advertising for a new interactive computer game called Beatles Rock Band. It’s an ingenious misappropriation of something that was once radical and important.
Forty years ago, John and Yoko conducted the third instalment of their Bed-In peace protest in this very city. Let us remind ourselves today that The Beatles wasn’t always an empty brand synonymous with inane, distracting tat:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvwkRihlZto]
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