"So you actually enjoy dealing with laundry?" I was asked when I explained that my artistic sensibilities were fed by my being an Ironist. I think the question was posed in all innocence but my wife enjoyed the joke far too much and she makes a point of bringing it up from time to time.
One of the great irritants of living in a University town is that everyone is an Artist. Practicing their various arts comes first, and the daily practicalities of real life come a close second. So, let us suppose you are out for breakfast, a simple meal, easily and quickly prepared American style, with lots of coffee followed swiftly by a modest bill. The whole experience gets turned on it's head if the person waiting on you is actually a Shamanic Druid in training because s/he will be spending each waking moment contemplating the intricacies of their Art, not getting your eggs swiftly under your bib.
......The Ironist, With Lab And Boat, Rio Pedregal, Republic of Panama,1999.....So, after a couple of decades of putting up with artists on all sides, whose Art prevented the smooth running of my tedious plain spoken life, I decided I couldn't beat them. So I joined them. I discovered my own Art, and when at a party I was asked what I did, meaning in Santa Cruz terms, what I did to improve humanity's lot, I'd say I am an Ironist. If this statement elicited the least bit of interest I'd further explain that I practiced the lost Art of Irony, and no, ironing boards are not part of my stock-in-trade.
.........................In Which The Sign Refers To Living, Not Live Bait.........................................Well, it's a fine line that separates Irony from Sarcasm, and in new age places like Santa Cruz, California, the line is so fine it pretty much evaporates where two or more people gather in Art's name. My chosen Art form was treated with contempt, on those rare occasions when laundry wasn't invoked, and the contempt came in the form of supercilious silence. Which, fellow Ironists, is exactly what a hard core Ironist seeks to provoke: confusion, misunderstanding and just sometimes a sly smile of secret understanding and agreement.
.................................Fifteen Years Of Suffering With An Ironist...............................................
Hi, I'm Conchscooter, and I'm an Ironist.
.................................Fifteen Years Of Suffering With An Ironist............................................... 
8 comments:
The world needs artists, and I suppose that includes Ironists to live decently. The great thing about irony is that it is almost impossible to wield its black power without a deep and wide understanding of a situation and its causes and consequences. It is an education. Part if getting it is the vain hopefull thought that we are not the ones being educated at that particular moment.
Fantastic post!
It is an afflicition, and i hope I can maintain my Art during the tough times of my life ahead as easily as i can during these breezy times. Unemployment, bad health , great loss can easily turn irony into bitterness.
A well placed comma in an otherwise innocuous sentence can give us pause.
I have no idea what you said, I don't understand it all, Or maybe I do but just don't know I do, and I feel sorta insulted by the sly grin on your face!
Gotta keep this comment short. I have something "pressing" to attend to.
doug, what you say.?.!
as for irondad, well, there are lost causes and causes that.. what was i saying? You and jeffrey both.
That post gave us our laugh for today. Very well done. The French are the experts on Irony so one half of our duet dishes it out daily...and not just for breakfast.
15 years? Happy anniversary. I'm Peacemaker and I'm a sarcastic son of a gun. Your mileage may vary. Ride at your own risk. Persons suffering from heart disease, shortness of breath, incontinence, erectile disfunction, or thin skin should use caution. Do not take with massive quantities of alcoholic beverages or with high amounts of seriousness.
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