Morning time in Nadada is confusing. Although there is a sun, which everyone refers to as a sun, that glowing ball in the sky is, of course, not the sun. Ditto the moon. We are on the opposite side of the world after all. The other opposite. Make sense?
If you really want to hurt your brain, think about where the sun and moon go when the other is out.
I am drinking coffee in Tzara, and watching the commuters head to ‘work.’ Although most choose to fly, some use their own transport. The clown cars queue behind the horse and carts, which in turn sit behind buses filled with toy limousines.
What is exciting is that I am typing up the transcript from my first interviewee. Lisa Höch ‘works’ behind the bar at Tzara, and is a born and bred Nadadian. After I ordered a drink here last night, her first words to me were:
“You flew into the centre of the Earth to drink Bloody Mary’s?’
You get a sense of her feelings on the outside world.
Not only am I delighted to get these interviews underway, the Butter Mouse will undertake them. Although the questions technically come from somewhere deep inside my brain, they will have a flavour different to the other blog pieces in here. Please do not think I am rude.
Remember, Butter Mouse trying to take the piss. That’s the joke. That’s her way of being friendly.
And who knows, by the end of our trip, she might be chatting by herself.
Make sense again?
Good.
TBM: So Lisa, you have a look that would doesn’t fit most cities. Well, maybe the weirder ones.
::Lisa laughs::
LH: I have died my hair white if that’s what you mean. I am wearing jeans and a t-shirt, which is not really that different, and green boots.
TBM: Anything else?
LH: Um, no, I don’t think so.
TBM: You have a badge on. The one about the size of a mince pie.
LH: Oh right! A mince pie?
TBM: What? That’s what it’s the size of!
LH: Sorry, it’s kind of weird talking to the puppet rather than you.
TBM: I won’t mention mince pies again I promise. Tell us more about your badge.
LH: Sure. It is a perfect circle, with four lines intersecting it. Kind of like a bicycle wheel, but more abstract.
TBM: You see them everywhere.
LH: Yeah, well, hardly a surprise is it?
TBM: Why?
LH: Aren’t the people going to know about that?
TBM: I only know your badge looks like a mince pie.
LH: Well-
TBM: Sorry, I meant the shape of a mince pie. Size! I meant the size.
LH: OK. Well, the symbol represents the distance you can travel across Nadada, and they way that time stretches wherever you go. But there’s more than that.
By living in Nadada, you are going to extend your life. Even if having time slowed for you does not make much difference physically, on a psychological level it makes a dramatic difference. Mix that with the ability to create anything you want, and you have a heady cocktail. The badge means pushing for each experience. Because in Nadada you can focus on individual moments, without having to plan for the future.
TBM: So why do you work in a cocktail bar?
::At this point I was worried Lisa was going to get pissed off. Luckily she saw the funny side::
LH: This is such a weird way to do an interview.
TBM: We are right in the middle of it, we cannot stop now!
Lisa: I don’t want to split hairs, but I don’t work here. This bar is mine. I created evert aspect, including the way you change your drinks and where you sit. That’s all my idea. And we are not running this for money after all. I can pop off for three months. If I want to, I can slip Tzara in my pocket.
TBM: Is that how you crush the ice?
Lisa: No, that would be to boring. I can crush it in a tiger’s mouth if I want to.
Me: Why do you have to wear a badge all the time then?
Lisa: I know it is a bit wacky. But it is just part of the solidarity you know? I have always been a bit of a drama kid. And you know, it is a chance to be part of something here. By definition, Nadada split into so many different areas, and this is a chance to bring everyone together. Not in an imperialist way, but to create a whole new culture. But you know, wear a suit every day if you want. You can make one that’s fits you perfectly.
TBM: I don’t need clothes. I am a mouse.
Lisa: Right, talking to a mouse aside, go out, and explore. That is the way you will understand Nadada.
Thanks again for the interview Lisa. Next time I will be taking her advice, and travelling deep into Lozowick.
