Portuguese Portents
Posted on August 19th, 2009 –
Do you believe in signs? I mean, warnings of the future? Hints? Stuff like that?
I must admit, I do sometimes peek into the horoscope section of whatever I’m reading just to see what they have to say about my chances for the next day. I never actually follow up to see if there was any shred of accuracy to it afterward, mind you. I just like to be reassured.
I also like to look at the things around me as portents of things to come. Today, for example, I took another route home to try to get some inspiration for this post. And inspired portents I did indeed find:
O — kay. The experience was even creepier because in the back there was a tent with a hunk of cardboard stuck in the front, presumably for privacy. And the whole tent shook rhythmically. Yeah, don’t come a knockin’ rhythmically.
I guess it’s possible something else was going on in the tent. Some kinda art thing. Hehe … yeah, “art“. :D
Papier-mâché items like this (sometimes just limbs), littered the space which also seemed to double as an entrance to some flats in the back. I think. The tent was as wide as the alley so that ended that detour.
Anyway, the sculpture seemed a bit disturbing to me. Kinda like death with an empty name card. As in, anyone’s up for grabs. And then a man’s ass emerged from the tent. Eee!
I hauled.
A few blocks later I looked up and … ?!
Could be some sort of Portuguese decoration? Or maybe … ummm … I need help. Wait a minute! I’m in possession of a semi-functional brain!
Me: “Hey pal, could I trouble you a moment?”
Brain: “The heat … I was gonna go take a nap. Is it important?”
Me: “Totally! Look at that. That’s the second thing that’s reminded me of death today. That one especially because it’s obvious. Is this a warning about death? Our death?”
Brain: “Haha! No. That’s probably someone’s ‘art‘. I mean, look at it! Maybe some viral ad for something, but do you think they nailed this here just for us?”
Me: “Hmmm. Yeah, you have a point.”
Brain: “I mean, the odds of you even seeing this are astronomical. Don’t read too much into it.”
Me: “Thanks, buddy!”
Brain: “No probs.”
And then, across the street from the AGO:
Brain: “Wow. Now this surprised even me.”
Me: “Me too!”
I suppose I could look at it through the Tarot Death card interpretation. It could mean the passing away of a personal epoch, or sometimes parts of oneself. Often this is accompanied with a more positive reading, like this process will give birth to new parts of you that you didn’t know existed. Exciting! Cancerous!
That throws some healthy ambiguity on the fire. So I guess there’s still plenty of room for a reasonable explanation. I just hope that one day I find the people who put these things on the poles; they’ll be the ones with the explanation. That tent guy, well, I’m not going near him again, so we’ll chalk that up to “art” and look no further.
... with pictures
... with sounds
... with videos
... with opinions
... that's shorter
... that's longer
August 21st, 2009 6:09 am
I have never been one to put a lot of faith into signs, fate, or preordained destiny. Ultimately, I believe that it is all just self-fulfilling prophecy. I think your side trip is an outstanding method for coming up with a blog post and just exploring has any value in itself. It gave you a little glimpse into someone else's life. It can be a truly outstanding experience to take a few minutes and really observe your immediate environment. For me, it makes me a little more grateful for the blessings I have received in my life.
August 21st, 2009 10:31 am
Thanks, Michael. Truth be told, I think we have a lot of influence over our own lives too; the "signs" are see are probably more like trends — potential, if you will. The thing you mention about noticing your environment — couldn't agree with you more.
February 12th, 2011 11:37 pm
hate to leave a comment up here regarding this subject so immensely late in the game, but I do believe that everything both good or bad occurs for some reason… why? who knows…
I love sitting back and watching/looking at my holistic environment and perhaps catching a 'moment'. Life happen in just a flash point and with eyes wide open it can become magical. but that is just my p.o.v. at this late hour…
<3 spread the good vibes…
February 15th, 2011 8:33 am
Couldn't agree with you more, Desertboots! ;)