Cafe Irreal

"The Irreal... occurs at the moment when universal and accidental symbols become equally arbitrary, because there is no longer a biological referent, a universal experience, which separates the two. Instead, these categories collapse. For the Irreal imagination, both the accidental and universal symbol refer to the source of bewildering, destabilizing trauma"

-- Inu (paul@nadisrec.com), April 06, 2004

Answers
Paul, I think you meant for the link to go somewhere else, and to tell you the truth your post is fascinating, I'm hoping you'll post whatever you're alluding to. Cafe Irreal sounds fascinating.

-- Barb e (Suesuesbeo...), April 06, 2004.

Cafe Irreal
I'm not gettng these concepts right off...which means it does belong here on this forum. Good java.

-- Barb e (Suesuesbeo...), April 06, 2004.

The Cafe Irreal is an archive/review site of absurd fiction. So far, I've only scratched the surface.
Defining Irrealism:

http://home.sprynet.com/~awhit/review1a.htm

My quote comes from the second reply here.

-- Inu (paul@nadisrec.com), April 06, 2004.

I actually sent them an e-mail directing them to my website, said I wanted them to read "problem" and tell me if they'd put it on their site or not. Never got a reply.

-- your hair is good to eat (stefbur...), April 06, 2004.

Yeah, I was going to reccomend you work on submitting a story to them - you should email your stuff straight to them though.

-- Sam (janecherringto...), April 08, 2004.

I just did.

-- Ashly Kehl (stefbur...), April 08, 2004.

Relating this to Aeon may be possible- it sounds like the effects of digesting the bliss pill of a Nargyle.

-- jen (jencron@tmail.com), August 31, 2004.

Really? Wasn't thinking of that when I wrote it. I was just trying to be weird and good and I succeeded.

-- Ashly Kehl (stefbur...), September 01, 2004.

The quote is in fitting with Aeon Flux, Barb e. Example: "Cold meat mutton pies. Tell me when your mother dies. I'll be there to bury her." etc. The source of the ditty is children's "jump rope", and one may find the words in Abrahams' compendium "Jump Rope Rhymes: A Dictionary" (Texas Press: Austin, TX. pp 228.) On one hand, we can all relate to the innocence of the childhood rhymes of yesteryear. On the other hand, when we begin to investigate the controversial history of some of these rhymes -- "Eeny, meeny, miny moe" with its racist overtones (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eeny,_meeny,_miny,_moe) and "Lizzie Borden" in hommage to the axe-wielding New England heiress (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lizzie_Borden) -- we realize not only how insidious they are but also how warped and surreal it is that children actually chant these songs at play.
If we heard "Cold Meat Mutton Pies" in its proper context -- the universal setting of an elementary school playground -- we might not even notice the words. In "The Purge", these words are set against an alien landscape, sung by the Breen boy whilst chowing down. How random! Suddenly, there is nothing to separate the universal and the accidental. We have entered the realm of the irreal, a subset of which is known as "kitsch". A velvet Elvis is kitschy. A velvet Elvis in some Presidential bathroom of the White House is pure kitsch, n'est pas?

Peter Chung is brilliant in his use of the irreal. David Lynch is still the undisputed master, though.

-- TrevorG (t_r_e_v_o_r_g@hotmail.com), October 07, 2004.

-- Barb e (Suesuesbeo...), October 8th, 2004.

Answers
Ashly Kehl aka your hair is good to eat, did end up getting her story accepted: http://home.sprynet.com/~awhit/kehl.htm
Ps

It'd be cool to see what other discussions people have found memorable and interesting. Are there any other threads from the old Greenspun board that people would like to repost? If so, it might be a good idea to do it soon.

-- Sam G (Janecherringto...), October 25th, 2004