what does a crucifix mean? what do my physical looks mean?

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The day before my show opened, I participated in a collaboration / brainstorming event. I was paired with a Filipino woman and we were to talk for a few minutes about what was alive for us. Having just come from putting the finishing touches on my show, I told her about "my first solo art show. It's about addressing secrets, taboos we hold emotionally in our bodies that contort us when we can't be honest about them and let them out." She: Is it paintings, photography? Me: Wellll, I do it through provocative doilies. She: Oh? Tell me the worst doily you've made. I considered the gorgeous onyx and gold cross around her neck. Me: Really? She: Yes, tell me the worst one, the worst message. Me: O ... kay ... well, I made a cock that's big enough to go over the back of a chair ... I demonstrated with my hands flowing over the back of my chair. She was already laughing. Encouraged, I added the next detail about the spray and she was doubled over in her chair with more laughter. Me: I'm curious exactly what part is funny for you. She: You don't look like someone who would do that!! Me: Well, I was considering the cross you were wearing and wasn't sure it would be a good thing to share this. We laughed many more times that afternoon as we passed each other to join different groups. It is not lost on me that I was having my own stereotypically-tending brain blown just like she was. How pleasant.

1 Comment

Hi Laura,
This is great.
After I read your e-mail, I called up my-co manager and asked him,
“What is ‘Thank you for the orgasm’ in Tagalog?”.
Excuse me?, he said.
I repreated the question.
He parroted his first reaction.
He laughed when I read aloud your e-mail.
I am not a native speaker of Tagalog i(the Filipino national language). My dialect is one from the southern part of the Philippines and I don’t think we have a word for orgasm. I come from a country where sex used to be never mentioned.
However, I’d love to have one of what you’ll make. So I will call all the Filipinos I know and find out. Best regards,
Irene

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This page contains a single entry by laura published on September 11, 2008 2:09 PM.

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