Dream and reality: no match

One of the small real life drama-days when advertising dreams clash on harsh reality. After rewriting a chapter of my book in the morning I saw the sky clearing and suddenly one of those iconic advertising images started creeping up in the back of my mind. You know the ones, there’s always one of those modern clothed successful but open minded city people sitting somewhere outside with his laptop, looking über- cool, sipping a drink while checking mail? Beats the library. That’s getting boring. Quick decision making: pack it up and move it, man! Let’s go outside.

Of course my laptop will be sadly omitted from this scene since the new battery has not yet arrived. Ah well. I wouldn’t be able to see my screen anyway, in the sun. But still. I had a nice fantasy-picture in my mind. I printed a stack of notes and headed for a Blenz with a nice terrace. Iced Cappuchino. Check. A free table. Check. Papers. Check. Pen. Check. So far the fantasy works. Get moving!

Ah yes, let’s move on to reality. Squinting against the sun because no sunglasses? Check. A wobbly table? Check. A group of Korean students having a competition on who can laugh loudest and longest in the most shrill high pitched voice? Check. Cigarette smoke all around you? Check. A little chilly breeze making the air just a little uncomfortable, and lifting papers, sending two sheets flying and me running after them? Check. Trying to keep up even the slightest bit of coolness, sipping from your coffee holding some papers down, moving a ashtray on some others while trying to write some notes into the main text? Not possible. Another shattered fantasy..

What is possible, though is having a good, loud laugh on yourself (though not by a long stretch outsounding the winning Korean girl), admitting you’re NOT cool, just cold, packing your stuff and moving inside, to warm up your insides with a Yerba Mate Tea. Make that a large one.

Orrin & Evelyn Klapp

Orrin Klapp, the author of the book that was the inspiration to start on my book, has died, a few years ago. Well, that figures, he would be far into his nineties by now. Strange that there was no information to be found on his life and death on the internet. But after a few emails to universities, I got a very friendly mail from Bohdan Kolody, Professor of Sociology at the SDSU, the university in San Diego. All praise to him. He took the trouble to ask around and found the address of Evelyn Klapp, Orrin's widow.

I sent her a letter, just to let her know I was writing a book based on thoughts of her late husband and asking if she has a little more information about professor Klapp's life. She is around 90 also, so they must have led a healthy lifestyle, together..

Bite the apple

Off to the Apple store, preparing myself for the worst. Have spoken to a lot of companies in my professional life, and they all mention they invested millions in service programs, the last ten years. I know they really try, but I can’t shake the feeling that the main improvement is that service employees are saying ‘can't help you’ in a more friendly way these days. Today, it went better than I feared. Of course in a perfect world he would take a fresh battery and try it on my computer, at least verifying the problem. He doesn’t. Looking at my battery will take one week. I look horrified, he looks friendly but blank. I can’t miss my computer for a whole week! I ask if there is a faster way. Just switch batteries? He mentions a two-day repair at 80 dollar minimum. I say that even two days is a problem, because I’m writing a book on it, every day. He doesn’t answer to that. Then, after some silence, he says I might try and call Apple myself. He gives me the number and I say ‘thank you’. Why have a store if you have a number?
Apple wants to remain a young company, so you get radio-friendly grunge music and lounge remixes of old jazz songs while waiting. ‘Hello, this is James, may I have your first name?’ ‘Hello Tom, how are you today?’ ‘Not so good, my battery is dead’. I give him the production code of my laptop, what James ‘needs me to do now’ is to enroll my service number, which I don’t really get (may be it’s a language problem). It must be in a red box, he explains. I only have a grey box. I look everywhere in the apartment. Something in me says I should not hang up and look for it later: I need an answer now. It’s the box I have payed 200 dollars for, James proposes. I haven’t paid for such a box. James falls silent, that’s obviously out of his protocol. I say ‘Isn’t this under warranty?’ Yes, of course, there is a 90-day warranty, but he just wanted to help me enroll my prolonged service warranty, most people buy that. I sigh and say I just want a new battery. And then I see I have bought my computer on march 14. Exactly 90 days ago. Now I am glad I did not hang up to call back tomorrow. James can send a new battery. I am relieved. We encounter a new problem. The delivery address is not the same as the billing address on my credit card. I’m getting desperate. This was to be a non-paid service. Yes of course, Tom, but this is a security procedure: I must send the broken battery back, otherwise they’ll charge me. I promise from the bottom of my heart I will send it back, and then the magic happens and the clouds break open. James relents and the battery will be sent within 5 days. Service in the new century, it is the battle of the nerves, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. Thank you James.

Eve and the Apple?

Well, you know how it is. A nice morning, you leave for the library, get your medium cappuchino, take a seat at your favorite library booth, turn on your computer and.. hey, what’s that? Turn on your c...Try again there, turn on your.. NONONONO! The computer doesn’t start! Now don’t panic. Try. Retry Trytrytrytrytry-cry..? Well, I stayed calm, drank my coffee and tried to remember when I made the last backup, thinking I’ve never been very lucky with Apples during my career. Turned out the last back up was the day before yesterday. Damage control. Go home. Try again. Now with power connected. And that works. Relief. So only the battery is dead, though it is fully charged. Printed heaps of stuff I wrote, just to make sure and headed back. Nice start of the day.


Disco or church, spot the differences?


So all the notes on DJ culture are saved. And I understand much better why I always wanted to DJ. People who know me, I’ve always said I’m a reverent or priest really, only without the religious beliefs. And what does the book say? “Without a doubt, disco heralded the arrival of a new figure: the DJ as high priest. As one DJ said: The disco scene is a classic case of spilled religion, of seeking to obtain the spiritual exaltation of the sacred world by intensifying the pleasures of the secular.” Now that sounds nice, doesn’t it? The DJ is a filter, he takes music, rearranges it and weaves a new story with it, feeding that back to his public. Well that’s what I like to do to. Taking information, finding a story line in it and feeding that back to the world. For the moment, I won’t just yet proclaim my book will be the next bible, though. Let’s try and remain modest until the moment I have my own talk show.

dip-trip-hip-kip

Een kleine dip, dit weekend. Lichamelijk een klein beetje zompig en ook de eerste tekenen van missen, buiten een paar mensen om natuurlijk. Voelde me twee dagen wat landerig, weinig motivatie, hoewel het boek over DJ cultuur me boeit, krijg ik weinig op papier. Merk dat ik na bijna vier maanden behoefte aan discussie krijg: verlevendiging van mijn stukken tekst. Ideeën tegen mensen aanhouden en in debat gaan. Er hebben natuurlijk een paar mensen op lappen tekst gereageerd, maar dat is toch anders. En ik wil sneller dan die boeken me laten lezen. Af en toe irriteer ik me aan lange stukken tekst: get on with it! Gaat nergens over, natuurlijk: alsof de schrijver weet welke informatie ik zoek.. Ongeduld, omdat ik steeds beter weet wat ik wel en niet kan gebruiken, maar toch die boeken door moet zoeken om de quotes en gedachten te vinden.
Vraag me af of deze bui soms komt doordat ik een eindpunt heb bepaald: nu ik weet wanneer ik terugvlieg, krijg ik meer haast. En daarnaast beginnen ook de leuke dingen van Amsterdam weer mijn geest binnen te dringen. Menselijk aanpassingsvermogen, altijd weer boeiend.
Het weer werkt ook niet mee: druilerig, al een paar dagen. Vanmiddag was het even droog, dus ben ik een stukje gaan lopen, moest toch boodschappen halen. Een uurtje aan het water gezeten (jammer genoeg was het gras te nat). En toen de zon doorbrak en een klein pareltje uit de iPod mijn oren versierde met de revolutionaire productietechnieken van Norman Whitfield, die zijn stereo-effecten en wah-wah guitaartjes eerst uitprobeerde met The Undisputed Truth (een van de mooiste onontdekte soulgroepen van de jaren 70), voordat hij ze aan The Temptations gaf, was de inspiratie meteen weer terug. Sommige muziek is zoveel mooier door je koptelefoon.. Geheel in stijl van het boek over de ontwikkeling van de DJ (iedere leek met een beetje gevoel voor muziek kan zijn eigen remix maken), zat ik even later te bedenken hoe een tranceversie van Halo Of Flies van Alice Cooper zou klinken. Geen idee hoe dat nummer op mijn iPod komt, maar vanmiddag kwam het verrassend getimed naar boven borrelen. Lekker even buiten spelen, letterlijk en figuurlijk. Nieuwe carriere als DJ O.U.T. (Older Uncle Tom)? Misschien moetik daar serieus over gaan nadenken, dan mogen goede vrienden uiteindelijk toch nog zachtjes de term mid-life-crisis gaan fluisteren. Ha, dat doet een mens goed. Vanavond kip.

first DJ ever

Got a message my book on DJ culture was overdue. Started in it quickly. They were a bit surprised there were hundreds of books about the Beatles and none on DJ culture. So am I. Great anecdotes on how DJ culture started, well written. Title, of course: Last Night A DJ Saved My Life.

The first DJ ever must have been Jimmy Saville. It was in 1943, that he hit upon the bright idea of playing records live, armed only with piles of 78s and a makeshift disco unit. The amplification system was constructed by a friend from salvaged parts of Marconi radios, a gramophone, a wing and a prayer. “It was to present hi-fi sets what the Wright Brothers’ first efforts were to Concorde,” wrote Saville in his autobiography. “I hurried to inspect this important discovery. A short demonstration was all I needed to realize its potential. I mean, music by Glenn Miller and Harry James in larger than life quality: it had to be worth something.”

Saville hired an upstairs function room as his venue, and entry was set at one shilling. The evening itself was not without technical difficulties. “Installing the equipment was fraught with great dangers,” he wrote. “It was in several pieces connected by wires. These covered the top of a grand piano, glowed red hot when switched on for longer than five minutes, and charred the top of that noble instrument for the rest of its days. By 9 PM we had taken eleven shillings, the machine had melted at several soldered points and died quietly, but not before giving a final electric shock to its inventor, causing him to weep openly.” The evening was salvaged by Saville’s mother, who performed songs on what was left of the grand piano. He was nevertheless convinced he had created an important new form of entertainment. “Disaster or not, there can be no doubt that the world’s first disco, as they have come to be called, took place in the top room of the Belle Vue Road branch of the Loyal Order of Ancient Shepherds.”

Later Saville was asked to present the very first season of the English Top Of The Pops, in the sixties.
Glad to share that information with you.

schrijvers zijn blijvers

Kreeg meteen een paar vragen waarom ik 'nu al' een terugkomst aan het plannen ben. Nu ja, dat nu al valt ook wel weer mee. Als ik terugvlieg ben ik precies vier-en-een-halve maand weggeweest. Misschien vergeten mensen dat snel. De tijd vliegt natuurlijk voorbij bij jullie. Is ook weer niet best, dat je niet eens gemist wordt.. Hoewel er best een paar mensen zijn die IK mis, kom ik niet persé daarvoor terug hoor. Het is heel praktisch: de basis van het boek staat wel zo'n beetje in de steigers. Maar ik merk dat ik gewoon veel meer Nederlands voorbeeldmateriaal wil hebben en dat veel zaken toch niet zo lekker op internet zijn te vinden. Naast de Beatles, Keith Haring en Ronald Reagan wil je het toch vooral hebben over actie Tomaat, Doe Maar en Erwin Olaf, om maar wat te noemen. En nu heb ik nog geen enkel hoofdstuk echt kunnen afmaken. Dus ik ben niet echt terug hoor, straks, doe maar net of ik er nog niet ben. Ik ga lekker dagelijks in de mediabieb in Hilversum zitten denk ik. Weet iemand nog iemand die zijn huis wil ruilen in Hilversum voor twee weken met mijn huis in Amsterdam..? Lijkt me heerlijk. Laat maar weten!En in augustus ga ik nog twee weken onderzoek doen in Engelse bibliotheken, ook leuk. En maar schrijven en maar schrijven en maar schrijven en maar schrijven en maar schrijven.. Lekker hoor. Wat ik al eerder meldde, zou er zo mijn dagen mee kunnen vullen.