Invisible Man vs. Hawkman
Having lived so long in the grip of only Frenchy entertainment, I’d never heard the radio show This American Life until my dreamboat Dean recently pointed the way. It’s now become an addiction.
True, some episodes try too hard to pull you in – an almost physical yank on your heartstrings – but most are just plain enthralling. Some, like the one about summer camp, set me into a tailspin of nostalgia, and instructed again on the lingering poignancy of events in our lives that we’re tempted to write off as mundane – bringing them back into the fold.
But it’s the one about Superpowers that keeps coming back to me. In it, John Hodgman asks everyone he meets: “Which is better? The power of flight, or the power of invisibility?”
And, damn it, I just can’t decide. While it would be fun to be able to take off from my backyard and zip over to a Montreal deli for take out, idle a bit over some fools to toss a dozen eggs or two, unhook a kite from a tree, woosh to Toronto to see some friends and be home in time for dinner, I’ll confess that I’m leaning strongly towards invisibility, but I’m a little embarrassed to tell you why. (Spying definitely comes into it.)
Plus The Incredibles convinced me that capes are a bad idea, and what fun would flying be without a cape?
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Comment
- Proving once again that Dean is a genius.
TAL is, along with A Prairie Home Companion, my favorite show ever (I am a staunch believer that the television is unadulterated evil). I got to see Ira Glass speak in New York City right after the election and he was amazing. Sarah Vowell introduced him (mind you, she wasn’t introduced – but as soon as she started to speak and we recognized her voice, the hall full of NPR geeks erupted into applause) and she said that everywhere she goes, people tell her that Ira Glass is like God. I won’t quite go that far. Err, not quite. Almost, maybe.
Anyway, I am going to apply for their internship for next fall. I agree that sometimes it’s too much – but not often, and damn it would be an awesome experience. [end fanboy rant]
— Ben Jan 7, 3:25pm # - Ah, listening to NPR on the internet from France is just about as good as it gets. It’s like having your cake and eating it too, plus, to misquote from the french version, the baker’s smile.
— Mathieu Jan 7, 8:43pm # - Ehrrm, yesyes.
Great thing that one, No-stalgia.
Entering the Big Wurlyworld of the better then than now.
“Did my buddies die with their face down in the mud for THAT”, as compadre Walter would put it?
Anyway, dogs are great, and Titties even better.Pardon my FrenchY.
Loves.
deteriorating.
— Crachà t Jan 8, 4:03am # - Flying. Definitely flying. no more cars, no more airports. now all I need is a gril who can fly too so she can come on holidays with me. but where would the luggage go?
— bruce Jan 8, 10:23am # - Have you read Nicholson Baker’s book, The Fermata? Invisibility seems great, but being able to stop time is where it’s at.
http://www.kokogiak.com/amazon/detpage.asp?sb=s&asin=0679759336&field-keywords=The+Fermata&schMod=books&type=
— Cior Jan 8, 6:34pm # - Flying.
I dream about flying, about being able to tread air and slowly flail and strain my way upwards as if it were natural and all about kicking hard enough… but dreaming of being invisible is kind of scary and not as frequent.
— Eric Jan 8, 7:37pm # - In practical terms, both would be dangerous. But flying would be extremely dangerous. If you are invisible and someone bumps into you, you might get injured. On the street you could get really clocked by a person, bike, skateboarder, or vehicle. If you’re in the sky there’s insects, birds, powerlines and flying vehicles. With flying vehicles a bump would be deadly. I’d still choose flying.
— Von Rielsing Jan 8, 8:54pm # - flight. definitely.
ira glass does have a slight speech defect which i find fascinating. why is it so many people in radio and television have speech defects? barbara walters, dan rather, someone someone, etc. (defect sounds a bit harsh but there you go, i can’t think of a pc alternative)
— madame l. Jan 8, 8:54pm # - Actually, both at the same time would be a lot of fun…
— puddaholic Jan 9, 12:34am # - How about a little head?
Caution in the asking.
3 wishes and the beautiful genie – so the dude at the end, on wish #3 asks for and recieves…
.
A pilot’s license, an unlimited credit line, and context-appropriate clothing; meditative practices that lower affect-projection toward nil, spiritual alignment with the deceptive and ghostly, would give you a kind of invisibility.
How about moving to a place where the laws of the physical universe no longer apply, and there are no carnivorous others? Where is that place?
Don’t whales fly, really? And dolphins.
— vernaculo Jan 9, 2:41am # - Invisiblity is clearly the winner.
You may not be able to fly, but you could sneak onto a plane for free.(I think that is a good thing)
You could hear all the nasty/nice things people say about you.
As long as it didn’t turn in the horror that was Kevin Bacon in that movie he did.
But OOOHH the possibilites are so much more devilish.
— Mrs.Strizzay Jan 9, 5:35am # - no one can see when i fly.
[don’t hit enter by accident when you are typing—see above]
— matthew Jan 9, 8:43pm # - [don’t see above—i don’t know what happened]
— matthew Jan 9, 8:44pm # - But we already have both. To soar above the crowd and see things from a great perspective, to watch from a detached perch while feeling the sun warm our back and the wind dance in our hair while others bicker and haggle below.
To listen unobserved to the conversations of friends, family and strangers, bemused, taking mental notes, seeing nuances of posture and gesture and details of dress that speak volumes. These are the exact gifts that writers and actors and artists of other persuasions draw from. Panoramic, visionary perspective, astute observation of ourselves and others. And of course they’re magical superpowers.
— wizmo Jan 9, 8:53pm # - I used to think that the best superpower would be one that an old X-Man had (Cipher?), that of knowing all languages. Now I tend to feel that this would be too easy and take some of the pleasure out of the struggle.
But having struggled, I would say that invisibility is overrated.
Put me down for flight.
— sterna Jan 10, 12:28am # - FLIGHT! I have dreamed of it since I was a little girl. I would love to soar above the sea.
— Mieke Jan 10, 6:10am # - God, it HAS to be flying! I have incessantly dreamt of flying since I was a kid. I’m often not that good at it in the dreams – it requires effort, a bit like swimming, and sometimes it’s hard to get off the ground. (Amateur pyschologists, behave yourselves). But if it worked properly …!
— Dingo Jan 10, 3:07pm # - when this guy is free I’m sure he will fly!
http://www.breakmychains.com
— j Jan 10, 8:50pm # - Flying? Invisibility? These are so material they hardly seem like superpowers at all: if you want to fly, get on a plane; if you want to be invisible, stand behind someone.
The ability to see what is happening at any place in the world, at will, and then go be there, instantly. Now that’s a superpower.
— John Hudson Jan 11, 4:23am # - Invisibility for sure.
I’m almost scared to ask what it means that I’ve never ever in 30 years dreamed I was flying.
— Jecca Jan 11, 7:47pm # - I wish the comment section for this entry: http://www.openbrackets.com/article/623/hand-me-downs was still open, for I would have typed this there, rather than here. That entry resonated quite strongly within me when I first read it this morning, having found it by following various links from here to there, and it has managed to stay me throughout the day. You captured that feeling, that unfathomable feeling, that only someone adopted can know. I met my birth mother 10 years ago, long after I received the 2 page non-identifying letter from the ministry of vital statistics. When we met, I think we were shocked to see that we looked a lot like one another, and in some ways, that was enough for me. I soon found, though, that I was riddled with questions, questions my birth mother wasn’t ready to address. Only recently did she finally tell me my birth father’s name. I don’t know if I shall look for him. I have tried, half-heartedly, but only half-heartedly. I know who I look like now, and in some ways, that’s enough for me… although I don’t really believe that last statement. Anyway, thank you.
— Jamie Jan 12, 11:17pm # - I don’t know if you’ve ever seen this beautiful little piece, but I think it makes the case for flying quite nicely:
http://www.trevorvanmeter.com/flyguy/
— mrpommer Jan 13, 12:39am # - if you haven’t already, check out david sedaris’ writing. he was frequent contributor to this american life.
— lex Jan 13, 8:05pm # - Thanks for that, Jamie.
Yes, we’re Sedaris fans round these parts although, for some reason, I enjoy him much more when he reads than straight off the page.
That flyguy thing is sweet. But it also made me realise that when we imagine ourselves flying, it’s more like a plane than a bird. I wonder what that says about us.
— gail Jan 14, 10:34am #
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