September 11 / A Man
A man, a bit smaller than medium, a bit heavier than most of those who are a bit over 35, wandered in during the press-conference with Jonas Mekas. He looked around and noticed that the seat next to me is free (though my bag was laying there). He asked whether it’s free, and if I speak English.
With a boring expression on his face he looked over at a press-kit paper that have been written in Russian, and descended his chin on his chest. He wore a hat, so it wouldn’t be obvious to anyone if he’s resting his eyes. I’m not sure if he actually fell asleep, there was no sign of snore or heavy breathing. It was only significant that he’s not a bit interested, even though the United States Embassy representatives were about to take a word.
When the conference was over a man pointed at four screens, in front of which press conference took place, and asked what are those videos. A split moment later on fourth screen images of 9/11 appeared, and a man flinched, “Oh, that one I know,” he sounded uninterested and distant, just as distant as the English speech sounds under the over-voice film-translations . Four short films were played over and over again, a man just didn’t try to pay attention. After I explained him what was captured on the rest three screens, his still distant but more engaged voice almost shouts, “What a moron! He zoomed out right at the moment of tower collapsing! What a moron!” Jonas Mekas was filming the attack from the roof of his NYC apartment, and at the moment the second tower started to fall he took a panoramic shot, as opposite to his close-up manner right before that. I, finding myself amused with the comment, tried to advocate Mekas, “He knew, everyone is shooting it from every possible point of view; he tried to show a context; he’s an artist, not a journalist.” “Well, I’m a journalist, and you can’t imagine, how devastated was I that day!..” that’s right, he’s still not yelling, he’s just enclosing the voice from that distance, “I missed the whole thing! I was watching the History Channel, and probably you won’t understand but that whole thing is operated by machines, so they didn’t even interrupt their regular programming, I was watching Stalingrad when attacks happened!” he took a glass of juice from the waitress who came by, “I flew to New York just two hours before that, was staying in an apartment across the Central Park. When I first saw the actual news, first I thought that we’re probably doing something in the Middle East again, but later I realized it is here, and it is real, ‘cause they were just showing video without saying anything. It was amazing! I mean amazing! I’m still beating myself up for missing to see all that on my own eyes!.. And this moron just zoomed out...” the small pack of potato chips suddenly appeared on a seat in front of him, and he started to put them chips greedily with his fingers almost on the back of his tongue, while reaching the tray with his free hand for another glass of juice. A man continued to express his fascination over the greatest New York’s pile of concrete smoke.
He thinks nothing’s being built at the ground zero because of financial reasons. He shared his experience visiting WTC when it was still standing, his experience living almost two years in Kyiv. Told he’s from everywhere but “Currently from Austin, TX.” And I thought to myself, well Bush must’ve think the same thing, “Why am I suppose to be here, in this goddamn boring classroom, while the real show is going on?” later remembering that he’s a president and he suppose to be out there.
Jonas Mekas walked nearby in a small cloud of journalist-flies, and I got carried away with them. So I didn’t get to hear what web-site of his a man asked me to visit and write him an email. I didn’t even hear his name from the distance he was talking to me.
June 2010, Kyiv, Ukraine.
With a boring expression on his face he looked over at a press-kit paper that have been written in Russian, and descended his chin on his chest. He wore a hat, so it wouldn’t be obvious to anyone if he’s resting his eyes. I’m not sure if he actually fell asleep, there was no sign of snore or heavy breathing. It was only significant that he’s not a bit interested, even though the United States Embassy representatives were about to take a word.
When the conference was over a man pointed at four screens, in front of which press conference took place, and asked what are those videos. A split moment later on fourth screen images of 9/11 appeared, and a man flinched, “Oh, that one I know,” he sounded uninterested and distant, just as distant as the English speech sounds under the over-voice film-translations . Four short films were played over and over again, a man just didn’t try to pay attention. After I explained him what was captured on the rest three screens, his still distant but more engaged voice almost shouts, “What a moron! He zoomed out right at the moment of tower collapsing! What a moron!” Jonas Mekas was filming the attack from the roof of his NYC apartment, and at the moment the second tower started to fall he took a panoramic shot, as opposite to his close-up manner right before that. I, finding myself amused with the comment, tried to advocate Mekas, “He knew, everyone is shooting it from every possible point of view; he tried to show a context; he’s an artist, not a journalist.” “Well, I’m a journalist, and you can’t imagine, how devastated was I that day!..” that’s right, he’s still not yelling, he’s just enclosing the voice from that distance, “I missed the whole thing! I was watching the History Channel, and probably you won’t understand but that whole thing is operated by machines, so they didn’t even interrupt their regular programming, I was watching Stalingrad when attacks happened!” he took a glass of juice from the waitress who came by, “I flew to New York just two hours before that, was staying in an apartment across the Central Park. When I first saw the actual news, first I thought that we’re probably doing something in the Middle East again, but later I realized it is here, and it is real, ‘cause they were just showing video without saying anything. It was amazing! I mean amazing! I’m still beating myself up for missing to see all that on my own eyes!.. And this moron just zoomed out...” the small pack of potato chips suddenly appeared on a seat in front of him, and he started to put them chips greedily with his fingers almost on the back of his tongue, while reaching the tray with his free hand for another glass of juice. A man continued to express his fascination over the greatest New York’s pile of concrete smoke.
He thinks nothing’s being built at the ground zero because of financial reasons. He shared his experience visiting WTC when it was still standing, his experience living almost two years in Kyiv. Told he’s from everywhere but “Currently from Austin, TX.” And I thought to myself, well Bush must’ve think the same thing, “Why am I suppose to be here, in this goddamn boring classroom, while the real show is going on?” later remembering that he’s a president and he suppose to be out there.
Jonas Mekas walked nearby in a small cloud of journalist-flies, and I got carried away with them. So I didn’t get to hear what web-site of his a man asked me to visit and write him an email. I didn’t even hear his name from the distance he was talking to me.
June 2010, Kyiv, Ukraine.