I am a Strange Attractor

The other weekend I went into Boston to work on a photo project—the plan was to ask strangers to act out different types of walking in order to create a visual dictionary of walking. Little did I know what I was getting into.

First I go to meet Helen by the T stop—on my way there a man comes up to me speaking rapidly in a language that was definitely not English. He slowed down with each confused look I gave him, and I figured out he was speaking Spanish. "I'm sorry, I don't understand," I say. He keeps trying, despite my repeated confused looks and I just wish he would go ask someone else. Finally, we hit an understanding. "Gasoline," he says. "Cigarilles?" Ooh, he wants cigarettes! I look around and to my relief see a gas station. I point to it. "Gasoline. Cigarettes." I repeat this several times until he heads that way.

I walk the other way, and find a space on a bench. And of course, another person approaches me. "Got a light?" She asks. Um, no! I don't understand why I, a fifteen year old girl who dresses in a rather normal manner, seem to be the target of all smokers needing something today. "No, I don't, sorry." I say. "Damn it. Nobody in this goddamn town has a light..." She goes off mumbling. Um..alright.

Finally, Helen arrives and we head into Boston. But my day with random strangers has just begun—most of them are pretty nice. We met a two guys who really got into the walking idea and offered to do my entire list as we headed from Harvard Sq. to the Boston Common. In the common we ran into Hempfest, a protest/party in support of legalizing marijuana. It was a great place to recruit people for my project, even if some of the folk were a bit strange.

For example, everyone smelled like marijuana. There were police everywhere, though, so most people weren't smoking it there. I'm not sure how this is legal but there were people walking around with rings of marijuana around their wrist/neck. So, I was recruiting people, and asked a man who seemed interested to walk. As he came closer I realized he was drunk. Not just like buzzed, but drunk, just not drunk enough to be completely stumbling obvious. "What is this? I don't do this stuff," he says looking at my list, and then walks off, to my relief. I think I attract strange people.


Sachi