winter festival closing ceremony

With Blondie having opened mistYmuse 20/21 it would have been fitting that The Pretty Reckless close it, as they appeared together in a Folding Mirror poem structured around song titles on this site in 2014:

Valentine Love Poem, Songs Without Music
Debbie Harry and Taylor Momsen, New York two Generations R&R
Heavy Metal Ballad, Beyond Elite Understanding

Dreaming of Your Prescence Dear 
on an Island of Lost Souls 
Plastic Letters melted In The Sun
The Hardest Part was Hanging on the Telephone
waiting for you to Call Me 
don’t have a Heart of Glass 
so it would have been Atomic Rapture 
to meet you In The Flesh
but Parallel Lines don’t cross
and my vow that Pretty Baby
One Way or Another
I’m Gonna Love You Too
disappeared at 11.59
that time when The Tide is High
didn’t even Die Young Stay Pretty 
instead developing a Poet’s Problem 

Go Through It writing, Nothing Left to Lose

Factory Girl manufacturing my thoughts
ideas that Make Me Wanna Die 
exploding into silent angst Since You’re Gone
Void and Null
I never was no Superhero 
Where Did Jesus Go
not leading your Blonde Rebellion that
did once Light Me Up 
seems a place Far From Never 
when my love Heart would always Panic 
but Everybody Wants Something From Me 
so didn’t hear You say Follow Me Down
I’m Going to Hell wanna Burn 
together I Really Fucking Love You
Sweet Things please Kill Me

Then it was clinched when The Pretty Reckless released a great new album during mYm 20/21, with a sensational first single:

For the fireworks finale, here’s my ‘healing (heilung) brand’ impersonation of the PinkyOrangePurple sunrise sky:

Thanks for attending mYm 20/21 and making it the biggest and best ever! Hope you’ll return for mYm 21/22…

sun brand success

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A couple of years ago I thought of doing this brand to create a ‘sun’ above the winged creature tattoo. I researched it before, and did it with an antibacterial-cleansed coin; and have taken care of them hygienically afterwards.

I’m not recommending/suggesting it, and don’t expect any ‘reward’ for doing it. It has some ‘spiritual’ resonance for me, as a sun lover/worshipper, but I do it agnostically, unilaterally and unconditionally, and without expectations.

Mainly, I just saw it as a way of doing the ‘tattoo’ I most wanted myself; to save money and do something myself artistically, as I was drawing a lot about reclaiming my life and mind then too.

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I can understand Harry and Meghan feeling ‘trapped’, but who doesn’t if they’re working to pay bills etc; H+M had a lot more luxury and space to do it in than most people working and living like battery caged hens in offices and overcrowded cities; trapped into taking ‘bullsh*t’ every day to survive and try to thrive!

I don’t think of it as self-harm; more self-building; if it has any mental health significance I think it’s my need to take back control of myself, after years of feeling bullied and manipulated in university, work and society; across demographics; and even on my travels, where ‘woke warriors’ would do the ‘Niqab Nazi’ salute covering their face with their hand!

I’ve never asked anyone about it, but guess my support for females like Malala fighting against the Taliban was twisted to me being sexist/Islamophobic!

That was partly the inspiration for my XaW Files: Beyond Humanity book title; although it means other things as well, such as the knowledge of our world, universe and ourselves we don’t have. In the greenYgrey trilogy, it was also the end of the road, and the protagonist’s leaving.

brand baa baa: belarus not far, compared to america

Branding became a buzz word as I finished my Communications Studies PhD in 2005. As I specialised in criticising PR (focusing on the political spin of the then New Labour government, with PM Tony Blair advised by Alistair Campbell) I was critical of it, considering it marketing brainwashing.

I launched the Greengrey world after leaving university. The colour scheme was inspired by the dominant landscape colours I saw, and my ‘marketing’ of it was partly a parody of branding (finding greenYgrey colours everywhere, like in the Conservative advert image above); doing it for real with an environmental message (need the green to prevent all grey) in a tongue-in-cheek manner.

After seeing more sun, even on mostly grey days, I later rebranded it to greenYgrey; with the parody side of me also wanting to just do a ‘rebranding’; maybe inspired by my workplace’s ‘rebranding’ (see below).

I would probably have endeared myself more to my home city/county by calling it the Whiteyblue (maybe a were(polar)bear!?); fittingly later becoming whiteYblue; as those are its traditional colours. However, the parody element probably wouldn’t be appreciated.

I was about five years ahead of the big corporate I was working for part-time. It got serious about its branding by coordinating all its ‘image’ into one colour; including staff uniforms (like our kit!); unfortunately in the city/county’s main rival colours (red)! I might have become a big fish in their marketing division if I’d volunteered my expertise earlier – but I didn’t really believe in it, and especially not in their industry!!

Taking the Knee Cause/Brand Brainwashing!

That’s one of the reasons I’ve gone off sport in the last couple of years; the dirty/money takeover. All the Premiership footballers ‘taking the knee’ because of one incident in a distant country; after ignoring the child grooming scandal for a decade or two in our own, and the terrible crimes committed in Africa on a daily basis; at the end of the season adding insult to injury… and then there was covid-19 to put everything into perspective.

Like many things, it all seems to be inspired by the USA, with a lot of the footballers watching sport there, and probably dreaming of a Hollywood career or life afterwards?!.. as I was at their age… before Weinstein and Meghan put me off!

Will they be taking a knee for the Belarus demonstrators who’ve apparently been killed, in a country much closer than the USA. I don’t think so, because white on white doesn’t have the Hollywood effect coming from California… or the influence, money and fame!

I don’t really want to become involved in Belarus/Russia/EU politics either, but think it should be more relevant than the USA to us; if it was about geography and ethnicity rather than power and money.

I was relieved to see some motor racing drivers refuse to take the knee – while still wearing t-shirts denouncing racism – to see some sign of individuality. Was it because they are European, higher class, or more educated; or a bit of each, or more than one.

Whatever the reasons, I was impressed; unlike with the footballers’ 100% conformity. Unfortunately, they are traditionally more from the sport, country and class I am; although its become less and less so over the years; but if I didn’t disagree with them I’d look just as brainwashed.

Successful Sun Brand Art Project

We flew and we flew
sun drew and drew
all I can tell you.

Don’t follow me
only one can be
sun single tree.

You can’t reach
here before time
takes you back
returns your rhyme.

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Responsible Information 

I researched branding before doing my self-art, and it was for self-love and love of the sun rather than self-harm. It was also about doing something for myself; art and achievement; rather than going for another tattoo.

For those who think it is a downward sign, or one of depression, it is just the opposite – it is me being me, what I want to be, and breaking through what I see as the barriers put up by the clown crowd cloud – if you’re offended by that I’m not writing for you, and maybe not writing about you, but if you think the cap fits, then maybe it does!

Saving money and avoiding going to a tattooist – nothing against tattooists, just that they are human – were third and fourth factors. If a Bardot-Harry-Ekland lookalike tattooist wants to do a big self-portrait on my back; preferably in a sun-trees-nature design; I might make an exception!

The really successful brands were five minutes of a sterilised coin heated in an oven for an hour – while cooking baked potatoes! There was a little pain on initial contact, but nothing after a few seconds.

No More Blue-Sky Banking: Lloyds Bank Rebrands to Greenygrey

Hi, it’s Wolf Whitzer, with a Greenygrey News (GGN) newsflash, satirical comedy in the style of Wolf Blitzer on CNN. Lloyds bank used to have a blue-sky logo and brand, but after the banking crash it seems to have rebranded to a more realistic greenygrey logo brand.

Lloyds Bank Blue Sky Logo

Until last September the old Lloyds bank logo used to feature a black horse in front of a greenyblue background, as shown in this image:

Lloyds Bank Greenygrey Logo

Perhaps in an effort to provide a more reassuring and trustworthy image after the banking crash, Lloyds bank has now gone greenygrey:

The Greenygrey was not involved in the rebranding. It was done by Rufus Leonard, RKRC/Y&R, Proximity and MEC according to the drum.com website.

Moments that Matter

The website also contained the Lloyds advert for the marketing campaign, which is also available on YouTube, and is copied below (notice the greenygrey cover and the double letter strapline, althought its MM rather than GG!):

We hope that Lloyds lives up to the greenygrey brand.

Comedy Classic Werewolf of Oz Pirate Lacoste Episode

Hi, it’s Greenygrey, with the weekend fast running out half way through it’s time for the next episode of Werewolf of Oz: Fantasy Travel by Google Maps. It’s another comedy classic weighty epic, so I’ll not keep you too long, as the clock is still ticking inside; quickly introducing you to a character that could be better branded with a clever crock hook.

A painting about the polar explorer Lawrence Oates. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

We’ve organised a search party to look for Andy Wolfhol, so we won’t be able to bring you any thrilling episodes next week, but hope to return to normal service a.s.a.p. We may be gone sometime…

65.  PIRATES OF THE FOOTWEAR REGION 

Title page, Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth, Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1911 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I slept well, and dreamt of a reunion with Green.

Yo Ho Ho and a Bottle Of Rum: Treasure Island Hum

I thought I could hear humming, and presumed it must be Dec, as the words I could make out were:

‘Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.’

I remembered going to the premiere of the Treasure Island play as one half of the Greenygrey back at the start of the twentieth century, so it brought back fond memories.

Green Crocodile’s Snappy Style

Un par de zapatillas (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I thought I’d go and help Dec with whatever he was doing, but had a surprise when I ascended to the deck. Dec and Dai were nowhere to be seen.

That wasn’t the only surprise awaiting me: there was something green navigating the ship. I thought it was my Green for a minute, after the dream I’d had, but soon realised it wasn’t. When it turned around, I saw it was a crocodile. I was pretty sure Green wouldn’t choose that shape for a reunion.

I greeted the green crocodile, and asked where Dai n’ Dec were.

The crocodile stylishly snapped that they’d sold the ship to it during the night, before sailing off in another boat.

Pirate Lacost on Sail

Pirates (Photo credit: MeoplesMagazine)

I thought that was strange, as Dai n’ Dec seemed to be looking forward to reaching Melbourne before we called it a night. Moreover, I couldn’t remember another boat on board; just rum. I didn’t mention that, and just introduced myself as Grey.

The crocodile shook my hand and introduced itself as Pirate Lacost, before climbing up onto the sail.

I was becoming ever more suspicious of it.

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Notes 

‘Fifteen men on a dead man’s chest, Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum’ is from Treasure Island, a book by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Lacoste is a clothes and sportswear company.
Pirates of the Caribbean (film).

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