Ghost of a flea

Ascending Peculiarity

The following is a repost from the sadly defunct Sketches of Strain. The introduction, questions and conclusion belong to the author of that long lost blog and form part of an ongoing series of interviews he would publish of a Sunday.

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The Ghost of a Flea is one of the most visually striking blogs out there. The moment you lay eyes on it, you know that you have entered the realm of a remarkable creative intelligence. Proprietor ... ... speaks eloquently and intelligently on topics ranging from the sacred to the profane and back again. Earthly musings about comic books can suddenly give way to a meditation on ancient Sumarian art.

Sigh. Smart is sooooooooooooooo sexy. So, get your silver-topped walking stick, a watch chain, and a Deerstalker hat and come with me as we try to learn more about this enigma wrapped in a riddle wrapped in a puzzle that calls himself The Ghost of a Flea.

1. What does the name of your blog mean and why did you choose it?

Ghost of a flea is named after one of my favourite paintings at the Tate Britain. William Blake's mystical, visionary Protestantism is consistent with my ideas of how the world works and the priorities we can set for ourselves. We also share a love of London. I am moved to tears every time I read Jerusalem.

And did the Countenance Divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among these dark Satanic mills?

The Ghost of a Flea is one of many "visionary heads" who appeared to Blake, in this case to explain that fleas are possessed by the souls of greedy men who need to keep their blood-drinking down to size. I was reminded of the painting when it turned up on the cover of book by Patrick Harper called "Daemonic Reality" which tries to make sense of faeries, UFO sightings and Hermetic philosophy through Blake's concept of the Imagination. The name seemed appropriate to the mix of spirituality, anthropology and politics I wanted to blog about. Somehow the Flea has morphed into a Batman-like alter-ego for my academic day job... I think Blake would have approved.

2. What does a man need to be well-dressed, in your opinion?

A man needs to express something fundamental about himself in his dress. Inevitably, he also needs to hide something about himself. In short, "A man has got to know his limitations," as Dirty Harry once observed. The trick is in knowing what to express and what to hide. A simple rule of thumb is that the whole outfit is going to be judged by the shoes no matter what else you wear. By their footwear shall ye know them.

3. If you could relocate to the world of any book at all, where would
you go?

This is a tough one. Something Elizabethan is extraordinarily tempting as I would love to meet Dr. John Dee. But the answer is the Culture of Iain M. Banks' science-fiction novels. "Use of Weapons" is probably the best. I am sure they could use me as a Contact agent given my anthropology background and obnoxious do-gooderism. The Culture is something like the techno-libertarian paradise I believe humans are creating for ourselves in any event. That said, I am glad to have been born around the time of the moon landing and in time for anti-biotics, reasonable dentistry and the first Star Wars series.

4. What do you teach? What do you enjoy the most about teaching? Is
there anything you hate about it?

My teaching load is spread across four departments at two universities at the moment. Most of my students are undergraduate anthropology and communication studies majors where about half the latter are taking combined degrees in marketing or public relations. I also teach anthropology and archaeology courses to mature students. I love to hold forth on stuff which interests me so the six hours of lectures I am giving each Tuesday this term are extraordinarily therapeutic given my personality. My best teachers opened up new ways of perceiving the world including the spiritual and ethical obligations we have to each other and ourselves. One of them described teaching as an unbroken line of relationships stretching back to campfires under the stars of the last ice age. In that sense I think of teaching as a vocation and a way of repaying a debt as much as a way of making a living. The administrative demands of the job can sometimes wear when they take up time which could be better spent on research.

5. What is the most exciting thing about being a blogger to you? How
do you work? (Music? Coffee? Alcohol?)

I see my blog as a contemporary version of the confessional writing I would have been doing in a different medium had I been born a Quaker in the 17th century instead of the 20th. It is a one-man carny show and revivalist tent combining an anthropology lecture and occasional sermon with Kylie Minogue wiggling away in the background. That said, my blogging is a direct reaction to the events of 9/11 and its ongoing aftermath. There is not much I can directly contribute to the effort but blogs, and my own blogging, at least let me circumvent the stranglehold of received establishment opinion which dominates every form of Canadian broadcast and print media. I find I am much less argumentative with people in person when I have the opportunity to work through vexations in the peculiarly public way blogging allows. Then there are the friendships I have struck up with people I could hardly have expected to meet much less get to know otherwise. It would not be exaggerating by much to say being able to blog and engage with the blogosphere have kept me sane and whole through troubled times. I expect this is the experience of many, many people.

My writing is usually fuelled by a pot of coffee and, when at home, by dvd music or Yahoo! Launch streaming-video.

6. Won't you please share with us your most undignified recent memory
of yourself? It's no use pretending you don't have one.

Umm. Answering this question? Well... this relates to the next question. I was toward the end of a long line at a 50% Labour Day sale at a local thrift store when I realized the load of books I had scored could have used one of the shopping baskets I had sniffed at on the way in. Fortunately the answer to the conundrum came into reach as we shuffled along. I befriended the next person in line when we both rummaged through a bin of rucksacks and assorted bags to buy something we could use to carry our stuff the rest of the way to the cash register. We got some dirty looks from people who may have thought continuing to shop while in line was cheating somehow.

7. What are your vices? Be candid. Please. (*bats eyes*)

I love German chocolate, Belgian beer and French brandy all of which are off the menu at the moment for reasons which may be obvious. My worst vice is compulsive book collecting leading to a condition my mother describes as "book blight". I read something like five books a week so the collecting part enables another habit I like to think of as improving in some sense. Someone very dear to me once observed there could be no such thing as owning too many books, only not not enough book-shelves.

And there you have it folks! Straight from the Flea's proboscus. Thank you, Mr. Packwood, for coming by and taking the time to let us peer into your thoughts. You know you are welcome here any time. Take care.

DF

September 21, 2003 08:10 AM

Posted by Ghost of a flea at September 21, 2003 08:10 AM

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