conformity

lemons
Originally uploaded by madabandon.

I have never been a conformist. It is simply not in my nature. As a kid this brought me some grief, but I didnt suffer too much because I was scrappy and fearless. I got in more than my share of fistfights. I was small and often took on larger opponents so I usually got beaten but I would always get in a first, fast and effective blow, which earned me points in the strange social/animal hierarchy that kids understand. Luckily, since then I have always been in environmentts where conformity is not the gold standard. I would never survive working in a corporate world where I would have to wear a dark suit and talk sports around the water cooler (if such places actually exist). My school is really a community of complete nonconformists, although among the younger kids a kind of creeping materialistic conformity is starting to emerge, much to the dismay of many of us.

Last night I had dinner with my brother at Savoy in Soho. It is a veteran restaurant, having been around for years, with very good food and a comfortable setting. But still I was surrounded by suits. They were making cassoulet in the fireplace. I could not resist. Everyone seemed to be ordering it and the NYTimes had even mentioned the dish in last week's food section. But having not eaten meat in a while now, I feel weirdly heavy and restless. It was really really good, but I won't have it again.