Arnon

Did you make your godson cry?

Ah, all he wanted to be for you was to become Krypto, your superdog.
Let him be your superdog.

@Arnon, maybe you could tell him a story of how when you were his age you said you were Superwriter and nobody believed you (even if that's not true, surely it will calm him). I see an interesting development here which is in line with what you yourself addressed: you used to feel a moral obligation to tell people the truth, however harsh that may have felt. Recently you questioned this. For social grace serves an important purpose. Taking this a step further: it seems you are experiencing how difficult it is to tell a loved one the truth when you see the truth hurts them. Maybe loved ones should never be told the truth by those loving them. Maybe that's what being a loved one entails. Because if you're not loved by anyone, the entire world comes down on you harshly in all its so-called truthfulness.

Arnon

Maybe it wasn't just so much what you told him, but how you told him. Mayu not being used that you are irritated by him, surely must have felt upset by the change in tone. If you were to be cross with me, I would be upset too.

Superdog

Well, as it happens I DO know who Superdog is and I'm pretty sure he's the little dude in that picture so, you know, good thing you apologized before you got your ass kicked. *

*Violence is always the last resort with Superdog.

Oscar W

Yes.

Noa

As I stated before I don’t want to be a laughingstock. I don’t go out and tell people the truth. I do think that the “truth” is important when it comes to writing fiction.
And I’m not at all convinced that telling my godson that he is not Superdog is telling him the truth.

Arnon

Was Superdog an imaginairy friend?

Yesterdayevening I drove through the "Lairessestraat" in Amsterdam. It was pretty dark and quiet at the time. Suddenly I was struck by your photograph on a lightened board. It caught me off gard. Your narrow white shirt, the white surroundings and you looking away from the camera in a way I just can't describe....What was going on when the picture was taken, what was the photographers aim, or your aim? In retrospective I think I saw "human in its essence" or something. I've never ever read something that came that close.
This morning I had to pass the same board: it didn't look anything different in daylight. And although I smiled thinking about the person who decided to place it on the corner of the "Jan van Obrechtstraat", it left me confused . You talk/write about coming close(r) to the truth in your writing, but it is in that picture. How ironic.

Jeanette

I have no idea when this picture was taken. To be more precise I'm not sure what picture you are talking about. But it must have been a soothing experience to see the "human essence".

Jeanette

There are several publishers in the De Lairessestraat. It has always struck me as an odd street. Somehow downmarket from the parallel streets Koninginneweg and Willemsparkweg, and with an odd "vibe". Of course the German consulate used to be there. Bizarrely there was apparently a brothel upstairs in the same building. Also , many years ago, a friend claimed to have seen a giant lobster crawling down the pavement at 5 am in the morning towards the Concertgebouw.

Arnon,

It turns out to be a photograph in relation to the "Amsterdam Wereldboekenstad"-thing, by Friso Keuris. I found a copy on his website (http://www.frisokeuris.com/ ...for whomever might want to take a look).
Now I see you do look in the camera , but that doesn't change my feelings about it. It looks different while you are hanging there in that street.
Smoothing you say? ;-) Maybe compared to the root canal therapy I had by a sadistic endodontist in that street 3 years ago....
(I had a tripple dose of sedation then - come to think of it - but I doubt if that would have helped me yesterday)
What did you wanted to portray may I ask?

Carlos

You funny guy!
I don't like that street either, it's some sort of corridor and terrible practices take place behind the facades (see above).
Was that brothel German territory by the way? Maybe it might open opportunities for the red light district to keep their work overthere...?

There might be something wrong with me, but I think each and every one of the portraits on Friso Keuring's site is pretty bad. Arnon' s being one of the better ones. I take it that him making imperfect compositions and using bad lighting was all done on purpose, which makes it even worse in my opinion. He's clearly tried really really hard to make even Carice van Houten look ugly. I don't think that's humanity, that's sadism, perhaps even jealousy.

Mulisch is great on his portrait. A real Dandy this man, I can hardly believe he's the same age as my grandfather.

Noa

I looked at all the portraits and I believe you're right. Would you have refused your picture taken by him for this project if you were invited?

You wrote: "Maybe loved ones should never be told the truth by those loving them. Maybe that's what being a loved one entails. Because if you're not loved by anyone, the entire world comes down on you harshly in all its so-called truthfulness. " My sister persuaded me to look at some talent-show on TV earlier this month, the one were you were more likely to be broadcasted when you didn't have talent. I wondered if the talentless young persons that were exposed were loved by their parents too much or too little...

Jeanette

Was the brothel above the German consulate on diplomatic territory? Good question. I don't think so. I am also not sure that a consulate has quite the same status as an embassy. The customers of the brothel must all have been recorded on the consulate's security cameras though. Judging by the door, bell and sign it must have been a rather tawdry brothel. I can't remember its name, "Huize" something. On the other hand, at that time the German consulate was also rather seedy. It dealt mostly with German drug addicts and unencouraged foreigners. I was once witness to a pleading young German fellow - he looked only 17 and obviously a junkie - being very forcefully thrown out of the consulate and onto the pavement.

I also often wonder what is going on behind the facades of Amsterdam. I am sure we are often better off (or happier) not knowing.

Noa

I agree. Put it this way: Friso Keuring is no Annie Leibovitz.

@Jeanette, I think those shows should be banned - does it matter whether you're objectively good or bad at something? What's the problem with believing you think you're great at something when others think you're not?
Would I allow that photographer to take a photo of me? Of course I would, I'm narcistic enough to enjoy it if some photographer is paid by others to come and take a bad picture of me.

I think I'm in shock - people are actually agreeing with me. This may well be a moment of grand revelation and insight. If this were a Greek tragedy however it wouldn't help me, I'd still be doomed. I'd have one final confrontation with my antagonist and then have to die.

noa

There's no problem with believing you think you're great at something when others think you're not. While watching that show I was thinking about the way the parents had reacted to their childs aspirations prior to them becoming a source of laughter on national television. I guess some thought their child was really talented, or really believed they had to follow their dream (which includes the risk of being a sourde of ridicule), but not all I believe.