Shouts From Down Under

Less words don't mean tiny brain, just economical thinking

How much can we cram into a tiny space, and still live? Still live comfortably and sociably together. I guess if it wasn't together it wouldn't be sociable would it?

How much can we cram into a tiny space where writing is concerned? Have you ever thought about this? Thought about writing so minimalist and frugally, so tight, so low-fat and unpadded that all there is, is what is necessary for the reader to get the gist. The major part of your writing happens in their imagination.

This style of writing isn't just read. It's survived.

Let's see what people think of tiny dwellings for our physical bodies to co-exist within the bounds.
Let's see some attitudes.

And lets see some storytelling that never sees the light of day, a bit like Thoughty2's underground creepy places. This is where stories are written and the author doesn't want to be known. He even says it. Anonymous.

But first, an article and video or two.

http://theconversation.com/australians-love-tiny-houses-so-why-arent-more-of-us-...

Celebrity involvement in the Tiny Homes movement.

http://homes.ninemsn.com.au/galleries/496216/rebuilding-new-orleans-brad-pitts-t...

"..this is not a handout...this is all about family.."



http://rachellemnshaw.com/blog/2015/8/23/the-editing-agenda-those-darn-dashes



Published on Oct 27, 2014

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. The Ugly Indian is an anonymous collective that does not talk to media, wants no publicity and works with the motto - Only Work No Talk. However, they made an exception for TEDxBangalore so that they could open up the question of why we as Indians are okay with filthy public spaces? The tragedy of the commons - can we change it to the victory of the commons?

There's a silent revolution brewing in India, and it's called The Ugly Indian. It is anonymous, faceless and leaderless, and has seen thousands of citizens coming out to fix local civic problems following a simple motto: Kaam Chalu Mooh Bandh. Only Work No Talk. What started off as a series of social experiments in Bangalore in 2011, to see what it takes to change everyday ugly Indian behaviour in public spaces (littering, spitting paan, public urination and more), has now transformed into a nation-wide movement that is spreading virally – both on social media, and on the ground. The centrepiece of the TUI approach is the 'spotfix ' where ugly spots are 'fixed' by citizens. There is no activism, no sloganeering, no lecturing, no finger-pointing and no ideological debates – just a sincere attempt to solve problems by focusing on a spot - using one's own time, hands and money.

About TEDx, x = independently organized event In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.* (*Subject to certain rules and regulations)

Here's a story within a story, once again, found within the comments posted below a Youtube video clip, namely, this one...



Please excuse some of the crude language

Jag azerty 2 weeks ago
For the record, the fine for entering the Catacombs is 70€.

Yup, got one myself...
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Alhassan Hassan wheeljack699 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca did you really visit the catacombs? thats really creepy
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Jag azerty 2 weeks ago
+Alhassan Hassan wheeljack699 Yes but that's not as creepy as you may think, the bone part is mostly the tourist visit, you may fine some in the forbidden parts but I never did and I'm not sure there's much of it left.

Basically it's just a huge network of tunnels, there's nothing especially creepy about it, except for being a "no one will hear you scream" kind of place.
Reply · 68


Alhassan Hassan wheeljack699 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca
i thought it was really creepy
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Abathur, the Evolution Master 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca How did you get caught? Tell us more this is interesting!
Reply · 4

Von Doom 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca Yeh.... tell us more. We want details :D
Reply · 5


Kevin H 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca Please tell us of how you were caught, it's very interesting and we all would love to read about it.
Reply · 6


The Ice Viper 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca I also want to know more :D
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Robert Armstrong 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca I'm also intrigued. You should consider doing an AMA on Reddit and link it here. :)
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Benji Blayden 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca what was it like
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mareir 2 weeks ago
I imagine it would be worth it!
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kuhataparunks 2 weeks ago
The reason is so people won't get lost and subsequently die, prompting lawsuits by families
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Jag azerty 2 weeks ago (edited)
Well since everyone is asking here's the whole story, but be warned, it's a pretty stupid one :

Basically I was with a small group of friend (about 6 persons) that wanted to go there that day and we had been planing this for about a week. I had visited the forbidden part of the catacombs a couple time before and usually we used an entrance located on an old abandoned railway just near my home. Which not only is convenient since I could get to it in 5 minutes on foot and there is rarely anyone around when you enter, but also doubled the spooky since you first had to walk along those long, empty and very dark railway tunnels, all covered with debris and tags, where you kind of expect the Ghost Buster's ghost train to hit you at any moment. Then finally find that ridiculously small hole, barely big enough for one person to go through (contortion required), that lead to a very tight tunnel in which you had to walk on all four in about 15cm of water for quite a while before finally reaching a tunnel where you can stand up.

So that was our plan for that day too : simple, discreet and easy. But at the last moment we heard a rumor that catacomb police was training on that exact place that night (we call them catacops, they are police patrols trained to explore the catacombs, there are only few of them but if you cross their path good luck convincing them you have a good reason to be there). Since we got ready for a whole weeks to go down, we didn't want to give up on the night just yet, so we looked for back up plans. One of my friend knew the catacombs quite well and knew other entrances we could try, most of those accesses are through sewer plates that you can distinguish from regular ones by their markings, the problem is that they are often sealed by the city, and since cataphiles also like public service they often un-seal them as well, so you never know which one is open or not unless you have really damn good information (some do, the most devoted cataphiles have a pretty impressive information network).


So we changed our plans and went to another entrance, not quite near my place but we were all motivated to get under, it took us nearly an hour to get there, dodging quite a lot of police cars on the way because of our obvious equipment. We finally fond the sewer plate in a discreet street near an university, but we didn't planed it would be such an heavy one :some of them are lighter than others, this one was large, at least 5cm thick and made of a thick solid steel base filled with concrete all the way up to weight it, It must have weighted about 50Kg in total, minimum. We were not equipped for that and there was no way we could open it with our bare hands, a friend tried to use a trick with rope and a snap hook but we barely managed to waste time, I guess we also could have hurt ourselves if we had tried a little harder, but since we had to dodge 2 police car while doing and since we were right on a small street (not busy at all since it was late), we had to hide right behind the stationed cars when we spotted an incoming police car, and listen to it passing right next to us, with a fair chance to get spotted and end up like "no, we were totally not hiding from you, and we were totally not going to the catacombs either, I have no idea what you're talking about officer, we just need those headlamps because of reasons".

So anyway, after a while failing at lifting this plate we gave up and tried going to another entry not to far, but this one was sealed so we where f***ed. At that point I called the night off : there was way too many police cars patrolling that night and we clearly had no plan since we were still above the ground, I said we should just give up, go get drunk and try again the next week from the tunnel entry which is safe from police patrols; But my stupid friends didn't want to call the night off just yet, despite the fact that we had crossed path with at least a ten consecutive police car by then, they wanted to try one last entry before giving up, I had a really bad feeling about it but sticked to the group. We went to that last entry point, located on a massive boulevard, near a famous giant mall. Yes, i said it was located on a freaking giant boulevard, right in front (literally) of a subway exit, and also right in front of a freaking Mc Donald ! I said "are you shitting me? We are not going in from here, how do you not see how f***ed up this idea is ?!".

That was the stupidest idea ever indeed. I mean seriously, the second next stupidest thing to do would probably have been to call the cops for a false alert nearby so they'd be busy there while we get under, but my stupid friends wanted to "at least try" to lift the plate, although it was not the f***ing point. This plate had no concrete topping, only the steel bottom part, so it was clearly easier to lift but yet pretty heavy too. After 10 minutes of unsuccessful tries of lifting a sewer plate right in the middle of a busy boulevard, with dozens of people walking right f***ing next to us, some of them watching us while enjoying their Big mac through the Mc Donald's glass less than 5 meters away from us, I said "ok, enough now, I'm calling this shit out, we'll get nothing but a night in the police station this way", and my friend answered me : "wait, just ONE LAST TRY", since he was stubborn as f*** and I was sure we couldn't lift that plate anyway, I said "ok please yourself then we leave", so he went trying... and that son of a bitch managed to open the plate. Shit.

Since it was open there was no time to waste and we had to act fast : my "guide" friend went down the ladder first, I went second, my friends followed one by one. I was already at the 2nd "floor" and about to get down to the third, and then I heard "You get the f*** back up here or we come down to get you !". Cops. Of course there was f***ing cops watching. There was no point trying running away from them, they would have called in the catacops and sent dogs after us anyway, so we turned back, exit the sewer trap and joined our friends lined up hands against the wall. Remember those people watching us through the Mc Donald's Glass, eating their big macs while we were trying to open the plate for 10 whole minutes in the middle of a busy boulevard ? They were BAC (Anti-criminals brigade), a French equivalent of DEA. They called backups and calmly finished their meal waiting for us to break in before picking us up. If only one of us had warned every one this was a stupid idea, right ?

And the cherry on the cake? None of us heard of it ever again, months went by, up to the point I totally forgot about it. Until, 8 months later, I received the 70€ fine in my mailbox, on the exact date of my birthday.

Ho and I almost forgot : I'm the only one who got fined on the whole team, for some f***ing reason. I was the only one trying to call off the night and i'm the only one getting fined. There is not f***ing justice in that world.

So my advice to anyone whiling to visit the catacombs? Make your team pass an IQ test first.

Sorry for possible bad English, I'm writing this just out of the bed.
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Robert Armstrong 2 weeks ago
+Jagix Onca It's such bullshit that that happened to you, but I have to admit it's an entertaining story. I highly suggest that you post this story to Reddit. The viewers ought to enjoy it, especially with your touch of humor.
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Kevin H 2 weeks ago
+Robert Armstrong How dare you say that this persons story is bullshit, how would you know you weren't there, you do not know that person you don't know what he/she has done, been or have gone through, next time buddy try not to make yourself out to look like an asshole, have a wonderful day, god bless.
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Jag azerty 2 weeks ago
+Kevin H Easy there, I think he was only saying it's bullshit that i'm the only one who got fined.
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Jag azerty 2 weeks ago (edited)
+Robert Armstrong i don't have time for reddit, but you can copy-pasta this, feel free to forget to name me too and sign it from anonymous.

- edit -

But you can link it here so I can answer questions maybe

Society, and writers such as us, have a battle ahead. Let's not think it will be easily won. Because there seems to be this thing with any art, not just writing.

Stop it. Don't let people express something. Don't let them discover. Don't let them write openly and truthfully.

Don't let them make use of something uncontrolled. No. People must obey the rules. Shouldn't they?

There is danger in chaos, in lack of limits and boundaries. There is no doubt of that. But are all controls and laws put there because of perceived risk to human life, and the aftermath of realised risks? The damage to persons. The injuries. And the tired inevitability of lawsuits.

I don't think people should just do what they like, either. I'm sure if anyone thought for 2 seconds about how children, for instance, fit into society, and the dangers lurking on the fringes of that society, then all would agree. Some laws must be.

Like the Indian gentleman said, an altered way of thinking where people put effort in, and talk less, blame less, worry less, criticise less.

And perhaps lawyer up less.

Sparky