Material Support

Today I am wearing my favorite shorts in the whole world - my basketball shorts with pockets. On top of that I'm wearing my favorite jacket, my terrence towel sportsjacket. This makes for a very very comfortable day.

I have to say I bought the towel based jacket because I liked the colour and the idea of terry towel-esque clothing making a comeback.I'm completely won over though by the intrinsic benefits of towels themselves. It is nice and warm like fleece, but breathes unlike fleece.

The other thing I like about it is that it was designed (at least in part) by one of my dear friends from high-school.

Supporting his fledgling label, terrence-towel found here at www.terrence.com.au has been fiscally and logistically more troubling than I initially thought, getting me lost in White-town-Toorak and costing $70. But really, it's not much, it's super cheap. It's buying a dream.

I can't think of anything I'd rather spend money on. I think this is something that has changed in me since I started drawing comics and shit.

Generally speaking, people want you to succeed. This was a pearl of wisdom from one of my old managers Ray who was briefing a (retrospectively) new to public speaking employee on the art of public speaking. The audience does want you to succeed. They turn up to comedy gigs because they want you to be funny. They listen to presentations because they want to see somebody charismatic talk about something interesting. I bought a jacket because I wanted a good jacket.

Even when it doesn't cost pineapples and lobsters, I try to be supportive because I have newfound appreciation of what support means. Objectively supporting people is easy, turning up to a film screening, comedy gig or um... band(?) gig? (If I hadn't mentioned comedy gig, I would have just called it a 'gig') doesn't really cost the big bucks. It just requires you to turn up.

Yet, allow me to contradict myself and say - turning up is hard. It is made hard by how easy it is to get caught up in our own lives. And sure, the pretentious master chef contestents need our support Sunday-Friday too in the form of TV ratings.

As somebody who has been plagued by big-expectations since I was... 15 I am truly greatful for the moral/spiritual support I've recieved from those who expected great things from me and continue to do so. I am also truly sorry for the delay. But I can't help but look that gift horse in the mouth.

Let's say that there are two kinds of people in the world. There are people who log onto facebook look through their friends status updates and quietely chukle to themselves. Then there are people who log onto facebook look through their friends status updates and if they see one that makes them laugh, they click 'like' or write something, possibly even something as vacuous as 'lol'.

Both kinds of people are wonderful people at heart. They are the 'people' that in general want you to succeed, because they want everyone to succeed. But whilst one offers moral support and well wishes you are unaware of and thus take as silent condemnation, others actually step forward, expend that bit of energy and let you know in whatever way shape or form that you appreciate their effort are the same kind of wonderful - only more so.

So if you are reading this and know you've sat back and said 'wow Fernando is brave trying to do standup' and admired his determination and courage without actually bothering to go see his show, do something really simple - go see his show. Let him know in one shape or form, in some tangible, observable, experiential way that you admire his efforts.

If we all did that, maybe even once we could live in a much more diverse and exciting world.