delayed reaction

David Blaine makes "eye" contact
Originally uploaded by NYCArthur.

i had intended to blog about this earlier this week, but it turned into quite an insane few days... i'm just now catching up. for the first time mil and i decided to watch a david blaine stunt on tv. i don't know what provoked us, perhaps the proximity of the action and the fact that both of us were too lazy to wander the few blocks to take a peek.

first thing i should mention, in case there is any doubt about my general opinion, is that i think the stunt was stupid. to think that after 7 days of being fully submerged underwater -- which can and did have untold effects on his body -- you could hold your breath longer than the world record holder is simply narcissistic. i imagine the world record holder didn't just decide one day that he would try to hold his breath for 9 minutes and do it. he trained his body and his mind for the task and performed it while in peak condition. it was foolhardy of blaine to think that he had some special abilities above and beyond the common many just because he trained with the navy seals...

anyway, my real bone of contention with blaine is that he was putting his body through strain and physical peril for the sake of entertainment. it was merely coincidental that he attempted his "trick" a day after my father took a rather grim tumble from his bicycle, giving my mother, mil, and myself several moments of envisioning him dying on a bike path in front of us in the middle of nowhere. this experience gave me little patience for the foolish prankster risking his health and possibly his life in a fishbowl next door. i thought of the miners trapped in a toxic cave, facing imminent death, while this healthy young man used his body in a pubescent display for the masses.

then again, i was one of the masses... i could say that i was curious to see if he was really risking his life in this attempt or simply entertaining us with a magic trick. but in reality, i was just hoping to see a money shot of his terrible back-ne. no luck... i turned the television off as baine's ambulance rushed by our apartment.