see previous entry from today . . .
The problem is taking the map literally. The empty, straight streets and sharp right angles, all in blue. Maps are another way of saving time and preventing experience. Transportation made easy. The shortest distance between two points is a map. Using the wrong map is subversive because it is not efficient, and because it allows you to redefine space. (That was one of the reasons I screwed up my watch: to subvert time itself. Why should I worry if it's time for lunch?)
The other problem, of course, is taking the city literally. We grow accustomed to the labels and definitions laid out for us by city planners: Pearl District, Waterfront Park, Cultural District . . . it is hard to see them differently, to find the loose wires hanging from the cracks of a fancy loft building, or to discover that the texture of the sidewalk makes your tongue ache.
Today, as I walked along the waterfront looking for Pike's Place Market, the spectacle of public space broke apart. There were boats anchored at the little dock and birds diving in to catch prey. Steps that led down to a small beach. But no people. Where I had hoped for a market, there was only an empty sidewalk. And everywhere I looked, "No Trespassing."