[-empyre-] the first story of deceleration

[David Hughes 19]

I suspect that Johannes asked me to contribute to this discussion less
because of my considerable experience of working from and with opposing
energies and forces (dynamic tension, isotonics and isometrics) than because
of the radical deceleration that was forced on me by illness.

 

Think of it like this.

 

The First Story of Deceleration:

 

I am travelling with my family from Lincoln to the Belfast ferry at
Liverpool.

We decide to go the scenic route

Through the Dales. Or is it Peaks?

We are forced to a crippling slowness behind agricultural traffic which has
hit the roads very early that morning.

In the Dales. Or is it Peaks?

We swerve into the ferry terminal and take a wrong lane to the check-in.

Our passports are taken. We are asked to leave the car.

Our car is searched.

The embarrassed young man comes out with our passports.

He arrests me.

I have a number of speed camera tickets which I have not paid.

They have gone to court.

I have not gone to court.

I am to be disqualified.

I am not to drive for 18 months.

I am radically decelerated.

They take me to a van.

They take me to a custody centre.

I sleep a night in their cell.

I am transported back to Nottingham.

The judge says. Bring Mr Hughes into the body of the court.

The warder says, that's rather unorthodox your honour, I have to ask my
superior.

This is my court, not your superior's. Bring Mr Hughes into the body of the
court.

I say to the judge:

When my son was born I tore around Nottingham buying stuff for his nursery
and for his mum. I wasn't paying much attention to speed cameras.

Yes the offences are grouped rather closely together, she agrees.

Then I had this radical deceleration, I tell her, I couldn't decide which
lane to follow. They were all closing down, I wove between them. I got to
the check in. What am I saying. I was in but I got checked out. I got
chucked out.

 

How do you drive at top speed on all lanes at once? On all tracks?

I don't know. Not even in retrospect.

 

Really. It's no joke.

 

David Hughes

7.55. 25.10.11

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