Today, we are attempting to further divine the secrets from Jongho's page (you can read Part 1 here) by considering what memories even mean in this dystopian society and stopping ourselves from falling down a color algebra rabbit hole.
For today's sacred practice, we will be doing our writing practice, which involves journaling about a random line of text for ten minutes. At the end of the ten minutes, we exchange writing and discuss whether either of us ended up Somewhere. So grab some paper and journal along with us!
BobbyJ: Okay--I'm ready. And I have some meaningless opening thoughts on the story details
GD: You said you had an actual and good thought too, so I think I should share my nonsense first when it's sharing time
BobbyJ: No, it's not good. It just. . . is. It exists
GD: Well mine is just complaining, so I still think I should send first
BobbyJ: I'm thinking about this thin string tied around Jongho's waist. Which, 1. hilarious to me for some reason and 2. indicates that the cave is either really huge and maze-like (like a real cave) or that it's so full of smoke they can't see very far into it. Either way, they weren't sure Jongho would make it. And it seems to me that he should have had a partner
GD: It reminds me of the story of the labyrinth
BobbyJ: Yes. I would like for KQ to release some artists' renderings of what this cave looks like. Because it behaves like a real cave but it's presumably made of trash
GD: It is weird that he went alone.
BobbyJ: Right? Logically, four should have gone to the cave and four to Left Eye, but we only know of two at the cave
GD: If 4 are at the cave, and I'm just going to make an assumption that 2 are and aren't discussed, then it would make sense for 2 of those to go inside the cave, and another 2 to stay outside the cave to make sure they didn't get lost with the string or whatever
BobbyJ: We know they have two gas masks
GD: But unless they've just been constantly splitting the party up at every step, it doesn't really make sense for Jongho to go in alone
BobbyJ: It's that one episode of Wanteez all over again. The zombie one
This is getting ahead, but when Yeo rescues Jongho later, he says that GG's voice "had been found" which suggests that someone else found it. So maybe there are four, two went inside, but they split up bc the cave was too big?
GD: Reminds me of the Jojo interview the other day where Jongho said he wants to go to a haunted house, and the others were like no thank you. Perhaps Jongho goes it alone so often because he thinks that sort of stuff is fun, and he's taking one for the team.
BobbyJ: I found it extremely funny that he said he wants to experience fear
GD: Oh, yeah, it's possible they're all inside the cave just traveling down different paths. That would make some level of sense.
BobbyJ: Well, those were my opening thoughts
03: sacred practice
"The bead the boy had told us was shining deep inside the yellow smoke"
GD: Okay, here goes nothing
*ten minutes of difficult writing passes*
GD's Sacred Writing Practice:
It’s a bit of an awkwardly written line? The bead represents the Grimes girl’s voice, and I guess I’m not convinced I think “bead” is a great descriptor. It leaves me with a lot of questions, which I guess maybe it’s supposed to. But as a person who works with beads a lot, I automatically picture something very small. Like a bead for a bracelet. And finding a bead on my rug is a real challenge, so finding a bead deep inside the yellow smoke sounds impossible to me. Feels a lot like finding a needle in a haystack.
And I guess I also have questions about why her voice is in a cave? Are other people’s voices/memories/vision/etc and whatever stored in their own caves? Is there a network of caves where these things are being stored? It’s just very hard for me to understand why exactly this girl’s voice was preserved somewhere instead of destroyed entirely. And then it makes me wonder if the removal of her voice was a temporary punishment, meant to be undone at a later time. I don’t know, I don’t know
Well, now I’m thinking about Halazia, and how San pulled down the very large circle thing. What if certain things can’t be destroyed? They can be extracted… but maybe some things are too powerful to be destroyed? I’ve sort of suggested something similar before about why they let Left Eye remember his daughter–perhaps his love for her was something he couldn’t forget, even if they took all of his memories of her away.
BobbyJ: I do think bead is probably not the best translation. San easily finds some memories later and they are big enough to attract his attention.
So, I have some thoughts about why GG's voice is in the trash cave (I assume because it was deemed trash), but they're related to my new definitely incorrect theory
I also don't know why Left Eye can remember his daughter. But it seems he has never been processed or indoctrinated the way other people have. So it seems like an oversight on the Guardians' part to just put him in charge of a dump simply because they found him there
GD: I suppose I just have more questions than actual thoughts. I do personally like the idea that some things are too ingrained in us to take away, despite whatever technological advances, but there isn't any actual evidence for it in the text, so it's just an idea that I think would be nice.
BobbyJ: When people are woken up, aren't their memories still there?
GD: I think so? I mean, that seems true
BobbyJ: I really just don't know
BobbyJ's Sacred Writing Practice:
Well, first of all, I do like this visual. The blue shining bead surrounded by thick yellow smoke. Of course it’s blue and yellow. I don’t remember what blue symbolizes in color algebra, but it somehow makes perfect sense to me that GG’s voice is blue. Well, metaphorically she’s like the bluebird from Halazia. So it tracks. Blue makes me think peace. It makes me think hope. And hope makes sense here? Sort of? A voice can be a weapon but also a source of comfort and hope depending on how it’s used. It’s interesting how Z’s voice is used to control and indoctrinate people in the Movement trailers. But Ateez use their voices to set people free.
So if the voice was removed because of the energy extraction, how does that. . . make any sense at all? Are the beads memories or energy? Are memories energy? Are emotions based on memories? I suppose you could make that connection. I like this person because all my memories of them are good? I don’t know, emotions feel very present tense.
If what the guardians removed was GG’s memory of how to use her voice–did she forget that she ever had a voice at all?--then are all the memory beads different colors?
I wouldn’t be surprised if in Strictland there’s actually a whole class of super rich people who are buying people’s happy memories in order for them to experience happiness on demand. Maybe that’s how the economy is so strong.
GD: I like the idea of a memory economy. It makes me think of my growing idea related to how these memories are utilized once they're removed? How they affect people?
And also.. sort of... what if it's not the memory of a thing, but the memory of a feeling? And when you're near the memory of the feeling, you experience the feeling?
BobbyJ: That's what happens to San, isn't it? He briefly experiences the memories in those beads and I think he feels the emotions in them?
This is only tangentially related. . .
But there's this book series by DJ MacHale--I think it's called the Pendragon series? It's about a boy named Bobby Pendragon who is a "traveler" that travels to different timelines and alternate universes. Similar to The Doctor where he just kind of has adventures and saves the world multiple times
In one of the universes he travels to, all of the wealthy people have basically given up living normal lives in favor of living virtual reality lives where they can choose exactly what they want to do and the life they want to lead. Meanwhile, their world is falling apart because no one is taking care of it
It kind of reminds me of that--the consumption of other people's joy as a means to escape reality
Anyways, my thinking on GG's voice is that perhaps it was deemed a trash memory that wouldn't bring in any money. So they tossed it
GD: I'm thinking. . .
I'm thinking about what it would mean if everyone did what they want. I've been thinking a lot about sanitation workers lately--I don't know why--but like, how screwed we'd be if they went on strike?
BobbyJ: That one episode of Monk
GD: I have, weirdly, not seen Monk
BobbyJ: It's. . . fine? But I have seen most of it and in one episode, the sanitation workers go on strike and Monk, who has OCD, cannot function
GD: I mean, even during holidays where the trash service doesn't run for like a week, it gets rough at our house, and that's a single family household
BobbyJ: So, your point is that society can only run if people continue to do jobs they don't want to?
GD: Not exactly.. more like, every role in society is important? So everyone has to do their part?
Because I'm sure there are many sanitation workers who quite like their jobs. But society does need to have certain roles fulfilled in order to continue to function
So if you have large swaths of the population just... doing nothing? I dunno, it sort of all falls apart
BobbyJ: Truthfully, I think our day-to-day is far more affected by the "menial" jobs than by the CEOs and politicians whose jobs are deemed so important.
GD: I agree. But you know, my anti-capitalist thoughts will start shining if we go too far down this path
BobbyJ: Too often, I believe, jobs are paid based not on the importance of the job but on how replaceable the workers are
GD: But l will say that I cannot imagine the world of strictland without imaging incredible levels of wealth and social status disparity because a "perfect society" can only be perfect for some. There will always be people responsible for maintaining the perfection.
BobbyJ: Yes. The diaries say that people enjoyed material affluence, but surely not everyone
Especially not those who don't conform
GD: I'm always reminded of that one sci fi movie I can never remember the name of
we should add it to our related media list and do a watch party
BobbyJ: Elysium. I think
GD: Yes! I have no idea why that refuses to enter my mind
BobbyJ: I also don't know why I remember since I don't even know if I've seen it
GD: Well perfect for a watch party then
BobbyJ: We should put a list somewhere
GD: Make the list into a blog post. Perhaps something we can visit on one what to watch wednesday
BobbyJ: I'm sorry, I'm annoyed
GD: With what to watch wednesday?
[Editor’s note: BobbyJ whines about twitter for a few minutes.]
BobbyJ: ANYWAYS. . .
No, obviously, what to watch Wednesday is a great idea. And I think occasionally recommending lore-related media would be fun
GD: I agree! And it would make a good post because we could talk about how it relates to ATEEZ lore in the post itself
In order to be ready to go to the lunch to end all lunches that I'm attending on time, I must shower by 11:20.
so I have 15 minutes
BobbyJ: Well, I'm hungry so let's wrap it up then
GD: Perfect
04: mental murder board
BobbyJ: We haven't been doing murder board
GD: I think the colors belong on the murder board. We talked about blue being memories, I think?
BobbyJ: Maybe. I can't remember
GD: Like I think that's what blue was on our color algebra. Or maybe blue was longing and yellow was memories?
BobbyJ: Yellow was memories. Color algebra is hard when colors can mean so many things
GD: I agree, but I also agree about the blue and yellow making perfect sense. So.. something with colors on the murder board
BobbyJ: Blue as longing is based on Inception and Deja Vu. I haven't tracked it through all the other mvs to see if that makes sense. But I do have a table on the notion.
Wait--I don't think there's blue in Inception, nvm
GD: There is.. sort of. It's blue toned? They're wearing uniforms that are navy-ish. And there's the blue water on the ground/red fire in the sky
We talk about the making of blue longing with red passion, makes like a purple desire? I think?
we talked about something like that
BobbyJ: Yes. What might memories + longing be? I feel this is where the color wheel falls apart
But Jongho is obviously longing for something, and he's trapped in a memory--or a hallucination built off his memories. But if we get into color algebra, we'll be here all day.
Maybe we should consider a color algebra day
GD: A good idea
05: closing
BobbyJ: I think that brings us to closing hymn/prayer for Jongho I forget which is first
GD: The hymn
BobbyJ: I feel like there's an obvious hymn choice
GD: Oh good
BobbyJ: Deja Vu?
GD: Lol that is obvious. I was like hmmmm probably should be not too late, which I'm sure I've already done but isn't not too late just the best song that fits everything
BobbyJ: Not Too Late really is one size fits all. And Turbulence
A prayer for Jongho?
GD: I suppose my very obvious wish for him is that he remembers what he really wants
Jongho is actually in distress in this scene
BobbyJ: I think I wish for him to keep walking down the path he's already chosen and to realize this new team is the real team that he needs
GD: A good wish
Oh. I think I have a rosary
Find you
BobbyJ: In my heart
[Some time passes]
Be the light
GD: Halazia
Oh, I should've done be the light. We'll get it right next time.
And that wraps up our thoughts on Jongho! We will be back next week to explore Yunho and Left Eye's relationship. In the meantime, let us know what you think memories mean in this universe or give us your best color algebra breakdown.
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