Dead Parrot

The essay by Zadie Smith was a reflective venture into the world of death and comedy. I really enjoyed how she called herself a "comedy snob", a quote I've actually heard used before, I just can't remember now. My dad did the same thign when I was a child, putting on old tapes of Pryor and Steve Martin, maybe even old school Robin Williams, because he liked them so much. It wasn't as much about race then as it was just about laughs, but I have a feeling that Harvey and Zadie wouldn't like our American counterparts to their Dead Parrot.

In another instance she talks about how she wished she'd seen the body, and I would have to agree with her. I wouldn't want to lug around ashes in a tupperware(sp?) container, even if I was a bit off in the head, and I definitely would not have tasted my fathers ashes either. But, the general sense of letting someone go as important as your father is something I haven't faced yet, so we'll see when we get there won't we?

Comedians go through a long process of things. Writing the joke, making it funny, and then delivering it perfectly to the crowd. Mitch Hedberg once said he'd have a funny joke in his head, but if a pen and paper wasn't close enough, he'd have to reconvince himself that it wasn't funny, a.k.a it wasn't meant to be. Apart from "dieing" on stage, I think we all go through the same emotions when watching our favorite comedian, as does Zadie when she watches her brother. The same "I hope they don't screw up and if it is really embarassing I'm not going to look at them" sort of thing.

I think we all go through a little bit of what Zadie did whenever a big change happens. I remember when my buddy from high school died, I couldn't write or do anything for a couple months because it was so sudden, so tragic. I was unable to see the body as it was closed casket, and for that I am a little bit grateful. But there is still a feeling I will see him turn the corner or run into him one day. But, I do see him in other people, kind of like Zadie does with the comedy her father loved, and that is a great thing.