Help End Prejudice With Truth in Art

Strength and dignity are her clothing...

Proverbs 31:25

Author's Note: I have been enjoined from sharing the details of my true romance adventure until such time that the other party is prepared to present her perspective on the affair arrangement...

Four days after I arrived in Poland, the largely Catholic country was celebrating Corpus Christi, complete with solemn processions down the street. Three days later I had made a solemn vow that if given the chance to express it, I would show love to a woman I had only just met.

Call it an accident. Call it divine will. I was never supposed to meet Margo...if not for one man's random criminal act...another abuse piled upon humanity by a fellow human. A robbery. A purse-snatching of a purse that happened to contain a passport. An assault on the human body. One of society's bad habits that I had come to fight as an artist working for body acceptance.

I was from America, land of the free...home of the brave. She carried the weight of Old Europe...domestic and religious poverties...stifled creativity. Anger. Sadness. Yearning.

As far apart culturally as we may have been, we spent 6,000 miles in one car. We spent over 40 nights in one tent. We started learning how to listen to each other. We started learning how to accept our differences and how to let them help us instead of driving us apart. Slowly but surely, we started learning how to beat the devils that abuse us.

One of Margo's pictures from our trip across Europe. — 6,000 miles across Europe with a complete stranger
**Day 15**
8/3/2011
⛺ 14༛♊²⁵/₂₄♀
Camping Club Léman
Préverenges, Switzerland
THE DISAPPEARING WOMAN, THE DISAPPEARING MAN...
a collection of modern art prints and posters
During our trip across Europe, Margo very bravely opened up to me and to the camera. It was a difficult thing to do considering the scars that she carries. I wanted to share with the world her often joyful, often sad, often angry but always liberating experience except that the Internet is full of pictures of naked women and men and full of trolls who abuse them.
I realized that what I really need to point out is not the openness that Margo and I cultivated between ourselves, but the darkness that continues to surround us. When I censor nudity, I do so in a way that does not compromise the integrity of the human body. In censoring the photographs that Margo and I took during our trip, I was quick to notice that in those pictures where Margo was at her most open, at her most unguarded and most relaxed, in a word, when she was herself and basking in the sun I was forced to blacken her completely.
Why does our society drive people into darkness? Why can we not accept ourselves as we are? Why can we not accept our bodies? Have we truly become eunuchs? Or are we capable of defying the sickness that pits us against each other? Together we could conquer the devils that abuse us.
Whether you enjoy being nude or not, whether you've been photographed nude or not, but especially if, for you, like for Margo, it's something you never thought you would do, consider submitting your own photograph to be published in a censored manner as a form of protest against the ubiquitous presence of the human body on the internet, naked or not, that is published and duplicated ad infinitum without context and without regard for the identity or the needs of the individual being depicted.

Previous Image — 6,000 miles across Europe with a complete stranger
**Day 15**
8/3/2011
⛺ 14༛♊²⁵/₂₄♀
Camping Club Léman
Préverenges, Switzerland
THE DISAPPEARING WOMAN, THE DISAPPEARING MAN...
a collection of modern art prints and posters
During our trip across Europe, Margo very bravely opened up to me and to the camera. It was a difficult thing to do considering the scars that she carries. I wanted to share with the world her often joyful, often sad, often angry but always liberating experience except that the Internet is full of pictures of naked women and men and full of trolls who abuse them.
I realized that what I really need to point out is not the openness that Margo and I cultivated between ourselves, but the darkness that continues to surround us. When I censor nudity, I do so in a way that does not compromise the integrity of the human body. In censoring the photographs that Margo and I took during our trip, I was quick to notice that in those pictures where Margo was at her most open, at her most unguarded and most relaxed, in a word, when she was herself and basking in the sun I was forced to blacken her completely.
Why does our society drive people into darkness? Why can we not accept ourselves as we are? Why can we not accept our bodies? Have we truly become eunuchs? Or are we capable of defying the sickness that pits us against each other? Together we could conquer the devils that abuse us.
Whether you enjoy being nude or not, whether you've been photographed nude or not, but especially if, for you, like for Margo, it's something you never thought you would do, consider submitting your own photograph to be published in a censored manner as a form of protest against the ubiquitous presence of the human body on the internet, naked or not, that is published and duplicated ad infinitum without context and without regard for the identity or the needs of the individual being depicted.

Usage of Food in Michal's Fiction Corpus

Michal's Fiction Corpus of Acceptance Literature (FiCAL) is presented under the Bare Bottom imprint. It is currently comprised of six bodies of work, each representing a different pillar of culture and incorporating a wide variety of writhing styles.

If you're wondering...

How do I use this?

Just click on a title to see examples of the word "food" being used in a particular work. You'll stay on the same spot on the page, only the Table of Contents will disappear. To get back to the Table of Contents just click next to the image of the Bare Bottom imprint where it says "Back to Usage of Food: Table of Contents."“And...?”

The Table of Frequency and the Table of Collocation provide numerical information about how many times the word food appears in its original or modified form and with which words. It can help to give you an idea of how a word is used and in what contexts.“Ok.”

Why a Fiction Corpus?

The popular understanding of the word "fiction" and its complement "non-fiction" is a reflection of the cultural influence of a classification system. The Dewey Decimal System is responsible for separating "fiction" from all other work and categorizing it by author's name. This has influenced the popular idea of fiction as a narrative that tends to be "untrue" and the product of an individual's fantasy, a bias compounded by modern art's century-long obsession with abstraction, surrealism and self-expression.“So...?”

My idea of fiction rests on the idea that art doesn't have to be factual to be a true reflection of our existence. Adam and Eve didn't have to exist as two individuals 700 generations ago for them to be true portraits of two human beings trying to work together.“And...?”

The Bible is a Fiction Corpus. It is a body of writing that isn't overly concerned with facts and yet its words carry weight. It was written by many different authors living in different places with different audiences in mind, yet everyone gleans something from it.“Right...”

In preparing my fiction corpus, I have striven to see the world through the eyes of others. Through the eyes of my Adams and Eves I hope that you too will glean some truth about our existence. At the very least you will learn some more about how one man can use the English language.“Ok.”

Who are you, Michal?

I'm just a guy who makes art. And if you're interested in making a solid investment in an aesthetic that supports our present and future welfare, then I will help you look for something that you can buy.“How...?”

Everybody makes. Everybody sells. Some people know how to protect their interests. Some better than others. Few people know how to listen. Listening to somebody means considering their interests as if they were your own. Going out and doing something to satisfy another person's interest is how we build a strong economy. Without a strong economy, democracy collapses.“And...?”

Buying 4Occupy is buying for democracy. Don't give your money to somebody who's ruining it. There's no such thing as cheap democracy, quick democracy, or easy democracy. There's good, solid, complete democracy and the tyranny of feudalism. Let's not mix the two. Let's not buy everything on the cheap. Let's not create another tyrant and enslave ourselves because it was easier not to think about what we were doing. Let's protect our interests. Let's listen.“Ok.”

Who's really behind this site?

Have you ever been to one of those post-it-yourself retail websites where there's a really attractive top-seller ready to give you tips on how you can be a top-seller too?“Uh...”

Have you ever been to a "job" interview where you sit in a line, walk through one door, get hired as a contractor and walk out another door, so that the other applicants don't realize that everyone's getting "hired" to work in the same market?“Maybe...”

The internet is full of people who are ready to exploit your ignorance. They are people who want to make money at the expense of our economy. They are cheats.“And...?”

I, Michal, am behind this site. Not some fat plutocrat exploiting my image. I like to do things the right way. I like to work with people who take the time to do things right.“Why...?”

I used to work for a company that didn't do things the right way. My labor was exploited because of mismanagement. That company was the United States Postal Service, an independent agency of the United States Government that is ultimately controlled by Congress. I'm mad because if the Federal Government can exploit labor, who is going to stop every other cheat from doing it?“Labor Unions...?”

Don't say labor unions. I went to my labor union and they did nothing. They ignored me because labor unions aren't democracies. Holding a free and fair election for a "representative" once in a blue moon does not equal people ruling. Democracy means open government. It means we the public need to accept the hard work. It's the only way to secure liberty and equality.“Ok.”

What's the difference between use and usage?

Definition-wise, not much. But the -age suffix is ultimately French in origin and with most things French, at least in American eyes, the immediate thought is that of something precious and arcane whose value should be judged very carefully. This is in contrast to the word France, which is associated with a beautiful place. Thus people in France or from France are beautiful, warm, kind people. Generous even. Unlike French people who suck. Unless you're frenching, in which case you're only sometimes sucking.“And...?”

Along those lines, usage means you're in bed. Use means you're just heavy petting. Also notice that common people, like common words, get used...whereas "proper" things make "appearances." Whether or not you are being exploited is a different story. Exploitation is what happens when somebody uses you or your property without listening to you. Listening is what happens when you consider another person's needs as if they were your own. You don't have to satisfy those needs. All you need to do is consider them. So many of us can't even do that.“So...?”

Help stop exploitation. Buy 4occupy. Buy a better world. Whether or not you feel you can afford to buy art, consider joining my protest. I want to guarantee every working man and every working mother on this planet a 15-day universal holiday. But I can't. Only we can do that. We have to work together. We have to accept the idea that everyone deserves time for himself and we need to build that time into a new kind of calendar. We have to give peace it's own day. We have to make love something you can't avoid. We have to make even the most miserly cold-hearted capitalist among us say that he cashed his check on Love Your Neighbor Day. There won't be any other way to say it once the Acceptance Calendar is widely adopted.“Ok.”

Back to Usage of Food: Table of Contents

Food, a morphological approach

I have yet to make a morphological analysis of the word food.

That doesn't mean it's not high on my list.

Table of Frequency for the Word "Food."
This table lists in descending order the total number of times that the word foodand any of its morphological derivations appears in the Fiction Corpus, along with a breakdown of frequency by title, the respective rank of each word in the complete list of all words in the Corpus, as calculated both densely and competitively, as well as the percent increase in frequency of the word over the frequency of the next lowest rank in the complete list.
Percent Increase over next rank	RANK		WORD	Frequency
	RANK			TOTAL # of occurences	MCDONALDS	JESUS	SEX	TSIGA	JACKSON	DINGBATS
	dense	competitive		TOTAL # of occurences	modern/sloppy	biblical/terse	poetic/high-brow	hard/fast	talky	mixed salad
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
I have yet to publish the table of frequency for the word food, but I will get to it shortly. -Michal

Back to Usage of Food: Table of Contents

Usage of Food in Death to McDonalds

An aerial view of Dodger Stadium in the foreground, with an imaginary partially submerged Los Angeles behind — A story bible for a comic book series set in a post climate-change California narrated by eight characters who live through a natural disaster that sinks Los Angeles and triggers a war with an expansionist Mexican government covertly supported by China.

Frame #2903

i thought id have trouble finding the station. its the only building in kelso. apart from a few food factories. all the actions northeast.

JC Penney

28 August, 2:23 PM

Frame #2756

i hate buses. theres a lady with chinese food five seats behind me. its all i can smell.

Twitter Hashtag

26 August, 9:47 AM

Frame #5767

i found steak. in the refrigerator. along with a bunch of other rotten food. it smells disgusting.

Sprint "Iphone" Case

6 December, 6:54 PM

Frame #2637

i called my contact. he says a spring is fooding the houses. they were evacuated a day before mcdonalds's famous ride. theyre still empty.

Chase Credit

24 August, 10:22 AM

Frame #5231

if i do go out in a raft. ill need a supply of food and water. at least a few days worth. so far i can barely put together a meal.

Sprint "Iphone" Case

11 November, 11:34 AM

Back to Usage of Food: Table of Contents

Usage of Food in The Gospel of Jesus H.

A picture of the planet Mars — An experimental science fiction Christology that makes Jesus the hard boiled narrator of his own early years on a bizarro earth made dark by volcanic ash and informally ruled by a man from Mars who sells bottled air.

Jesus's fame was strong and double-edged. He had joined the ranks of infamous sons, like the former British prime minister's son, who was accused of planning a rebellion and a hostile take-over in a small and out-of-the-way space station, or the son of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who was accused of skimming billions and billions of dollars from an oil-for-food program that was in effect for years until Sadatmo of Daghbod was captured by the Americans. The difference was that Jesus had come out on the good side, whatever the hell that was. Jesus had no idea who his allies were, but, thanks to the fact that his enemies had bad reputations, his side, indeed, seemed to be the better one. Nevertheless, he was not immune to criticism. People from all sides were afraid of his newly found power. It was easy to say that Jesus had come from a privileged background, though he had and had not; it was easy to say that Jesus wasn't really on the side of the regular man, though Jesus never actually said that he was; it was easy to say that Jesus was above the law, even though everyone knew that he wasn't the only one.

After all, there were more than two sides.

– Verses 204-205 from the chapter called Security

"The Wolf said, 'Now that you trust me, I will tell you my story. When I was alive, I was leader of the pack. In those days, like now, there was very little food. But there was even less in those days: we hunted living skeletons. We were so hungry, the pack said, "Father, let us go to the men's campsite and beg for food." I said, "No: they do not trust us. They killed my mother and my father when I was young. I am not bitter, nor do I seek revenge, but I know that if we go there to beg, they will surely kill us."

"'"Then what do we do?" said the pack.

– Verses 195-196 from the chapter called Childhood

"Sodium benzoate, an organic food preservative whose active agent is benzoic acid, first prepared in the sixteenth century from gum benzoin, a resin obtained from certain Asian trees. Sapper: I read it on the Internet. The Portuguese didn't get sick from it because their ketchup had benzoic acid - not just vinegar."

"I'm sorry, Jesus."

– Verses 500-501 from the chapter called Arms

Jesus went to his grandmother's house. She made us food; we ate. She said, "God bless you, Jesus. My daughter loved you: she loved you like a mother loves her own son."

– Verse 248 from the chapter called Adolescence

About five hundred years before I was born, man set foot on Mars. He brought materials with which to build, tools with which to dig, a furnace to keep warm, fuel to burn, and food to eat. He walked, like most men, on his own two feet. He brought instruments with which to study, cereal to grow, and batteries to keep his various electric motors moving. He brought radio transmitters and television. He brought a suit, and a carpet. He brought drugs, soap, and water. Above all, and most of all, he brought with him air.

– Verse 1 from the chapter called Childhood

Back to Usage of Food: Table of Contents

Usage of Food in Sex for Children

A drawing of a man between a woman's legs in front of another man in a hospital bed — A literature book narrated by a pair of siblings on either side of the Atlantic whose profoundly weird sexual experiences pose a serious challenge to their traditional understanding of mathematicians, marriage, gay young men and God.

"I'm sorry," I said. "It's the flight. I'm just very, very tired." I sat there staring at my food for a little while longer.

– Title 2, Regarding the Romaniac, Part 1, Section 13, Bringing Up a Delicate Subject, Paragraph 8, Clauses 6-10

My stomach was something more than empty; I was ten times hungrier than I had been, but now I could not eat. I sat there staring at my food; Macy asked me what was wrong. I said nothing. He returned to his food, but, before taking his first bite, he said: "I suppose this is what it's like." I shot him a glance but then I dropped; I sighed heavily and brought my hand to my forehead.

– Title 2, Regarding the Romaniac, Part 1, Section 13, Bringing Up a Delicate Subject, Paragraph 8, Clauses 1-5

BERT: Oh, he was crazy, just crazy - lived out of a bag: did nothing but travel from house to house visiting mathematicians. I believe his motto was something like, 'another roof, another proof.' But he said a lot of funny things. His favorite word was 'fascist.' He applied it to anything that annoyed him. And he would call everything fascist, indiscriminately, because anything could annoy him - except math. That's what he lived for: mathematics and nothing else. He would spend seventeen hours a day on math - didn't care about food, sex, family, nothing. Sexual pleasure annoyed him. And do you know what he called you if you were married?

– Title 3, Regarding a Dream, Chapter 1, The First Day, Part 1, Victory & Calendar Reform, Section 8, Financial Instruments, Paragraph 46

And we had a patron! a generous benefactor! whom we would pay for a gift of cold food in a plastic bag. O great man! We met you and greeted you on the campus! We paid you tribute in your atrium! In the early hours of the morning we saluted you! We thanked you for the gift of sportula: the gift of daily bread: the cold food we eagerly burned with butane: oh, how lustrously it burned! What a gentle, sparkling magic it was. And then how quietly we pursued oblivion...lying on those sofas, those hideously dirty sofas in that disgusting apartment.

– Title 3, Regarding a Dream, Chapter 2, The Second Day, Part 1, Labor & Economic Reform, Section 6, Doing Business, Paragraph 8

That is a very heavy price to pay, and I would never multiply the cost." When I finished, I was looking down at the table. Macy was apologetic: he said that he was sorry, that he didn't mean for that subject to come up; he was at fault, and so he apologized. There was a long silence; maybe Macy was waiting for me to forgive him. Instead, the food came, and thus we began to eat.

– Title 2, Regarding the Romaniac, Part 1, Section 13, Bringing Up a Delicate Subject, Paragraph 7, Clauses 8-13

Back to Usage of Food: Table of Contents

Usage of Food in Tsiga Tsiga Tsiga

Bullets whizzing by a statue of Nikola Tesla — A collection of stories featuring a sexy Parisian ghost, a spooky Moon base full of vagina-faced aliens, a policeman with an Irish name, a truck full of watermelons, a flautist, and a man who has to see another man about a diseased horse.

When the embassy hosted functions for locals, the mayor would complain his beshbarmak had too much coriander. The Foreign Minister preferred shashlyki without eggplant. The woman from the US-AID office would insist that all foods containing horsemeat be kept on a separate table. "I don't care if it's in their culture," she explained. "If there's going to be a boiled sheep's head, I don't want to see it."

– from “Two Dudes and a Chinese Desert,” a friendship story featuring an intelligence agent

Tatum went back to the food court. Neal was gone. Tatum stopped herself from calling him. She didn't want to confront him over the phone. It would be ineffective. Tatum toyed with the keycard in her pocket. Shaq was dumb enough to leave it with her. He would pay the price. Tatum thought, "We'll see how he likes having his things ransacked."

– from “Dirty Manga People Are Disgusting,” a spooky story featuring a weird race of aliens

Tatum watched the first quarter come to an end. She left her seat. She ventured into one of the restaurants in the gallery. She found an open stool at the edge of the balcony. A menu lay on the counter. It was full of food for Manga People: hot dogs, french fries, cucumbers pickled in brine. They liked things cylindrical. Tatum decided on the blue moon cheese squeeze. Her waitress said something in slurpee.

– from “Dirty Manga People Are Disgusting,” a spooky story featuring a colony on the dark side of the moon

"Away," said Gog. "To the land of the two rivers."

"To beg for your food?"

Gog turned. He said, "To conquer it."

The woman laughed. "How can you expect to conquer a land of kings? You cannot even rape a woman."

– from “In the Beginning, There was Gog,” a fantasy story featuring a man with a giant tribe of people

Within days, he was robbed of the little food he had brought with him. Stealing eggs and grapes along the way, he made it to the port of Bari and found work on the docks. Not finding his crusty, Venetian employer very agreeable, especially after breaking some porcelain, he stole a bag of old hyperpryons and headed toward Naples. Though the Byzantine coins would not be easily recognized in the countryside, Ferrari was confident he could sell them to a banker for at least a few ducats.

– from “Italy Sucks and Has Sucked For A Long Time,” an adventure story featuring a man who tried to make his life better

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Usage of Food in Sorry Ms. Jackson

Chiseled letters from an ancient stone tablet hanging on a wall — A real play. With drama in it. Talk fast. It takes two hours. Set in a guest house. In a small community. After a murder. Lots of suspicion. The characters learn to listen to each other. It's funny.

"Food" does not make an appearance in Sorry Miss Jackson.

- Michal Slaby

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Usage of Food in Miscellaneous Dingbats

The title of the book at the end of a string of miscellaneous dingbats — A story book full of short fiction stories. An interesting bedtime mystery. A fairy tale. Science fiction romance. Adult life. Uninspiring gay fiction. Horror.

After my mother died I went to visit her homeland. On my own. My father didn't want to do it. He was busy. I flew into the capital. I don't know how to spell the name. It sounds like a drunk guy slurring the word casino. It's appropriate. Not only did I drink a lot of booze but I took my chances with it. The same turned out to be true for the food.

– from “The Most Idiotic Actress,” a fictional story based on something that happened as related to the author

From the moment I got into Steve's car in Manhattan to the moment we reached Woodstock, Peter was constantly munching on some kind of vegan cracker. I don't remember if he was a vegan. I only remember the loudness of the munching, the maddening consistency of it and the ultimate reluctance on Peter's part to share any crackers, after giving up one or two of them to try, which passed from his hands as readily as a gold bar. I was told the crackers were meant to be Peter's main source of nutrition for I guess the entire trip. I offered him some of my own store to which he replied rather indignantly that he didn't eat processed food. I laughed. I told him to look at the bag he was holding. I doubted his chips had fallen naturally from a vegan chip plant. We got into an argument over the meaning of the word process which from my point of view he just didn't understand.

– from “Woodstock,” a life story based on true experiences, namely the author's

Look at all the people who get fat from fast food. You're not gonna put fast food out of business. It's not good for you but so what. As long as the customer knows it's not good. And who doesn't know that drugs and cigarettes are bad. Everybody knows that. They don't need me to tell them. But I'm getting off the subject.

I'm not here to defend our way of life. It is what it is. The money people pay us. Its a tax like any other. It's not my fault people have to pay two taxes. Complain to the other government.

– from “The Testament of Publio Orazio,” a horror story based on principles of honor coming straight out of Roman mythology

Pfizer shuffled off to the cafeteria. "Nonsense," he thought. "Complete rubbish." For once he wasn't thinking about the food. His colleague Sara Lee came to cheer him up.

"Don't worry," Sara Lee said. "I'm sure your phosphane lions will be okay. There's nothing more important than life."

"Humanoid life," snorted Pfizer. "The only microbes the administrators care about are themselves."

The comment made Sara Lee giggle. "You're funny," she said. "You need to think about running for council. We'll never cut the defense budget if people like us don't speak out."

– from “Titan's Reign,” a science fiction story from which hope cannot emerge even when it's traveling at light speed

The older girls never came back. The witch kept the door locked and only opened it to bring food at breakfast and suppertime and to let strange men inside who told Grendel or one of the other girls that they wanted to play. Grendel didn't have fun playing with the men. They wanted to lie in bed and kiss. Sometimes it hurt.

– from “Little Grendel's First Hair,” a fairy tale story where the terrible happens not entirely unlike the real world

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Collocation of Food in the Fiction Corpus

Table of Collocation for the Word "Food."
This table lists in descending order of frequency a selection of word pairs that appear in the Fiction Corpus and groups them according to the morphological derivation of the word food that appears in the pair.
Type	Frequency
	TOTAL # of occurences	MCDONALDS	JESUS	SEX	TSIGA	JACKSON	DINGBATS
	TOTAL # of occurences	modern/sloppy	biblical/terse	poetic/high-brow	hard/fast	talky	mixed salad
-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
I have yet to perform a collocation analysis of "food." I hope I can get it done sometime soon. -Michal