A load o' rubbish - sand sculpture

Preamble

Is it just me, or have we forgotten about that whole environmental apocalypse thing we were facing? I remember the days when respect for the world around us was the most important thing we had going and the governments of the world were charging us carbon taxes so we would be more frugal with our resources. Apparently, they would invest that money into taking care of our little blue ball because we needed someone to show us right from wrong. Buying electric cars and recycling were what made us good people and treading carefully on the planet was a thing that made us morally superior.

Well, all that's out the window now. We are here for a good time, not a long time. Climate change is a conspiracy theory, and sure, if it's not, AI will take care of it as it burns through all our energy. We have more important things to do like bomb people in far off lands and create beautiful clouds of toxic smoke. Let's squeeze this little space rock for all it's worth and sure Elon will be bringing us all to Mars in a Tesla. A new Planet to conquer and whoever gets there first gets all the resources to exploit.

Imagine if Aliens discovered us and saw the shit we were doing. We have decided that it is up to a few genocidal idiots if we all live or die. Ah, the perfect Utopia.

One of my favourite books is 'The Lord of the Flies.' I read it when I was in school and it showed me the true power of storytelling. The author brought me on a journey with the kids on the island and as they created their own systems in governance and survival, I was right there with them, changing my views of right and wrong and how the world should work. This was the way things had to be. Like the world now, things are the way they are out of survival. The resources of the world should not be wasted on poor people trying to bring their standard of living up. They should be used for us Westerners to exploit and make us richer and keep the stock market on the up and up. Damn, everyone else, this is our world.

Spoiler, if you haven't read the book. Things crescendo to a point where they burn the island/ their only home and try to kill each other to finally assert the full dominance of the tribe. This is a point, I think we are finally at and most people seem to accept this as the way things have to be. It is only at the end when the adults finally arrive and save the children from themselves, smashing what had become of their and the reader's worldview that we realise we had been fools and we are forced to look in the mirror of what we had become by going along with the insanity. We are at this crescendo now and sadly, there is nobody coming to save us. We are in dire straits both metaphorically and in reality. Our world view has been shattered. Things will never be the same again, Where to from here.

(I needed to get this down on paper, but it does tie in with the post. I promise)

The straits of Duncannon

I went directly from my previous event to Duncannon, Wexford, to do another sand sculpture. This one was in a big tent on the beach. I have been there many times and it has become the longest-running sand project in Ireland. There are many festivities set up for the weekend, with the sand sculpture being the main attraction. We get there a few days before and work our magic. Leaving just as the festivities take off.

They wanted the theme to have something to do with the environment from a local perspective. As I said I have been in Duncannon many times, I was actually there when 9/11 happened and the war drums started banging. I have seen it in all seasons and the changes that have happened.

Strategy

My concept was simple enough: a big landscape of the village and the surrounding area. That lighthouse at the end of the headland is Hook lighthouse. One of the oldest lighthouses in the world. On the right is Crook Bay and nestled in between is Dunacannon village with its fort. This is a very historic area with many shipwrecks and is very strategic for Ireland. Many an invasion came through here, with the fort being used in many wars, preparing for the latest invaders. As a little bit of value-added info, this is where the term 'By Hook or by Crook' originated. Oliver Cromwell said that before he invaded Ireland through here.

Building buildings

I always have fun making this style of landscapes and know the locals enjoy them too as they see their own house pictured. This one was made in a birds-eye view with a fish-eye perspective. When you saw it close, the detail was rough, but when zoomed out, it gave a nice impression.

I wanted this to show the beautiful picturesqueness of the place, so it would create a nice contrast to the next part of my dastardly plan.

I took a rubbish bag and walked along the beach for around 40 mins doing a little beach clean. I then used the flotsam and jetsam I collected to highlight that even though this is a beautiful place, it has a big litter problem.

The beachgoers can be very naughty and I have seen it myself. At the end of a nice day of sunbathing, they just walk away and leave someone else to clean up their mess. A bit like the president of a certain country.

We really are a messy species with no respect for our only home.