Do Avatars Dream of Electric Streets?

A virtual fantasia of China

by Mitch Moxley

illustration by Jacob Whibley

Published in the September 2008 issue.  » BUY ISSUE     

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Comments (4 comments)

Trisha Cull: This may be one of the best titles I've seen in a while.

I loved this story, the 'dual-reality' of cyberspace and what we commonly (if not affectionately) refer to as "the real world." It's astonishing how invested you can get in an avatar looking for love.

The reference to "electric streets" reminded me of "Electric Avenue" in downtown Calgary, how my brother and I took a Greyhound across the prairies every summer to stay with our aunt. Our aunt took us to the Stampede, gave us a whack of cash so we could go on rides all day, and eat cotton candy till we puked. This worked out well because we were happy, and our aunt could gamble at the casino all day.

Our aunt always drove down "Electric Avenue" so we could see the hookers. I remember the time my aunt slowed down, and my brother (who was just a kid at the time, and so was I) threw nickles at the hookers. One hooker came after us too, but the stoplight turned green just in time.

The car was filled with laughter, and I laughed too but felt something strange inside.

I have always felt sad for those hookers and wished I could go back, go back to Electric Avenue in downtown Calgary and tell that hooker she is beautiful and to never give up on herself, because if this life is treating you bad you can always reinvent yourself as an avatar.



August 13, 2008 09:48 EST

Anonymous: Great title August 13, 2008 15:11 EST

Anonymous:
share our story:

A insomnia frog:A insomnia frog
A Joyful party:A Joyful party
Bear in eggs:Bear in eggs
Big alligator:Big alligator
Birds and bear:Birds and bear
Carving and desert:Carving and desert
Chickens and ducks:Chickens and ducks
Clever crow:Clever crow
Crystal ball's dream:Crystal ball's dream
Hungry fox:Hungry fox
Mom's birthday:Mom's birthday
Only one goal:Only one goal
Piglets temper:Piglets temper
Small white and black pig:Small white and black pig
The camel is angry:The camel is angry
The old dog:The old dog
The poor and the rich:The poor and the rich
Broken dreams:Broken dreams
The little princess:The little princess
Dance bear:Dance bear
spring:spring
The little princess:The little princess
Three rats:Three rats
A selfish giant:A selfish giant

Anonymous:

What do you
have in your closet?

How long ago
was it when shoes were just footwear?  You threw them on to go play out in the
back yard, or down on the playground.  Today, however, having a pair of sneakers
has taken on a whole new meaning, especially when dealing with sports shoes. 
What has really made the sneaker culture huge is the sport shoe industry, with
Nike and Adidas pulling up the front.  These sports icons have been worn and
styled by not only top athletes, but by people in the music industry. 

They say that it was the Nike Dunk
that started it all off.  In 1985, Nike brought out the
Nike Dunk. 
Originally these sneakers meant for the college community of basketball
players.  Instead, this style of sports shoes started the sneaker sub-culture. 
 Although this style of sneaker was designed to be used during high intensity
basketball games, the spotlight quickly turned to the fashion of wearing them,
what they looked like, and which ones you owned.  Twenty years later, Nike has
brought the Nike Dunk back on
the courts with all its retro style and performance.
But why stop
with basketball shoes?  In 2000, Nike decided to jump into the skateboarding
scene with the new Nike Skateboarding product line. 

With
Nike SB has come the
Nike Dunk SB.  For years, before
skateboarding came out from the underground scene, skateboarders utilized the
rugged design of basketball shoes.  Nike decided to capitalize on what Vans and
DC shoes had been monopolizing for years, and take what was already an amazing
sneaker, and fit it into the needs of skateboarders.  What the
Nike Dunk
SB brought in the way of performance was extra-padded tongue and their
patented Zoom Air insole. In the way of style, this sneaker has already come out
with six series, and names for them like Grip, Forbes, and Vipers.

Another blast
from the past would be the Nike Air
Force 1.  These sneakers first came out in the early 80’s.  And like the
hip hop culture, their popularity grew.  However, this band did not reach their
full fashion peek until 2002 when Nelly released the song “Air
Force Ones”. 

The other major
sports shoe brand is the Adicolor
Shoes, an Adidas Original.  The design became so popular because the
plain white canvas was adaptable by painting, drawing, and spraying on your own
personal design, and even accessories were sold to help you in your creativity. 
In 2006 they pushed the envelope further with a new color series using artists
and designers from all over the world.

Another huge sneaker that was popular with the hip hop world was the
Adidas Superstar.  A very raw
and controversial Hip Hop group that helped skyrocket the
Adidas
Superstar to stardom was Run-D.M.C. This cutting edge group was known for
wearing their Superstars out on stage, and even wrote a song dedicated to them
called “My Adidas”.  Whether its Nike or Adidas, clean out that closet, dust off
your old sneakers, and get into the game. 

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