sensing capitalist space.

whilst we walked the streets of cambridge, kaitlin observed that the 7-11 smells exactly like a 7-11 in hawai`i. bear with me as i briefly comment on the sensory dimensions of capitalism.

capitalism smooths space in the sense of reproducing certain experiences in entirely different contexts; a 7-11 in cambridge offers the same aromatic sensations as that of a 7-11 in hawai`i. two starkly different spatial locales reproduce a certain smell-space.

but that is not all. enter any department store (macy’s, nordstrom, whatever). the absence of windows except at the entrance attempts to entirely partition off department-store space from the rest of the world. ridding of the outside becomes readily apparent when one simply notices that in a department store, one could be in the same department store in any other city without being able to tell much difference. step inside capitalist space and you’re in another world where one’s only worry is “spend!”

a note on dorm space.

the suites in harvard’s dorms publicize private experiences. an entrance leads into kaitlin and kathryn’s room; another door leads into juani’s room; juani’s room opens into wendy’s room; a door in wendy’s room leads outside while another leads to the bathroom; and the bathroom leads into the next suite. the doors without locks include the one between juani’s room and wendy’s room; wendy’s room and the bathroom; and the bathroom and the next suite. routines must coordinate the experiences of public dorm life and intimate activities.

the walls are also incredibly thin. noise easily passes from one room to another. in the absence of stronger inhibitions to the traveling of sound, sonorous publics emerge across the material partitions demarcating ‘private’ spaces. life becomes intimate even as it is separated.

urban trust.

arriving in cambridge half an hour prior to the end of kaitlin’s class, i decided to roam the streets for a bit. passing a number of shops and restaurants, my stroll went unimpeded until i happened upon a couple of tables covered with books. this display was unattended, and a note scribbled atop a shoebox on the counter that directed purchasers to simply put an amount of cash equivalent to the price designated on the books into the shoebox. i perused the books for quite some time.

the spectacle held my attention as the level of trust astounded me – i can only think of a few places where one could abandon items to be sold and expect the cash to be available upon return. other spectators also gathered around the display for short periods of time, briefly browsed, and left. falling victim to the city’s opportunities of distraction, the traffic in bodies was momentarily arrested by this scene invested with so much trust. so much for the street as a space of passage.