Archives for posts with tag: art

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Lots has happened, but nothing exciting. Just little things here and there indicating the wheels are falling off the competition. The last week of the Super Dede competition was – to say the least – a flop. I wouldn’t call it a total flop, but a flop nevertheless. We had a couple of questions from readers and Top Dog was obviously waiting to twist one of the questions so he could turn the spotlight on himself. Remember, he isn’t even a contestant. But he really managed to throw a spanner in the works. Not a good ending to the week.

Saturday is usually a day of rest for the Dedes. Except for Mouse, who seems to run on long-life batteries and by the looks of it doesn’t need a break. She used the day to discuss what happened the previous week and what to do next with the external consultant, Millie.

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But Mouse couldn’t find Millie for ages. When she finally spotted her, she was – with all her belongings packed – abseiling down the cabinet.  “I have had enough of you Dedes” Millie called out to Mouse. And then she said she had read on Instagram that the 2nd of July is the toy traveller day. So she wanted to go and find some friends more suitable to her. (Now this is a story in itself. The toys she met were mainly Russian and she didn’t know she had to find a fountain. This somehow got lost in translation. We’ll keep that story for another rainy day).

But one thing is for sure, the exit of Millie left Mouse in the lurch. Then on Sunday Devil chucked it in as well. He headed for the door mumbling that Top Dog had really spoilt it for him. Meanwhile, Rob D Light had carried a hat full of names into the headquarters. Remember that any comment made during the competition is entered into the draw for a signed copy of the first dedepuppet book “Hermit’s Web or the few friends I need, I hand-craft myself.” Rob has been keeping track of the commenters and wrote their names on pieces of paper to go into the green hat in which we usually keep our spare cash. The hat has never been so full.

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Mouse is determined to see the competition through to the end. After all, she was the proud winner of the inaugural Super Dede Competition and she knows all too well how exciting it is to win this title. A real Super Dede will do anything for the Dede community. So, this morning she fronted up to the followers and announced sternly that this Friday the Super Dede 2016 winner will be crowned, come hell or highwater (looking out the window, highwater is more likely).

So this week, images of all the contestants will appear one more time, complete with a summary of their performance. The followers are invited to Like their contestant. Any comment about a contestant will add another 5 likes. And of course,  all the comments will also go into the draw for the signed dedepuppet book.

 

 

contestant discussion

Today is the last day of the competition. It was working well until Top Dog grabbed the limelight yesterday and turned it into a show about himself. He tried to expose the artist’s shoddy character and dug up a very old story. Our Instagram reader wizened_gnome obviously read the background information and asked a question last night. “Pretty manipulative…. don’t the contestants understand his motivation?” Devil, who secretly agrees, put the question straight to the contestants. All five contestants wanted to talk at once.

“Yeah, when you dive into the background, you get the full picture, the artist was asked by other Dedes…”

“No, Top Dog has a point. The treatment was very harsh and uncalled for.”

“No, no, no, she did some legitimate scientific research for the benefit of us all. She had to choose someone!”

“But no way should she have used a dog for that. Animals, even nasty ones, have rights too!”

“You are wrong, it’s not about animal rights at all, it is about his persona….”

“Whoo hoo” interrupted Devil, the MC who was supposed to moderate. The discussion had quickly become too heated. “We are running a talent show here, not an ethics committee! Please don’t mix entertainment and politics. Keep in mind, the readers will  have to vote soon, so don’t confuse them!”

The contestants stopped and looked at each other wondering how a simple question about wind could have become so political.

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Talking about the weather seemed to have been the cue for Top Dog. He jumped on stage waving a placard shouting “I can tell you about the wind and rain. Remember when the artist sent me into exile last year?” Devil sprang into action and wanted to shuffle the disruptive Dede off the stage, but the others formed a ring around him. They looked at the picture he was carrying. Here they could see raindrops all over his face. Furthermore, there was, undeniably, the hand of the artist knocking on his head. “What happened? Please tell us.” Now that Top Dog had their attention he wasn’t in a hurry anymore. “Do you really want to know?”

“Yes” “yes” “yes!”

He sat down and looked at the picture. Tears welled up in his eyes, but then abruptly he pulled himself together and said, “Yes, the artist is an evil character, don’t trust her.” He continued, and told the captive audience that last year around Easter time, the artist decided, out of the blue, that he would have to go to Beach Haven Siberia (the garden behind the house) and stay there until he is mush. “So what did you do to deserve that?” asked Milky Bar Devil. “Me?”  Top Dog was surprised .”Nothing!”

Devil rolled his eyes when he heard how Top Dog recounted the story.  He knows the other side of the story too well, as he was part of the team who begged the artist to get rid of Top Dog. It would take too long to recount the entire story now, but if you are interested,  here is the story, as told by the artists. It consists of four consecutive blog posts and then you can form your own opinion. In the end, Top Dog was saved by Flip’s Top Dog Training Centre (A real place and as far as I know an excellent training centre). They wanted to take the unruly dog in. However, the handlers never showed up. In the meantime I have come to believe Top Dog answered the door when they came round and he send them on their way again, as there was no need for further training (in his opinion). And so we still have the narcissistic Dede living amongst us.

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Another one of our instagram followers,  from_delphine sent in a question last night. She asked: “Dear Dedes… do you like to go outside and feel the wind on your skin?” Lapdog wanted to cry when she heard that question. She would just love to go outside and romp around the garden. But all she could do is jump off the stage and look out the window. Okay, it is raining heavily today, but that is not the main reason that holds her back. “To feel the wind would be amazing” she said dolefully, “but we Dedes are very sensitive to the sun and we have to stay out of it as much as possible.” Then she admitted quietly, “sadly the only wind I feel is the one that rumbles in my tummy.”

 

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One of our Instagram followers @wizened_gnome confessed in a comment yesterday, that she would love to ask a question, but she doesn’t know the Dedes well enough yet. The Dedes were surprised and told her, that they are only puppets and they don’t take anything personally. They haven’t invented the word puppetally yet! Anyway wizened_gnome said the Dedes seem to be pretty thick skinned. This promped Mouse to ask a question this morning. “Now this is an easy one” she said “the Dedes are thick skinned – True or false?” Snippedy laughed out loud and said “It’s not easy at all.” Then he explained, that the Dedes like to look at everything from all angles and they always endeavour to see both sides of the coin. But they often run into trouble, because disagreement is frequently interpreted as dislike. They know very well, that disagreement is on issues and dislike is personal. While the Dedes like to challenge beliefs and feel comfy in the position of Devil’s Advocate, they still want to walk away as friends.  If this doesn’t work, they might just walk away and focus on something else.

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It was a sad day for the Dedes. They had received no questions whatsoever. No one, absolutely no one wanted to know more about them. Mouse and Detail conferred with the external consultant Millie again. She was adamant, that the show must go on and suggested the floor should be open to the other Dedes to ask questions.  This morning Devil rounded up all the contestant on stage. They are supposed to work as a panel this week. Any one of the contestants can answer the questions if they feel like it.

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“Here is a question for you” said Devil “what are we actually doing here, if no one wants to know more about us.” He had hardly closed his mouth when all hell broke loose. The contestants got agitated “OMG” said one, “Oh dear, we are still no bodies” the other. “There is no base for our exist….” the next. Granddad Max found the reactions too emotional. “Shush. We will discuss the question” he said and then turned to Devil “and we will come back to you.”

Then he shuffled everyone off stage into the kitchen for lunch. It was a very loud and long lunch.

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Finally they came back onto the stage. They had decided Granddad Max, the eldest, would be their spokesperson. He stepped forward and of course the audience expected to hear their reason for being there. Granddad sighed and said “To be honest, we have no idea! The question is one you have to ask the artist!” Devil wasn’t happy with their cop-out. “You have to do better than that! The artist is not in the competition. I can’t ask her.”

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The last contestant to show his skills was Granddad Max. He has recovered well from his illness last week and loafed onto the stage. Lil’Devil ran to fetch a chair for the old man to sit down on. Then nothing happend! Devil didn’t want to push him and settled at his feet and watched for a little while, but Granddad didn’t move. Still nothing happened. “In your own time” Devil said finally, getting a little impatient now. “But” said Granddad Max “I am in the middle of showing my skill. I am listening!” Devil rolled his eyes. “Oh no, we all have ears, so what is so special about listening!” Then he turned to the audience. “Is this really a legitimate skill? What do you think?”

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Today Lapdog skipped on stage and announced “I don’t know exactly what I’m doing, but I seem to have a special skill. Maybe you can tell me.” Without further hesitation and a cajoling smile she hopped on Devil’s lap. “It’s working very well for me. I get toys, I get the most expensive dinners and have the most comfy bed. I have everything I need and more!” Then she put her paw on Devil’s cheek. It obviously made him a little ill at ease and he didn’t know where to look. If he recalled correctly, in the rulebook it said he shouldn’t fraternise with the contestants. But Lapdog just ignored Devil’s unease and continued chatting away.  “All I need to do is sit still and let people put their hands all over me. And if they don’t want to at first, I just wiggle my tail a little and they’ll come right!” Devil, too, relaxed a little and even patted her on the head. “You seem to be quite good at it. Yes, it is definitely a skill!”

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Snippedy bounced on stage and explained to Devil that he has plenty of skills and it was difficult to decide what to show. He could juggle all sorts of things, much more than Chambermaid, obviously. He could also laugh out loud, not a skill many have. Unfortunately none of his capablilities seem to make a huge impact on the world. Therefore, he has recently started standing on his head. He had hardly spoken the words when he turned up side down. “You should try it one day” he recommended to the audience. “You get a totally different perspective!”

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Milky Bar Devil is a caring sort of guy. He loves to work in the kitchen, cooking, baking, and of course making a mess. So for his skill performance he baked his famous hamburger buns and brought them to the stage. They are so easy to make and take all of 40 mins from start to finish. He has done them so many times and they always have been popular. Devil, the MC, was not impressed: “That is such an old hat” he said sneeringly “We all know you were the poster boy of the Artist’s Survival Cookbook*.” Milky Bar Devil was surprised “No one told me it needs to be a new skill!”

Ah well, the others ate the buns and didn’t complain.

*The Dedepuppet cookbook with recipes from flour and water is available from Amazon.com