ep31. Mobility - West Park Park Bench Podcast

Caron Lyon17min

Caron Lyon

00:03

Welcome to Episode 31 of the West Park Park Bench Podcast. Today's episode is Mobility one of those multifaceted words and in this instance, mobility as in physical mobility and also a little bit of reflection on an alternative interpretation of mobility which is the act of moving around and the the act of assigning an attribute that has value to an art project for participants.

Caron Lyon

00:57

So, first, in terms of mobility, I have what I think is a public transport injury. And what you say well, with my tech box when I drag it around, the main purpose of having that tech box and keeping my kit to a wheelable box volume capacity is so that I can keep my carbon footprint down and use public transport where I can. And with those tech boxes and with other people in the project, those tech boxes can take all the kit that we need, within a size to where we need it to go. We've had a box with a screen in before that Phil had specially made to put his Mac is iMac in and that was fantastic. And that was another wheelie box on its own but essentially I like to be mobile with my kit and it also means that I can keep expenses to a capped limit. So transport is a transport cost so I'm not making up a cost for transport by distance it is pretty fixed. You know, if you live in a place that's easy to get to public transport will be easier than if I've got somewhere to go to that doesn't have good public transport. And then the decision is do I take a car and is the parking and the petrol worth the gig because I don't charge massive amounts of money so I charged my fee, which tends to be between 150 and 300 a day, four hours will get 150 If I have to go over four hours we're creeping up to the 300 and then it depends what prep I need to do. There is a lot of fees especially for zoom and web controlling and webinars that seem to think that just bringing somebody in an hour or two hours before or giving them a pre defined checklist is enough to prepare. And for me it is not for me I like to know who is speaking I like to have a consciousness of what it is that I am actually hosting in the background because although I'm not hosting to be seen, there is always that possibility that something happens and I have to step on stage so to speak, and make the proverbial. We have to pause, we have to break we have to take change of tack. And I think that foundation coming from theatre has been really important for me if it is the cognitive understanding of what it is I am there for is part of my fee and if you just want a tech that doesn't care or does care, but is able to just press buttons, I'm not that person.

Caron Lyon

03:57

So anyway Mobility on some public transport and I think it was when I went down to London, probably last November. There was an emergency stop by the bus driver just before I was about to get off I reached out to stable myself and it was painful at the time but I didn't really think it. And actually, it seemed to not be too bad. But ever since then, whenever I'm on public transport and I get up, the muscles that I twisted and pulled during that injury are the very muscles that you use to stable yourself on public transport when it's coming to a halt. Therefore, every time I go on a bus, I exacerbate the injury. And I'm only kind of working out what exactly that is because it's it's just getting incrementally worse. And mobility is something that I guess I've not really thought about myself. I know that I've I was a lot fitter when I was on tour and when was touring, I never really thought about my fitness. And then I stopped touring and within three years I put on four stone. Not really changed my habits that much. But I for the first time just realised how hard it is to...

Caron Lyon

05:27

Maintenance is one thing, but to actually address an issue to then maintain is really really hard really hard in in ways I don't really understand. I don't understand the evolutionary benefits to making recovery so hard. And as a result, my shoulder injury I think is permeating through the rest of my muscles structure because I'm probably walking differently and I'm holding myself different differently so that I'm not in pain. So as a result, I'm gradually now noticing I mean, it's, this is beginning of May people can you believe that? From November to May. It's become so noticeable that I really do now need to look at physio to stop it getting any worse. You know, I need to start to getting better.

Caron Lyon

06:36

So, mobility is is something that was really important part of the online branch. So for many years, I was chair of equities, online branch and the purpose of it was to provide a branch for members who didn't have access to physical branches. And initially, that was about geography. It was that the branch network didn't cover the country, the UK particularly very evenly. And there were two types of branch, there were general branches, and there were variety branches. And quite often the variety branches were specialised in their own members that really didn't make it feasible really or of value that it had for not just actors, but also for the performance creatives, it was it was very hard sell to other performance creatives to spend time in a meeting that was primarily focused on Variety. And and the online branch was this for everybody, whether they were whether they were variety, or actors or film or TV or theatre, or bands, or comedians or dancers, it was kind of for us all. And it really, it felt like you could meet anybody, but the struggle of getting the digital component working, and the moderation component proved to really be its downfall. But in terms of mobility, we did end up having quite a, you know, people were very vocal, because for the first time, they could participate in a conscious capacity that didn't involve the restrictions that their physical form had.

Caron Lyon

08:26

And we talk a lot about mobility and access, and not making it otherness, making it equitable, making it an even playing field. But ultimately, when you have something that skews the balance to normality, whatever that is, it's something that becomes a massive hurdle. And mobility for me, at the moment, I'm thinking a lot about it, I'm I'm worrying about it, because I'm not getting any younger, you know, as you get older, you kind of you past middle age, and, and any part of ability just seems very, very precious. And it's just, it's making me reflect at the moment it just that preciousness that people who aren't losing mobility, because of age, but just lose mobility because of their own conditions. And, and it's it's just really comfortable for today that I really wanted this to be about mobility. So if you are listening to this, because mobility is as caught your attention. I am certainly in no way any kind of expert in mobility. So any comments, sharing your thoughts on mobility, I would really, really appreciate.

Caron Lyon

09:50

But mobility also has this flipside of mobility, upward mobility, social mobility, financial mobility, being able to move from one place to another place. And I just feel at the moment that in this world, mobility I want to say stagnated. And yet I do see people who are doing very, very well in this environment in this current climate, you know, COVID was a tragedy, but it really was the beginning of me being able to thrive and, and the foundation of me being able to do these podcasts, you know, making it part of my routine that I was able to get my developing creative practice because I was in a position where I was immobile and couldn't go anywhere, and I thrive on that.

Caron Lyon

09:53

However, the ability not through choice is something that I've just been thinking a lot about, I do apologise if you've been listening to you can hear some chugging in the background, we are in the position in the West Park, that a roller is going around, and people are because the lawns are being mowed and there are maintenance jobs taking place. So if that's been in the background all the way through this, I apologise, I may have to change locations.

Caron Lyon

11:24

And there will be a change of location coming because there's going to be a parallel series to the West Park Park Bench Podcast and that is going to be Reality Check. And the reason why reality check is going to be a parallel podcasts are not a replacement for this podcast. Is that silence. The purpose is I have currently got an application in for a TEDx licence. That licence needs to be confirmed before I can officially announce what it is called. I'm currently using my annual balance reflection to to use this TEDx event to provide that balance and to provide that block of activity that has a result and a performance to be able to move forward from that.

Caron Lyon

12:18

And, of course, regular listeners, you'll know that at some point, I get dogs walk past and it just, you know, just continuing to chug along talking while people walk past must be really weird. But they go. So yeah, there will be a little series called Reality Check. And that is going to be good, the bad the ugly, but ultimately taking us up to the performance, the performance, the event that is going to be a 2023 TEDx event. I am suspecting it is now going to be in late October or early November, because the licence just hasn't arrived.

Caron Lyon

13:10

So for mobility, if mobility is something that you struggle with, whether it's upward mobility, whether it's career mobility, whether it's a physical mobility, whether it's a psychological mobility I'd say talk to somebody, but then I'm not good at taking my own damn advice, because hey, that's what this podcast is.

Caron Lyon

13:45

Record it, publish it, send me a link. So, you know, if you want to tweet me anything at PCM, creative, if you want to email me PCM creative@gmail.com. But these dialogues are just so important, and I know having been swimming and having time to focus on what it is I want to spend 15 or 20 minutes talking about whether anyone ever listens to it or not, is kind of not the point. People do ask me. They're thinking about doing a podcast and I'll tell them that I do this weekly recording. And the first thing they ask me is, how big is your audience. And there's a moment of embarrassment that there isn't one. But on the other hand, that's never what it was for. That is never what this is for this is for me to reflect on a particular topic of a moment. They're often esoteric, topics that all around a word. So mobility.

Caron Lyon

15:00

And hopefully, I bump into people who have listened, or one of the words has resonated and someone listens. Or when I'm making a podcast for somebody else, they have something to come and listen to to get a sense of even on a very simple setup. So this is my mobile phone. And I have a foam cover to go over the microphone. But apart from that, the use of Otter, that is it. The reason I'm using otter is because it it transcribes for me and I'm trying to also provide an access channel. So it has the audio, it also has the transcript to assist. If audio is quite hard to listen to often having a track to follow along too but that's why I do this. I don't do this for an audience, which seems very sad. But hey, no one's gonna hear it. I'm kind of talking to myself

Caron Lyon

16:11

so Yeah, I'm gonna bring this to an end. Not particularly structured, but a necessity to just achieve something to kickstart myself back into action. So thank you. Thank you for listening. And do let me know if you have listened. If you know me, please email, WhatsApp me, put a little message in the chat. But thank you, if you have listened, and I'm going to finish this day off we are in May. I can't believe we have reached May. So enjoy the spring and fingers crossed I keep my routine going and I will make one of these podcasts next week.

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