It Don’t Mean a Thing
Saturday, July 20th, 2024
AERIALS SITE circa 4:00pm—The angular, aluminum cross-bracing of the aerials truss glints in the afternoon sunlight, cutting a sharp contrast to the surrounding canopy of oak and bay leaves. The structure traces the upper three sides of a rectangle, evoking some sort of wooly mammoth mouse trap. At two concrete piers it attaches to the earth with apple-sized nuts on candle-sized bolts. Supporting wire cables spread out from the top and diagonally downward in all directions. A throng of children have gathered in its mighty shadow in anticipation of today’s cloud swing workshop. Enter Aerials Instructor Djuna Barricklow.
“You start by putting your hands through these loops, palms to the sky,” she explains, demonstrating on the specially outfitted apparatus. “Then you sit on the ground, bring your knees up, and shoot your legs through.” In an instant she is magically seated upright on the padded rope which hangs slack from the upper corners of the truss. “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” by Tears for Fears emanates from two mounted speakers on either side.
“I don’t think I’ll try it today,” admits Lily, 9, of the Green Tipi, carefully watching from the back of the group. “If I tilt back I feel like my stomach is going to come out of my nose! Maybe I’ll try tomorrow. The campers trying it today are really brave.”
Lily and I stand by, ready to interview campers as they disembark. The playlist advances:
“The Adults Are Talking”, The Strokes
“I’m scared but I’m going to try it anyways,” says Kai, 7, also from Green. “When they announced it at the kitchen I thought it was gonna be a little swing, but it’s way bigger in person. It looks fun and scary.”
“Lay My Love”, Brian Eno and John Cale
“I thought I would be scared but when I got on it, it was just like a big swing set,” says Django, 11, of the Maroon Tipi. “When I got to the top I felt tall—tall as Godzilla—with everybody looking up at me.”
“Blue Monday”, New Order
“I was nervous, like a six-out-of-ten, but I was also all excited,” says Paloma, 7, also from Green. “I was going so high I thought I might hit a tree branch! But I didn’t. I saw a crow while I was swinging and I said, ‘So this is how it feels to fly.'”
“Waterloo Sunset”, The Kinks
“I thought I might perish, or if not perish, experience something very painful,” says Atticus, 10, of the Gold Tipi. “Once I got on though, it was a vibe. I was scared of swings and rollercoasters before, but now I’m only scared of rollercoasters—and snakes.”
As the class wears on, Camp Director Ginger Jackson-Gleich drops by for a taste of cloud swing glory. The campers cheer her on as she accomplishes the peculiar mount.
“Don’t Lose Your Heart”, Joy Peters
“There’s lot’s of squeals, more than any other skill,” notes Djuna. “Having Ginger up there was a dream come true; even directors need to have fun. We’re playing my aerials playlist today, which anyone can find on Spotify. It’s 20 hours long, by the way. Look up ‘aerial site CWR by Djuna’. And look, the image is a vintage picture of a lady on a cloud swing!”
“Ashes to Ashes”, David Bowie
“As far as we know, it’s the biggest swing in Laytonville, and maybe even Mendocino County,” claims Aerials Instructor Bayla Jaffe. I ask her to explain the philosophy of the cloud swing, to which she replies, “Release your inhibitions, feel the rain on your skin; no one else can feel it for you, only you can let it in.”
Stay hydrated,
—J. Payseno, Editor
