Gaffer tape

[vineviz@aol.com (Vineviz)]

Hello R.M.G. readers

At the risk of pummeling a deceased equine:  Why should it be so hard to
accept that the word "Gaffa" as used by Kate in her song should not have
originated from the gaffer tape so universally used on stage and film
sets?  Why can't "Gaffa" refer to BOTH a spiritual purgatory AND a
theatrical adhesive?

As someone whose spent thousands of hours on and around theatrical sets,
the use of gaffer tape is a very religious experience.  It is the savior
of the stagehand!!  Few problems cannot be solved by the ingenious
application of gaffer tape.  I've seen it repair the soles of shoes, fix
holes in blue jeans, hold lighting fixtures to a pipe, and join scenery
flats.  Gaffer tape is the super glue of the stage and film world.  A
scene shop without gaffer tape is like the Internet without hot air.  It
just wouldn't work.

I said all that to say this:  If Kate spent even a few hours with a
stagehand or a rigger (and she had spent far more than a few before "The
Dreaming" came out) she would acquire, if only by osmosis, a nearly
mystical appreciation for gaffer tape.  If she were looking for a metaphor
for  a spiritual suspension, gaffer tape might just fit the bill.

And if anybody doubts that it is possible to be suspended in gaffer tape,
go buy a roll and try it.  It'll work, I promise.


Vincent E. Vizachero
vineviz@aol.com