Random / impractical / farfetched projects you have in your head

[Anacardo]

And the factors that make them unworkable.

I humbly present three.

1) Composing a set of madrigals out of the complete works of William Blake.

INSPIRATION: William Blake ("Songs of Innocence," "Songs of Experience," "Never Seek to Tell Thy Love," noted illustrator / lunatic) is my all-time favorite poet. I was in the chorus all four years of high school (no, you're a queer.)

OBSTACLES: I don't know anything about composition or music theory, just a vague sense of chord progression. It might well have been already done, or something like it. Stands a high chance of ending up awful.

2) A monument commemorating Juneteenth and the liberation of Texas slaves, on the University of Texas campus. Ideally I would design the whole thing & write the inscription ('these brave Americans,' 'holy cause of freedom,' etc. etc.)

INSPIRATION: There's a whole row of commemorative statuary on the UT Main Mall that's almost nothing but Confederate slaveholders. It's a point of controversy. I think this would provide a neat symbolic counterbalance (bigger & better ftw!) without having to tear anything down.

OBSTACLES: Like I know anything about sculpture. Mediocre sketcher at best. No fundraising experience, or, really, inclination to try to flog people for money, for that matter.

3) Circumnavigating the Mediterranean. Start at one Pillar of Hercules, walk / jeep / bike to the other.

INSPIRATION: Lots of historical reading. Morocco, Carthago, Tripolis, Malta, Alexandria, Byblos, Jerusalem, Haifa, Tyrus, Cyprus, Ionia, Athenae, Sparta, the Adriatic coast, Crete, Italy, Marseilles, Valencia, the Balearic Isles (with which I am obsessed, for some reason), Gibraltar. Sounds pretty rockin'.

OBSTACLES: Six figures, fluency in four languages (say, English, French, Arabic, Greek?), significant motorcycle / 4WD experience and some serious time at the pistol range (LOL, North Africa unarmed!) seem like the minimum requirements to make this happen.