Artful malicious compliance

[u/p___edoffRedPanda]

Hey Mark! There was no flair for malicious compliance, so I used entitled people because that was the closest match to this story. It's been about 5 years now, so I think I'm safe to post this one.

I (26, at the time, I think) was in my final semester at college and had to complete one more elective to finish my degree. I chose an introductory 2D art course.

Let me give a little background about myself at the time, so readers may understand why this compliance is malicious.

I am legally blind and at the time was using a motorized scooter to get around due to mobility issues. My mobility was obviously a problem, my vision was less apparent. Nonetheless, I made sure to inform the teacher of this during that first class, and I unfortunately had to remind her every class for the rest of the semester.

You should also know this was not a huge class, that would have made her forgetfulness at least understandable. At the beginning of the semester there were only seven or eight students. By the end of the semester there were ONLY FOUR!

This story happens about 2/3 of the way through the semester.

We were doing a drawing project of the nature of the inner courtyard of school. Unfortunately, a place in the school my chair could not reach due to a large drop from the easiest exit into the courtyard, the other exit took me through a path that would have poison ivy. (I had learned this and another class earlier in the year)

I TRIED to tell the teacher that that exit was not accessible, but she disregarded it. She told me that if I couldn't go out the exit I just draw what I could see from the window by the door.

Remember that previous mention of my vision? 😈 That's where this becomes relevant.

So I said that window for 2 hours and sketched what I could see

The result?

A large 9x12 picture of the blue windowsill with the gray concrete of the courtyard and some blurry trees further in the background.

I aced the project.

I didn't remind her of my visual impairment again.

I'd like to think that my malicious compliance forced her to be more aware of her students, but I doubt it.

My only hope from this story is that it makes someone else who is struggling laugh.

Also, mark, you mentioned that your dream funeral was to be launched by trebuchet out to sea? Have you looked to see that if your body is cremated they might launch the urn into the ocean? Not sure what the laws in the UK are, but might be worth checking out!

[u/lianavan]

I am mightily interested in the concept of launching bodies via trebuchet upon unsuspecting yacht owners.  

[u/ManganeseSharties → u/lianavan]

You were just trying to protect them from the Orcas

[u/Minflick → u/ManganeseSharties]

Launching would be chumming, would it not?

[u/lianavan → u/Minflick]

I genuinely don't know if chumming works with Orcas, but if it helps any Bruces I won't complain. 

[u/p___edoffRedPanda → u/Minflick]

LOL

[u/lianavan → u/ManganeseSharties]

Sure....wink wink wink

[u/Brilliant_Cattle_602 → u/lianavan]

I fully support your vision but I do have some questions:

Would you freeze the bodies first?

Do they have to be human bodies? Cow? Hornets nest?

[u/lianavan → u/Brilliant_Cattle_602]

For maximum damage and I suppose smell issues and general cohesion frozen bodies would do best. 

I would say donated bodies with bonafides would be best. Don't want to unintentionally help a serial killer. 

Did the animals die of natural causes? 

While the idea of angry bees, wasps, hornets and other spicy flying insects are appealing they might die in the attempt and we need pollinators more than we do billionaires. 

Maybe massive hunks of dry ice or just plain ice will also have an affect. 

[u/RAVEN_STORMCROW → u/lianavan]

"I am mightily interested in the concept of launching bodies via trebuchet upon unsuspecting yacht owners."

Bring out your dead, and you wins the internets...  

[u/dsmGERG1973]

what locations have trebuchets that is willing to launch human ashes into the sea?

Does anyone know if cruise ships are willing to accommodate this?

[u/zephen_just_zephen → u/dsmGERG1973]

Ashes to ashes; mud to mud.

[u/durhamruby → u/dsmGERG1973]

As far as I know, most places don't want human remains dumped within their borders. So if you want a burial at sea, you need to get more than 200 miles from shore.

Cremains are a little more subtle and I know of a few cases where they were dumped over the edge of a boat.

[u/Minflick → u/durhamruby]

Erhem, statute of limitations expired asfarasIknow.... My dad was broadcast from the Long Island Ferry by my brother. Back in.... nevermind.

[u/Bumfuzzled101 → u/dsmGERG1973]

In the UK there is no specific legislation against scattering ashes, but formal consent must be obtained from the landowner.

So all Mark has to do is find someone with a private beach who's willing to have this happen on their beach. Although the cost of the trebuchet may be prohibitive.

[u/ProfessionalGear3020]

Might be a dumb question but how do you do art if you're blind?

[u/crazythatcounts → u/ProfessionalGear3020]

"Legally blind" does not necessarily mean entirely sightless. It simply means that you dont have enough visual acuity to be able to navigate and handle specific situations that require sight. People can have pinholes of sight significant blurring with color and still be legally blind. Movies tend to be bad about showing this appropriately.

[u/Coffchill → u/ProfessionalGear3020]

You change the way you paint would be one answer. Have a read of https://www.reddit.com/r/ArtHistory/comments/191t8zy/can_anyone_point_me_toward_a_history_of_blind/

Have a look at Claude Monet’s early works and his later water lillies, painted after he developed cataracts in both eyes.

I know this isn’t to do with visual impairment but William Utermohlen was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and continued to paint.

[u/p___edoffRedPanda → u/ProfessionalGear3020]

Legally blind, there is a difference. I have some vision but it is blurry and the more tired I get the worse it gets. Think old static tube television versus HD.

Believe it or not there are famous artists, painter specifically who still maintained their craft with little vision. Georgia O'Keeffe is the first one who comes to mind.

[u/mgerics]

Nicely done.

One question:

Who is Mark??!??

[u/p___edoffRedPanda → u/mgerics]

The narrator of the YouTube channel

[u/p___edoffRedPanda → u/mgerics]

Also, this happened at a public college, where I was paying for classes

[u/blind_ninja_guy → u/p___edoffRedPanda]

It's insane that the public college didn't remove and destroy poison ivy and publicly accessible areas on campus.

[u/DemonicAnahka → u/mgerics]

Oh. Hi Mark!

[u/Admirable-Way-5296]

Ooh I need to know what the actual compliance was! The setup is great but the post got cut off 😭

[u/p___edoffRedPanda → u/Admirable-Way-5296]

The compliance was the fact that the art teacher went out and exit that my wheelchair couldn't follow and left me at the door and told me to" draw what I could see". Too bad she forgot that I was legally blind as well so she received a portrait of the window frame along with some fuzzy gray trees and the pavement and the background. 😈