December 22, 2020

by drplasticpicker

This is Blue Fluffy Bird. He is made from an upcycled car-wash mop that was pretty clean I found on a litter picking walk, but then also cleaned again several times by me. I could have just kept the now cleaned car-hand mop in my car, but the fluffy blue bits were speaking to me. It was just too interesting to pass up. I initially made a shirt for my daughter’s old Diego toy. But then magically by wrapping the blue fluffy polyester oil-based material around a wine-cork, and then using the safety scissor covers as the beak, I had the head of a new species of bird. It’s a plastic bird. I won’t go into the rest of the plastic bits that make up the bird, because I detailed it already on Instagram. But this bird inspired a lot of amazement and wonder, but also intense disgust in some people. It’s amazing because I cleaned it all – I know this bird is cleaner than most toys out there. But it still inspired a lot of intense emotion.

When did he become a bird? Mr. Plastic Picker actually thought he was a dinosaur while I was making Blue Fluffy Bird. He has all the bits and pieces of a bird: the beak, the tail, the elongated neck, and most importantly he has the fluffy like feathers which are actually polyester. Perhaps Blue Fluffy Bird inspires a lot of emotion because he looks like a bird, but he is obviously not a bird and it made of bits and pieces of plastic waste.

And this morning I am wondering when does an exaggeration become a lie? I pride myself in being honest, and when I find myself exaggerating try to stop myself and correct myself. I am not sure why this bothers me so much in other people. The funny thing about exaggerations is that some people say it often enough that others begin to believe it, and I think the person who said the original exaggeration begins to change their actual memories to mirror the exaggerations. I’ve heard people exaggerate all sorts of things. Number of patients seen. Net worth. How many hours they’ve worked. What they have done for the world. I remember one college friend list that she graduated Summa Cum Laude which is almost impossible at Crimson University, but it bothered me so much because I remember that she graduated Magna Cum Laude. It was for an advertsiement for her cosmetic surgery practice which I thought was really ironic. But honestly, it’s just human nature. Humans tend to exaggerate. But at some point an exaggeration can become a lie. The worse part is when you lie to yourself. I’m sure at some point I’ve done the same as we as humans have all done. Just using this morning to reflect on an aspect of human nature.

Anyway, Blue Fluffy Bird is a trash art piece that is supposed to resemble a bird. He can be whatever you want though. I may tell you that he is a bird in clinic but no one actually thinks he can fly and help save our environment, because we have an avian apocolypse. But he inspires some emotion which is the entire point. I actually made him out of love. Blue Fluffy Bird doesn’t have to exaggerate because he is not alive and actually he inspires so much emotion that I was not expecting. But for those of us that are alive and social creatures, that is probably why so many people exaggerate to inspire emotion within those we care about. It’s probably not meant to actually deceive or lie. So when does an exaggeration become a lie? I don’t know. But I think humans exaggerate to get attention really. Just like my making Blue Fluffy Bird and showed him to everyone to get attention. It made me laugh though, and a little boy named E. absolutely loved him. He bonded with Blue Fluffy Bird immediately and was playing with him in the clinic room. I have taken care of this child since birth, and I have never felt so connected to him before. And it’s through the medium of a toy I made from plastic waste. And this is the truth and not an exaggeration.