Four months later, I think it is now sufficiently flushed from our consciousness that we ought finally to acknowledge the second Deep Madder Symposium. On 16 March 2011, the editors and subscribers (and a mere reader or three) of Deep Madder Monthly met at 179 Spadina Road for an evening of zine readings and weird activities. Though most guests decided their sartorial vernacular was the most this event deserved, contrary to our dress code of monochromatic formality, the evening progressed fairly well, from what I can recall (which is admittedly not much). Highlights include the introduction of a Deep Madder board game called Misanthropy, which was conspicuously more a parade of our self-pity and scorn of the romantic privileges of others, in keeping with the traditional (though perhaps no longer relevant, as intimated below) Deep Madderian narrative. Of particular note is a remarkably elaborate miniature rendition of our Canzine presence with “Peeps” in place of the editors, presented atop no less than a painfully delicious icebox cake, generously contributed by one Ms P. Clark.
This symposium also marked the introduction of my colleague’s partner, Ms H. McGaw, to our social group (not to mention the end of our last remaining credibility in the experience of romantic alienation). Needless to say, the presence of both our respective partners rendered our readings of romantic despair and loneliness somewhat antique, testament to the fact that what is good for us is bad for Deep Madder, for which rejection and failure are fuel (hence our recent unprecedentedly low productivity rate). This made a total of only two single people out of ten in attendance, though most couples conformed to our stipulation of no conspicuous romance (with a conspicuous exception captured photographically [not pictured]). Perhaps for the next symposium we will hire a bouncer to better encourage conformity to our rules? I will end with a model couple in attendance:
