Reviewing plans…
Zaha: I’ve decided. I’m going to stay another year in ballerina training.
Felicity: How admirable, darling. And might a job search be on the cards?
Zaha: Well, Elon Musk says AI and robots will soon do all the work—white collar, blue collar, maybe even tutu collar. Governments will provide income just so we humans can twirl about and still buy coffee.
Felicity: Very futuristic, Zaha. But until the robots start delivering your lattes, it’s still me footing the bill.
Zaha: You make it sound like charity. Think of it instead as patronage. Michelangelo had his Pope; I have you.
Felicity: But tell me, are you “her” now? Or am I still sponsoring a “him” with delusions of dance?
Zaha: Gender, my dear, is an evolving choreography. I’m a fluid composition. And you said you enjoy it. You like having me as a pet that occasionally quotes Aesop.
Felicity: If you’re comparing yourself to the grasshopper, I suppose that makes me the ant—working diligently while you serenade the summer.
Zaha: Exactly! And now that the AI winter is coming, you’ll need my songs and dances to keep your soul warm.
Felicity: Or perhaps I’ll just program a robot grasshopper. Cheaper and less likely to borrow my scarves.
Zaha: Robots lack flair. I bring humanity, nuance, and a certain tragic grace. You can’t 3D-print that.
Felicity: And when your Muskian utopia arrives, will the government also reimburse me for creative babysitting?
Zaha: Society will reward nurturers. You’ll be a heroine of cultural metamorphosis: the Ant Queen.
We might hope that Zaha opens a dance studio and teaches workshops, students pay tuition and Felicity has an easier task caring for, and controlling, her grasshopper.
