I love Yoko Ono. She’s one of my favourite artists. I own two ‘original’ Yoko Ono art works. I think she’s one of the most misaligned and misunderstood women… ever. I don’t really understand why this pure hate is still felt about her. I’m convinced it’s based in racism… tinged with misogyny…. that isn’t what I want to write about now.

I’ve been really busy these last couple weeks and haven’t had much time to think and write. Well, that’s not true. I write tons every single day, 80% of which only ever sits on my computer. There are thoughts, nuggets of ideas, rants, ideas, whole massive articles… most of the time I don’t put them up. Too crap, too personal, not thought out enough, silly… One thing I wrote earlier this week has been bugging me a bit though… In particular this short sentence:

I’ve come to accept that I’m the Yoko Ono in this relationship.

Whereas I respect and even revere Yoko Ono as an artist and as a person and honestly believe her to be one of the most amazing women ever, that obviously isn’t the meaning of that sentence… I think the meaning is understood.

Here I am married to a brilliant man, who has married me because he thinks I’m brilliant in ways that he is not. He learns from me. He loves my independence, my intelligence, my out-of-the-box thinking. He is inspired by me as much as I’m inspired by him. The thing we become together blows us away…

But I’m not the one people outside our social circle are interested in. I’m the tag-along wife.

I’m ‘the one who people put up with because he wants me there’… ‘The one who people think doesn’t add anything much to the partnership at all’… ‘The one who people think is just ‘cashing in’ on her partner’… And I’m aware that quite a few people feel that.

I wonder what Yoko thought when John’s art started being sold for far more than hers? Did she ever feel insecure about herself and her talents? Did she ever wonder why everyone was going gaga about his pencil drawings whereas her brilliant art was overlooked and ridiculed? I wonder if she ever got angry about the role she was forced to play? I wonder how much John really had to do with their art projects? Cos so much of it is so Yoko…. Personally I think he was as talented in art as she is in music (I don’t really have to explain that, do I?) but *he* got all the credit – their bed-in, bagism, the whole ‘white’ thing, the films, they ARE Yoko. They are so her. They are her before she was with John. They are her even now… But *he* got the credit and all she got was hated and ridiculed.

Anyway…
I’ve been feeling a bit Mileva Maric lately.
I’ve been feeling a bit Anne Druyan lately.
I’ve been feeling a bit Ada Lovelace lately.
I’ve been feeling a bit Courtney Love lately.
I’ve been feeling a bit Angie Bowie lately.
I’ve been feeling a bit Linda McCartney lately.

Mainly, I’ve been feeling a bit Yoko.