Zuihitsu

[stilltrucking]

If Henry Miller was an elephant

Only gradually and sparingly does Miller reveal his intense romanticism, universalist mysticism and devout humanism. Ten pages into "Cancer", for example, he tells of a Jew in a lion cage without a gun trying to explain Spinoza to the lions, essentially a parable predicting the Holocaust.

https://cinesourcemagazine.com/index.ph ... ry_miller/

[the mingo]

Thx, Jack.

[sasha]

Been listening to a lot of Alan Hovhaness lately. I first heard him about 25 yrs ago, when my NPR station honored his passing by playing selections from his catalogue. I liked what I heard - contemporary classical (oxymoron?) in the romantic tradition, but without the melodrama. Introspective, but neither saccharine nor despairing. No "woe is me" or "oh Elspeth, how I love thee!".

Some of his symphonies do lean towards the traditional, but others convey an other-worldly, ethereal spirituality, not unlike some of George Crumb's work, but more accessible, less dissonant - certainly less disturbingly alien than Stockhausen or Xenakis (all of whom I admire nonetheless). Minor chords & scales reminiscent of Middle Eastern music, exotic instruments like the gamelan. I expect I'll be binging on him for a while - "Celestial Gate", "Spirit of the Trees", & "Vision of Andromeda" each need a 2nd & 3rd look - er, listen. Whatever.

100 days since Oct 7. Farewell, Judih. You & Gadi deserved so much more, but I suppose it's better that you're still together. Studio8 & ArcanumCafe are still quiet - like those mourners assembled at the funeral home who've momentarily run out of things to say. They won't be the same without you.

Cold out there today. A beautiful sun low in a beautiful blue sky, but cold. Damned cold.

[sasha]

Finally hiked the last remaining bit of the Ware River Rail Trail, the segment passing through Baldwinville. I set out from the power substation on Mill Glen Rd, and was barely out of sight of my car when two kids on trail bikes came roaring towards me from the south and stopped.

They couldn't have been much more than 11 or 12. One was slightly built & wore glasses - the other was a bit chubbier. Pals don't care much about looks. Both were helmeted. I was struck by how fresh-faced and polite they were. Maybe it was my orange vest and expensive-looking (if outdated) camera that made me look to them like some kind of Authority Figure. Or maybe I was just another adult. Either way, they were bashfully deferential, asked what was I doing, and if it was okay that they were on the trail. I told them I was just taking my camera out for a walk, and hoped it was okay to be there because I hadn't asked anyone's permission either.

They discussed between themselves whether to continue or turn back, eventually deciding on the latter. After turning his bike around, one of them - the kid with the spectacles - extended his fist towards me. Recognizing this as a friendly gesture, I kissed it with one of mine. "Be safe," I said, and with a "Yup" they took off. I waited until they'd put some distance between us before resuming my walk. I couldn't help but smile about the fist bump. Less formal than a handshake, less intimate than a pat on the shoulder. Did he know that? Or was it just something he's seen done? Probably both, though "know" is probably the wrong word - "sense", perhaps. Either way, I felt he'd honored me in some way, and it pleased me that he'd done so.

 

[saw]

Nice Story Roy.....looks like a beautiful area....lots of rivers and lakes nearby...I found your spot on All Trials....I wish I could hike again.....been walking a little....the immuotherapy causes fatigue and joint pain, But...had a good scan yesterday so still hoping one day to get out there again...I've hiked a slew of miles alone....deep in the forest where no people are....I miss it....

IMG_7834.JPG (42.9 KiB) Viewed 2392 times

[sasha]

It's a nice trail, with several interesting features along the way. This stretch passes through land a bit more developed than most of the rest of it, but I wanted to walk it anyway just for completeness. I started from the green circle at the top, and went as far south as Depot Pond at the bottom, about 1.9 miles one way, a little shy of 4 miles round trip.

(Click on map to enlarge it)

 

 

The 1st white circle along the route (just below the starting point) is about where I met the kids on trail bikes. The bright patches just south of there are active gravel pits.

The string of white circles near the bottom is where I detoured around the rail bed because it had become impassable. It took me past the Templeton Public Works building, across Bridge St., and into the woods along an ATV path running alongside a cemetery. (Baldwinville is an unincorporated village within the town of Templeton MA.) The sun was getting a little low in the sky by then, so I abandoned my attempt to find where the rail=trail resumes, & just doubled back.

The white "V" shaped building to the east of my turnaround point, just above "Colleen S Mcguane" (whoever she is) is Alliance Health, the nursing home where my mother died a few weeks ago.

Otter River SF to the west of Rte 202 abuts the Birch Hill WMA and the Lake Dennison rec area, all part of the complex I'd like to have some of my ashes scattered! I've trodden those pathways shown on the map and many others countless times.....

I used MapMyRun.com to create the map.

[Doreen Peri]

Where’s Mingo? I miss you, Mingo! Come back when you can!

[the mingo]

Where’s Mingo? I miss you, Mingo! Come back when you can!

In the midst of moving to Pennsylvania. I'm too old for this? Life looks at me like a girl with a big smile on her face but I'm
gonna live in the mountains down there.

[sasha]

Good to see you're still with us. Hope you're relo works out to your liking - hope we get to hear more from you.

[Doreen Peri]

Where’s Mingo? I miss you, Mingo! Come back when you can!

In the midst of moving to Pennsylvania. I'm too old for this? Life looks at me like a girl with a big smile on her face but I'm
gonna live in the mountains down there.

Fantastic! Moving to the Pennsylvania mountains?! What a great idea! Good to hear from you, Mingo….. I wish you all the best moving forward with this leg of your journey.

I’m still in Virginia. Made a mistake and sold my house. Living in a condo. Hate it here. Gonna sell it and find myself a small house somewhere else….

And the journey continues.

I’m happy to hear from you, Ming … keep in touch!

[the mingo]

I'm happy you are here too