Charles,
.
You have probably seen this? Armadillo girdled lizard https://i.redd.it/xibdn2y8yb501.jpg
“The armadillo girdled lizard possesses an uncommon anti-predator adaptation, in which it takes its tail in its mouth and rolls into a ball when frightened. In this shape, it is protected from predators by the thick, squarish scales along its back and the spines on its tail”
Turtle Island swims / in the ocean-sky swirl-void / biting its tail while the worlds go / on-and-off / winking.
— by Gary Snyder, from his New Yorker profile, Zen Master which see, which see!
Grurray:
February 12th, 2018 at 9:58 pm
Dharma Bums was without a doubt Kerouac’s best novel. My favorite part was when they went on that mountain climbing expedition. Kerouac gets scared and can’t quite make it with Snyder all the way to the summit. He’s frozen sitting there in a small ditch when this happens:
.
“Then suddenly everything was just like jazz: it happened in one insane second or so: I looked up and saw Japhy running down the mountain in huge twenty-foot leaps, running, leaping, landing with a great drive of his booted heels, bouncing five feet or so, running, then taking another long crazy yelling yodelaying sail down the sides of the world and in that flash I realized it’s impossible to fall off mountains you fool and with a yodel of my own I suddenly got up and began running down the mountain after him doing exactly the same huge leaps, the same fantastic runs and jumps, and in the space of about five minutes I’d guess Japhy Ryder and I (in my sneakers, driving the heels of my sneakers right into sand, rock, boulders, I didn’t care any more I was so anxious to get down out of there) came leaping and yelling like mountain goats or I’d say like Chinese lunatics of a thousand years ago, enough to raise the hair on the head of the meditating Morley by the lake, who said he looked up and saw us flying down and couldn’t believe it. In fact with one of my greatest leaps and loudest screams of joy I came flying right down to the edge of the lake and dug my sneakered heels into the mud and just fell sitting there, glad. Japhy was already taking his shoes off and pouring sand and pebbles out.
It was great.
I took off my sneakers and poured out a couple of buckets of lava dust and said ‘Ah Japhy you taught me the final lesson of them all, you can’t fall off a mountain.’
‘And that’s what they mean by the saying, When you get to the top of a mountain keep climbing, Smith.'”
.
Every once in awhile when I might find myself in a tough spot (as some of us are inclined to be in, it’s just our nature) I think of Snyder running like a madman down that mountain. Always brings a smile to my face.
Cheryl Rofer:
January 29th, 2018 at 1:19 pm
Since we are talking about Donald Trump, we can’t leave out “Mirror, Mirror on the wall, who’s the fairest one of all?”
David Ronfeldt:
January 31st, 2018 at 12:30 am
excellent insightful compilation, charles
Charles Cameron:
January 31st, 2018 at 5:40 am
Thanks, David, appreciated.
Grurray:
February 1st, 2018 at 8:58 pm
Charles,
.
You have probably seen this? Armadillo girdled lizard
https://i.redd.it/xibdn2y8yb501.jpg
“The armadillo girdled lizard possesses an uncommon anti-predator adaptation, in which it takes its tail in its mouth and rolls into a ball when frightened. In this shape, it is protected from predators by the thick, squarish scales along its back and the spines on its tail”
Charles Cameron:
February 1st, 2018 at 9:39 pm
That’s too good to leave a link away from us, Grurray!
.
Here it is:
.
.
Superb! Thanks!
Charles Cameron:
February 2nd, 2018 at 12:45 am
Best ourob yet —
— by Gary Snyder, from his New Yorker profile, Zen Master which see, which see!
Grurray:
February 12th, 2018 at 9:58 pm
Dharma Bums was without a doubt Kerouac’s best novel. My favorite part was when they went on that mountain climbing expedition. Kerouac gets scared and can’t quite make it with Snyder all the way to the summit. He’s frozen sitting there in a small ditch when this happens:
.
“Then suddenly everything was just like jazz: it happened in one insane second or so: I looked up and saw Japhy running down the mountain in huge twenty-foot leaps, running, leaping, landing with a great drive of his booted heels, bouncing five feet or so, running, then taking another long crazy yelling yodelaying sail down the sides of the world and in that flash I realized it’s impossible to fall off mountains you fool and with a yodel of my own I suddenly got up and began running down the mountain after him doing exactly the same huge leaps, the same fantastic runs and jumps, and in the space of about five minutes I’d guess Japhy Ryder and I (in my sneakers, driving the heels of my sneakers right into sand, rock, boulders, I didn’t care any more I was so anxious to get down out of there) came leaping and yelling like mountain goats or I’d say like Chinese lunatics of a thousand years ago, enough to raise the hair on the head of the meditating Morley by the lake, who said he looked up and saw us flying down and couldn’t believe it. In fact with one of my greatest leaps and loudest screams of joy I came flying right down to the edge of the lake and dug my sneakered heels into the mud and just fell sitting there, glad. Japhy was already taking his shoes off and pouring sand and pebbles out.
It was great.
I took off my sneakers and poured out a couple of buckets of lava dust and said ‘Ah Japhy you taught me the final lesson of them all, you can’t fall off a mountain.’
‘And that’s what they mean by the saying, When you get to the top of a mountain keep climbing, Smith.'”
.
Every once in awhile when I might find myself in a tough spot (as some of us are inclined to be in, it’s just our nature) I think of Snyder running like a madman down that mountain. Always brings a smile to my face.
Charles Cameron:
February 13th, 2018 at 3:53 am
Wonderful. Especially if true.