I also watched a very interesting movie tonight called "Cave of the Yellow Dog". Its a Chinese film about this family of shepherds who live in a yurt and without pretending to have understood the point of film have to say it was very interesting. It was also very relaxing for the most part. Not a lot seems to happen and even the moments of drama had a strange relaxed quality about them. There was a loose reincarnation theme and a pretty interesting scene when they dismantle the yurt to move on to new grazing lands. There was also a nifty scene in which a wizened old woman slowly showers handful after handful of rice onto a needle and says something like "see how hard it is to balance a grain of rice on a needle point, that's how hard it is to be reborn as a human. That is why human life is so precious". I thought that was pretty cool frankly.
The heirloom seed I ordered last week should arrive tomorrow, just in the nick of time for the weekend (I hope) and I have enough newspaper to put in another garden bed. I'll bang some onions in tomorrow if the seed arrives.
Read another interesting poem. Its one you'll have to read twice to get the hang of it. There are two voices (and no quotation marks to make it easy...which is kind of the point). The first of the voices is a drill sergeant or something close to that and the second voice is the bored recruit listening to the lesson.
Hope you enjoy it. Comments have been a bit quiet lately. Is anyone reading this guff?
Naming of Parts (Henry Reed—From Lessons of War)
To-day we have naming of parts. Yesterday,
We had daily cleaning. And to-morrow morning,
We shall have what to do after firing. But to-day,
To-day we have naming of parts. Japonica
Glistens like coral in all of the neighboring gardens,
And to-day we have naming of parts.
This is the lower sling swivel. And this
Is the upper sling swivel, whose use you will see,
When you are given your slings. And this is the piling swivel,
Which in your case you have not got. The branches
Hold in the gardens their silent, eloquent gestures,
Which in our case we have not got.
This is the safety-catch, which is always released
With an easy flick of the thumb. And please do not let me
See anyone using his finger. You can do it quite easy
If you have any strength in your thumb. The blossoms
Are fragile and motionless, never letting anyone see
Any of them using their finger.
And this you can see is the bolt. The purpose of this
Is to open the breech, as you see. We can slide it
Rapidly backwards and forwards: we call this
Easing the spring. And rapidly backwards and forwards
The early bees are assaulting and fumbling the flowers:
They call it easing the Spring.
They call it easing the Spring: it is perfectly easy
If you have any strength in your thumb: like the bolt,
And the breech, and the cocking-piece, and the point of balance,
Which in our case we have not got; and the almond blossom
Silent in all of the gardens and the bees going backwards and forwards,
For to-day we have naming of parts.
3 comments:
The cave of the yellow dog - sounds interesting
Good to see your spare time is being utilised effectively in the garden...;)
I think I may have seen that movie. Didnt Bruce Willis kill the yellow dog at the end with an uzi?
I can understand you enjoying it, but not my cup of tea. I saw a movie recently called the marine. Lots of killing etc, but the main character was played by a professional wrestler. Bad bad movie, even though it had all the makings of a classic.
And to your question "is anybody reading this guff?". Nope.
Adam
Cave of the Yellow Dog was sensational!
It had dilemma's like having to move to the city or not, what to do with a dog that is not wanted.
I think that the gist of the story is that something new is kept only after discovering it is useful. The dog saved the little boy from the vultures and so becomes worthy of keeping even though the scent of the dog may draw the wolves who will kill the stock.
Now as to the GUFF, well if we compare yours with the rest of the planets then yes I shall endeavour to struggle on and swallow a bit more and see ;-)
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