Once upon a time

[ishmael]

I know, I once had a sparrow alight upon my shoulder for a moment, while I was hoeing in a village garden, and I felt that I was more distinguished by that circumstance that I should have been by any epaulet I could have worn.

[Joe ( Cold Spring on Hudson )]

:rolleyes:

[Phillip Allen]

Roll your eyes if ya want Joe but I know EXACTLY what he means...either it hasn't happened to you or you didn't notice when it did because you were looking in instead of out.

[ishmael]

It's Thoreau, though I had a similar experience, walking along a dusty road with late-teen comeradoes. Hot summer, I stopped and held my finger out to a sparrow in the bush. For reasons I'll never understand it flew up and lit on my finger, for maybe a half minute.

It's odd now, but it seemed just right at the time. It amazed me a little, in a seventies kinda acid way. I wanted that bird to perch on my finger. It just came and perched there, looking quizically at me.

So I understand Henry David's experience, celebrate it.

[huisjen]

Watch the bouncing memeber numbers folks. 1866 is Ishmael? Jack Heinlen is 5747. Is he using both logins?

Dan

[ 09-01-2005, 10:01 PM: Message edited by: huisjen ]

[SandMaster]

Are you talking about "Fishmeal"? :D

[huisjen]

I understand that most of what's sold as fishmeal is actually ground up crab shells, rather than real fish.

Dan

[SandMaster]

Id like to get my hands on a couple a yards of chitin materials for my garden. The nematodes hit me hard this year.

[ishmael]

No deception intended. I kinda missed Ishmael, so I resurrected him.

Now, back to sparrows and being open enough to have one choose to light on your finger, or your shoulder.

I'd forgotten about that meeting for a long time, but it came back last night. For moments, last night and in memory, I felt kinship with St. Francis, with his gentle love of all animals.

Weird how things go, but having that sparrow choose to light on my finger was transformative. Thoreau knows.

[skuthorp]

I watched a fat, tattooed hells angel freeze when a butterfly landed on his shaven head. Something touched him too smile.gif

[SandMaster]

I kinda missed Ishmael Me too.
Welcome back Ishmael

[ishmael]

[QUOTEand I felt that I was more distinguished by that circumstance that I should have been by any epaulet I could have worn.[/QUOTE]

Trying to learn grammar, his use of the second that rather than "than" strikes me. He's, of course correct, but it stuck out. A modern speaker would use than.

Anyway, I've decided to pick up Ishmael while this horror is happening. It's questing, open, in a way Jack isn't. Love me or hate me, Ishmael I am.

[JimD]

The wiskey jacks (Grey Jay) in the mountains out here will eat out of your hands. The most fearless wild birds I've ever seen.

[Bruce Taylor]

Trying to learn grammar, his use of the second that rather than "than" strikes me. He's, of course correct,Nope. It's just a misprint, endlessly (and mindlessly) replicated on "quotations" pages, all over the internet.

[Phillip Allen]

Originally posted by JimD:
The wiskey jacks (Grey Jay) in the mountains out here will eat out of your hands. The most fearless wild birds I've ever seen.Haven't been around sea gulls have ya?

[Bruce Taylor]

Here...chapter 15:

http://eserver.org/thoreau/walden15.html

[ishmael]

Hm. So it's incorrect. I'm gonna have to contemplate it. That, than. Hm. Thoreau could be wrong. It doesn't sound right.

Words are such a gem-like attempt.

"A moment ago I imagined myself a prince in exile, and you my fair Isolde."

Let's hear some of your poetry, Bruce. We need it.

[ 09-01-2005, 11:21 PM: Message edited by: ishmael ]

[Native son]

Once upon a time a ****hawk pooped on my sweatar.
I licked it and felt closer to god.

[formerlyknownasprince]

and on a related theme....

I saw a sparrow sh&tting on my Norton
So I came out a farting and snorting
I led it down with crumbs of bread
..... then I crsuched its f&*^ing head.

Just thought I'd add that version of the sparrow poem folks.

In a more like-themed vein...... I had a couple of wild Sulphur-Crested Cockatoos

http://www.amonline.net.au/birds/images/birds/013.jpg

on the aviary a couple of weeks back (got a photo of them somewhere.. this shot being from the web) visiting the one that I have - he being about 60 years old apparently and unable to fly due to a broken wing ..... so I held out some feed and managed to get the wild one to take it. I was a little cautious - as these things can snap a dead hardwood branch the size of your finger with their beak. Very nice, very tender response ... took the feed!

[ishmael]

A wild bird, by no right or knowing, flew and perched on my finger. I had no food, or anything worth a bird's attention. I was wandering the road.

I think I was totally open, young, and for some reason the bird said hello. Brief bit of meet. It will stay with me until I die.

Make what you will of it, but be careful.

[joejapan]

poor little bugger probably had his bird brain screwed up by West Nile and had absolutely no idea what the hell you were !

[ishmael]

No

[Bruce Taylor]

Thoreau could be wrong.Not at all. He said "than," as you or I would have.

The error isn't found in Walden (see any of the full-text online editions), but it's on practically every site on which the isolated passage is quoted. These "quotable quotes" are propogated by cut and paste, so any boo-boos in 'em tend to be preserved.


Let's hear some of your poetry, Bruce. We need it.I don't write much these days, except when somebody commissions something. The editor of New Quarterly hounded me into finishing a couple of poems this summer, and back in the spring the CBC commissioned a piece (I wrote about your little friends the ephemeroptera). I spent the rest of the summer building stuff, fixing stuff, and canoeing.

[ishmael]

Let us hear the mayfly, please.

[Tristan]

A few years ago I found two fat baby pre-fledgling birds in my front yard. Thought they were baby mocking birds. Put them into a box, fed them, and they grew up to be starlings! They flew all over the house for weeks. Would perch on our shoulders, gently place their bills into our ears, and then OPEN their bills, gently prying into the ear orifice. I found that Starlings feed in this manner, prying the grass and leaves apart, searching for food. I eventually began taking them outside to acclimate them to freedom. ONce one of them landed on the bald head of a neighbor, startling him. Eventually they disappeared into the neighborhood. Tweety and Hopper, I hope they did well. Kind of miss the little guys.

[LeeG]

may we all affect a new dialect

[Popeye]

surely, somewhere, there is a sheep who needs help getting thru a fence

[Mrleft8]

One evening in February, walking down W.98th to the corner store for a 6 pack and smokes. Hair caked in construction dust of the sort only found in early 20th century buildings in NYC, beard matted and tangled. WW2 bomber jacket with a hole worn in the right elbow. Blue quilted moving blanket slung over my right shoulder. People peeling away from in front of me like minnows before a Blue. Paid for my items at arms length,and returned to the borrowed apartment.
It was only after I walked through the door, and saw in the reflection of the hall mirror... The pigeon must have eaten well that day...

[Bruce Taylor]

Let us hear the mayfly, please.I should have a copy of the recording...when I have a minute (maybe this aft) I'll dig out the audio file & email it to you.