Monday 23 June 2008

Trivial - and not so trivial

Up early this morning - lay in my tiny cocoon for most of the night
listening to the wind howl and Lizzie whizz and the rain spatter on my
ever so lightweight jacket tied over the top of the open companion
way, now blocked by the chain hoist. NPR on the radio - Vale George
Carlin. I hear already the roar of 'George WHO??' GC was a comedian
who used his considerable intelligence and wonderful irony to take
apart pomposity, hypocrisy and market speak out beyond the accepted
line in the sand - here's his most famous routine - you may be one of
those who is offended by it...
http://www.erenkrantz.com/Humor/SevenDirtyWords.shtml
I'm a bit surprised that tits got up instead of - for instance -
nigger or kike - but then it was back in the 60's. A wonderful
wordsmith - you can read his books and, I think, buy recordings of his
routines and soliloquies.

Also on NPR - Leroy Chiao, the first person to vote from space in a
presidential election, talking about his experience which was at about
the same time as Pete and I were talking to him. And I reflected on
unreality - the surreal - ephemeral concepts of permanence and
solidity - There I was, warm under my fleecy rugs and the searug in
atrocious conditions, muddy daks spread to dry, bits of engine all
around - brown fisho's boots standing grey and splattered just inside
- in Berrimilla in Alaska. How could this be? I can't really be here!
A bit like talking to Leroy on the satphone when we were under that
awful storm in the South Atlantic. And today, I regard the man as a
friend - weird, but wonderful! Hi Leroy, if you're reading this and
not on a plane to Burrumbuttock or WoopWoop. Sometimes life seems to
be suspended and, perhaps like A Midsummer Night's Dream, family, home
and the rest are just misty context for the play within the play.

Amelia's for coffee (...?) and toast at 0530 and then across the muddy
road with the Nik to take photos of fog and pale and grey harbour and
mountains.

And the Pontiac has returned to its rightful spot.

Speeds - And H - I will today post USB sticks with pics to date -
Speedy, you've already got most of them - if there's room on the
stick, I'll send the raw files, else just small jpegs.

More detailed bits and pieces today - might make it up Ballyhoo with
McQ & K but not if the gearbox is here.