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wow, this looks amazing, beautiful, and healthy! I can’t wait to try it!

this sounds great! ...but have you ever taken a whiff of asofoetida powder? like the freshest blossoms of spring!! heheh.

Is he a Hobbit?

I thought so, I saw a kid reading the book before the movie came out, but after some research, I think the enterprising folks at Disney, packaged up the script as a book and sent it out to the masses.

ok, is he a robot? Wall-E?

good point. :-) Ok then, is this character an animal that exists presently on the planet Earth?

a love letter?

is it your pal Marvin from Hitchhiker’s Guide? or Eeyore?

is the character a human?

Oh man, once a friend of mine did “It’s Oh So Quiet” for a karaoke song! It was the best! I saw Heart play about a week ago, Krista, and that Crazy on You song is still in my head! They seemed genuinely happy to be playing for us!

Also, I listened/have been listening to Feist for about a month now. I LOVE IT! Thanks again for sharing Krista!

hmmm….is he in a book Oprah might spotlight? Would his book be considered a classic? A comedy? A tradgedy?

Can he fly? Would his physical differences be considered disabling? Is his story set in the 20th century? Does he have kids?

“I was a good Christian; born and bred in the bosom of the infallible Presbyterian Church. How then could I unite with this wild idolator in worshipping his piece of wood? But what is worship? thought I. Do you suppose now, Ishmael, that the magnanimous God of heaven and earth – pagans and all included can possibly be jealous of an insignificant bit of black wood? Impossible! And what is the will of God? – to do my fellow man what I would have my fellow man do to me – that is the will of God. Now, Queequeg is my fellow man. And what do I wish that this Queequeg would do to me? Why unite with me in my particular Presbyterian form of worship. Consequently, I must then unite with him in his; ergo, I must turn idolator. So I kindled the shavings; helped prop up the innocent little idol; offered him burnt biscuit with Queequeg; salamed before him twice or thrice; kissed his nose; and that done, we undressed and went to bed, at peace with our own consciences and all the world” (from chapter 10.)

What I love about this passage is that Ishmael realizes the need for a true dialogue. In questioning what he thinks he knows and finding a common ground with Queequeg, Ishmael becomes more than just a sender and receiver of messages. What are your thoughts?

“Yes, there is death in this business of whaling—a speechlessly quick chaotic bundling of man into Eternity. But what then? Methinks we have hugely mistaken this matter of life and death. Methinks that what they call my shadow here on Earth is my true substance. Methinks that in looking at things spiritual, we are too much like oysters observing the sun through the water, and thinking that thick water the thinnest of air. Methinks my body is but the lees of my better being. In fact take my body who will, take it I say, it is not me. And therefore three cheers for Nantucket; and come a stove boat and stove body when they will, for stave my soul, Jove himself cannot.” (from chapter 7.)

One of the reasons I love this passage is because I have never really had to choose between Death and Glory. (cue The Clash) I can’t even fathom this. But it makes me think!

I love to find a passage and connect to it:

“Why is almost every robust healty boy with a robust healthy soul in him, at some time or other crazy to go to sea? Why upon your first voyage as a passenger, did you yourself feel such a mystical vibration, when first told that you and your ship were now out of sight of land? Why did the old Persians hold the sea holy? Why did the Greeks give it a seperate deity, and make him the own brother of Jove? Surely all this is not without meaning. And still deeper the meaning of that story of Narcissus, who because he could not grasp the tormenting, mild image he saw in the fountain, plunged into it and was drowned. But that same image, we ourselves see in all rivers and oceans. It is the image of the ungraspable phantom of life; and this is the key to it all.” (from chapter one)

Not being a boy, I can’t speak to the instinctual truth Melville is alluding to here, but I have sought out the tranquility of a body of water as therapy. Whether it is canoeing on a small river or sailing on Lake Ontario, do you find this to be true to yourself? Have you ever been out of sight of land? What did that feel like?

I know there are some that are some offenders escaping my mind, but I wanted to add that I hate it when crucial scenes are cut out of films. Specifically I’m thinking of High Fidelity. There’s a scene where John Cusack’s character goes to look at a collection of records that a disgruntled wife is purposefully selling for less than it’s worth to get back at her cheating husband. You know that John Cusack’s character isn’t that great of a guy, but that cut out scene, where he can’t morally bring himself to buy a collection for less than it’s worth, because the guy spent his life collecting it really helped me understand the character in the Hornby book of the same name. Grrrr! At least you can still see the scene if you have the DVD.

oLahav, I love your discussions about music! I was surprised to hear that lyric was by the Police…was just thinking that that lyric reminds me of a lyric by Jawbreaker, from Save Your Generation off the album Dear You. “If you could save yourself,/ you could save us all./ Go on living, prove us wrong./ Your leap of faith could be a well-timed smile./ Survival never goes out of style./ I have a message: save your generation./ We’re killing each other by sleeping in.

Maybe later today we could create a story out of song lyrics, each person posting a line or two. ...

Answering the second part of your response, I like both kinds of songs. And I have difficulty picking one over another in pretty much anything in life. (I’m a both, and kind of girl.) But for you I will say that a song telling a real story I can relate to is better (for me)...for relating, not feeling so disconnected from this crazy world. BUT, songs with conceptual images/nonsense lyrics that make me think have to enter my life at select moments—moments when I am ready for it. When that happens, it’s like when you know there’s a mountain on the horizon but you can’t see it because the weather conditions aren’t right and then finally, just when you think the whole world is a drab drab place, you see the majesty of a mountain on your horizon. (that was always there!) I’m still pretty new to Pink Floyd, but I hear they are the O.G.’s of these sort of conceptual songs. And really, the conceptual songs are telling stories we can relate to as well, they are just more appealing to those who learn better through the use of metaphor.

Really, I just love music. I’m glad you do too.

What do the rest of you music lovers think?

Good discussion topic! Thanks for stoking the fire Oren!

I’m always inspired by good lyrics…as much as good music, and they are like bread and butter together they are awesome, sometimes you can have one or the other alone, but it’s not as tasty. (In my opinion.)

The Weakerthans. I can’t say enough about them. I love all their songs, but Left and Leaving from the album of the same name is a great poem. ( http://www.theweakerthans.org/ )

“My city’s still breathing (but barely it’s true)

through buildings gone missing like teeth.

The sidewalks are watching me think about you,

sparkled with broken glass.

I’m back with scars to show.

Back with the streets I know

Will never take me anywhere but here.

The stain in the carpet, this drink in my hand,

the strangers whose faces I know.

We meet here for our dress-rehearsal to say ” I wanted it this way”

Wait for the year to drown.

Spring forward, fall back down.

I’m trying not to wonder where you are.

All this time lingers, undefined.

Someone choose who’s left and who’s leaving.

Memory will rust and erode into lists of all that you gave me:

a blanket, some matches, this pain in my chest,

the best parts of Lonely, duct-tape and soldered wires,

new words for old desires,

and every birthday card I threw away.

I wait in 4/4 time.

Count yellow highway lines that you’re relying on to lead you home.

..................................................................................................................................... Ps. They are from Canada. Yay Canada! =D

I see the attraction! Well, you can always also listen to radio over the internet. My old college radio station at Florida State was pretty good… http://www.wvfs.fsu.edu/ Other than that, I heard about those DJs by working in a record shop! (for another possible option. =D ).

I wonder if www.finetune.com is similar to Pandora. I know you can create playlists, and they will create a station for you based on your “favorites.” I’m also not sure if finetune is available in Canada.