by Doctor Science
Thea Gilmore, at YouTube. Link from R.G.
The Claw of the Conciliator is the second part of Gene Wolfe's series The Book of the New Sun. It has the following epigraph, from Osip Mandelstam:
In the distance disappear the mounds of human heads.Wolfe says:
I dwindle -- go unnoticed now.
But in affectionate books, in children's games,
I will rise from the dead to say: the sun!
Mandelstam was last seen in December 1938, rooting through a garbage heap near Vladivostok. He had ventured some remarks critical of the Soviet Government, which drolly illustrated his error by sending him to Siberia to be starved and beaten to death.And now statues of Stalin have been toppled, and there are statues to Mandelstam.
In honor of the season, whichever one you celebrate.
Here we go around the sun again!
Posted by: russell | December 22, 2011 at 03:11 PM
Save it for perihelion, russell.
Posted by: hairshirthedonist | December 22, 2011 at 03:17 PM
I want one of those shirts that says, "Axial Tilt: It's the Reason for the Season".
Posted by: Amezuki | December 22, 2011 at 03:45 PM
How about "Your analemma is showing!"? (I wonder how the SNL-Jeopardy version of Sean Connery would pronounce that.)
Posted by: hairshirthedonist | December 22, 2011 at 04:06 PM
"Your analemma is showing!"
Looks down, checks, fly. Damn! Not again!
Posted by: bobbyp | December 22, 2011 at 04:31 PM
This is a much better idea than my idea for a Friday open thread, which was peace, goodwill, yada yada. Will save mine for Monday
Posted by: liberal japonicus | December 22, 2011 at 06:29 PM
Save it for perihelion, russell.
Crap, I jumped the gun.
Posted by: russell | December 23, 2011 at 02:17 AM
And again Cthulhu missed the date, although Congress seemed to indicate that his dreams were sent out in preparation. Could have been Nyarlathotep w/stalking the Earth too though.
Iä metsän musta vuohi jolla on tuhat lasta!
Posted by: Hartmut | December 23, 2011 at 03:56 AM
Perihelion is sometime in January, I think.
Posted by: Slartibartfast | December 23, 2011 at 08:35 AM
Oh. The link. *slapownself*
Posted by: Slartibartfast | December 23, 2011 at 08:37 AM
Seasons greetings to all the old ObWi commentors (the new ones as well of course, but you don't know me, nor I you). I'm not going to get into it here, but someone put up a thread on the Republican primary and I may have to say something...
Posted by: OCSteve | December 23, 2011 at 05:22 PM
OCSteve,
I think "vote Obama 2012" sums it up. Happy holidays.
Posted by: jrudkis | December 23, 2011 at 06:20 PM
Yes, happy holidays everyone, whatever you may be celebrating!
Posted by: Laura Koerbeer | December 23, 2011 at 08:44 PM
I think "vote Obama 2012" sums it up. Happy holidays.
This time Cthulhu may be the lesser evil ;-)
Crazy Cephalopodmas everyone! (OK, that's at another date)
Posted by: Hartmut | December 24, 2011 at 04:06 AM
This time of year I often find myself reflecting on the level of sheer terror and anxiety that must have been a large part of daily human existence for most people, in most generations, until the last hundred years or so.
There were animals that would eat you. If the weather was off for a year or two, you could starve. If you didn't have a lucky hunt, you could starve.
If you lived in temperate latitudes or north of them, if you didn't have enough firewood laid up, you could freeze to death.
Heading into the cold and dark part of the year, if you didn't have enough food laid up, or if it wasn't prepared properly and it spoiled, you could starve.
"Cold" and "dark" meant something different to them, than it does to us. "Sol Invictus" was no metaphor or myth, it was the hope and conviction that they would not all die miserable deaths.
OC, I'm actually interested in putting up a quick front-pager on Huntsman. That should give you an opportunity for sharing your thoughts on the (R) primary, which I for one would love to hear. If no-one beats me to it, I'll try to get to it in the next couple of days.
I'm off to hear my wife sing carols at church. I, of course, will be providing the obligatory dull thuds for "Little Drummer Boy". Then it's time for a sappy Christmas movie and some Chinese takeout in front of the fire.
Hope the season brings nothing but blessings and joy to one and all.
Posted by: russell | December 24, 2011 at 06:42 PM
+8°C and rain. At the moment few will freeze to death around here (unlike some other years).
Posted by: Hartmut | December 25, 2011 at 04:03 AM
Merry Christmas, Season's Greetings, Happy Holidays or Just a Good Rest, as the case may be, to All.
Nice comment, Russell, as usual. Maybe a post from on you on "What Were Humanity's Best Years?".
Posted by: McKinneyTexas | December 25, 2011 at 08:54 AM
I think a toy store vomited in my house this morning.
All the best to you, my digital friends.
Posted by: hairshirthedonist | December 25, 2011 at 10:54 AM