Knowledge and Madness
“The love of knowledge is a kind of madness” – C.S. Lewis
Quotations
Documenting Before Demolition
An editorial about exploring and documenting history. This comes from a forgotten (no posts since 2020) site of a Manitoba, Canada, explorer. I couldn’t find a name or anything like social media to help find who they are.
… Read the restSome of you are aware that Canada has never been considered one of the best countries in the world to explore abandoned sites, due to Canada’s national policy for demolition projects of derelict buildings or converting derelict properties over to new owners, often into the hands of non-profit organizations.
Photographing the Vanishing Quote
I noticed this quote on an abandoned Blogger site today.
Photographers deal in things which are continually vanishing and when they have vanished there is no contrivance on Earth which can make them come back again. – Henri Cartier-Bresson
It applies to almost everything photographed. From a smiling child to the sun itself. Nothing stays exactly the same forever and the photographer won’t be standing in the same spot, with that same angle, at that same time either.… Read the rest
Rubbing Yourself Out and Getting Worn Down
I found this quote by Amy Tan:
“I did not lose myself all at once. I rubbed out my face over the years washing away my pain, the same way carvings on stone are worn down by water.”
People ask if you are sad or tired. I could say yes to those but neither is quite right.… Read the rest
Second Hand Books are Wild
Do you remember BookCrossing? It’s been years since I last logged in. Funny that I was thinking of the book which I had last read the last time I was at the site. I couldn’t remember the author or the title, but there it was, first on my profile page.
… Read the rest“Second hand books are wild books, homeless books; they have come together in vast flocks of variegated feather, and have a charm which the domesticated volumes of the library lack.”
There are Times in Life When you Just Have to Kill your Babies
This quote is about the break between having the dream and living with it. But, you can read so much into a few words.
… Read the restI’m a fan of writer Ann Patchett, whose book, Truth and Beauty, is one of my favourites. This week, thanks to the website, Brain Pickings, I came across a fantastic Patchett quotation that hit very close to home, especially the last line:
“The journey from the head to hand is perilous and lined with bodies.
The Cathedrals of the Fields
We hear about the grain elevators from Saskatchewan but less often about our own Ontario barns. Those hand built, long standing structures right in our own backyard, not literally in most cases. But, there they are. You don’t need to drive far outside of a city or town in Ontario to find an old barn.
Cathedrals of the fields is a great description for them.… Read the rest
Are There Psychogeography Enthusiasts in Ontario?
“There is a class of walkers who share a certain camaraderie. We are not drunks, tramps, hookers, cops, priests, party-goers or night-shift workers; we are merely outsiders. On the rare occasions when we meet we acknowledge one another with a tiny tilt of the head, or a quick nod; but each of us carries his or her own solitude.… Read the rest
Shutting Up Instead of Talking
According to Hersh, “songwriting is about shutting up instead of talking.”
Hersh is Kristin Hersh, a songwriter.
This quote reminds me of the old one about writing being easy, just slit your wrists and bleed over the paper, something like that. Possibly less dramatic and drastic sounding, but with the same meaning.
In the end most communication is about shutting off one thing so the flow of ideas can come from another source.… Read the rest