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Jan. 9th, 2014
"Chasing Sleep"
Jan. 9th, 2014 01:31 pmAfter watching "Chasing Sleep", starring Jeff Daniels, I had to google for some help to understand it and came upon an interesting site that may prove useful in the future.
http://www.moviestack.com/posts/141750-explanation-contains-spoilers
http://www.moviestack.com/posts/141750-explanation-contains-spoilers
Steppenwolf
Jan. 9th, 2014 05:10 pmHermann Hesse begins the main narrative thread in his story of midlife crisis with the sort of angst that any reasonably healthy but rather unsuccessful fellow can recognize as he begins his decline into aged life.
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The day had gone by just as days go by. I killed it in accordance with my primitive and retiring way of life. I worked for an hour or two and perused the pages of old books. I had had pains for two hours, as elderly people do. I had taken a powder and been very glad when the pains consented to disappear. I had lain in a hot bath and absorbed its kindly warmth. … I had been for an hour’s walk and seen the loveliest feathery cloud patterns penciled against the sky. That was very delightful. So was the reading of the old books. So was the lying in the warm bath. But, taken all in all, it had not been exactly a day of rapture. No, it had not even been a day brightened with happiness and joy. Rather, it had been just one of those days which for a long while now had fallen to my lot; the moderately pleasant, the wholly bearable and tolerable lukewarm days of a discontented middle-aged man; days without special pains, without special cares, without particular worry, without despair; days when I calmly wonder, objective and fearless, whether it isn’t time to follow the example of Adalbert Stifter and have an accident while shaving.
-- “Steppenwolf” by Hermann Hesse
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
It is hard to feel excited about life when romance and love is no longer really possible. If you have not succeeded in life by now, you have to live with the knowledge that you had your chance and blew it. Now it is just a matter of living your last years as peacefully and gracefully as possible.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
The day had gone by just as days go by. I killed it in accordance with my primitive and retiring way of life. I worked for an hour or two and perused the pages of old books. I had had pains for two hours, as elderly people do. I had taken a powder and been very glad when the pains consented to disappear. I had lain in a hot bath and absorbed its kindly warmth. … I had been for an hour’s walk and seen the loveliest feathery cloud patterns penciled against the sky. That was very delightful. So was the reading of the old books. So was the lying in the warm bath. But, taken all in all, it had not been exactly a day of rapture. No, it had not even been a day brightened with happiness and joy. Rather, it had been just one of those days which for a long while now had fallen to my lot; the moderately pleasant, the wholly bearable and tolerable lukewarm days of a discontented middle-aged man; days without special pains, without special cares, without particular worry, without despair; days when I calmly wonder, objective and fearless, whether it isn’t time to follow the example of Adalbert Stifter and have an accident while shaving.
-- “Steppenwolf” by Hermann Hesse
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
It is hard to feel excited about life when romance and love is no longer really possible. If you have not succeeded in life by now, you have to live with the knowledge that you had your chance and blew it. Now it is just a matter of living your last years as peacefully and gracefully as possible.