“In the sunset shimmer”

Near Mount Vernon, Washington, USA on Sunday, April 26, 2009.

© Copyright photographs by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

In the sunset shimmer,

In the evening glow,

Light slowly dimmer,

Walking row upon row.

In the golden glimmer,

Sunday’s dusking haze,

Alone and yet among the many

In the last of April’s days.

Stephan Alexander Scharnberg, April 2009

Among the many

Near Mount Vernon, Washington, USA on Sunday, April 26, 2009.

© Copyright photographs by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

More rows of tulips

Near Mount Vernon, Washington, USA on Sunday, April 26, 2009.

© Copyright photographs by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

Rows of tulips

Near Mount Vernon, Washington, USA on Sunday, April 26, 2009.

© Copyright photographs by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

Fields of flowers

Near Mount Vernon, Washington, USA on Sunday, April 26, 2009.

© Copyright photographs by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

“An Airman Grace”

Lord of thunderhead and sky
Who place in man the will to fly
Who taught his hand speed, skill and grace
To soar beyond man’s dwelling place
You shared with him the Eagle’s view
The right to soar, as Eagles do
The right to call the clouds his home
And grateful, through your heavens roam
May all assembled here tonight
And all who love the thrill of flight
Recall with twofold gratitude
Your gift of Wings, Your gift of Food.

Father John MacGillivary, Roman Catholic Chaplin in the Royal Canadian Air Force

Tiptoeing through the tulips

Near Mount Vernon, Washington, USA on Sunday, April 26, 2009.

© Copyright photograph by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

Leonard Cohen

I had planned on posting prior to the Leonard Cohen concert (to tell you, dear reader, that my wife and I had tickets, private box tickets no less!) Sunday, April 19th (GM Place—home of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks hockey team); then when I didn’t get around to that, thought I’d post the day following the concert. Well, it took until the end of the week—plenty busy with the two jobs, other postings, and the on-going writing of my travel-autobiograpy.

Anyway, as some articles and blogs have already reviewed the spectacular evening, I won’t give a deep, lengthy review but just share the song list, a few personal impressions, and my favourite songs and albums.

I first heard of Leonard sometime September 1982 in Genève, Switzerland, in some small backstreet record shop, somewhere between the train station and the Rhône river and the western end of the Lac Léman. I’ve been a serious fan ever since. I’ve also awaited the opportunity since of one day seeing and hearing our national poet and chansonnier live.

What a memorable evening. Leonard walked on-stage just minutes after the scheduled 8:00 pm start. He was assailed with a standing ovation before he said or sang a single word. It was a three-hour event including six encores (and including the 20-minute intermission for drinks, snacks, and most important—selling his merchandise as he has serious need of funds after the financial thievery he suffered, and he deserves every penny), magical in every word, gesture, note, and silent interval. And, his nine-piece band were exquisite and flawless. But Leonard’s few notes on keyboard are his one weakness. Leonard was genuine in his praise of the band musicians, introducing them twice, and giving them solo opportunities to highlight their talents.

Performers were:

Leonard Cohen (lead vocal, guitar, keyboard, dancing off the stage!)

Sharon Robinson (back-up vocals)

Charley Webb (back-up vocals, guitar, cartwheels)

Hattie Webb (back-up vocals, harp, cartwheels)

Neil Larsen (keyboards including Hammond B3)

Javier Mas (banduria, laud, archilaud, 12-string guitar) (currently resides in Barcelona)

Bob Metzger (lead guitar, pedal steel guitar)

Roscoe Beck (electric bass, stand-up bass, background vocal, musical director)

Dino Soldo (wind instruments including saxophone, harmonica, background vocal)

Rafael Bernardo Gayol (drums, percussion)

What a classy gentleman. I’ve said for years (usually to my women friends!), “When I’m in my sixties and seventies, I want to look as handsome as he, likewise attired, likewise worldly.” That’ll probably happen.

The song list (visit YouTube for videos of some of his songs):

(First Set)

Dance Me to the End of Love

The Future

Ain’t No Cure for Love

Bird On The Wire

Everybody Knows

In My Secret Lif

Who by Fire

Chelsea Hotel

Waiting for the Miracle

Anthem

(Intermission)

(Second Set)

Tower of Song

Suzanne

Gypsy Wife

The Partisan

Boogie Street (lead vocal by Sharon Robinson, what a voice!)

Hallelujah

I’m Your Man

A Thousand Kisses Deep (recitation by Leonard Cohen)

Take This Waltz

(Encores)

So Long, Marianne

First We Take Manhattan

Famous Blue Raincoat

If It Be Your Will (duet by Charlie and Hattie Webb)

Democracy

I Tried to Leave You

Google and read his discography. Although I love pretty much every song and every poem he has ever said, sang, published, and recorded, I do have some favourites: (songs) “So Long, Marianne”, “Famous Blue Raincoat”, “The Partisan”, “Bird on A Wire”; (albums) Songs of Leonard Cohen (December 1967), Songs From A Room (April 1969), and Various Positions (December 1984/February 1985). I have a copy of almost every album he has released, either in LP or CD format.

I also love Jennifer Warnes’ album Famous Blue Raincoat. Less so, the album Ten New Songs (2001) with Sharon Robinson (too minimalist in the instrumentation and Leonard is weak on the keyboard—in contrast, the Sunday night renditions of songs from this album were excellent).

“A Thousand Kisses Deep”

The ponies run, the girls are young,

The odds are there to beat.

You win a while, and then it’s done—

Your little winning streak.

And summoned now to deal

With your invincible defeat,

You live your life as if it’s real,

A Thousand Kisses Deep.

I’m turning tricks, I’m getting fixed,

I’m back on Boogie Street.

You lose your grip, and then you slip

Into the Masterpiece.

And maybe I had miles to drive,

And promises to keep:

You ditch it all to stay alive,

A Thousand Kisses Deep.

And sometimes when the night is slow,

The wretched and the meek,

We gather up our hearts and go,

A Thousand Kisses Deep.

Confined to sex, we pressed against

The limits of the sea:

I saw there were no oceans left

For scavengers like me.

I made it to the forward deck.

I blessed our remnant fleet—

And then consented to be wrecked,

A Thousand Kisses Deep.

I’m turning tricks, I’m getting fixed,

I’m back on Boogie Street.

I guess they won’t exchange the gifts

That you were meant to keep.

And quiet is the thought of you,

The file on you complete,

Except what we forgot to do,

A Thousand Kisses Deep.

And sometimes when the night is slow,

The wretched and the meek,

We gather up our hearts and go,

A Thousand Kisses Deep.

The ponies run, the girls are young,

The odds are there to beat ...

“The Aeroplane”

© Copyright photograph by Stephan Alexander Scharnberg, August 2007

I sweep the skies with fire and steel

My highway is the cloud

I swoop, I soar, aloft I wheel

My engine laughing loud

I fight with gleaming blades the wind

That dares dispute my path

I leave the howling storm behind

I ride upon it’s wrath.

I laugh to see your tiny world

Your toys of ships, your cars

I rove an endless road unfurled

Where the mile stones are the stars

And far below, men wait and peer

For what my coming brings

I fill their quaking hearts with fear

For death ... is in my wings.

Gordon Boshell, written after watching Battle of Britain dogfights from the streets of London

Le monde méchanisé ?

La science matérialiste nous dites que le centre de l’être humain est le cerveau. La science spirituelle nous dites que c’est le Coeur.

Le monde spirituel fut le monde physique. Le monde physique est une réflection du monde spirituel.

Suivant la conception de l’être qui veut s’incarner, retourner pour cette prochaine vie dans le monde, où le sperme perce l’oeuf, le zygote se partage en deux et suivant en quatre, etcetera, la première organe physique à faire une apparence chez l’embryo est celle du Coeur. Le Coeur est l’organe archétype de l’être humain. Toutes les autre organes arrivent suivant l’apparence du Coeur. Une image pareille est peut-être celle du bouton ou du bourgeon qui arrive en printemps. J’ai déjà posté un tel photo récemment. Veuillez voir le billet “Fragile beauty”, mardi le 7 avril, 2009 (Tuesday, April 7, 2009).

La raison froide se centre dans la tête, la pensée imaginative se trouve dans le Coeur. La raison froide ne peut faire des liens sains avec le monde spirituel. C’est la pensée qui vient du Coeur qui se fait inspirer du monde spirituel. La raison froide ne peut pas travailler dans le milieu de l’imagination, de l’inspiration, et de l’intuition. Mais la science matérialiste peut se réunifier avec la science spirituelle. C’est dans le Coeur qu’on peut trouver le Christ etherique, le Christ qui est retourné à l’année 1933 pour entrer dans le monde sous-terrestre et dans le Coeur de chaque être humain.

Voulons-nous vivre dans un monde entièrement méchanisé, un monde électronique ? (nous arrivons là déjà à grande vitesse), un monde sans le savoir ou sans le vouloir de comprendre l’âme et l’esprit ? La vie suivi selon la science matérialiste, la science selon Darwin, nous dites que le cerveau est plus important que le Coeur, que le cerveau est le centre de l’être humain. Le Coeur est mis à côté. Une telle vie nous laisse vide et affaimée, une telle vie ignore et supprime la vie spirituelle, dit “non” au monde spirituel. Quand nous supprimons le spirituel, le mal peut entrer dans le monde beaucoup plus facilement, le mal dans tous ces formes (l’ahrimanique, la luciferique, le soratien, les Asuras). Nous supprimerons l’esprit, l’âme, et l’être humain.

Lisez Le combat intérieur : L’anthroposophie et les forces du coeur humain de Rudolf Steiner.

Spring and Easter–Whitsun

© Copyright photograph by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

More fragile beauty

© Copyright photographs by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

Fragile beauty

© Copyright photograph by Viktoria Iakovleva, April 2009

On Beauty by Zadie Smith

On Beauty by Zadie Smith, Penguin Books, 2006, paperback (Orange Prize for Fiction: Winner 2006).

Zadie Smith is a good writer.

The first I knew of her was when I read the articles, “Fail Better” and “Read Better”, which I’ve already mentioned in an earlier post (Tuesday, March 10, 2009). Then, about two weeks ago I devoured White Teeth.

Now, I’ve just finished On Beauty late last night on the bus home and sitting on the toilet for the last couple of pages. What a stunning novel. Well written, different but equal to White Teeth.

In this book, being the good writer she is, Zadie starts with a fitting scene that neatly sets the stage and tone for the rest of the story, despite it changing keys and chords as needed. The story goes along a number of paths, yet she never loses her red threads. There are many added along the meandering ways. No bit is left loose and hanging. Nothing is lost or buried. Not once did I wonder: Now, what happened to that one? Where did this go?

Zadie ties them all up—never too early, never too late, never in silly, clever ways—just at the right time. Everything follows a neat, natural progression, without ever becoming predictable. There are no trite Hollywood-like conclusions to the various characters and scenes. Yet the book does not suddenly end, nor is everything resolved, in a neat package with wrap and ribbon. It ends without really ending. The story is like life; life continues and the story continues in your heart and mind even after you’ve turned the last page, closed the book, and put it down.

I expected events to play out in certain ways. I thought I knew what might happen next, what characters may or may not do, yet, what does happen is usually a surprise. Nearly nothing is as expected. Scenes turn on a stiletto heel, characters act and react in ways I did not or could not predict and expect. But the results are always better, make more sense, then I would have guessed at any given point in the complex story. And, usually most difficult to pull off without becoming sullied and bogged down in stereotypes and biases, the dialogue dares to use idioms, slang, jargon, street expressions, and dialects. The dialogue of the various characters with their variety of ethnicities, social standings, and backgrounds, is always well-suited. Zadie is courageous with the sex scenes. They are erotic, frank, even dirty, yet not pornographic in their detail and description (deliberately with one exception). I felt I was present without feeling I was part of a threesome. She does not fear the word “fuck”; she has full control of it. The writer needs a good ear to write good dialogue. The writer needs to have some understanding of women and men, have some life and relationship experience, and have some emotional maturity and mastery to write good dialogue, to create good sex scenes. There are no clichés, no hollow words, no shallow sentences, no empty thoughts, no useless filler. The story has a rhythm and a life of its own, at times slower, at times faster, tight, loose, as needed. It is a natural rhythm, playing along much like a Beethoven symphony, a Mozart concerto, a soprano’s aria. Bottom line: the good writer is capable of good dialogue, rich emotion, conflict, tension, complex characters, sex, details, description, plot, interior dialogue, and a back story just behind the veil. A good story.

I suggest you go and find a copy at your local library, purchase one at your neighbourhood used bookshop, or support an independent book seller with the acquisition of a new copy.

Read the review by Laura Miller at salon.com (Saturday, October 1, 2005).