Dan Eldon
I could not describe as succinctly as this:
Dan Eldon was American and British, but living in Kenya with his family who relocated there for work. He went on assignment to Somalia to cover the turbulent events of the famine. As he attended a peace rally, US Marines made the fateful mistake of bombing what they thought was a council of warlords in Mogadishu.
The angry crowd turned on Eldon and his three fellow journalists as a result. They were and (sic) stoned and beaten to death. Eldon was just 22 when he died.
ww.iamthevoluntourist.com/dan-eldon-still-inspires-us-today-the-journey-is-the-destination.
I discovered one of his journals, The Journey is the Destination in the clearance section of Half Price Books—I like (d pre Covad) to go there, browse though the clearance books, talk to other people in the stacks about books or music recordings.
I like what Joyce did with words in Finnegans Wake and my initial impression was that Eldon was doing something similar with photography, or even more generally, with graphic elements of design—getting the viewer to experience what the eyes saw and not “ understand” what the brain translated.
Like when reading FW readers cannot help but say the words out loud converting the reading experience into a “pre-print” oral experience; I felt something similar about how Eldon was using photography in this journal. Besides, Basho also mentioned the Journey is the Destination.
I Ching— The Book of Changes
Can people know the future? Can people devine the future? Are these two different things?
My father told me something which I did not understand until 15 years later, a few years after his death. He predicted a possible future event if he died before my mother and I like to think that I responded appropriately because of what he said to me. While there were other times he had “predicted” things, there was something special this one— and at the time I did not realize it was both a warning and request to me. Years later when it started to unfold I recognized it and responded, appropriately I hope.
Would I have had as much “insight” using the I Ching?
In China for 3000-4000 years the I Ching, The Book of Changes has been consulted with hopes of better understanding. For Chinese, the philosophical question is: How to understand the processes of Nature and act in accordance with them. I Ching is one old tool to do that. Solid line is Yang, broken line is Yin and their interaction is I Ching.
Previous posts presented the possible changes in the hexagram Hsiao Kuo when one line or two lines were moving. Here are the possible changes when three lines are moving.
Anciently when the sages made the Yi,it was with the design that its figures should be in conformity with the principles underlying the natures (of men and things) , and the ordinances appointer (for them by Heaven). Whit this view the exhibited in them the way of heaven, calling (the lines) yin and yang; the way of earth calling them the strong (or hard ) and the weak (or soft); and the way of man, under the names of benevolence and righteousness. Each (trigram) embraced those three Powers, and being repeated, its full form consisted of six lines.
I Ching, James Legge Introduction by Dennis Sterling, Flame Tree Publishers
Here are the same set of hexagrams each with three moving lines, no words. Note the visual interplay between the balance of yin and yang. Each time the original hexagram changes from the weak lines protecting (or imprisoning) the strong lines to a new balance “for the moment.”
This is the first time doing this for me. In 1970 I purchased Wilhelm’s translation but I was not yet a designer and so I read it, and “consulted” the words. In 1979 I moved to Silicon Valley to start a graphic design business, it sat on the book shelf for over 35 years. Recently I became interested in it again, seeing from a designer eye— looking but not reading. Maybe this is like doing “technical analysis” to evaluate buy and sell points on a stock chart.
The relationship between the moving lines create a different balance between the Yin and Yang lines in the diagrams as whole. Next week I shall attempt something artistic with the hexagrams.
First row, second column: looks like the strong have moved to to protect the weak from an attack or maybe they are hiding behind the weak? First row column three, the threat has grown larger and a stronger defense is needed.
Alameda Creek
Suppose you owned an Art Photograph, an image made by a famous photographer worth money . . . and your house was burning down , you had a one armload chance to save things, would you take the famous photograph or would you take ones of your family,
Even more, the “family images” included family members who had died, maybe three generations ago.
Suppose your “family heirloom” photographs had sat in storage for decades while everyday you looked at the image by the famous photographer . . . suppose it was worth $5000 and also it gave your life some personal meaning.
Suppose it was your own life, not a life or death situation but a choice between taking a risk and losing something important or taking a higher risk and getting something better?
Suppose taking that risk also means possibly or definitely hurting the lives of others. Would you choose to be unhappy and not hurt others or to be happy because you were willing to hurt others. Would you later, in your unhappiness, perhaps in your self pity, resent making that choice?
That is why when I walk the creek I listen to podcasts which can keep me focused and prevent me from thinking.
What would the women talk about while they were waiting for the men to eat?
Usually about the grain, the fields and the crops.
Didn’t gossip?
No, I was never around very many people that gossiped.
They pretty well know what everybody was doing anyway.
Yes, all doing about the same thing.
Zada 79 Grant County
Feeding Our Families Memories of Hoosier Homemakers Eleanor Arnold, Editor published 1985
The men got to eat first, and then the ones that really helped got in second. There was two or three tables. The kids and women would eat last, so the men could get out and thresh again.
Dorothy 60, Adams County
Feeding Our Families Memories of Hoosier Homemakers Eleanor Arnold, Editor published 1985
talking one
We don’t see any bread from a store only at wheat threshing time. My dad would come in and buy an armload of loaves. Walter Brothers down here made it, and of course it wasn’t sliced. Then one woman would slice the bread , and us kids would hang around and eat the heels of the bread, becuase it was store -bought bread.
Audrey 86 Posey County
Feeding Our Families Memories of Hoosier Homemakers Eleanor Arnold, Editor published 1985
I often meet people along the creek, sometimes we have interesting conversations, often about things associated with the creek, the water level, the wild life, the sky and on fire danger days, the smoke.
When faces become less important you notice the body gesture.
Krishna
The gopis were lovingly entranced with Krishna and they all left their husbands for him. But Krishna told them to return home, saying, “. . . the supreme duty of women is to serve their husbands.” As you can see its another “Do what I say and not I do.”
The top is interesting, it looks like mules, a small elephant, cow and horses with Brahmin riding a goose in the middle and the long faces on the lute and cymbal musicians—Is this a paying gig?
Illlustration from the Bhagata Purana. Pahari School, Mankot kalam, from The Blue God Lalit Kala Academi
Hagi Yunomi
Some years ago there used to be a shop on the end of Grant Street across Broadway which sold used Japanese stuff, a fun place to browse. One day I found this yunomi, it was cracked in multiple places but was not broken. The owner did not want to sell it, he verbally implied unkind things about it, and me for having bad taste.
I gave him $10 for it, brought it home, filled it with left over white rice, added some water, let it stand for five days—it was fixed, solid once again. I can drink bancha or sencha just fine. The color of this yummy is true Hagi.
Half Price Book Store: Dave likes music, its nice to get an opportunity to discuss music, do some name droppin, , share some music experiences. Often when I meet people that like the same music I do and then find out they also like music I do not like, when I listen to them I learn something. I still may not like that music but I learn something to appreciate it.
Chicago, 1969, Days of Rage. One year after the 1968 Democratic convention SDS had its break up event in Chicago. The Weathermen group parted ways and went “underground” to act against the Vietnam war. While there was activity going on between demonstrators and police in the streets, over in a park this conversation between an anti-war and a pro-war was happening, There was no violence confrontation or name calling , just a conversation where people expressed their positions.
A self portrait, or maybe its just a camera click making an image of someone I wish I was, or someone I was before but no longer can be or maybe I never was this person. That is what is so great about a photograph, I can claim its not the real me, even say that that may have been me before but now I am a changed man. Its a phake foto.
And a little Heart Sutra:
gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha
(or in sanskrit) Tad yathaa gate gate paaragate paarasamgate bodhi svaaha
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