River of Dreams
© 2009 g d tошиѕнеиdе. All Rights Reserved.
River of Dreams (I Go Walkin' In The Middle of the Night)
— River of Dreams, by Billy Joel
THE PHOTO — Another photo taken at Jardins do Palácio de Cristal (Gardens of the Crystal Palace), overlooking some buildings lit by the setting sun on the southern bank of the River Douro. Why not click on that link above, and take a walk in the middle of the night. Trust me. This is sumptuous on black!
Exposure: Manual | 1/100 sec | f/5.6 | ISO 160 | 80mm
_____
I've mentioned many times before that I enjoy writing, mostly fiction, but non-fiction, too. Most of my writing that you've seen, however, has been the rambling I've included with my photos. A fairly well-known writer, John Gardner¹, once described what fiction writers do as creating a "vivid and continuous dream." With that in mind, you could view writers as wading through a "river of dreams" looking for a "vivid and continuous dream" that captures their imagination such that they feel compelled to share it with others.
Speaking of this compulsion, I thought I might include a link to a short sample of my fiction writing for you to enjoy. It's been months since I've sat down to write any fiction, so when I sat down to write this morning, the writing was slow going, but I like what I was able to churn out, especially considering that it was but a first draft. What you will be reading is part of a fantasy novel. Enjoy: A Good Pair of Wellingtons (I hope you don't mind word play :P).
_____
¹ One of Gardner's best known novels is Grendel, a retelling of the Beowulf legend from the monster's point of view.
An Aside: I seem to remember reading somewhere that one man largely responsible for Beowulf being viewed as a classic of English literature (it was written in Old English) was J. R. R. Tolkien, the author of Lord of the Rings. See this Wikipedia entry for reference, which has served to confirm my memory. I've read Beowulf, in English, although were I to get my ass back in school and major in English, as I've been threatening to do, I could possibly end up learning to read it in Old English. Works for me, as I do have an Old English grammar book in my personal library. Good thing I hate literature... NOT! :P :D
Obviously, by Old English I mean a form of English that pre-dates all those thees and thous and whatnot found in the Elizabethan English of Shakespeare's time. Here's a small sample of Old English, from an old poem called "The Wife's Lament"—
Ič þis ʒiedd wrece be mé full ʒeómorre,
mínre selfre síþ. Ič þæt secgan mæʒ,
hwæt ič iermþa ʒe-bád, siþþan ič upp wéox,
níewes oþþe ealdes, ná má þonne nú.
Á ič wite wann mínra wræc-síða.
This translates as—
I am reciting this poem about myself, very sad (lit. about my very sad self), my own experience. I can say this, what miseries (lit. what of miseries) I lived through, after I grew up, early or late, never more than now. Ever I have suffered the torment of my exile (lit. journeys of exile).
River of Dreams
© 2009 g d tошиѕнеиdе. All Rights Reserved.
River of Dreams (I Go Walkin' In The Middle of the Night)
— River of Dreams, by Billy Joel
THE PHOTO — Another photo taken at Jardins do Palácio de Cristal (Gardens of the Crystal Palace), overlooking some buildings lit by the setting sun on the southern bank of the River Douro. Why not click on that link above, and take a walk in the middle of the night. Trust me. This is sumptuous on black!
Exposure: Manual | 1/100 sec | f/5.6 | ISO 160 | 80mm
_____
I've mentioned many times before that I enjoy writing, mostly fiction, but non-fiction, too. Most of my writing that you've seen, however, has been the rambling I've included with my photos. A fairly well-known writer, John Gardner¹, once described what fiction writers do as creating a "vivid and continuous dream." With that in mind, you could view writers as wading through a "river of dreams" looking for a "vivid and continuous dream" that captures their imagination such that they feel compelled to share it with others.
Speaking of this compulsion, I thought I might include a link to a short sample of my fiction writing for you to enjoy. It's been months since I've sat down to write any fiction, so when I sat down to write this morning, the writing was slow going, but I like what I was able to churn out, especially considering that it was but a first draft. What you will be reading is part of a fantasy novel. Enjoy: A Good Pair of Wellingtons (I hope you don't mind word play :P).
_____
¹ One of Gardner's best known novels is Grendel, a retelling of the Beowulf legend from the monster's point of view.
An Aside: I seem to remember reading somewhere that one man largely responsible for Beowulf being viewed as a classic of English literature (it was written in Old English) was J. R. R. Tolkien, the author of Lord of the Rings. See this Wikipedia entry for reference, which has served to confirm my memory. I've read Beowulf, in English, although were I to get my ass back in school and major in English, as I've been threatening to do, I could possibly end up learning to read it in Old English. Works for me, as I do have an Old English grammar book in my personal library. Good thing I hate literature... NOT! :P :D
Obviously, by Old English I mean a form of English that pre-dates all those thees and thous and whatnot found in the Elizabethan English of Shakespeare's time. Here's a small sample of Old English, from an old poem called "The Wife's Lament"—
Ič þis ʒiedd wrece be mé full ʒeómorre,
mínre selfre síþ. Ič þæt secgan mæʒ,
hwæt ič iermþa ʒe-bád, siþþan ič upp wéox,
níewes oþþe ealdes, ná má þonne nú.
Á ič wite wann mínra wræc-síða.
This translates as—
I am reciting this poem about myself, very sad (lit. about my very sad self), my own experience. I can say this, what miseries (lit. what of miseries) I lived through, after I grew up, early or late, never more than now. Ever I have suffered the torment of my exile (lit. journeys of exile).