Comments on: clarifying the great matter of ghee http://theunreliablenarrator.net/2008/07/05/clarity-chale-chalo/ "bringing you all the news that's fit to mistrust" Thu, 08 Jan 2009 19:48:04 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0 by: patrick http://theunreliablenarrator.net/2008/07/05/clarity-chale-chalo/#comment-33928 Wed, 09 Jul 2008 12:38:11 +0000 http://theunreliablenarrator.net/2008/07/05/clarity-chale-chalo/#comment-33928 While still in high school I had a particularly awful break-up with my first love that involved a lot of heartbreak and an aborted teen pregnancy. About a year later, while still suffering, I decided to make a ritual bonfire of all the photos, letters, gifts and ephemera I had collected over the course of the relationship. (what a box of memories that would be to me now) Far from being the cathartic episode I had hoped it had the opposite effect of freezing in time all the memories of those events. For me, I suppose memories are like sentences in a conversation, which if not carefully attended, are usually taken out of context when reexamined. Years of tears later I finally realized that there was some possibility that, however painful those events might have been, I might be responsible for making them seem worse, and that it was time to let them go. I don't have to live there any more, and I can make the time and place of my revisiting them one of my own choosing. Thank you for this post. While still in high school I had a particularly awful break-up with my first love that involved a lot of heartbreak and an aborted teen pregnancy. About a year later, while still suffering, I decided to make a ritual bonfire of all the photos, letters, gifts and ephemera I had collected over the course of the relationship. (what a box of memories that would be to me now) Far from being the cathartic episode I had hoped it had the opposite effect of freezing in time all the memories of those events. For me, I suppose memories are like sentences in a conversation, which if not carefully attended, are usually taken out of context when reexamined. Years of tears later I finally realized that there was some possibility that, however painful those events might have been, I might be responsible for making them seem worse, and that it was time to let them go.

I don’t have to live there any more, and I can make the time and place of my revisiting them one of my own choosing. Thank you for this post.

]]> by: oleoptene http://theunreliablenarrator.net/2008/07/05/clarity-chale-chalo/#comment-33607 Sat, 05 Jul 2008 19:20:33 +0000 http://theunreliablenarrator.net/2008/07/05/clarity-chale-chalo/#comment-33607 Oh, for months husband and older sons giggled and guffawed at bhangra videos which had been homophonically transcribed in English: thus <a target="_blank" title="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA1NoOOoaNw" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA1NoOOoaNw">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA1NoOOoaNw</a> and <a target="_blank" title="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fSpI4oZoDc" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fSpI4oZoDc">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fSpI4oZoDc</a> not to mention the Indian version of "Thriller": <a target="_blank" title="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtJRNyPK-lc" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtJRNyPK-lc">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtJRNyPK-lc</a> Surely I've told you that there existed in my post-divorce head for many years this narrative about my selfishness, immaturity, and the poor victim that my ex-husband was, and that one of the kindest gifts anybody ever gave me was a re-tooling of this narrative from a friend who knew me at the time of dating and dropping out of the Great Books School to marry the man, which, if it didn't entirely absolve me reminded me that there were other versions of the story. (Reminds me to ask: Do I watch <em>Lagaan</em> or <em>Rashomon</em> tonight? ) If your DSL issues are not soon resolved, I may have to resort to drastic, telephonic measures.... • <em>Editor</em>: Well, <em>Lagaan</em> is like three and a half hours long, but it's a hoot; whereas <em>Rashomon</em> just <em>seems</em> interminable, and interminably beautiful; and is Not a Hoot. Or you could call my cell instead! ;o) Oh, for months husband and older sons giggled and guffawed at bhangra videos which had been homophonically transcribed in English: thus http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZA1NoOOoaNw and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fSpI4oZoDc not to mention the Indian version of “Thriller”: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtJRNyPK-lc

Surely I’ve told you that there existed in my post-divorce head for many years this narrative about my selfishness, immaturity, and the poor victim that my ex-husband was, and that one of the kindest gifts anybody ever gave me was a re-tooling of this narrative from a friend who knew me at the time of dating and dropping out of the Great Books School to marry the man, which, if it didn’t entirely absolve me reminded me that there were other versions of the story. (Reminds me to ask: Do I watch Lagaan or Rashomon tonight? )

If your DSL issues are not soon resolved, I may have to resort to drastic, telephonic measures….

•

Editor: Well, Lagaan is like three and a half hours long, but it’s a hoot; whereas Rashomon just seems interminable, and interminably beautiful; and is Not a Hoot.

Or you could call my cell instead! ;o)

]]>