So much for my first flu vaccination in 25 years...
However the holiday weekend hasn't been completely wasted. I have read Floating Worlds: The letters of Edward Gorey and Peter F. Neumeyer and I am now rereading Ascending Peculiarity.
Imagine receiving these in the mail...
Nothing more to say...
Posts
Aren't they gorgeous! It makes me want to design a pretty envelope. :)
ReplyDeleteNo more flu vacs for you!!!! Get stuck into those herbs. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a buzz for the postman!! I hope he got some pleasure from them. I just think they are AMAZING. Love the little dark creature.
ReplyDeleteHow about you design a pretty envelope and send it to me Niki - cheer me up.
So sorry to know you're under the weather. Did the flu vaccine give you the flu? Get well soon---though there is something wonderful and cozy about being sick enough to stay home but not sick enough to keep you from reading a good book under a quilt with a nice cup of tea. Hope you are that kind of sick, not the other kind :-)
ReplyDeleteHave long admired the art of Edward Gorey--and books of letters---so I'm off to the bookstore to find this one. Do you know 84 Charing Cross Road? Another favorite of mine. Not to mention the one that is waiting by my front door to be dropped in the post to you!
I am so glad to find someone else who admires Gorey's art. I don't think he is well known in NZ. When I first came across him a few years aso I was intrigued by the drawings and also very curious about the man who could produce them. The letters offer real insight into (I think) a charming, complex man whose work has been unfairly, simplistically, labelled 'macabre'. 'Floating Worlds' is worth getting for the envelope drawings alone but the letters are fascinating.
ReplyDeleteThere is a real act of generosity in the writing of a letter (especially today when so much writing is for general public consumption rather than tailored to an individual recipient). To have a envelope so beautifully, quirkily illustrated just says to me that the sender is not only clever but thoughtful, mindful of others...
I don't think the vaccine gave me the flu Deb. I guess I must just have a variety not covered by the vaccine. It is beginning to sound a bit like whooping cough...
Hope this blue sky day is making you feel better. Do you know the work of NZer Graham Percy?
ReplyDeleteGregory O'Brien has written a lovely book A micronaut in the wide world which showcases his work and you might enjoy it.
Is it black whimsy like black humour?
I first learned of Edward Gorey when I worked in a bookstore---we used to drool over any of his works that came across the desk---I remember one little book of Gorey humor we all loved---it was a happy day when Masterpiece Theater paired his art with their theme song---Wonder if that's where he got the macabre reputation--his name doesn't help :-)
ReplyDeleteAnd yes re: handwritten letters---it's a dying art---and I'm one of the perpetrators!
Yes Deb, I do know 84 Charing Cross Road but it's a VERY long time since I read it!
ReplyDeleteMarion, no, I don't know Graham Percy - will follow up on that recommendation thanks.
On radio this morning was a discussion about Postcards and the liklihood of not making them any more since only 3% of people use them now .. seems like the same could be said for handwritten letters as well ? The chance of such unique and therefore special envelopes will also dwindle. That is sad and part of our modern world. Hope you much better now Jane .. Niki and Amber not too flash today. Take care.
ReplyDeleteThanks PG :-)
ReplyDeleteI love buying postcards when I am travelling.
May pick up on your comment about letters in my next post...
I hear Niki is a bit better today - hope you are all keeping warm!!!
We were somewhere and bought one to send to Debs to show her what parts of NZ are like .. so they are good for that :) Yes we (Niki) getting through a LOT of wood ! :)
ReplyDeleteGet well soon, kiwi friends! Will LOVE NZ post cards. We met some people on our trip to china who never take a camera on trips and only buy post cards to remember their trips by. Said they'd rather enjoy the sights with naked eye and buy photos of the professionals.
ReplyDeleteI think it's possible, especially with a digital camera, to see new places ONLY through the camera lens. It's hard to explain, but it's as though we let the camera dictate what we see. So busy framing the next shot that we don't just relax and take in the whole. So I understand your friends Deb.
ReplyDeleteI have some old p/cs of Governors Bay - part of 'the Book' project. Collecting old p/cs seems to be quite a thing now; they can sell for goodly prices...
I can imagine those "before the quake" photos are quite valuable. And yes, I think I see more when I sit outside without a camera. It's just that it makes for a more interesting blogpost if illustrated, somehow. Example: I could never have imagined the face of that character in your bold and beautiful post---or the beauty of that donkey face.
ReplyDeleteAnd .. if a picture paints a thousand words (then why can't I paint you ) .. then you save a lot of writing time too. :) The brackets are from a song.
ReplyDeleteMore hidden talents... ;-)
ReplyDelete