TS Eliot Quote from East Coker

In the middle, not only in the middle of the way but all the way, in a dark wood, in a bramble, on the edge of a grimpen, where is no secure foothold, and menaced by monsters, fancy lights, risking enchantment.

East Coker from The Four Quartets 

Quote from Revolution's Godchild

"to say a word about North Carolina -presumably a fresh topic here, the modest, conservative old State, lacking perhaps in enterprise, lacking in self-assertion, but always prompt at the call of duty, and shrinking from no sacrifice when honor is at stake". 

"I will conclude by asking the benefit of your aid and influence in my effort to restore North Carolina to her place in the Cincinnati; and I offer you a toast to our ancient and honorable Order, coupled with the hope that her galaxy may soon again be resplendent with all the thirteen stars."

Edward Graham Dave's 1894 July 4 Boston 

Chesterton on children's love of justice

Sometime ago I went with some children to see Maeterlinck's fine and delicate fairy play about the Blue Bird that brought everybody happiness. For some reason or other it did not being me happiness, and even the children were not quite happy. I will not go so far as to say that the Blue Bird was a Blue Devil, but it left us in something seriously like the blues. The children were party dissatisfied with it because it did not end with a Day of Judgment; because it was never revealed to the hero and heroine that the dog had been faithful and the cat faithless. For children are innocent and love justice; while most of us are wicked and naturally prefer mercy.

Authors and Books to Consider

http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Fiction

http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates/

G.K. Chesterton - Shrewd business tactics

"In the heart of a plutocracy tradesmen become cunning enough to be more fastidious than their customers.   They positively create difficulties so that their wealthy and weary clients may spend money and diplomacy in overcoming them.  If there were a fashionable hotel in London which no man could enter who was under six foot, society would meekly make up parties of six-foot men to dine in it.  If there were an expensive restaurant which by a mere caprice of its proprietor was only open on Thursday afternoon, it would be crowded on Thursday afternoon."  G.K. Chesterton (Father Brown - The Queer Feet)

N.D. Wilson -- Trouble Makers

The first time I posted this link it was to something else.  I think this will work now. 
http://www.canonwired.com/featured/trouble-makers/

Fruit, the Devil, and Texas

Today someone at work had an Osage Orange he brought from home.  The trees are native to Texas and have the highest BTU of any wood in this part of the world when burned.  It reminded me of an old Texan folk song called The Devil Made Texas.  Here's a link to the fruit and the song.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osage_orange

http://www.musicanet.org/robokopp/usa/devlmade.htm

A History of New York from the Beginning of the World to the End of the Dutch Dynasty

Stumbled across this in Smithsonian while waiting in the lobby of the dentist today.  I'll pile it up on all the other stuff I have linked to.

  http://books.google.com/books?id=1HoFAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false

On the Power of Sound

Here's a bit of poetry from William Wordsworth worth trying to figure out.  The ending is very thought provoking.

http://www.bartleby.com/145/ww746.html

humility

C.S. Lewis once said, "Humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less."

Paul's marks and the gospel of grace

Just finished reading Galatians tonight and was struck by Paul's closing statement: "From now one let no one cause me trouble, for I bear in my body the marks of the Jesus."  This is in contrast to those who want to boast about their "marks" of circumcision and adherence to the law in order to avoid the persecution that fell on those who professed the true gospel of salvation by faith and grace alone that Paul preached.

Paul had previously asked, "But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted?  In that case the offense of the cross has been removed."  And then followed by saying, "It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ."

Paul would rather suffer in his body for the righteousness by faith than endure a false gospel of man centered, works based righteousness.  "But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world."

Mark Twain: Ken Burns film

http://www.pbs.org/marktwain/

Mark Twain's learning about people

"During the two or two and a half years of my apprenticeship, I served under many pilots, and had experience of many kinds of steamboatmen and many varieties of steamboats; for it was not always convenient for Mr. Bixby to have me with him, and in such cases he sent me with somebody else.  I am to this day profiting somewhat by that experience; for in that brief, sharp schooling, I got personally and familiarly acquainted with about all the different types of human nature that are to be found in fiction, biography, or history.  The fact is daily borne in upon me, that the average shore-employment requires as much as forty years to equip a man with this sort of an education.  When I say I am still profiting by this thing, I do not mean that it has constituted me a judge of men--no, it has not done that; for judges of men are born, not made.  My profit is various in kind and degree; but the feature of it which I value most is the zest which that early experience has given to my later reading.  When I find a well-drawn character in fiction or biography, I generally take a warm personal interest in him, for the reason that I have known him before--met him on the river."  from Life on the Mississippi

--The pilots and characters that Twain describes in this book are indeed "well-drawn" and full of color.

Voyage of the Paper Canoe

Here's a travel journal from 1874 about a guy who paddled from Quebec to the Gulf of Mexico in a 16' paper canoe (he seems to have traded an 18' canoe for the paper one in NY).  Part of his journey took him inside the NC Outer Banks.  The NC section begins on page 88.  Fascinating stuff. 

http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=1444506&pageno=6

Early criminal transportation to the Carolinas

http://www.earlyamericancrime.com/convict-transportation/epilogue/epilogue

Adventures into the Tidewater Past

This is a must read for eastern North Carolinians or those attached to the region.  Check it out at Wake Co. Public Library.

http://wakeipac.co.wake.nc.us/ipac20/ipac.jsp?session=1PC58979M4347.67409&profile=wcpl&uri=link=3100006~!80608~!3100001~!3100002&aspect=basic&menu=search&ri=3&source=~!horizon&term=A+historian%27s+coast+%3A+adventures+into+the+Tidewater+past+%2F&index=ALLTITL

Reading Music

Found this on grooveshark.com this week.  Good for relaxing with a book or other meditative activities.

Legends from the NC Coast

Fascinating stories told by an old storyteller from eastern NC.

 http://books.google.com/books?id=zCK1I1407dcC&pg=PA19&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=4#v=onepage&q&f=false

Two Years Before the Mast -free online

A good  book. 
http://www.gutenberg.org/catalog/world/readfile?fk_files=1455294&pageno=8

French/Asian Fusion

I've been toying with the idea of a French-Asian restaurant.  The name Poodles and Noodles has a ring to it...