Weird Questions
I gave my friend Adrian these questions (except for the last which I've changed) and he gave me some magnificent answers. If anyone else would care to answer them I'd love to hear them.
1. What is the Book Whisperer?
2. Why can I smell when it is going to snow?
3. Tell me about a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
4. How can I get a memory out of my head?
5. Where is Shallowland and what lives there?
6. Who is the man that lives inside the sun?
7. When did you first know who you were?
8. Why do gnats fly in spirals and never hit each other?
9. What is love?
10. How can I capture a free spirit?
Over the next few days, before I go to France on Wednesday, I am going to try answering my questions myself. I am going to allow myself just 15 minutes to respond and whatever I write during this time will be posted up here after I come back on Friday.
1. What is the Book Whisperer?
2. Why can I smell when it is going to snow?
3. Tell me about a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
4. How can I get a memory out of my head?
5. Where is Shallowland and what lives there?
6. Who is the man that lives inside the sun?
7. When did you first know who you were?
8. Why do gnats fly in spirals and never hit each other?
9. What is love?
10. How can I capture a free spirit?
Over the next few days, before I go to France on Wednesday, I am going to try answering my questions myself. I am going to allow myself just 15 minutes to respond and whatever I write during this time will be posted up here after I come back on Friday.
posted by Clare Dudman at 6:01 pm
25 Comments:
Hello Clare
I will have a go at this. By the way, you've won a prize!
Best, Jonathan
Hi,
I found the questions very interesting so I will try to answer my best.
1. I don't know
2. I would say that to be able to smell when it is going to snow is a unique feeling to those who are able to.
3. a world without no ideas would be an empty world or a world where there would be no intelligent spirit, probably the gold fish wouldn't have any idea in its bowl.
4. Maybe you could use your heart, I recently learned at the university that they found neurons in the heart which work like those from the brain and they exchange informations together, so if you can't get a memory out of your head you might find a way how to get it from the heart it would work with the feeling and the emotions.
5. The place where only poets can hear you scream.
6. He is the same person but has been given different names in different countries: Ra, Amun, Hou Yi, Helios, Sol, Elijah, etc...
7. Can you know yourself ?
8. Maybe they don't move from their spiral or when they move they maybe do it all at the same time.
9. a very strong affective feeling
10. No one can.
Love these answers, Angie! Particularly 4, 6 and 7. Really, really interesting.
some of these really require some thought.
1. I read your piece earlier and am totally biased after your beautiful story.
2. because the air is really heavy with moister and its cold. If its to cold the moister goes away and takes the smell and snow with it.
3.I am think clinical exaustem because it leads to apathy, and apathy is my enemy.
4.Some people were telling me something I did once as a pre-teen and I still didnt remember, but a lot of times, scents will make me remember. also movies or outfits that I was wearing will make me recall. hmmm...or books, could the book whisperer do that, whisper a random book like You were reading this when this happened.
5.Shalowland hides down deep inside and is characterized by the brave resistance fighters and the urban plastics.
6.I am sure he is a french pastry chef.
7. maybe when my dad died
8.because its their duty in life to make fly cyclones with which to terrorize us with and bop around our homes.
9. after a bunch of thoughts my first inclanation was an eternal bond that never dies.
10. catch thier imagination.
between wine and all this thinking I wore myself out...must sleep.
Susangalique: Thank you for answering my questions. I think your answers are both poignant and unique. I particularly like 6, 7 and 8. 6 is quirky, 7 is true and 8 is funny.
Oh, yes, and I forgot - I took put that answer back into edits because I had second thoughts and thought I'd leave this up here for a few days as latest post to see if other people answer too.
1. The one in the library who guides your hand unerringly to the book you never knew you needed.
2. The cloud-elves chip away at the snow flakes to make their symmetrical shapes: the fragments they drop are too small to see but we can smell them.
3. It was actually built leading away from that world: depressingly, the direction to that world is more worn.
4. Ask the memory to buy you flowers on a certain day in a certain year. It will forget, and so will you.
5. In the Shallowland at the boundary of the sea and the sky and the sand live the happiest fish in the world, because they have a little bit of everything but not too much.
6. Someone who longed to be at the centre of everything, got his wish, and found it less to his liking than he had imagined.
7. When my horizon shrank to the surface of my skin.
8. Because they are exceptionally polite: slow down the buzzing and you can hear them. "After you, Ingantius." ""No, no: after you Nathaniel."
9. The egg from which all that is worthwhile is born.
10. Let it capture you, and you will live with it: capture it, and it will wither in your hand.
Enjoy France! (I like your quirky questions - a good way to jump-start creativity.)
Thank you mysterious anonymous person. Fantastic replies - but I thought 6 particularly clever.
Oh, I love these - have pinched them to pass on......
Oh, great stuff Minx, please do...
And Lee: thank you (was going to write that last time I was here, but forgot).
This comment has been removed by the author.
1. What is the Book Whisperer?
A type of fish
2. Why can I smell when it is going to snow?
Because smell is one of the senses of the typical human
3. Tell me about a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
Thre is a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
4. How can I get a memory out of my head?
With a blunt object
5. Where is Shallowland and what lives there?
A place known as a television
6. Who is the man that lives inside the sun?
Mr Hot
7. When did you first know who you were?
Before the Flood
8. Why do gnats fly in spirals and never hit each other?
BEcause they have no mass
9. What is love?
Infinite
10. How can I capture a free spirit?
You can't
Interesting questions and my own immediate answers, off the top of my head:
1. What is the Book Whisperer?
One who quietly enthuses and passes on good book news by word of mouth.
2. Why can I smell when it is going to snow?
Nothing of significance invades the nostrils when it comes to imminent snow so you notice the lack of aroma; the sense of hearing takes over and all is eerily silent...
3. Tell me about a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
It's called Hollywood Boulevard and it consists of the II, III and IV follow ups to an originally very successful movie.
4. How can I get a memory out of my head?
By playing some music that you know will evoke another memory to push the current one out. Or by immersing yourself in a novel.
5. Where is Shallowland and what lives there?
The end of a puddle in my garden with all sorts of small creatures including slugs and snails.
6. Who is the man that lives inside the sun?
The man who lives in the sun is actually a woman, but no one knows that yet.
7. When did you first know who you were?
Sometime after turning 40 when I also learned to live with myself and be really happy about myself. Although I also continue to surprise myself.
8. Why do gnats fly in spirals and never hit each other?
As "foreplay" to bees is flying in the figure eight, I'd guess it's something biological. Never hitting one another must be a "survival of the species" fail-safe as gnats seem to be doing rather well. Hold that intake of breath while passing through...
9. What is love?
Pure, forgiving, admiring, respecting and adoring emotion for another living being or something inanimate.
10. How can I capture a free spirit?
No chance of capture but you can join the free spirit on the ride and enjoy the experience and the time you have. And just perhaps, you may find they enjoy your company so much it becomes a season ticket and not a one way, one journey deal.
Andrew: 1 out of 10 - which is rubbish, frankly. Too much Macbeth in my opinion - though I thought your post on the subject very funny.
CFR's effort, however, is superlative and wins special merit because she manages to get in a reference to slugs and snails - which always cheers a Hodmandod's heart.
Oh well, it is not my day then ! We just had a snail party that the firemen organised in my village so i won't cheers a Hodmandod's heart before a long time with this (but the snails were really good !)
If you ever figure out that 'when did you first know who you were' thing, that would be a good one to share... I've been working on it for a long time!
CONGRATULATIONS on the awards at The Shameless Lions Writing Circle!
Scarlett & Viaggiatore
I put my heart & soul into that, Clare. How dare you. I presume the 1 was for Mr Hot.
I wish more people would answer these questions. I am curious to hear more answers.
1. What is the Book Whisperer?
A flower pressed within the pages.
2. Why can I smell when it is going to snow?
Not sure I can but when it does snow again I will sniff.
3. Tell me about a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
I couldn’t lead anyone up the garden path.
4. How can I get a memory out of my head?
Kiss some one (appropriately to avoid trouble or offence!)
5. Where is Shallowland and what lives there?
I read this as shadowland being dyslexic so wasted a lot of time answering that one!
6. Who is the man that lives inside the sun?
They call him a cool dude in the USA.
7. When did you first know who you were?
Probably in the bath! (typical male response, sorry.)
8. Why do gnats fly in spirals and never hit each other?
I will admit this problem has not worried me much up to now, but as you ask I will give it some thought.
The swallows that visit my studio yard every summer travel at high speeds within inches of my head and have not hit me or each other yet. It would be painful if one did.
Now Ingantius and Nathaniel would be like those drivers who let you go first and so cause no end of trouble in heavy traffic; no and it isn’t like the bats with their radar either. Could it be unrequited love or perhaps intoxication? Isn’t there an angel who looks after drunks and small children on the razzel?
I could bore you to tears with this one if I haven’t done so already.
9. What is love?
If it is right, wonderful.
10. How can I capture a free spirit?
If I knew I wouldn’t tell you, except to say Sculpt it.
Andrew: You didn't get a whole point for any one answer I'm afraid. Just 0.5 for the Mr Hot and 0.25 for the blunt object and television because you hadn't fully answered the question. There are exacting standards on this blog.
Angie: Yours were parfait too! Though am distressed to hear about the activities of the firemen in the village...though not too much he. Hope they tasted good.
Robert: Thank you for visiting - I feel honoured to be visited by a sculptor. Good answers and my favourite is No 10. Some secrets are much better unshared.
And Susangalique: Thank you for the mollusc on LJ.
Boy, 22 comments...
And finally I get around to fulfilling my pledge here.
Haven't read anyone else's responses yet. May have to comment again when I find time to do so...
1. What is the Book Whisperer?
From him sometimes comes a phrase to mind, just as one is waking up.
2. Why can I smell when it is going to snow?
Because we smell better when the atmosphere is serene.
3. Tell me about a road that leads to a world where there are no ideas.
The Road to the Land of Power.
4. How can I get a memory out of my head?
Build many more memories on top of this one.
5. Where is Shallowland and what lives there?
All around us ; anybody who doesn't doubt.
6. Who is the man that lives inside the sun?
It's a Woman.
7. When did you first know who you were?
The first time I fell with my bike and somebody laughed.
8. Why do gnats fly in spirals and never hit each other?
Because they are pacifists.
9. What is love?
Anything that we do out of love.
10. How can I capture a free spirit?
Capture yourself.
Great answers Gilles - my particular favourites are 2, 3 and 5. Merci bien!
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