a jealous God
“Thou that hast seen in darkness and canst bring to light
The gems a jealous God has hidden from our sight,
Satan, have pity upon me in my deep distress!
Thou to whom all the secret arsenals are known
Where iron, where gold and silver, slumber, locked in stone,
Satan have pity upon me in my deep distress!”
—Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867), from The Litanies of Satan, translated by Edna St. Vincent Millay, 1936.
starbright, starbright
“Up there’s a heaven
Down there’s a town
Blackness everywhere and little lights shine
Oh, blackness, blackness dragging me down
Come on light the candle in this poor heart of mine
Oh starbright, starbright
You’ve got the lovin’ that I like, all right
Turn this crazy bird around
I shouldn’t have got on this flight tonight”
—Joni Mitchell, from This Flight Tonight, on the album Blue, 1971. Later covered in a rock ’n’ roll style by Nazareth.
a Chelsea morning
“Woke up, it was a Chelsea morning, and the first thing that I saw
Was the sun through yellow curtains, and a rainbow on the wall
Blue, red, green and gold to welcome you, crimson crystal beads to beckon
Oh, won’t you stay
We’ll put on the day
There’s a sun show every second”
—Joni Mitchell, from Chelsea Morning, 1969. A big hit for Judy Collins!
bad luck
“‘Bad luck,’ said I, ‘or what goes by that name, may now and then
tangle the affairs of any man. But if it persists beyond the estimate
of what we may call the “averages” there must be a cause for it.’
‘‘There is,’ said Kearny emphatically, ‘and when we walk another
square I will show it to you.’
Surprised, I kept by his side until we came to Canal Street and out
into the middle of its great width.
Kearny seized me by an arm and pointed a tragic forefinger at a
rather brilliant star that shone steadily about thirty degrees above
the horizon.
‘‘That’s Saturn,’ said he, ‘the star that presides over bad luck and
evil and disappointment and nothing doing and trouble. I was born
under that star. Every move I make, up bobs Saturn and blocks it. He’s
the hoodoo planet of the heavens. They say he’s 73,000 miles in
diameter and no solider of body than split-pea soup, and he’s got as
many disreputable and malignant rings as Chicago. Now, what kind of a
star is that to be born under’’. . .
‘’You see that ugly little red star about eight inches above and to
the right of Saturn’’ Kearny asked me. ‘Well, that’s her. That’s
Phoebe. She’s got me in charge. . . . Kearny shook his fist violently skyward. ‘Curse her, she’s done her work well,’ said he. ‘Ever since I was astrologized, bad luck has followed me like my shadow.’. . .”
—O. Henry (1862–1910), from Phoebe.
the house of dust
“Listen, my friend, this is the dream I dreamed last night. The heavens roared, and earth rumbled back an answer; between them stood I before an awful being, the sombre-faced man-bird; he had directed on me his purpose. His was a vampire face, his foot was a lion’s foot, his hand was an eagle’s talon. He fell on me and his claws were in my hair, he held me fast and I smothered; then he led me away to the palace of Irkalla, the Queen of Darkness, to the house from which none who enters ever returns, down the road from which there is no coming back.
There is the house whose people sit in darkness; dust is their food and clay their meat. They are clothed like birds with wings for covering, they see no light, they sit in darkness. I entered the house of dust and I saw the kings of the earth, their crowns put away for ever; rulers and princes, all those who once wore kingly crowns and ruled the world in the days of old.”
—Gilgamesh’s friend Enkidu, from The Epic of Gilgamesh, circa. 3000 BC, translated by N.K. Sandars, 1960.
am I to sleep, and let the earth cover my head for ever?
“The Man-Scorpion opened his mouth and said, speaking to Gilgamesh, ‘No man born of woman has done what you have asked, no mortal man has gone into the mountain; the length of it is twelve leagues of darkness; in it there is no light, but the heart is oppressed with darkness. From the rising of the sun to the setting of the sun there is no light.’ Gilgamesh said, ‘Although I should go in sorrow and in pain, with sighing and with weeping, still I must go. Open the gate of the mountain.’ And the Man-Scorpion said, ‘Go, Gilgamesh, I permit you to pass through the mountain of Mashu and through the high ranges; may your feet carry you safely home. The gate of the mountain is open.’
When Gilgamesh heard this he did as the Man-Scorpion had said, he followed the sun’s road to his rising, through the mountain. When he had gone one league the darkness became thick around him, for there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. After two leagues the darkness was thick and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. After three leagues the darkness was thick, and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. After four leagues the darkness was thick and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. At the end of five leagues the darkness was thick and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. At the end of six leagues the darkness was thick and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. When he had gone seven leagues the darkness was thick and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. When he had gone eight leagues Gilgamesh gave a great cry, for the darkness was thick and he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. After nine leagues he felt the north wind on his face, but the darkness was thick and there was no light, he could see nothing ahead and nothing behind him. After ten leagues the end was near. After eleven leagues the dawn light appeared. At the end of twelve leagues the sun streamed out.
There was the garden of the gods; all round him stood bushes bearing gems. Seeing it he went down at once, for there was fruit of carnelian with the vine hanging from it, beautiful to look at; lapis lazuli leaves hung thick with fruit, sweet to see. For thorns and thistles there were haematite and rare stones, agate, and pearls from out of the sea. While Gilgamesh walked in the garden by the edge of the sea Shamash [the sun god] saw him, and he saw that he was dressed in the skins of animals and ate their flesh. He was distressed, and he spoke and said, ‘No mortal man has gone this way before, nor will, as long as the winds drive over the sea.’ And to Gilgamesh he said, ‘You will never find the [eternal] life for which you are searching.’ Gilgamesh said to glorious Shamash, ‘Now that I have toiled and strayed so far over the wilderness, am I to sleep, and let the earth cover my head for ever’ Let my eyes see the sun until they are dazzled with looking. Although I am no better than a dead man, still let me see the light of the sun.”
—The Epic of Gilgamesh, circa. 3000 BC, translated by N.K. Sandars, 1960.
the couch of many colours
He had wisdom and a comely face, he will not come again;
He is gone into the mountain, he will not come again;
On the bed of fate he lies, he will not rise again,
From the couch of many colours he will not come again.
—lament for the death of Gilgamesh, the world’s last great ruler. From The Epic of Gilgamesh, circa. 3000 BC, translated by N.K. Sandars, 1960.
Why does Aurora Illinois hate color?
AURORA — If you still have your Christmas lights up, consider this your warning.
Aldermen approved a much-discussed ordinance Tuesday night that imposes deadlines and fines on those who choose to hang on to the holidays a little longer than most.
Popularly known as the Christmas light ordinance, the new law sets a 60-day grace period after holidays for residents to remove their seasonal decorations.
Those who don’t could face a fine of $50, and the same fee applies for those who hang up their lights 60 days in advance of a holiday. . . .
The ordinance is the brainchild of 2nd Ward Alderman Juany Garza, who could not be there to see it approved, as she was recovering from surgery. . . .
—Andre Salles from the article City: Take Down Those Christmas Lights at SuburbanChicagoNews.com, 3/01/06.
It smelled like turpentine and looked like India ink
She bent down and turned around and gave me a wink
She said, “I’m gonna mix it up right here in the sink”
It smelled like turpentine and looked like India ink
I held my nose, I closed my eyes, I took a drink.
—Love Potion #9, written by Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller in 1959.
a blue word
“Early in its history, blue acquired symbolic meanings which are diametrically opposed. As the color of the clear sky and of the sea (both good), it came to be the symbol of purity, of fidelity, of staunchness, and of faith, and, by symbolic extension, it was chosen as one of the colors of the Virgin. Perhaps simultaneously (since both extremes involve morality and seem to be connected with the Christian religion), a flame which burned blue came to be associated with the flames of burning brimstone and therefore of hell; such a flame, quite logically, was regarded by the superstitious as an omen of death or other evil or was believed to indicate the presence of ghosts or evil spirits or of the devil himself. From these beliefs, it seems probable, developed blue-blazes, meaning hell, and such statements as “he talked blue” and “he made the air blue,” meaning, respectively, “He talked obscenely” and “He cursed and swore”: cursing or sinful talk would evoke evil spirits or the devil, whose sulphurous presence would cause flames to burn blue. Such talk, again logically, although this is admittedly conjecture, would become blue talk, and an oath or a curse a blue word.”
—Joseph P. Roppolo in American Speech, Vol. XXVII, No. 1, as quoted in Heavens to Betsy! and Other Curious Sayings by Charles Earle Funk, 1955.