Excellent reading list. “Ivan Ilyich” is only about 100 pages long, and I don’t want to give away the ending, but the last sentence… wow. So simple, but so overwhelming.
I agree absolutely about Walden. I keep a copy of it along with Keats poetry because oI can open either and completely change my perspective. Also, with Thoreau, I compare the liking of it to “a” (non-specific) song you heard. Maybe you didn’t really like it at first, but the more you hear it, the better it gets. It’s too complex (layered) for one reading (listening).
P.S. I also use the George Carlin trick when 'm really stuck on fine art or illustration work.
Like for example, just in your First quote: Thoreau uses the word “front”, not “confront”. That is something you won’t really make the distinction of until you think a little. It removes the tension from the act [of facing ones own place in the world].
Same with Keats (I think tuberculosis too, but maybe emphysema?). That’s why you know the emotion in it is true. It’s a person writing for themselves because they feel they have something to say but couldn’t until confronted with the worst personal news possible.
‘‘The willow which bends to the tempest, often escapes better than the oak which resists it; and so in great calamities, it sometimes happens that light and frivolous spirits recover their elasticity and presence of mind sooner than those of a loftier character.’’
Ford Prefect explaining the effects of going into hyperspace to Arthur Dent - “It’s unpleasant, it’s like being drunk” “What’s so unpleasant about that?” “You ask a glass of water”.
Measure once, cut long.
Test fit, measure again, trim shorter.
Repeat until fit is correct, then install.
That sounds a bit smartassy, but I spent all my spare time over about 10 weeks of this Summer single-handedly building a deck on the back of my house, and there’s nothing worse than cutting too short. I don’t build for a living, or even a hobby, and I found the inconsistencies of dimensional lumber make measuring and cutting correctly extremely important and sometimes frustrating. Intentionally cutting long to facilitate a test-fit-then-adjust workflow became an extremely valuable approach, especially while building the railing.
I wish I could put my hands on the exact quote, but Lee Clow said something along the lines of “When writing copy, measure once and cut twice. Thrice if necessary.”
