Sunday, May 18, 2008 A "Flights of Fancy" 9:56am Last Thursday, when we came home, Julia took note of the spotlighted Ganesh on our bookshelf:

He looks a bit precarious, there, not well grounded. Part of that may be trick of the light, but part of that is because he is perched precariously. It suggests that being balanced and grounded isn't always easy. Oh, we need the stern rationality, the sobriety, the responsible work ethic, the healthy skepticism, the stability, or we will have a very troubled life, indeed. But sometimes we need flights of fancy. And in this photo, Ganesh looks as if he's about to take a flight. He will not be bound to earth like a prisoner, he will lift up, and of course settle himself somewhere else for a while. Sunday, May 18, 2008 B "Flight of Fancy II" 4:56am Monday, May 19, 2008 "Flight III" 7:30am Julia tells me I have channeled the spirit of Babar who I found at Wikipedia (artist Jean de Brunhoff) I never read the stories, they sound cute... Wednesday, May 21, 2008 A "Flight IV" 6:45am In the children's story, Babar took his flight with less precautions than I. He was not 'wanded'. I'd forgotten about a foil package in my pocket. The sensor, however, didn't. But as a neat synchronicity, _Animal Planet_ is on the TV in the room in which the inspected wait. What do I see? Elephants! Earth bound elephants, but elephants, I take this as a good omen. Wednesday, May 21, 2008 B "Arrival" 7:48pm (NYC time) I have arrived in Manhattan. The hotel room is tiny, but nicely decorated. There is a TV which at least gets PBS. (Animal Planet turned up only gray static.) There is also a phone and an elevator, so I don't mind being on the seventh floor.

9:57pm

I miss Julia. She won't be here, tromping the Met with me. Earlier, she said as we watched the Learning Company's lecture set on the Met museum, that this was her perferred way to see it, all neatly condensed and no sore feet! And sore feet we did get in DC, tromping the Smithsonian's museums. But I want that face to face experience. I deeply appreciate the web and TV's ability to bring some of these things home to me. But sometimes it is good to venture forth to meet them.

Scanned from my Moleskine trip journal...

That was inspired by PBS program "Lord of the Ants", about E.O. Wilson, who studied ants very closely. Also, I saw more elephants tonight! The National Geographic program "Wild Chronicles" showed how those studying rhinos ride elephants to see above the tall elephant grass which hides rhinos. Also, I learned elephants communicate by low frequency vibrations which the receivers sense through the soles of their feet.

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