Sunday polar bear
(Click on the image to go to Maria’s photoblog.)
Here’s a polar bear, snapped in a photo by my friend Maria Winter, medievalist and photographer extraordinaire. Maria was a classmate at the EHESS, and underwent 9am latin theme courses with me. She was one of the only other students who actually laughed during a latin reading now and then, and so I guess we were meant to be friends.
November 4th, 2007 at 2:55 pm
Hey, cool! Thx for linking me! I’m absolutely flattered!
Wasn’t really aware of the fact that I was the only one laughing in our early morning class. Was I really?
For those international readers who do not know the story of Knut, the little polar bear: His mother refused to feed little Knut and his twin brother. The brother died but Knut survived on bottle feeding and created a real mass hysteria in Germany and the surrounding countries. (They even made little marshmallow Knuts…) Now he has grown into a rather chubby teenage polar bear and the hysteria has calmed down. But he has inspired street art nonetheless…
For further details see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knut_%28polar_bear%29
November 4th, 2007 at 10:15 pm
“9am Latin theme courses”
Hmm…sounds like something you could have included in your map of hell cartoon.
November 7th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
Mmm. Marshmallow Knuts! I love this idea! Hey! Now you’ve got me thinking of Dominosteine! Dominosteine and Marshmallow Knuts. I’m going to have to look around for them now.
November 7th, 2007 at 7:00 pm
Actually, Ray, some mornings were hellish, but some of those texts were delightful. Particularly one where a monk drinks milk from the breast wound of Jesus on a crucifix that came to life and called to him. This, after an “extraordinary kiss.” I still remember our teacher asking if we got that, or if we wanted him to read it aloud to us again. I yelled “Oui!” And nobody laughed but me. Maybe Maria laughed if she was awake? Dunno! My ears perked up for hot mystical encounters every time! Come on, we’re being read religious porn, and nobody wants seconds?
November 7th, 2007 at 10:57 pm
I can see how a story like that one would linger in the mind! All I can say is, it’s good thing for the monk that he wasn’t lactose intolerant…talk about embarrassing.
November 10th, 2007 at 11:00 am
@Carolita:
I’m sure you can buy Dominosteine somewhere in N.Y.?
Thought of you when I saw a whole metre of Dominosteine in a shop recently…
November 10th, 2007 at 11:03 am
P.S.: As for the juicy bits in our early morning lectures – AFAIR I was quite amused as well, but you were the only one yelling out for an encore… ;-D
November 10th, 2007 at 8:02 pm