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MAY: The Animals

#124: Oct. - Dec. 2013 (Non-Fiction)
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Chris OConnor

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MAY: The Animals

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The Consolations of the Forest: Alone in a Cabin on the Siberian Taiga
Sylvain Tesson

MAY: The Animals
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Re: MAY: The Animals

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OK, my first laugh is with his comment on the best way to kill a moment is to feel obliged to take a picture! I've been to 4 weddings this year with #5 coming up the end of December. The camera flashes during the ceremony are so rude in their intrusion, nothing should take notice away from the ceremony. The receptions are filled with smart phone photographers anxious to make memories as seen through the keyhole. I can only imagine how many out of focus or uninteresting pictures and video clips are trashed as soon as reviewed the next day - and after all the frenzied effort!
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Re: MAY: The Animals

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I have come to understand why tesson wanted to truly experience Siberia which means spending time there during winter. The daily work to stay warm and fed, the hikes that challenge mentally and physically, the time to tackle Kierkegaard and Camus - all strong and hardy stuff. He not only survived those 4 freezing months but at times seemed to thrive.
Which is why I expected the start of spring would seem like nirvana, but he talks of the Lake suffering and that Nature is depressed. I was thrown by this. I see spring as nature shrugging off the snow and ice, the lake returning to a liquid state, animals stretching out of hibernation, life becoming more obvious. I suspect that he is superimposing his own feelings here.
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