tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post9105902087836675087..comments2024-03-20T16:46:13.343-04:00Comments on Marly Youmans / The Palace at 2:00 a.m. / poems, stories, novels: The House of Words (no. 2): To persist or not to persistMarly Youmanshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02377938366750387442noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-79745246980251652082011-03-25T09:30:07.851-04:002011-03-25T09:30:07.851-04:00Yes, I like that idea. And I also like the idea th...Yes, I like that idea. And I also like the idea that women lavished so much care and attention on things that were, ultimately, ephemeral--meant for use or the glorification of the ordinary, a gift that would embrace family.<br /><br />We still have a few women here who do church needlework as well, and I like that idea,too--glorification by the needle.marly youmanshttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-22647180177146029952011-03-24T21:47:48.441-04:002011-03-24T21:47:48.441-04:00the object, may last generations before crumbling....the object, may last generations before crumbling. but when mother teaches daughter who in turn teaches daughter or cousin or niece or friend of a friend who in turn shows another...it lasts forever and ever.zephyrhttp://www.thegarden.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-80303717058067364912011-03-24T20:35:47.842-04:002011-03-24T20:35:47.842-04:00Yes, it is an interesting form of craft work becau...Yes, it is an interesting form of craft work because it beautifies the world but has a shelf life and won't last forever... That is, won't last as long as many things. I suppose even mountains and La Gioconda will become dust, after all.marlyhttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-8147450443692378682011-03-24T18:45:59.915-04:002011-03-24T18:45:59.915-04:00Yes, Marly...every time i sit down by my nice, bri...Yes, Marly...every time i sit down by my nice, bright lamp i think of all my women ancestors who did that incredible work with tiny stitches or tatting or crochet hooks with gossamer threads by candle or firelight in winter...or sitting on the front stoop in summer. It is the strongest tie i feel with them...this love of working threads.zephyrhttp://www.thegarden.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-10453114644333310412011-03-24T16:23:29.664-04:002011-03-24T16:23:29.664-04:00zephyr,
An interesting set of congruences there, ...zephyr,<br /><br />An interesting set of congruences there, zephyr! And I am glad to know that a zephyr would not only waft over a garden but also write about it!<br /><br />I come from needleworkers (and my mother also has a brand new 4-harness loom that she is happily using.) So I have a lot of sympathy for that form of creativity--it has been an outlet for women for hundreds and hundreds of Marly Youmanshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02377938366750387442noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-37405547571701490302011-03-24T12:33:39.374-04:002011-03-24T12:33:39.374-04:00i became very happy "giving in" to "...i became very happy "giving in" to "just" being a garden writer for our little local daily. And yes, it is wonderful meeting people who read my stuff and are (gasp) fans. The job brought other little jobs that pay a few more peanuts.<br /><br />i would add one other little bit of counsel to If/when giving up: steel yourself for the "I told you so" type of comments zephyrhttp://www.thegarden.typepad.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-73467848130433423112011-03-24T09:57:33.317-04:002011-03-24T09:57:33.317-04:00Drat, that was NOT JIN! That was me, MARLY! And so...Drat, that was NOT JIN! That was me, MARLY! And so is this. So confusing having so many people popping about the house and computer and so on... but fun.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15356329682997796452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-5854997125748931872011-03-24T09:56:09.614-04:002011-03-24T09:56:09.614-04:00marja-leena,
Just yesterday I made a resolution t...marja-leena,<br /><br />Just yesterday I made a resolution to go by your blog more often!<br /><br />Yes, I think that to some extent when one talks about the issues in one sort of art it applies to all. But the nitty-gritty of distribution and such things is often different, particularly when the thing must be packaged in some way.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15356329682997796452noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-31862622213034694552011-03-23T23:53:50.945-04:002011-03-23T23:53:50.945-04:00Marly, I read this with great delight. I often bem...Marly, I read this with great delight. I often bemoan my inability to write well, with that certain extra touch that good writers like you have, yet with an unique voice. Wehn I read this kind of thing about writers I tend to substitute 'visual artist' for 'writer' in my mind. This time it didn't always work for I suppose it's true that having something visual to show to marja-leenahttp://www.marja-leena-rathje.infonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-78972203094388103002011-03-23T21:26:08.536-04:002011-03-23T21:26:08.536-04:00And that's just the ones who paused to leave a...And that's just the ones who paused to leave a note... All over the world, people were reading, and no doubt some of them were perfectly fascinating! Mysteries all. One of the intriguing things about the web, looking at the stats and wondering.marly youmanshttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-79824279927963379592011-03-23T19:48:57.230-04:002011-03-23T19:48:57.230-04:00Nice to know that everyone is out there, thinking,...Nice to know that everyone is out there, thinking, writing, and doing what they do.Robbi N.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04881145195435485238noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-56225972186043301872011-03-23T14:34:58.951-04:002011-03-23T14:34:58.951-04:00Susanna,
Yes, she is a very interesting person. (...Susanna,<br /><br />Yes, she is a very interesting person. (So are you, Miss Lively Unspeller-Historian-Librarian.) I e-met her after she carried "Catherwood" in her catalogue. Some day I would like to meet everybody I know in this way at a big, splendid party. <br /><br />The things you have been finding are a gift to your city. Good work!<br /><br />Hah, hah! I prefer not to describe marlyhttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-42321245580328424182011-03-23T14:16:37.740-04:002011-03-23T14:16:37.740-04:00You know the neatest people Marly. I will have to ...You know the neatest people Marly. I will have to check out her website. <br /><br />All I seem to do is keep my diary and produce academic articles and even doing that requires persistance. I have three things that some of my research has illuminated. I uncovered a murder of a Civil Rights leader in my city and in the 1960s and all this cool stuff about integration. People always think that Susannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04419802372495554966noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-26749012471824364372011-03-23T11:23:42.464-04:002011-03-23T11:23:42.464-04:00Gary,
Agreed! Think I'm going to have to end ...Gary,<br /><br />Agreed! Think I'm going to have to end this series with a "Best of comments" post or two...<br /><br />That was enlightening--and of course I don't remember that moment in class or even who did what. I do remember that aside from one in particular, my best students were not the graduate students but the advanced English majors. I'm glad that I still get to marly youmanshttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-64436343818044109132011-03-23T11:08:22.151-04:002011-03-23T11:08:22.151-04:00Paul,
Okay, so we shall say you are a composer-ph...Paul,<br /><br />Okay, so we shall say you are a composer-photographer-bespoke-framemaker who occasionally writes a poem? Or is a writer simply a person writing? And then we get into the writer vs. author business, etc. Thank you for that! And I think the thought is right as well.<br /><br />A lot of artists need the carrot of encouragement. Maybe all writers. That is, they need the carrot of marly youmanshttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-89203202972130842082011-03-23T11:05:14.614-04:002011-03-23T11:05:14.614-04:00"Is a plumber's life or a businessperson&..."Is a plumber's life or a businessperson's life intrinsically more interesting than a writer's life?"<br /><br />I posit that a writer's life is a Venn diagram of roles. A plumber and a businessperson and role XYZ and a writer can all intersect quite successfully. If you decide that you are "only a writer" and have no other life, I argue that you have less a Gary Dietzhttp://www.6by7reports.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-51013348874824027662011-03-23T10:59:39.322-04:002011-03-23T10:59:39.322-04:00I believe that most artists (in all genres) have a...I believe that most artists (in all genres) have a need to communicate and that that need is a far more essential component in the creative process than many like to admit. <br />How to communicate to the widest possible audience? And eat whist doing so? Well, that explains publishers, galleries, and Sony. <br />It is the broadcasting that throws such a heavy shadow over creativity sometimes, Paul Digbynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-58706099803801625852011-03-23T09:56:44.315-04:002011-03-23T09:56:44.315-04:00Hmm, don't think I need to add to that little ...Hmm, don't think I need to add to that little discussion. I will just say, "Very interesting!"<br /><br />Although I must add that I don't think that I would ever become accustomed to life at the end of a bungee cord...marly youmanshttp://www.marlyyoumans.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-8398437098072672592011-03-23T09:52:08.001-04:002011-03-23T09:52:08.001-04:00Robbi, I tend to define "interesting" as...Robbi, I tend to define "interesting" as "providing fodder for writing," and for many of us, I think that fodder comes from the time before we chained ourselves to our desks more or less full-time. I think of Philip Levine, who spent a few years working in a steel plant, and then the next few decades writing poems about it.Davehttp://www.vianegativa.usnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11539948.post-27653085113142748742011-03-23T09:44:09.811-04:002011-03-23T09:44:09.811-04:00Marly,
While it is true that from our perspective,...Marly,<br />While it is true that from our perspective, a writer's life is pretty boring, it is also true that she who writes the history gets to decide what is interesting, and that is why there have been so many wonderful and vital books that feature writers, though it is true it is not the writing they focus on. As Borges noted, there is another me that lives in me, with me, beside me, butRobbi N.https://www.blogger.com/profile/04881145195435485238noreply@blogger.com