JabrWoky - Following the white rabbit since...

Coming Home

The concept of coming home is one that has become a part of our lives in these times when we are at the pinnacle of human migratory journeys. Wherever we move, for whatever reasons that may be, there is always that place called home. The place we were born or has a certain tie beyond rationale or emotions. We all have gone back to that home every now and then, some people more often than others. 

In the beautifully edited and crafted documentary ‘Heima’, the band Sigur Ros has captured their home coming in a special way that is true to the spirit of the band as well as Iceland - the country they call home. Visually stunning and hauntingly pulsating it is their special ode to their homeland.

Meanwhile in her new video called ‘Wanderlust’ the other Icelandic crooner Bjork has her own journey of the very act of coming into this world. Not since her ‘Human Condition’ video have we seen anything of this magnitude.

Icelandic storytelling at its best.

Story #5: Edison the Hustler

"One occasion when Edison cast off the expectations of others in his middle age was when he met Henry Stanley, of “Dr. Livingston, I presume” fame, and Stanley’s wife, who had come to visit him at his laboratory in West Orange, N.J. Edison provided a demonstration of the phonograph, which Stanley had never heard before. Stanley asked, in a low voice and slow cadence, “Mr. Edison, if it were possible for you to hear the voice of any man whose name is known in the history of the world, whose voice would you prefer to hear?”

“Napoleon’s,” replied Edison without hesitation.

“No, no,” Stanley said piously, “I should like to hear the voice of our Savior.”

“Well,” explained Edison, “You know, I like a hustler.”

[Photograph and story from this New York Times article]

Story #4: Le Petit Julien

[Photo courtesy of Flickr member Jayna]

Story #3

         
This weekend's FT has a wonderful article which traces the history and idiosyncrasies of the Hong Kong dim sum ritual. The term 'dim sum' (which are the dumplings and other small eats served in a teahouse ritual) comes from the Cantonese dialect form of the Mandarin 'dian xin'. It is a curious term that defies direct English translation, but means something like "touch the heart". Its origin dates back to the Song Dynasty (AD960-1279) where historical sources mention it as a name for the snacks customarily served for breakfast.

Another interesting thing about a dim sum breakfast, that we foreigners don't probably notice much, is the fact that it has its own particular little table mannerisms. Like you may thank your host for pouring tea into your cup by tapping your index and middle fingers lightly on the table.

This practice is said to date back to the 18th century, when Emperor Quinlong went on a fact-finding mission to the south of China. The actual story goes like this:

"Travelling incognito, as emperors sometimes did in those days, in an attempt to understand what was really going on in China, he dropped in on a teahouse with his small retinue. When the emperor poured them some tea, his footmen were flustered because palace etiquette dictated that they knew they should not give away his disguise. So they tapped their two fingers on the table as a miniature form of prostration, laying the foundations of a habit still common in Cantonese communities all over the world."

Story#2

 

Stumbled on this story from the Greek mythology, while reading Salman Rushdie's essay collection 'Step Across This Line: Collected Non-Fiction 1992-2002':

"The Greeks tell many stories of quarrels between us and the gods. Arachne, the great artist of the loom, sets her skills of weaving and embroidery against those of the goddess of wisdom herself, Minerva or Pallas Athena; and impudently chooses to weave versions of only those scenes that reveal the mistakes of the gods - the rape of Europa, Leda and the Swan. For this - for the irreverence, not for her lesser skill - for what we would now call art and chutzpah - the goddess changes her mortal rival into a spider."

Thus man began to share his space with the spider, which along the way turned into arachnophobia, much later hollywoodised on the celluloid screen in 'Arachnophobia'.          

Story#1

 

Here's a little story I read in The Hindu Sunday Magazine:

"There is a story that somewhere in a cave in France, a forgetful shepherdess left her meal of cheese behind in the cave. Days later when she passed by, she saw it sitting there with blue fuzz growing on it. Being adventurous or perhaps just hungry, she wiped the mould off and took a bite, and, voila! Blue cheese was born."