Monday, December 20, 2010

The Events of 10/15/10 - 10/18/10 - Chapter 3








October 15, 2010


William -  (writing as Susan)   I bumped past the cutouts toward the door to the veranda. Whack!!! I found myself on my ass again as I ran straight into...what? Same damn thing that kept me out of here to begin with. "Freaking Bloody Hell!!!." I was seriously messed up. Picking myself off the floor I started the routine I used outside; moving my hands over the area of the open door, then the windows. "Not good, not good." I ran back to the front door but It wasn't open anymore; at least in the normal sense.
"Don't panic" I told myself, "Susan, don't panic." "This isn't any different than the time..."
Well, I couldn't think of a time, in fact I couldn't remember anything before this climb. I remembered a long uphill walk; in my red cowboy boots. I remember sitting in the sidewalk cafe waiting for the latte to cool.... the waiter handing me the end of a red rope.....
I glance wistfully at my feet encased in blue furry mukluks, turn and begin to take inventory.
"Crap; W.E is building tsuff again." Lots of it. The studio wasn't messy in the sense of a natural disaster. It was a controlled chaos like looking inside the mess of a tornado. There was a pattern but still a damned mess.
Time to inventory. Starting in the small kitchen alcove mostly because I was suddenly hungry I began to open the cabinets. I open the first.
Filled with cans, most of them with no labels. "Typical", I shout back at the smiling cutouts.
I open another to find three cans.
Labels this time; Campbells soup; three varieties: "Think", "Don't Think" and "Don't Believe What You Think"



William's Pantry - Think - Don't Think - Don't Believe What You Think soup varieties

Ria said, "I had one like this once.... not long ago, but I can't recall just where, or when. Wait! Oh! It's Big Blue's glove, yes!
Do you know what I'm talking about?" "I do.. I think. We saw one when.. Oh, I'm muddled again-- shoot I... need something to drink... do you have your canteen?" Ria checked her belt, found it shook it gently. "It's empty."

Mara  - "Put the map and glove down here on this boulder. Let's try every orientation and position mathematically possible to combine these into a piece." 


We leave Mara and Ria shifting the objects around looking, if you'd asked any child, like a couple of ancient crones, divining the future.


Susan -  Then what should I be thinking. I was getting flabbergasted in this game of hide-and-seek and very extremely hungry. I started to inspect every part of his pantries. On a worn wooden ledge full of cut marks I discovered notes stamped with ...Bill’s monkey chop. Paws and faces were everywhere. I looked carefully at the fibers embedded within the deckle edged sheets. They were sparkling from an odd mix of glowing metallic colors. As I was pondering about if the gold flakes were real and looking around for an X-Acto knife to pry some out, I noticed a four panel Moorish room divider peeking out from behind the cutouts. It was comprised of minute white and cobalt blue tiles intricately forming octagons with patterns of tiny blue squirrels within them. I see, the number eight again. I will take a photo of that with my macro-digitizer to show Mara. She always knows how to interpret these symbols. Coming slowly into view behind the partition was a stained blender on an oak washstand table next to a vintage porcelain bathtub with brass claw feet (perhaps the tub he uses for his midnight surfing). I think Bill was transforming all those soup labels into pulp and creating his own paper. Aha, it all fits, Bill is an alchemist. I must get out of here immediately and warn the others. I think he is after the peradams. “Ok, don’t jump to conclusions. I know Bill or the three dimensional version of him and if anything he is always trying to save the universe with a new invention. Pacing back and forth watching from the corner of my green eyes at the cutouts for fear they moved I detected a loophole!” I can finally escape from this smoke and mirrors workshop.

Mara - “Oh I ache,” standing up and rolling her neck back and forth, “I really need a bite of something, and then go find some water. Let me check my rucksack. OK, (1) coil rope, (1) empty canteen, (1) can of something, (1) … What’s that? Open the can? Sure, do you have an opener handy? (1) box matches, (1) mirror, (2) nuts and (1) square chocolate.” They shared the nuts and chocolate, sitting back, letting their eyes rest on the still life glove and paper before them, thinking their private thoughts. Without speaking Mara sat up and dug in the rucksack again, this time coming up with the label for the can, Fruit Cocktail, Ria reached out for the can, took it and produced a can opener. After finishing the contents the can, label and lid were carefully packed with the rest of the gear.

“I think that symbol on the soup label might be for water,” said Mara. “But we don’t know where we are in relation to it.” “Lets walk ten steps in each direction (down here that is quite a feat what with the invisible walls and curious sensations) to see if we can hear water, then we’ll know where we are in relation to it, or at least the possible circumference… but we won’t know scale until we get to the water.” Said Ria. “Let’s stick together, ok
I was on my back looking up… Sitting, I looked around but did not understand what I was seeing. Focusing, instead, a few feet in front of me I saw rocks; and thrusting out from the crevasses in those rocks were the most lovely, transparent... smooth oval orbs. Peradams! Shaped in a similar fashion as Buddhist lingums.

I now could see the surrounding cavern. It was filled with these transparent wonders. I drew a picture of one that will be posted in our pictorial log.

They reflected and refracted as treasure would. I was in a state of both wonder and fear. My nervous mouth was dry and my lips lined with salt.

Getting up I walked to the porthole, looked out at the sea. I tried to open it for a better view but, “Bang!” it flew open.

I woke on a bed of moss. “Listen…”. “Mara, it’s a waterfall!”
October 16, 2010
William -  "You will not believe this!" I offered a hand to Mara and she slowly got to her feet. It was the most wonderful sight and I lead her not twenty paces from where the bow had run aground. We stared in astonishment at the formation. Water gently cascaded over a cliff and rock wall of the most beautiful peradam. Despite the obvious density, water held the peradam mineral; (if indeed it was mineral), in solution, until reaching this edge formed a series of egg shaped bubbles from the top to where we now stood. The effect was like staring up at a thousand eggshells stacked. Or perhaps bubble bath overflowing a giants tub. Not full bubble eggs, as the part facing us seemed broken revealing darker interiors in stark contrast to the translucent, shimmering and fragile curves of each of the many bubbles making up this wonder.
"William", Mara exclaimed, this is the most beautiful formation" "But how? Somehow this is the opposite of erosion; this is building itself!"

"Let's investigate, we need to see what's at the top"

Mara turned and shouted back toward the ship; "Susan, bring the ropes."


Ria  - After a while, still no water, we decided to rest up. Being hyper, I couldn't sleep, so I sat with Mara. She seemed to be dreaming ...
My mind was still full with what happened. I had to jot stuff down fast, who knows what clues may get lost. I got my notebook out and quickly made some notes. I lay the map out at my feet to look for the spot where I had disappeared into the blue light. Suddenly there was a blue drop showing around the coordinates where I fell down-or in-the cave thing, if it was a cave that is. I crouched down, reading glasses on. The drop seemed to grow like a crystal ... Mara, I said, he Mara ... but when I turned to her, to wake her up, I was alone.



Susan -  I grabbed the thick and bulky hemp rope from the coil and tied it in an “X” around my shoulders and waist to bring to shore. I stopped for a moment to look at the unique twisted braiding. I wondered, and stopped for a few minutes even though I could hear Mara summoning me urgently. It seemed like an eternity as I trudged along in my furry and soundless blue Mukluks dragging this bundle of fibers across the beach. The weight of the cord was so cumbersome that I started to huff and puff. William and Mara finally came into focus staring at me with their eyes wide open looking at each other and back to me several times shaking their heads. William put his hands up in the air smiling. “ I give up,” he laughed and Mara said “ New hairdo?” William could not control himself. 
“Why yes, I thought it complimented my roll of hemp”, as I let out rolling and uncontrollable laughter to the point I started to snort”. “How do I look?” I inquired to them both between my chuckles. “Well,” commented Mara, trying not to giggle. “I must say that I find your hairdo rather amusing. I have never seen hair extensions like those before!” I turned my body gradually so they could behold the full elaborate arrangement on my scalp. I had enmeshed hemp rope to the ends of my already curled hair and then created a large and tall conically shaped spiral upon the top of my head that looked like a bee’s hive. I adorned it with some blue coins and wooden ornamentals engraved with cryptic letters I found onboard. It was truly a masterpiece of organic assemblage! As I looked beyond them I detected something and cheered excitedly. “…Hummm bubble wrap, wow. This is going to be fun!!!”


Her Hair - by Susan Shulman

Mara  - The atmosphere was affecting each of us... that's for sure! The year allotted (so we said) to explore the seas and find the mountain has been nearly one third spend. As the hub-bub of daily life recedes behind us, assumptions fall away. In place of this fresh void (there's a natural impulse to fill that void) is every day wonder and not so common marvels. I'm thinking of Susan's inspired hair... If the spirit and time allows I've a few embellishments up this sleeve.
 
October 18, 2010
William -  At times there are no choices; then again there are times where I can't decide because of equally wonderful options. My head spins from side to side. Looking at Susan's bizarre (but actually quite lovely) head/hair entanglement and then looking back at an entirely new type of geologic formation.

Susan shouts to us, "You two disappeared rather quickly. I was left with only two black and white cut outs to help with the gear."

(I should confess here that while much we do here seems like magic, or hallucination, I assure you everything can be explained to the most scientific inclined person among us. Earlier we spoke of potential selves. If not, we can return to that. Suffice it to say in this case the potentialities in myself and Mara were already at peak load. when Susan entered the system was in an overload condition. Very unstable, very dangerous. Much the way lightening seeks ground Mara and I were essentially arc flashed to the nearest ground; which happens to be this beach...in front of this waterfall. Of course the husk of negative potential is never used and thus remains behind sometimes as a loophole)

I start to explain this to Susan, but she points to the top of the fall.
"Look, someone is up there. They're waving. I think it might be Ria;....... and Mara, if you weren't standing next to me, I'd say that looks like you next to her".
Ria -  I turn back towards where the map was, because I hear a sound, like water streaming down ... Where the blue drop had formed, this long veil of diamond-like shapes fell down over the ridge, a cascading waterfall so beautiful and translucent ...I couldn't take my eyes off it. I followed the light down and saw ... someone with amazing hair, Susan? Could it be? ... really? but she's wearing blue mukluks it seems, hairy thingies, so not her ... where are her red boots? Hey but, that's Mara next to Bill? But... Could it have been a projection that was with me? I start to shout, and wave, I call out to Mara again ... I feel an adrenaline rush ... I get the red rope off my belt to abseil the ridge. I secure the rope and get to it, lowering myself next to the fall. I go fast, a bit unsafe but I'm excited. So excited I start laughing, laughing like crazy. Next thing I know, I'm in the abyss.

 Peradam Falls - by William Evertson
 
Mara  - I am the ringing.... Ria is to descend a steep slope or vertical drop by a rope secured from above and coiled around her body in order to control the speed of descent... is there any controlling this ringing? No... "I'm here Ria, I'm here!" We, we need to be together again... this is a bumpy ride! If we can just get to the same butte... at the same time... My butte is a canyon to others...
Remembering. I'd putter around my studio... tip-toeing through the drifting piles of inspiration that spread over the floor. The happiest times have been the mindless wandering, whether it be in the woods, the sea or the studio. that's when things happen.... so here I am.. wandering once more.... but now I'm getting freaking hungry and more than a little thirsty. Sure this will make a great tale, sitting in a comfortable chair, with comfortable friends near.... a cup of something spicy hot in my hands... now I'm edgy... and concerned... Oh dear Ria, do take care! Let's find a copse or glen, a hidden spot to breathe before the fox and owl have their way again.


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