Amidst the snow and sadness of the winter, I've been bunking down in the ivory tower (a.k.a. Stauffer Library) with my homeys (see photo) catching up with my first love, the Beats. Though they've become the cliched territory of stoner-buddhas and supposedly high-minded frat boys, I've always felt pretty sincere in my affections for Jack and the boys. I read Dharma Bums for the first time when I was 16, and it felt like waking up--like I'd been asleep for my whole life. In honour of these two crazy kids, long hours at the library for no reason, over-the-counter uppers and late nights (or early mornings) singing along with Dylan, a list.
Top Ten Things To Do in a Kerouac Novel/Poem/Letter
10. Get all confused and hung up.
9. Abstractly refer to Buddhism, God and America. Interchangeably, if possible.
8. Take bennys.
7. Worry about your mother. Refer to your mother, her cat, and your belongings as “the ménage.”
6. Get a ride with/pick up some hitchhiking Okies.
5. “Ball” with girls. Descriptions of said girls should be based on their occupations and hair colour. Note: if in spiritual phase, refer to sex as “yabyum.”
4. Reminisce about your golden youth in a small and snowy New England town.
3. Go and never stop going till you get there. You don’t know where you’re going, but you gotta go.
2. Drink a lot, worry about how much you’re drinking, swear to stop drinking, repeat.
1. Dig/be dug by someone.
4 comments:
you don't know what it means to me to be worried about. it wouldn't bother worrying about the cat. she'll come home after she's gone where she's going.
Snap.
yeah, i know what you mean when it comes to the beats. I thought they were mine and solely mine. I never thought that they would be read and taken up by frat boys and hipsters. sigh*
empathy.
your reasoning that the beats were "yours and solely yours" just goes to show that you dont understand the beliefs of kerouac and ginsberg. By acting as if you solely owned this genre, you are just showing your need to collect and materialize the beat ideal. Exist without regards to others. Civilization is wrong. Live in the woods.
"you shouldn't let other people get your kicks for you." live and learn and pass it on (and don't kick other people).
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