Sunday, July 23, 2006

"Be always drunken. Nothing else matters: that is the only question. If you would not feel the horrible burden of Time weighing on your shoulders and crushing you to the earth, be drunken continually.
Drunken with what? With wine, with poetry, or with virtue as you will. But be drunken.
And if sometimes, on the stairs of a palace, or on the green side of a ditch, or in the dreary solitude of your own room, you should awaken and the drunkenness be half or wholly slipped away from you, ask of of the wind, or of the wave , or of the star, or of the bird, or of the clock, of whatever flies, sighs, or rocks, or sings, or speaks, ask what hour it is; and the wind, wave, star, bird, clock, will answer you: "It is the hour to be drunken! Be drunken, if you would not be martyred slaves of Time; be drunken continually! With wine, with poetry, or with virtue, as you will."
--Baudelaire

11 comments:

hg said...

what about being drunken on cannibis?

Jon said...

I'm pretty sure that's in. Probably being drunken on E, coke or acid are OK too.

Squirk said...

How about being drunken on Scientology? Does that count?

It's a pity Charles Baudelaire wasn't more clear in his life-changing instructions. How are we supposed to live our lives from a snippet of poetry when there's only limited detail?

HOW?

Robert Ancell said...

I subscribed to that theory tonight last night. Returning home when it's the bright sunlight :)

Jon said...

Squirk: I think we're meant to use our imaginations as to how in particular to implement his instructions. I for one have a plethora of ideas.

Bob: I haven't done that since I left chch. Barnes is here on thursday however so there is a not insignificant chance of me experiencing the hour to be drunken on the green side of a ditch this weekend.

fairy princess said...

Much drunkeness here this weekend, with the visitation of malphus, crystal and tim!

Jon said...

But what kind of drunkeness?

Robert Ancell said...

Happy birthday Mr Travaglia!

Joel said...

Yes, happy day of birth Jon. Although I honestly don't know when it is - I'll just trust that Bob knows what he is talking about.

Jon said...

Thanks for the birthday wishes guys, (even though Bob was a day late).

Robert Ancell said...

Hey I work on my local time :P