Roughing It - Chapter 64

Submitted by scott on Fri, 08/19/2011 - 11:38
Looking for Mischief

On Mark's third day on Oahu he saddles up on a horse of the same name and visits an ancient Hawaiian temple. This leads him to make comparisons with changes wrought by missionaries. Much of this chapter is the subject of a short sketch Twain had previously published in his Jumping Frog book, Oahu.

Roughing It - Chapter 63

Submitted by scott on Mon, 08/15/2011 - 13:58
Scenes on the Island

Twain arrives in the Sandwich Islands and makes land at Honolulu. He finds that it compares favorably to San Francisco but discovers a few characteristics that he needs to be careful about regarding the flora and fauna.

Roughing It - Chapter 62

Submitted by scott on Tue, 08/09/2011 - 16:41
The Three Captains

This begins the final portion of Roughing It. Mark has taken ship to Hawaii aboard the Ajax. We are introduced to one of Twain's favorite foils, the boisterous and profane inventor of histories, the old Admiral. This retired whaleman is friend always to the underdog. And, originally being a Union man, he became a secessionist the moment the Southern army began to fail. On this particular voyage the Admiral meets his match and is vanquished by another inventor of history, a soft spoken individual named Williams.

The Story of the Bad Little Boy

Submitted by scott on Fri, 08/05/2011 - 15:26

This is actually the second version of this sketch. It was first published in the Jumping Frog of Calaveras County book. This one has better sound quality.

Journalism in Tennessee

Submitted by scott on Fri, 08/05/2011 - 13:24
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Mark takes a post on a Tennessee journal. The rather boisterous nature of the relations between the journals subjects and it's editor are a bit too much for him.

Roughing It - Chapter 61

Submitted by scott on Wed, 08/03/2011 - 11:56
Tom Quartz

Where there are no women or children a man will take up a pet. In this case a sagacious cat named Tom Quartz.

To Raise Poultry

Submitted by scott on Tue, 08/02/2011 - 11:31
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I've gone back to producing slide shows rather than Second Life animation.

Big Rocks and One Little Rock

Submitted by scott on Sun, 07/31/2011 - 12:04

Because I've become a bit fixated on Yosemite of late, I started looking through my photo collection again. This shot from, the side of Mt Lyell, has always been one of my favorites and could possibly be one of my best shots. So, how do I get past all my current responsibilities and get back to the country? I reached the spot in the photo on a day hike from Tuolumne Meadows. I doubt I will do that again.

Kuna Glacier Bergschrund circa 1974

Submitted by scott on Fri, 07/29/2011 - 01:01

I've recently been adding comments to blogs and articles dealing with the recent deaths at Yosemite's Vernal Falls. It is my opinion that these deaths were the result of a disconnect between those involved and the physical world. It's all too obvious that some, if not all those involved were acting irresponsibly. I've suggested that they were not consciously aware of being irresponsible. I think they were incapable of perceiving that they were in any danger at all. This may or may not, in their case, have been reinforced by this group being a church group and thus protected by God.