THE CUBA FILE-- THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA

HEMINGWAY'S FIRST MATE

        The young man is the old man.  He is Gregorio Fuentes, Ernest Hemingway's first mate, bar tender, confidant and life long friend. Some think he was the model for the old man in THE OLD MAN AND THE SEA.

       "The old man was thin and gaunt with deep wrinkles in the

back of his neck," 

Hemingway described his central figure.

"The blotches ran well down the sides of his face and his hands had 

the deep-creased scars from handling heavy fish on the cords. But none 

of these scars were fresh. They were as old as erosions in a fishless 

desert.

``Everything about him was old except his eyes and they were the same 

color as the sea and were cheerful and undefeated."

Gregorio was 101 when we met.  It was 3 years before he died in his home in Cojimar, a fishing village east of Havana.

     He lived modestly, but comfortably.  He was hailed as a man who had mastered the sea and who "was a symbol of Cuban fishing and of human brotherhood, thanks to all of his 
years of friendship with Hemingway,'' Reuters quoted Jose Miguel Diaz Escrich, who runs 
Havana's Hemingway International Nautical Club. 

     A school of Hemingway scholars discount the idea that Fuentes was the model for the 

old fisherman in the 1952 Nobel Prize winning novel. He was only 55 the year the book was published. There are those who say, however, that Hemingway used Fuentes' hands as the inspiration for his character.

      Fuentes became Captain of the Pilar, in 1939 when Hemingway began his life in Cuba living in the Hotel Ambos Mundos. They fished the Gulf Stream together.  During World War II Hemingway outfitted the Pilar with special gear so he and Fuentes could hunt German U-boats in the Caribbean.

When not patrolling the Caribbean, Hemingway covered the war. He accompanied Martha Gellhorn, a photo journalist and his love at the time, to China.  He returned to the Pilar and Cuba but later went to Europe to work as a war correspondent.  

After the war the writer and his captain spent extensive time in the Caribbean waters where Hemingway was said to have a special sense or enhanced vision that enabled him to spot deep Marlin which he battled from this chair.

The pier in Cojimar where the Pilar was docked was all but abandoned. 

The La Terazza was a favorite Hemingway hang out.  It was still a vibrant tavern and favorite of the locals. Many of them had Hemingway stories.

Cojimar has memorialized the famous American, not far from where he and the Captain launched their many adventures.

Gregorio Fuentes had a unique knowledge and relationship with one of the 20th Century's most influential writers.  He outlived his old friend and fishing mate by many decades.
He was there, in the moments, when Ernest Hemingway drew from life, from practical experiences to create literary images that live on, as Gregorio did for 104 years.
An old man of the sea.
See you down the trail. 

MAGNIFICENT YOSEMITE

AS GOOD AS IT GETS

        My friend Maura is planning a California jaunt for her Irish cousins and I've been helping with logistics.  Yosemite is a center piece of their visit.

       In 1851 an ongoing battle between gold miners and the native inhabitants, American Indians, reached a point where the famous Mariposa Battalion was sent in.  Probably from the moment the Battalion saw the place, word about it's beauty began to spread.

          On June 30, 1864 President Abraham Lincoln set aside a grove of sequoias in the valley.  That marked the creation of the first state park in the US.  Naturalist John Muir, who explored this wilderness, campaigned for federal park status.  It took 26 years and in 1890 Yosemite became a national park.

       Two rivers, the Merced and the Tuolumne flow through the park.  There are 196 miles of road and 800 miles of trails. 

        The waterfalls are a signature, always spectacular, and even more so after a winter with lots of snow.

 Do you see the sprite or spirit dancing out of this falls in this frame?

      The land is described as "colossal."  Indeed it is.  It ranges from 2,000 feet to 13,000 and most of it is true wilderness.

I wish every American could see Yosemite.  It is more than sheer beauty,

it is an attitude and sense of being.  We have made repeated visits and will 

continue to do so.


THERE IS AN INCREDIBLE DRAMA PLAYING OUT AT YOSEMITE AS THEY TRY TO BLAST AWAY 17 FEET OF SNOW BLOCKING THE FAMED TIOGA PASS. LINK HERE FOR A GREAT PIECE BY MIKE ANTON IN THE LA TIMES.

See you down the trail.

FROM THE TOP & MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

LOOKING DOWN ON CAMBRIA

        This post offers views rarely seen.  Our vantage is from about 3,000 feet in the Santa Lucia range, north of Cambria, near Rocky Butte and Vulture Peak. The distant horizon line in the frame above is ridge of the Fiscalini Ranch Preserve, over looking the Pacific, between Cambria's East and West Villages. 

The summit area is heavily wooded with Madrone, Live Oak and chaparral.

The atmosphere, distance, and limited optics make it difficult to see clearly, but the high point on the far left is ridge line where our home sits.

 The land in this area of the Santa Lucias is largely undeveloped.

Mixed with copses of trees are granite outcroppings

Stone formations resemble sculpture

Madrones are prevalent and shine in the afternoon light.

 The light plays beautifully in the thick woodland on the mountain.

Wild Gooseberries flourish

The owner of this remote mountain top cleared a landing strip, with a spectacular view.

From this altitude you can look east to Lake Nacimiento, South to Paso Robles,

South West to Morro Bay and the rock, West to San Simeon, north West to Piedras Blancas Light Station and due north up the Santa Lucia peaks as they climb the coast.

With the sun to my back, I can look out toward Paso Robles and capture an image of myself at work-though taking photographs in the mountains is hardly work.

I hope you enjoyed these rare views. My deepest thanks to our wonderful host.

REEL THOUGHTS

Four of us caught Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris and the four of us left delighted.
It is the best Allen in years.  The script is brilliant, masterfully written. However the homage to Paris, the cinematic celebration of that rich city is worth the ticket alone.  It is simply a beautiful and visually delicious film. But it is entertaining, thoroughly enjoyable as well.  Fine acting all around.  And Owen Wilson sort of channels Allen, but with his own  impish interpretation.  Funny, enchanting, beautiful and clever.  Allen goes back to some very early stand up material, and imbues it with the mature 
skills of great writer and director. 
It is also a clever way to teach history!


See you down the trail. 

THE WEEKENDER :) UNEXPECTED BEAUTY

EXPECTATIONS

"A light heart lives long."

Shakespeare

What is it about a moment, or a person, or a place that begins to 

work on a space inside, that creates a sense of good will, in an instant?

Do you think there are times, people or locations that convey an

extra something? Perhaps a charge of good will? 

Do you think there are moments, persons or places that open 

receptors in you, in your brain or heart?

Or do you think there are times you are simply wired, receptive or preordained 

to touch or feel a special luminosity?

Where ever you find it, however you get it, whoever brings it,

celebrate joy this weekend.

Even if for only a moment.

Lighten your heart.

Share it.

FINDING JOY IN EVEN THE WORLD OF THE SELL

JOY AS AN ANTHEM
A BOLD STATEMENT

AND WITHOUT PRETENSE

Enjoy.

See you down the trail.

ECLECTIC FRIDAY

OF PEOPLE, PICTURES AND THOUGHTS

Photo by NASA

      The first thing I wondered was how did they get the shot.  Talk about a point of view.

It was the Russian Soyuz craft that offered this unique view of the shuttle and the international space station.

     It's an appropriate image to trigger a series of random thoughts about the nature of relationships and points of view.  

WORDS ACROSS THE CULTURE

     As the Friday Lunch Flash Mob enjoyed the breaking of bread and the breaking out of the sun, a visiting couple dining near by remarked as to a statement made about Germany.  Turns out they are German.  That launched two our flash mob.  Both are fluent, having lived in Germany.  A wonderful conversation then ensued.

      I was struck by what a remarkable bit of "hospitality," unique though it might be.  As a rule Americans do not do well with a second language.  Our Flash Mob pals were an obvious exception and certainly must have added to the experience of the German visitors.  That would not have happened in many places, but then as people here say "Cambria is not the real world."

LESSONS LEARNED FROM A DAUGHTER

      A career as a journalist made me a good listener.  I listen to all points of view and reason that I can never have "too much" information.  I think I must be exasperating to friends who have passionate points of view, because I usually always counter a perspective with, if not a a counter point, at least an alternative view.  Sustainability, though, is a topic where I have put down a stake.  

       I think we must all learn to live in a sustainable way. It is not a political ideology.  In fact it cuts across all ideological views.  Sustainable, in my mind equals, survivable.  Humans are intelligent creatures and we must begin to apply intelligence to our choices of how we live.  

     I was chilled by the reality of a portion of a recent article by the New York Times writer Thomas Friedman.

                  This is not science fiction. This is what happens when our system of growth and the system of nature hit the wall at once. While in Yemen last year, I saw a tanker truck delivering water in the capital, Sana. Why? Because Sana could be the first big city in the world to run out of water, within a decade. That is what happens when one generation in one country lives at 150 percent of sustainable capacity.

    A city, a capitol city, without water?  As Friedman implies, it was once the province only of science fiction.  Now political, military and diplomatic "war gaming" must anticipate the reality.

     I appreciate a diversity of view and realize some do not agree with Friedman's  ideas.  But I urge an open mind.  

LINK HERE TO A FRIEDMAN COLUMN ABOUT A MAN WHO CONSIDERS HIMSELF AN ECO-OPTIMIST.

   I like people who approach reality with a sense of "can do."  Pragmatists of all ideological stripes have moved humans through previous difficult passages.  I think they will again.

SPEAKING OF COOPERATION

Photo by Tom Warren Daily Mail

IF YOU ENJOY THIS PHOTO, LINK HERE FOR AN INCREDIBLE DISPLAY OF AWARD WINNING WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE DAILY MAIL

See you down the trail.

THEY ARE NOT SO DEAR & A GOOD LAUGH

I've imposed a one day truce on myself
I will not speak, write, nor even think much about
the latest political/media gab fest and circus.
A principle I stressed in my news organizations was
"proportionality," a method to keep a story in 
perspective.  
Not all news executives practice that code.
It makes me long for the days of the pre 24/7 news channels.
So today, something more "primal."

THE SAVAGE DEER

OK, they are not "savage" in that sense, but they savage flowers and gardens.

People in the village are mixed in their reaction to the deer.  Tourists love them of course, "so charming" they say to see deer just roaming the open spaces, lots and on the road.

 Some actually feed them, which drives serious gardeners crazy, because there is nothing they wont eat.  Even with the "hand outs" and all of the grass and weeds, they seem to zero in on blooming flowers and roses.

So, there are some who grumble and talk about how nice it would be to organize a thinning of the heard.  A one day bow hunt is the favorite of some of the hard core deer haters. All of that is probably just talk.

In the meantime Cambrians build fences, look for secret ways to repel the deer (good luck with finding one that works) and drive with extra caution.  While the deer are bold about storming across a deck, climbing your hill and destroying your rose bush, they are also either stupid or fearless when it comes to cars.  They just don't seem to care.

Savage deer!
HERE IS A LAUGH FOR YOU
Part of my life was spent as a television news anchor.  I worked with one of the world's nicest guys-Bob Gregory a meteorologist.  Bob has a sunny disposition and loves to laugh-
well, sometimes it would be like this on the air.  Enjoy 

Full disclosure.  I was one of those off camera chortlers. 

See you down the trail.

SOLAR COMMENTARY

UPDATING SOLAR FLARE

This post provides more background and detail about the 

extraordinary solar event of June 7.

This post and the immediate previous post provide remarkable

images of a truly cosmic event.

See you down the trail.