Without Lifting A Finger

It is idiotic to write out in one's own hand (in the evenings by candlelight) things already in print. Why not use scissors to cut out items that are worth remembering and deserve a place on the wall? Geiser is surprised that he did not think of this before. There are scissors in the house; all he has to do is find them. Quite apart from the fact that print is easier to read than an old man's handwriting—though he has taken the trouble to use block letters—no one has that much time.  Geological formations, layers that are clearly distinguished from the stratifications beneath and above them by the petrified animals and plants (see Characteristic Fossils) within them and that represent a (stratigraphic) unit. Among these belong the igneous rocks, which evolved at the same time. Related G. F. evolving successively are bracketed together in formation groups. Formations and formation groups reflect periods of the earth's history and are in consequence used as descriptions of ti...

Have lost track of how many times I've read Frisch's Man in the Holocene , but as with all my faves I find something new every time. Liked it so much I've continued on with another Frisch: Montauk . What's below are two "clips" I couldn't resist from Holocene. I have been to Frisch's Berzona, so I could feel it all the more. * Later in the day there is more thunder; and shortly afterward, hail. The white stones, some of them the size of hazelnuts, dance on the granite table; in a few minutes the lawn is a white sheet, all Geiser can do is stand at the window and watch the vine being torn to shreds, the roses, too— There is nothing to do but read. (Novels are no use at all on days like these, they deal with people and their relationships, with themselves and others, fathers and mothers and daughters or sons, lovers, etc., with individual souls, usually unhappy ones, with society, etc., as if the place for these things were assured, the earth for ...

Max-Frisch-Gedenktafel , a photo by Treeshie on Flickr. Apparently Berzona (town in Switzerland's Ticino) is part of what inspired Frisch's Man in the Holocene.

Finally re-read it in its entirety (finished it this morning). A quick read: minus the "clippings" it's less than a hundred pages. Parts I'd forgotten, e.g., the salamander, the minestrone; parts I loved reading again, e.g., the pagoda of crispbread, Geiser's hike into the mountains. Places I have to go because of Frisch: the Ticino, Montauk (I know, another Frisch). Been to Switzerland but not the Ticino; Long Island but not Montauk. A great quote from Man: Now and again Geiser finds himself wondering what he really wants to know, what he hopes to gain from all this knowledge.

What is there to think about? --EB : AE = AE: AB --the Bible and the fresco of the Virgin Mary do not prove that God will continue to exist once human beings, who cannot accept the idea of a creation without a creator, have ceased to exist; the Bible was written by human beings. --the Alps are the result of folding. --ants live in colonies --the arch was invented by the Romans. --if the Arctic ice were to melt, New York would be under water, as would Europe, except for the Alps. --many chestnut trees are cankered. --only human beings can recognize catastrophes, provided they survive them; Nature recognizes no catastrophes. --man emerged in the Holocene. [Translated by Geoffrey Skelton]

Was thinking today about the novel (one of my faves and I need to get back), especially the "clippings" of knowledge that went up on Geiser's wall. Without digging up my text (or did I give it to someone--and now I only have the partial text in the German Library of Frisch's work?) I googled a bit and found 6 of the 7 final pieces in the final collage (I guess I'm missing the definition of erosion):