Paparazzi the Rocks

If any of you out there have actually seen the Wedded Rocks, I am hungry to hear about it. It is a simple idea -- indeed, here at Marlinspike Hall, deep, deep in the Tête de Hergé, we modeled our turret-to-stables contraption after the idea of twining two things together in the pursuit of three. I believe I briefly described our sad effort in a post meant to embarrass Fresca the Wordlemeister. On that count, I can claim success.

It astonishes me. Enthralled by a series of photographs of these rocks, this worshipful effort, I showed them to Fred. I share everything with Fred, much to Fred's annoyance.

He was unimpressed. Unimpressed by the Wedded Rocks, and unimpressed by the photo series.

In turn, because I am increasing in mental midgethood, I became fascinated by his ennui.

[Note well, dear friends, that being sucked into another's boredom is the Nadir of Everything. You might as well lay down and die.]

In an effort to pull myself free from Fred's voracious vacuum, I decided to just revel in the damn photographs, and to share the one above with you. In the process, I took a longer, more appreciative look at this photographer's work. Ever so humbly, I commend Rolfe Horn to you. Spend some time in his galleries at For My Beautiful Life. Tell someone where you are going first, and use the buddy system -- it is easy to go under, to get lost. There are some lovely images of Monterey and the Mendocino coastline, as well as more exotic watery locales.

[Just when you have your sea legs? Wham... a forest, a desert.]

Called Meoto Iwa (夫婦岩) or the Loved one-and-loved one [I'm thinking Beloved might be a better translation?] Rocks, they form part of a cogent tour of Shinto shrines.

Ah, as to the purpose behind the wedding of the beloved rocks? They represent the marriage of kami izanagi and izanami, man and woman, creator and created, and are considered sacred in Shinto spirituality, which is, itself, best expressed as a link between Japan's now and Japan's long, long time ago. Something along the lines of history meeting myth, then joining arms to dance with folklore, the whole lark covered in the simple beauty of careful repetition.

With a dash of Buddhism, a sprinkle of Confucianism, and a hint of smoky paprika, to taste.

Yes, that is The Castafiore Version of Shinto. I know, I know, all my stuff ends up as a 1950s casserole, finished with an impermeable sheet of melted orange cheese.

For information grounded in reality, clearly expressed, that you can safely trot out during afternoon tea, try reading this from the good people at the BBC.

Funny, but the whole thang with Fred over these lovely stones had to do with purpose. What are they for? he demanded, insisted, and fairly carped. I've been feeling pretty darned snarky, so he is lucky to have escaped with a referral to Wikipedia.

Put that in your ennui, and smoke it, y'know what I mean?

The rope connecting the rocks is made of rice straw. Although I fantasized about the rope enduring as well as the rocks have, I read that they require replacement a couple of times a year. The ceremony around that endeavor must be noteworthy. On my next mental foray, I think I will try to see if there are available videos of... the roping.

Visions of a rodeo on the high seas.

Did you know that California (and many other places, I am sure) has a thriving Rice Straw market going?

I learned that Rice Straw, as a commodity, comes in the following forms:

Small 3-String Small 2-String
Large 3x4 Large 4x4
Barn-Stored Certified Weed-Free
Building-Quality Forage-Quality
Loose/Unbaled Certified Organic

It is commonly used as a product in the following industries and endeavors:

Erosion Control Formulated Animal Feed
Animal Bedding Construction Materials
Door Cores Paper/Pulp
Packaging Material Fuel/Chemicals
Energy Compost



If you want to break into the Rice Straw bonanza, these are some of the goods and services you might wanna try:

Baling - Small Bales Baling - Large Bales
Chopping Grinding
Swathing Transportation
Loading Storage
Bale Construction Export
Consulting

I know, it's hard to get The Graduate out of your head. I mean, just replace "plastics" with "rice straw" and it's uncanny:

Mr. McGuire: I want to say one word to you. Just one word.
Benjamin: Yes, sir.
Mr. McGuire: Are you listening?
Benjamin: Yes, I am.
Mr. McGuire: RICE STRAW.
Benjamin: Just how do you mean that, sir?



Anyway, either great minds think alike, or we are all just copying each other, because as I browsed through travel blogs recounting visits to Meoto Iwa, the recurring advice is to plan to spend a whole whopping 15 minutes there, unless, as one young Christian woman worded it, you want to "paparazzi the rocks."

Excerpted from Rolfe Horn's biography:

Rolfe Horn was born in Walnut Creek, California, in 1971. His fascination with photography began as a child when he used his father’s camera to capture memories of hikes around the trails of the East Bay and Lake Tahoe. His passion for photography blossomed in high school when he enrolled in his first photography class. Within a couple of months, he constructed a darkroom in his father’s workshop, where he spent much of his free time. This passion earned him several first place awards for images of Yosemite Valley and the Mt. Diablo area. His High School graduation honors include Awards for Excellence in photography.

Rolfe received his Associate of Arts degree from Diablo Valley College in 1993. During his years as a student, he worked as an assistant to a commercial photographer, where he learned a great deal about the zone system, as well as printing techniques.

Rolfe studied landscape photography with Mark Citret, an associate of Ansel Adams, prior to entering Brooks Institute of Photography, in Santa Barbara, California, in 1993. While a student at Brooks Institute, he studied with Nick Dekker, who introduced him to alternative processes and pushed him to create powerful images. He received multiple awards for his black and white photographs of the California landscape and recognition for pioneering interactive digital photography. When Rolfe received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Brooks Institute in the fall of 1996, he was named as the most outstanding graduate of his class and presented with a plaque in recognition of his accumulated achievements in landscape and digital photography.

After graduation, Rolfe moved to the Bay Area, where he continued his love for landscape photography while pursuing a career in digital interactive photography. He began to study the surrealistic nature of the land, searching out abstract forms or working at night, as he had done when he was a teenager.

In 1998 Rolfe decided to give up commercial photography in order to assist Michael Kenna. Working for Kenna allowed Rolfe to concentrate all his efforts in the fine arts. During the three years assisting, Rolfe created new work, found gallery representation and eventually was able “retire” from assisting in 2001.

Rolfe continues to live and work as an artist and photographer in the San Francisco Bay Area. His photographs have been in numerous exhibitions in the United States, Europe, and Asia, as well as widely published in magazines and in several books, including three monographs.