ingtheNeer

    Hisreasareimpossibletocatalogue.Oftenhewillfindaamuseshimendlessly,someaeinvolving,say,afiremanro?pelledhisapparatusatrecord-breakiothewrongaddress.Thesesmallstoriesareclipped,carriedaboutinapocket,tobeproducedatappropriatemomentsforthepleasureoffriends.Othermaionspleasehimless.AnatofahquakeinChile,withitsthousandsofdeadandhomeless,maydepresshimforweeks.Hememorizestheterriblestatistics,quotingthemeverywhereandsaying,withagravelook:"Wemustdosomething."Importantasoftenfol?low,sometimeswithinamatterofhours.(Oherhand,thesetwokindsofresponsesmaybe,onagivenday,inexplicablyreversed.)

    Themoretrivialaspectsofthedailyitemizationareskipped.Whilereading,hemaintainsarapiddrummingofhisfiipsonthedesktop.Here?ceivestwelveneers,butofthese,onlyfardedasserious.

    AttitudeTowardHisWork

    "SometimesItseemtodoanything.Theworkisthere,piledup,itseemstomeaninsur?mountableobstacle,reallyoutofreach.Isitandlookatit,wwheretobegin,howtotakeholdofit.PerhapsIpickupapieceofpaper,trytoreaditbutmymindiselsewhere,Iamthinkingofsomethingelse,Itseemtogetthegistofit,itseemsmeaningless,devoidofi,nothavingtodowithhumanaffairs,drainedoflife.Then,inanhour,orevenamoment,everythinggessuddenly:IrealizeIonlyhavetodoit,hurlmyselfintothemidstofit,proceedmeically,thefirstthingahesedthing,thatitissimplyamatterofmovingfromohe,plow?ingthroughit.Ibeeied,Ibeeex?cited,Iworkveryfast,thingsfallintoplace,Iamexhilarated,amazedthatthesethingscouldeverhaveseemeddeadtome."

    Slee