Web Billiards: Alfred, Lord Tennyson Edition

Kate (the Redoubtable One) related the following:

A teacher colleague of hers, a published poet, has started a poetry blog. On said blog, her colleague had written a post on Alfred Lord Tennyson’s “Ulysses.” It’s a well-known and widely quoted work, and I’ll lay odds that you’ve encountered this conclusion somewhere before:

“Though much is taken, much abides; and though
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven, that which we are, we are—
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.”

Kate encountered one line she was wondering about: “… To sail beyond the sunset, and the baths of all the western stars. …” What exactly does “baths” mean in this context? Like so many of us do for so many hours of the day, she went looking for an answer online. One of the potential answers returned in her search was the following, on a site called Cruiser Log. I kind of think Odysseus would have taken this guy on as a crewman:

Title: To Sail Beyond The Sunset, And The Baths Of All The Western Stars (Or the other way, that’s cool too)

Home Port:Venice Beach, CA
Location Now:United States
Posted 15 August 2011 – 01:21 AM

I’m looking to crew on any boat going any place. Deliveries/passages/cruising/shakedowns/adventures/surveys/secret missions/artistic escapes/jail breaks are all copacetic.

I’ve sailed across the Pacific, in the Caribbean, and all over North America. I can stand watch, tie a bowline, converse pleasantly, get the job done, and grill. My (non-grill) cooking leaves much to be desired (but not my cleaning).

I sail for free, unless you are a commercial operation or a paid delivery. (Don’t ask me to crew for experience on a paid delivery, please.) I can’t contribute to food costs, generally.

I’m based in California. I’m 21. I’m blond. I can fly anywhere to meet you (miles, baby). I’m experienced, and free. I’m resourceful, and listen to how you want to run your boat, regardless of my previous experience. My schedule can be tossed overboard: your’s is what matters. Talk to me. …

Harry

2 Replies to “Web Billiards: Alfred, Lord Tennyson Edition”

  1. Funny stuff, Dan and Kate. I especially like “or the other way, that’s cool too.” Thanks for the mention and links. By the way, I don’t know if Kate found her answer, but the “baths” bit refers to the outer oceans into which the stars actually fell before the world got round and the center of the universe shifted and all that.

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