One day I was in the shower and Schmootzie was singing an awful song. Listen to the "Albatross Song." He sang it to anyone who would listen. Actually he sang it to anyone within 10 feet of him. He sang it out the car window. He sang it to his parents. He sang it to his 97 year old grandmother who has lived through 2 depressions. I thought that with all of her wisdom she would have something to say. She said, "I don't like it. Please don't do that again."
Somehow, Schmootzie didn't even know what an albatross looked like. He imagined it to be a menacing giant bird that spreads doom and evil. It's more evil then a blue jay. It's basically a flying death machine.
Here is an albatross picture for your viewing pleasure:
Upon some research, I discovered that Schmootzie wasn't insane. At least, not that insane. An albatross is often a metaphor for doom and gloom or a "wearisome burden." The following passage is from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." Hope you enjoy...
- Ah ! well a-day ! what evil looks
- Had I from old and young !
- Instead of the cross, the Albatross
- About my neck was hung.
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1 comment:
You miss the symbolism of the Albatross in the poem, Tungsten. Albatross are considered quite lucky aboard ships. The Albatross spends most of its life at sea and only comes in to land to mate and raise their young. They have the longest wingspan of any bird (11 feet!) and have been documented as living up to 50 years. The reason they're considered a sign of good luck to the sailor is because when a sailor dies, the albatross is said to carry his soul off, protecting it from being lost at sea. An albatross following a sailing vessel gives it protection, as if sailors from the past are watching over the ship and crew. For this reason, it is considered bad luck to kill or injure an albatross. In the poem he's getting evil looks as though he's parading around with the body of an albatross he's killed (or some such literary metaphor).
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