R.I.P Kurt Vonnegut

[mikeweil]

So it goes.

Urgghhh ..... I could kick myself for not thinking of this!

[Unk]

Now here's a quote:

If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:

THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED

FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD

WAS MUSIC

Vonnegut's Blues For America 07 January, 2006 Sunday Herald

[B. Goren.]

[BruceH]

Wow. Just when you get to thinking that someone is going to last forever, they pass away. His books helped make high school more bearable for me. R.I.P.

[.:.impossible]

So it goes.

I will never forget laying on the floor of a train station, propped up against my pack, reading Slaughter House Five all day. Children's Crusade. hm.

[kulu se mama]

slaughterhouse five is the most humane novel i have ever read.

there are no villans in that book - just victims of circumstance.

r.i.p old buddy.

Edited April 12, 2007 by kulu se mama

[Chuck Nessa]

In 1963, or thereabouts, I was at the U of Iowa and one afternoon wandered into the "literary" bar for an afternoon beer. The only customer patted the bar stool next to him and motioned for me to sit. It was Vonnegut and I was an English undergrad. He didn't know me, he just wanted someone to interact with. I sat at the stool for a couple of hours, drank beer and do not remember anything we discussed.

What a loss.

[7/4]

In 1963, or thereabouts, I was at the U of Iowa and one afternoon wandered into the "literary" bar for an afternoon beer. The only customer patted the bar stool next to him and motioned for me to sit. It was Vonnegut and I was an English undergrad. He didn't know me, he just wanted someone to interact with. I sat at the stool for a couple of hours, drank beer and do not remember anything we discussed.

What a loss.

Cool story Chuck.

I read KV when I was real young and liked him. I may have been too young, because I remember very little. Today I stopped at the library and picked up Breakfast of Champions. And also two others at the book store. Time to refresh my memory.

rip KV.

[Jazzmoose]

I loved Vonnegut when I was in high school, but quickly outgrew him. Fortunately, I rediscovered his work in my forties and realized that the problem was me, not Vonnegut.

[7/4]

I loved Vonnegut when I was in high school, but quickly outgrew him. Fortunately, I rediscovered his work in my forties and realized that the problem was me, not Vonnegut.

Wise words. I'm 47. I know I'll be doing some KV.

[Jazzmoose]

Yeah, it had to happen. I started Bluebeard again today at lunch...

[Harold_Z]

I walked into a bookstore on St Mark's Place in the East Village sometime in 1968 or 1969. I picked up a paperback by an author I wasn't familiar with. It was Sirens Of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut.

I flipped. I got to the end of the book and immediately reread it. From that point on I read every book KV wrote. I read them as they came out and I read what I had missed before the Sirens Of Titan.

If I had to name a favorite Author it would be him

Edited April 14, 2007 by Harold_Z

[Jazzmoose]

You know, I'm one of those guys who usually laughs at people who mourn the deaths of those they've never even met. It seems to go hand in hand with celebrity magazines and whatnot. But this one is really getting to me. I feel just like a close friend cashed it in...

[ejp626]

Well, it is sad when important figures leave us, but I think we can also celebrate the impact they had on our lives through creating great works. In Vonnegut's case, I think he had sufficient time to say much of what he wanted to say, and that is also something to be glad about. I'll definitely revisit a few of his novels in the next few months.

I often wonder if I will be able to complete even a fraction of the projects I would like to get through, and it seems unlikely. As of right now, my "legacy" is a handful of co-written articles for work that I am reasonably proud of -- and a few poems published in very obscure poetry magazines. It just doesn't seem to be enough, and yet even this is more than many people achieve. I will make more of an effort to do some creative writing, but I am fooling myself if I think I can complete anything major in the next few years. My children are very young and it is far more important to me that I spend time with them now than to lock myself away and write. But I will see if I can cut down on some of the procrastination...