Whoa up, stranger . . . allow me a question or two

b'fore I pass ye through

[PICTURE...of Chomsky, the genial, pot-bellied gnome] I'm the gnome, I be,

that guards the gate, ye see,
to the strictly personal side of Irv Thomas:
roadside scholar, lapsed Luddite, puer aeternus extraordinaire
...'n that's not all . . . Rogue 'n rebel, too, and . . .

Oh, c'mon, Chomsky, get to the point!

[Forgive me, folks. My old gatekeeper is here to pass you through,
but he makes such a big deal out of it . . .]



M'question is: will ye find it congenial here?
And a simple test will tell us both.

With some hero's name ye'll resonate
And we'll know right soon how ye'll relate
to the world that lies beyond this gate.

[Oh, my God . . . he's versifying again]


Ten thousand words they say it takes
To match the spark one image makes;

But I'll give ye that ten, and ten thousand more!
For a name beats the game, it doubles the score.

 


Dammit, Chomsky . . !

Okay, Okay.

What follows, now, is a list of personal heroes that have sparked
the spirit of Irv Thomas over the course of a long and venturesome life.
Hopes and dreams, ambitions and schemes, are laid bare here.
Scan a man's bookshelf and ye fathom his mind, but gaze on his heroes
and ye've plumbed t'the core of his soul, ye'll find.

So the task and game that now awaits is to
pick one from among his baker's dozen
that sets yer personal spirit t' buzzin'.

 

If one of Irv's four-stars ye choose, this day,
then yer passage is clear of further delay,
for it figures ye'll like what he has to say.

If ye even come close (with one of the rest)
Ye'll pick up a clue and return to the test.

But I want ye t'heed this . . .
If the game becomes tedious
or ye stall from the start,
findin' no name at all
that touches yer heart,
then ye'll have to forego
the path to Irv's Home;
but he wants ye to know. . .

[@*<#@...just take this fool gnome
with you, please, when you go!]

If yer ready, then . . .

Who among this crew stirs the passions lurkin' in You ?

 


Pick one from above and play the game

. . . or else be gone and all's the same.


Irv Thomas
Email -- irvthom@u.washington.edu