Seemingly impervious to the uptake of knowledge -- Henry Rollins.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Cloistered
I wish I could remember what science fiction story it was that I read about thirty years ago that was set in the cloisters of New York. I keep remembering one scene...and just that one. And nothing else about it.
The only thing I remember is that it was a sci-fi story that was set in a sort-of post apocalyptic world, and there was this one scene where one of the characters -- they're living in what "had been" the Cloisters -- is walking down the corridor, talking, and casually rips a corner off some old wall hanging -- obviously, a formerly priceless tapestry -- and uses it to blow his nose, then tosses it aside.
David Drake has imagery like that. I recall an episode of Hammer's Slammers in which two men were getting drunk on stolen forty year old wine, putting their boots up on antique furniture and throwing the bottles at the priceless paintings on the walls in a great house. They made it back to their ship just before the nuke vaporized the lot of it.
(Yeah, David Drake is like that. His worlds do not resemble the worlds of the Starship Enterprise"!)
6 comments:
Not the characters? Not the plot? Just one scene...
That's tough - can't help you there. :)
Well, if you don't describe the scene....!
The only thing I remember is that it was a sci-fi story that was set in a sort-of post apocalyptic world, and there was this one scene where one of the characters -- they're living in what "had been" the Cloisters -- is walking down the corridor, talking, and casually rips a corner off some old wall hanging -- obviously, a formerly priceless tapestry -- and uses it to blow his nose, then tosses it aside.
Nope, don't know it, but do wonder about your taste if that is the one thing you remember ;-)
Well, it's a striking image. And, who knows, it might have been the highlight of the story.
David Drake has imagery like that. I recall an episode of Hammer's Slammers in which two men were getting drunk on stolen forty year old wine, putting their boots up on antique furniture and throwing the bottles at the priceless paintings on the walls in a great house. They made it back to their ship just before the nuke vaporized the lot of it.
(Yeah, David Drake is like that. His worlds do not resemble the worlds of the Starship Enterprise"!)
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