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«Vol de nuit»
Cats love to scratch their claws, to climb and to rest on an overlooking stand (even domesticated, they are still predators). So I looked about a nice post. After a lot of shopping — and a lot of boring beige&blue dingus (what a dissonance!), btw sometimes I really wondered about the cost:performance ratio of such crap —, I decided to sketch my own «cat-tree». It then luckily happened that (THX to Fränzi and Patrick :-) I got some driftwood, and that made me realize my idea a few weeks ago. I assembled the branches with things out of my «repository of stuff» (like mailbags, ropes, gadgets and souvenirs), et voilà: The «Vol de nuit» was launched.
«Vol de nuit»
I only could hope that Dyson and Swiffer would like the work … They tested its accomodations, assessed the stability and inspected all details, and then put it into operation: Lady likes to hang out on the lower deck, and the big chief being on the bridge has everything under control (even while sleeping …).
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the «Vol de nuit» seized |
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Pollyanna |
Snoopy pilot |
goodies |
Arielle |
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ship's bell |
pont inférieur |
COD2™ |
gateway |
The «vessel» was named after Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's second novel «Night Flight» because of the water-smoothed wood, the mailbags, Snoopy's biplane, the smell of the ocean, and so on; I thought, Saint-Ex maybe likes the allegories.
First published in 1930, 1931 «Vol de nuit» won the «Prix Femina», one of the most renowned french literary prices, and quickly became a bestseller that by today sold internationally about 6 million copies. The work was published with a foreword from André Gide and tells the story of Fabien (a Compagnie Générale Aéropostale's pilot on a dangerous night flight over Patagonia) and Rivière, his boss. The men's professional and moral relationship is all about duty and responsibility, and it emphasizes the tragic struggle between authoritarian rules and the value of human life.
the now defunct magazine «Coronet» published in its June 1946 issue a
short excerpt of «Wind, Sand and Stars» titled «The Magic of Night Flight»,
illustrated by Francis H. Beaugureau (vol. 20, no. 2; whole no. 116)
In 1933 the book was turned into a movie of the same title, directed by Clarence Brown, with Clark Gable, Helen Hayes and Myrna Loy among others.
Saint-Exupéry's most known novel is the lovely «The Little Prince», but another work also left its marks: «Terre des hommes» (literally «Land of Men», published as «Wind, Sand and Stars») inspired 1960 the Swiss journalist Edmond Kaiser, the naming of the international charitable federation TDHIF, and several independent national relief organizations as well.
«Berceuses Pour Une Maman», 1973, cover by Hans Erni, 18 x 18 cm,
a 45 rpm vinyl record single published by Terre des hommes
with five lullabies from around the world (full)
What a beautiful and humane legacy these men left to us.