Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[jennyxj]

"And it rained a sickness. And it rained a fear. And it rained an odor. And it rained pale eggs of the beast.

"Rain fell on the towns and the fields. It fell on the tractor sheds and the labyrinth of sloughs. Rain fell on toadstools and ferns and bridges. It fell on the head of John Paul Ziller.

"Rain poured for days, unceasing. Flooding occurred. The wells filled with reptiles. The basements filled with fossils. Mousy-haired lunatics roamed the dripping peninsulas. Moisture gleamed on the beak of the Raven. Ancient shamans, rained from their homes in dead tree tree trunks, clacked their clamshell teeth in the drowned doorways of forests. Rain hissed on the Freeway. It hissed at the prows of fishing boats. It ate the old warpaths, spilled the huckleberries, ran in the ditches. Soaking. Spreading. Penetrating.

"And it rained an omen. And it rained a poison. And it rained a pigment. And it rained a seizure."

This is the most difficult text I've ever read. I know every word, yes, and my imagination could bring me to some, if not all, of the descriptions. But I have to admit I can't understand it as a whole. I've done my homework searching on Google and found that it is from a book called Another Roadside Attraction written by Tom Robbins. Could anyone here please especially explain what "fossils" and "lunatics" are?

Thanks.
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Jenny from Xinjiang

[CP]

This is just a long passage saying that it really rained a lot. As I recall, the book is set in Seattle, Washington, where it rains a lot. He's trying to say that it really rained a lot, even by Seattle standards. He's saying, "It rained cats and dogs," but adding to the cats and dogs all sorts of other things.

This is a book in which a hot dog stand and a package of Camel cigarettes play big parts. You can't expect it to be normal. It has a lot of exaggeration in it, and a lot of elegant variation, in order to be funny or profound. (Sorry, I don't buy Tom Robbins as profound, but I think that's what he wants people to think he is. He is mildly funny sometimes, and fairly entertaining most of the time, except for some irksome writing habits.)

Anyway, a fossil is a remnant of an ancient plant or animal. A lunatic is a crazy person. The moon ("luna" in Latin and Spanish and probably in Italian; "lune" in French) is supposed to have an effect on people, making them act crazy. (See the movie "Moonstruck" for a sweet and funny take on the effect of the full moon on a few people.)

It's raining cats and dogs, and lunatics and fossils.

Who gave you this cruel assignment?
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You live a new life for every new language you speak. -Czech proverb

[jennyxj]