Happy Sunday Meanders — we are well and into the home stretch. Just two more tiny weeks to wrap. And yet, and yet: plenty of roadway for anyone who’s behind to catch up and make the lunge to the back cover. And you know, just imagine the holiday conversations as you try to explain what the hell to friends and family.
Thanks as always for a rich comment thread. It’s a gift to read these every week as a live communal response to the Intentionally Overcharged Adventures of Oedipa Mass.
Like many, I especially enjoyed this stretch. Like some, the Bay Area locations helped keep me tethered. And maybe this one is just me, but I’m pretty sure I met Stanley Koteks when I used to visit computer game companies in the mid-90s. I don’t think we talked, but he looked up when I walked by, unimpressed. No sensitive, me.
This coming week: What say we regroup at the end of Chapter 5, aka page 120 (HP). Please add your comment to this post although “by then it was too late to make any difference.”
Have a good week, and may all your trumpets stay unmuted. Assuming that’s a good thing. And maybe it’s not?
Pynchon was prescient. So much is still relevant.
For example, this passage hits hard, as it could have been written about the current mass layoffs and job security threats with the rise of AI. “Nearly three weeks it takes him,” marvelled the efficiency expert, “to decide. You know how long it would’ve taken the IBM 7094? Twelve microseconds. No wonder you were replaced.”
This part also feels really relevant, as Gen Z and Gen Alpha seem to be living more isolated lives — engaging less in community and in relationships than previous generations. “From this day I swear to stay off of love: hetero, homo, bi, dog or cat, car, every kind there is. I will found a society of isolates, dedicated to this purpose, and this sign, revealed by the same gasoline that almost destroyed me, will be its emblem.”
8th wormhole and prize of Mystery?
Now I’m deeply engaged and curious!!