Some Theories

So, I've been thinking about some theories lately. I can say my thoughts are whirling, and it's very hard to focus on anything singly...it's always been hard, but lately it's...harder. I never have just one theory, but several multi-tasking in my mind at once. It's hard to describe, but it can be sorta exhausting. James can verify that once I get started on something--anything--it's hard for me to stop, even to eat or relax or sleep.

My mind seems to go a million miles a minute for days and days, then it inevitably crashes, and I'm forced to back away and turn my attention on something mindless--like The Walking Dead, TedEd on YouTube, or a video game like Dragon Age.

The combination of ADHD and Asperger's is a blessing and a curse. Lol.

Anyway, I have some coping mechanisms that help, like a routine that includes a specific time for exercise and music. During those times, I don't think about anything else but body mechanics, proper form, and giving it my all.

But I wanted to talk about one of the theories swirling around in my brain. It's a theory the poem purists may like, but I think you'd still need a knowledge of geography or a map to plot your course. Maybe. I have some theories on that, too. And I still believe certain photos in the book hold important hints.

So... "Begin it where warm waters halt."

"Waters" with the "s" at the end, typically has just one definition-- salt water, the ocean. As in The Seven SEAS. Or tears, I suppose. If we are directed to "listen good," it's not a stretch to hear "CEASE" as "SEAS." And you have the second confirmation of HALT meaning CEASE as well.

The clue would then read something like "Begin it where warm SEAS CEASE." Or maybe you're supposed to begin it with the actual word CEASE in the poem.

Now, you have the problem of "warm." Forrest has said his definition of warm is "comfortable." Last night at the booksigning, he said the poemS in his TTotC book have profound meanings to him. I was reminded of "Courage wears a CRIMSON coat."

Which made me think of skins that hide the true identity of something, like the fox who had to dress like the hound. Minerva, the little carved quail, had ivory skin. Ivory comes from elephant tusks. So the quail was in the skin of an elephant. And I'm also reminded of the fable by Aesop about the ass in the lion's skin. Lions were frequently associated with royalty, appearing on nobility's coats of arms. Purple is the color associated with royalty, and Forrest has been wearing that purple sweater to many functions, and even wore it to Fennboree when it was about 100 degrees outside.

Okay, so I just went off on a tangent, so let me get back on track with the words in the poem. From CEASE, my mind skipped ahead a little without my permission, and thought about "From there it's no place for the meek, the end is ever drawing nigh; there'll be no paddle up your creek, just heavy loads and water high."

The semicolon is important in that it tells you that you are talking about the same thing after it as you were before it-- a CREEK. So, "no place for the meek," would be a creek. Forrest hints in the book that he doesn't like to be embarrassed, and he didn't like to be naked where anyone could see.

No place for the meek would then be somewhere he would feel exposed, or BARE. The double meaning here could be BEAR. Both are no place for the meek, and you have to listen good to catch it. So, you could be looking for BARE or BEAR creek, which may change names as you cross the semicolon border, becoming something like LICK Creek.

Well, look at this...I found a bare bear:

But then the tangent comes racing back into my head to shove aside those thoughts to remind me about the ass in the lion's skin, and a picture of Forrest wearing the purple lion's skin comes appears in my mind's eye. A lion is PROUD. His family was sometimes proud of him. Forrest admits he was prideful. A family or group of lions is called a PRIDE. No place for the meek could definitely be a lion's den.

And then, yet another tangent. Lions are described as tawny colored, a light shade of brown. Could home of Brown be a lion's den, and Brown capitalized because of pride? And the first stanza pops into my mind. "Riches old and new." Richard the Lionheart was an interesting character--you should look him up and have fun in that rabbit hole that may not be a rabbit hole.

Okay, stop it, brain! Get back to the word play at hand. So my mind wants to finish the second stanza now.

If we begin at CEASE, we would then "put in below the home of Brown." What word of the poem sounds like a word for brown? I think it could be "DONE." DUN is a shade of brown. But then again, my mind shifts to "put in" meaning "boat launcher" which could be Sacajawea (spelled with the j instead of g). And many people believe that Washakie could be the home of Brown, as it used to be known as Camp Brown.

Then there's the uses of the word CAN in the poem. Last night, Forrest said something that was a confirmation of sorts--he said "drink coffee from a tin cup." The mountain men in the past would drink their coffee from tin cans or cups.

Not too long ago, I sent the first part of a general solve to F, where a prominent spot in the solve was Newswander Canyon in Wyoming. Newswander Canyon begins in Idaho, then crosses the border into Wyoming. The poem almost spells this word out if you think about the stumbling, hiccuping walk of a drunk guy. And the old biddies are gossiping in TTotC. Gossip is news that wanders. The school pic where Pat is sort of plays into this area, too, because she is right by Newswander in Idaho. The tin cup is there, too, along with some of the other things I've found in the poem.

Here's Newswander in the poem:

And here's the portion of Newswander on the Idaho side:

So, these are just a couple things going through my head lately. There's much more, but I wanted to put some of it out there. Maybe it'll trigger something in your brain and help you.

And you can probably see from this post how my mind wanders and why I haven't picked up the chest yet...lol...