Fish in the Sea

"When from our better selves we have too long Been parted by the hurrying world, and droop, Sick of its business, of its pleasures tired, How gracious, how benign, is Solitude."
- William Wordsworth, "The Prelude"

"You have 64 new messages," says the mechanical voice of Hope Davis' answering machine in the 1998 Brad Anderson movie Next Stop Wonderland. Her mother, dismayed at her daughter's stagnant love life, has done her the favor of placing a personal ad on her behalf. "I'm not lonely," she argues, "when I sit at a bar by myself. I'm not even lonely when I'm home alone. I get lonely in a crowded room, or a subway that's packed with people."

If her final destination is Wonderland, as the title would have us believe, then first, she's got to go through the aquarium...

* * *

"There are plenty of fish in the sea" (or at least that's what Grandma always said), and this weekend at the New England Aquarium I saw a good many, including a rare, entrancing and almost unnaturally complex one.

This is a fish you might be afraid to touch.

* * *

Pisces (The Fish): You're feeling a new surge of personal power. It's like suddenly others become aware of your real potential. Perhaps they've underestimated how clever and determined you can be. Your words and actions will be extra powerful, so it's best to "start things slowly" and gradually increase the tempo and intensity. New people enter your life who can play significant roles in your future development. Get ready for some bizarre things to happen.

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