Hermit Wanted.

August 8, 2002 1:29 AM

Hermit Wanted. Back in fashion at last! Niagara had one. This one was murdered. Why not apply for the job? Give up your soft office job. This guy did. (Don't be put off by the murdering).
posted by Frasermoo (11 comments total)

But mankind will not allow him the seclusion he seeks.

Sentences like the one above (taken from here) breaks my heart.
posted by soundofsuburbia at 4:15 AM on August 8, 2002

Beautiful post! There's a book on the subject by one Isabel Colegate, who also organized a hermit-themed art exhibition at the Holburne Museum of Art in England earlier this year. And why was it fashionable to hire a hermit? ""[T]he hermit's main function was to make philosophical conversation with visitors."
posted by kmel at 7:14 AM on August 8, 2002

nice one Kmel. I knew there was more Hermit stuff I wanted to read.
posted by Frasermoo at 7:29 AM on August 8, 2002

Study up with Will Cuppy: How to be a Hermit.
posted by cairnish at 8:28 AM on August 8, 2002

This post makes me hate my job even more. If only my college's office of career planning and placement had been just a tad more liberal, then I could be living the good life in a cave.
posted by Mushkelley at 8:46 AM on August 8, 2002

More on the same personality type, or perhaps a subset: Into the Wild {affiliate code for ACLU}, excerpt here. Mainly about Christopher McCandless, a young man who made his way to Alaska and lived in an abandoned bus on a wild trail miles from civilization. He died, having entered the wilderness unprepared; Krakauer suggests an explanation based on his diet aggravated by innocence and ignorance. But the book also discusses Krakauer's own reckless wilderness experiences, as well as other famous or infamous cases, such as Everett "Nemo" Ruess in Utah and an otherwise experienced Alaskan adventurer who had himself flown north of the Brooks Range for the summer, but neglected to make firm arrangements to be flown out.
posted by dhartung at 11:14 AM on August 8, 2002

I think being an Alaskan hermit vs an English hermit is kind of a no-brainer. Surround yourself with incredibly harsh winters and man-eating beasts vs somewhere where it rains a lot and a badger might nip you.

What about women hermits, huh? Wasn't it fashionable to have a girl hermit!?! This is *so* sexist. Makes me wanna just give up on the human race and move far away from everyone one and......wait a minute....
posted by Salmonberry at 11:57 AM on August 8, 2002

Sign me up.
posted by rushmc at 12:59 PM on August 8, 2002

when i was younger i often got asked what i wanted to do with my life. [no one cares now.]
anyways, often as not i would reply. "i want to be a professional introvert, a famous one."

the ensuing conversation would go something like this:

a what?
an introvert. you know, be a hermit, not talk to people, that sort of thing.
like like famous poets who never go out?
oh no. they are famous for being poets, and they just happen to be introverted. I will be famous for being a really really good introvert that works very hard at it. Maybe i will actually write a bit of poetry on the side...but it won't be what i'm known for....
can you do that?
you can do anything you set your mind to.
no, i mean, can you make a living at it?
well...that depends. Very few decent university programs exist for that field, but i have recently found a correspondence course, the instructor of which hasn't been seen in about 25 years, so i think thats a good start.
oh.

i highly recommend this line of conversation for first time meetings with fiance's parents, blind dates, that sort of thing.
posted by th3ph17 at 1:07 PM on August 8, 2002

Sometime back in the late 80's my wife and I were visiting my friend Eddie in Goodland, Florida, where he was helping to build the ocean for the Biosphere in Arizona, and he took us out in his boat to meet the hermit of Dismal Key. The position had a long and honorable (?) history, none of which I can remember now.

I was somewhat surprised that we could just drop in on a hermit like that. Also surprised that his girlfriend was visiting at the time, from somewhere in Colorado (Boulder?), and he was on the phone when we arrived.
posted by LeLiLo at 2:42 PM on August 8, 2002

i have recently found a correspondence course, the instructor of which hasn't been seen in about 25 years, so i think thats a good start

class.
posted by Frasermoo at 4:48 AM on August 9, 2002