We Can Do This Thing

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By John Hertz: (reprinted from Vanamonde 1286; January 31, 2017)  Today is National Gorilla-Suit Day (Don Martin Bounces Back, 1963).

I’ve just come to the passage in Scott Kelly’s Endurance (2017) where his twin brother Mark announces sending a gorilla suit to Scott at the International Space Station.

“Of course you need a gorilla suit,” Mark says (p. 219, in the large-print edition, which is what I could get).

Its launching rocket explodes, but – this is ahead of where I am in the book – another is sent, upon arrival captured with a robot arm (p. 498) by Kjell (pronounced “chell”) Lindgren, who also while at the Station 22 Jul – 11 Dec 15 was a long-distance Guest of Honor of Sasquan, the 73rd World Science Fiction Convention, presenting the Hugo Award for Best Novel by video.

Indeed Scott Kelly gorillas up, as he puts it (p. 529), of which a video got onto the Internet 23 Feb 16.

3 thoughts on “We Can Do This Thing”

  1. Indeed! I’ve had my copy of Don Martin Bounces Back at the ready since yesterday, and I tweeted out the glad tidings then, as well as a minute or so ago.

    Deck yourself in garb of primate
    Ooga booga booga, ook ook ook!
    Warm the blood in every climate
    Ooga booga booga, ook ook ook!
    Done we now our ape apparel
    Booga boo, booga boo, ook ook ook!
    Join us all in acting feral
    Ooga booga booga, ook ook ook!

    We three Kongs of simian mien
    Peeling fruit of yellow and green
    Crouching, feeding, on chests beating
    Stars of the jungle scene!
    Oo-oook…
    Day of wonder, bright, acute
    Day to wear gorilla suit!
    Plantains cooking, backward looking
    Day when evolution’s moot!

    Swinging through the trees
    With a holly jolly ape.
    Music’s on the breeze.
    Native children gape!
    Lights on green fronds cling
    And shimmer in the heat.
    Let’s dance and sing till tree frogs ring
    With a festive jungle beat! Oh—

    Jungle Bells, Jungle Bells,
    Through rain forests green!
    Carols hum on a wooden drum
    From hands that can’t be seen, oh—
    Jungle Bells, Jungle Bells,
    Tinkle through the swamp:
    Festive chimes that hang from vines
    For a sultry devo romp!

    (Okay, that’s actually a Christmas song with “festive” and “devo” standing in for “Yuletide” and “Christmas,” but we’re forgiving on that score.PDQ Bach’s “Good King Kong” is also acceptable for this date.)

  3. JeffWarner: I endorse your plan.

    And that reminds me I was going to memorize that song, since I was dealing with solfege in class all the time, and use the solfege signs while I was at it.

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