The Dream Stela of Thutmosis IV

What is the story written on Thutmosis IV’s stela?

The Dream Stela describes a time when he was just newly king. [Scholars put his reign at 1401–1391 B.C.] According to the stela, Thutmosis IV was strolling here one day, all alone. Around midday, he got very hot and decided to rest in the shadow of the Great Sphinx. And at the moment when the sun hit the zenith—was at the top of the sky—the god Horem-Akhet-Khepri-Re-Atum came to him in a dream and basically told him that if he cleared away the sands that had been building up around [the Sphinx], the god would make sure that Thutmosis IV was the ruler of upper and lower Egypt, unified.

In my dream I wandered the desert, until I came to Roly Poly, buried up to his head in sand. The creature spoke, “Whoever cleans my litter box shall rule over the land of the dollar bill.” This is what happens when I fall asleep on the couch watching Nova.

My friend Amanda often finds trouble on the MBTA. She bought me a tape of a young Jerry Seinfeld discussing the craft of comedy, and this is one of the best parts:

Larry Wilde: Why is the art of comedy so difficult to master?

Jerry Seinfeld: Because you’re completely alone. There’s no where to hide and every aspect of the work has to be done by you, the comedian. So any failing in your character, in your work, in your mood, any weakness is readily visible to the audience because you can’t hide behind… there’s no script, there’s no story. You’re a guy facing the audience directly and everything shows. It calls upon every facility you have as a human being; creativity, and also sometimes just pure toughness, the ability to get up on stage and deliver a show, energy, taking care of yourself properly, the day-in day-out. It calls upon a lot of different abilities all at the same time. When you have a failing, unfortunately, it can be fatal. Its like you could tell the greatest joke but if you just trip over one word on the punchline, nothing. Why? Why? Its the same thought. Its the same joke. I just said, “the the” instead of “the” and there’s zero laugh. These are the rules of comedy. Nobody knows why, but its a very exacting thing.

LW: When professionals discuss comedy, they tend to do it in a very scientific, analytical manner. Why is that?

JS: It takes so little… its like this little house of cards… a joke is this souffle. Its created from nothing and it only lasts for a second. Its almost like a smoke ring. You just have to see it now. A joke exists in space and time, and time never stops moving. Its like a train going by and there is one car with the door open and you’re on the platform. When that car comes by you have to jump. Sometimes you’ll get thrown off a joke and an audience will say, well, finish it anyway, and you go, I can’t, the train went by. That was it. It existed in that moment only, and you can’t bring it back.