September 20th, 2016 → 5:28 am
“Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.” – As You Like It
Or, as rephrased by Bill Clinton on The Daily Show last week: “I really am in my second childhood!”
Filed under: Blog & Politics/Politicians
September 11th, 2016 → 5:14 am
“I have more flesh than another man
and therefore more frailty.” – Henry IV, Part I
Continuing with the Hollow Crown series, I watched Henry IV, Part I last night. This quote made me wonder, if being large means you are more frail (or, as Falstaff meant it, more fallible), does being small mean you are more resilient (or, more honest)? I have read scientific studies that claim that small people live longer – one potential explanation of which is that there are less cells to go haywire, less of a chance something will turn cancerous. I rather doubt that being small makes you more resilient or more honest, frankly, but it is nice to hear some praise for smallness (even if it is from Falstaff), which is so rare in our current culture with its worshipfulness of all things big and tall.
Filed under: Blog & Literature/Theatre/Art & Self/My Life
September 7th, 2016 → 5:24 am
“I was not made a horse;
And yet I bear a burthen like an ass.” – Richard II
When Ben Whishaw uttered these words as Richard II he was in a sorry state, half naked and starving in a dungeon. It wasn’t at all a funny moment, yet I guffawed out loud watching it. I feel that way all the f***ing time. 😉
Filed under: Blog
September 4th, 2016 → 6:09 am
“See, see, King Richard doth himself appear.
As doth the blushing discontented sun.” – Richard II
I am blown away. I finally got the chance to watch the first in The Hollow Crown series – Richard II. Ben Whishaw plays Richard II and I have never seen such a good performance in my life before. I was riveted. Actually riveted to the screen. I refused to stop watching even to go to the bathroom. I just want to watch it again now. Ben Whishaw, you are my new favorite actor ❤️❤️❤️
Filed under: Blog & Literature/Theatre/Art
August 30th, 2016 → 5:00 am
“I am no orator, as Brutus is;
But, as you know me all, a plain blunt man.” – Julius Caesar
In a recent op-ed in The New York Times, writer Mark Thompson argues that Trump’s ‘I just tell it like it is’ style of speech is actually a historically familiar rhetorical style, shared by Mark Antony, Silvio Berlusconi, and Adolf Hitler. It is an “anti-rhetoric” rhetoric, which aims at taking a dig at the establishment by pretending to be uber authentic. It’s been done before, and, frankly, not by leaders we necessarily admire.
Filed under: Blog & Politics/Politicians
August 26th, 2016 → 4:51 am
“Now remains
That we find out the cause of this effect,
Or rather say the cause of this defect,
For this effect defective comes by cause.” – Hamlet
A colleague of mine told me yesterday that he’s had a sore throat for six months now (um, maybe it’s time to go see the doctor?). My cat turned over on his back last week and we watched his belly distend and fall to the floor (the vet says it’s an allergy – ??). My son came home from the first week of school and felt so dizzy he laid on the floor all night rather than try to stand (he seems better now). What’s going on with all this sickness suddenly around me? More seriously, my colleague’s ex-wife died two days ago, and on the same day I scheduled my next surgery at the Mayo Clinic. Ah, health. Ah, the frail human body. Ah, sickness and disease. I dream of the day when medicine is so advanced we just step into a machine and after three minutes of laser treatment, we’re all cured. Wouldn’t it be nice? Why not dream?
August 20th, 2016 → 5:28 am
“Why art thou old and not yet wise?” – The Rape of Lucrece
Why do we associate wisdom with age? Trump is 70 and from everything I can tell, he’s as stupid as he’s ever been. As I get older I accumulate more knowledge, sure, but I also become increasingly aware of the gray boundaries of my widening unknowns. Wisdom doesn’t equal facts, of course, and maybe that is how this is generally meant. That wisdom is an approach, a perspective, and an experience that grows with age. I just have to say, though, that there are some pretty unwise elderly people out there.
Filed under: Blog & Other & Stupid/Evil People
August 16th, 2016 → 5:21 am
“Study is like the heaven’s glorious sun.” – Love’s Labor’s Lost
If only my students thought that! Here’s to the beginning of a new school year. For my son, this week. For me, next week. Back to the books!
August 8th, 2016 → 7:03 am
“Like Arion on the dolphin’s back.
I saw him hold acquaintance with the waves.” – Twelfth Night
As summer nears its end, we’re trying to get in as much pool time as we can. Yesterday, my son abandoned his Spiderman swim vest, and of his own volition swam and jumped in the pool unaided. It was lovely. A mother’s dream (and nightmare), watching her son grow up before her eyes.
Filed under: Blog & Self/My Life
August 4th, 2016 → 5:27 am
“The game is up.”
I recently learned that this phrase, “the game is up,” originally meant ‘the game is afoot,’ or, the ‘game is about to begin.’ In other words, it originally meant exactly the opposite of what it means today. That cracks me up for some reason.
As for Rio, in today’s parlance, let the games begin!