Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player That struts and frets his hour upon the stage And then is heard no more: it is a tale Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing. (Macbeth, V.v.17-28)
Human condition
Why Antiques Roadshow Makes Me Sad
Retrophiliac that I am, it stands to reason that Antiques Roadshow is one of the television shows I watch often. Still, even while marveling at the wonderful array of treasures that make their way to an appraiser’s table, I also… Read More ›
“Did YOU look in the mirror LATELY?”
The child in this video, Cici, is so cool in rebutting an ugly, hurtful verbal attack that watching it made me rethink how I judge myself. So much for introductions. Watch and judge for yourself: As beautiful as this… Read More ›
As the Song Says, “Sometimes You Have to Encourage Yourself”
The song referred to in the title is by Donald Lawrence and the Tri-City Singers. If you don’t know it, just listening to it will answer all questions about what’s going on that’s got you so — worried, upset, angry, disappointed…… Read More ›
Organizing the World Through Its Literature
Some time in the late twentieth century, college English departments decided that instead of the traditional two semesters devoted to world literature that it could all be crammed in one semester. That’s 16 weeks to cover literature from antiquity to… Read More ›
No Such Thing as a “Great War”
Until I started searching for literary war stories for a world lit class, I was under the impression they were everywhere just waiting to be selected and linked to. Guess again! I’m doing pretty well but making progress much more slowly… Read More ›
Boy the Sleeping Bull
This is another of the heart-warming stories of animal rescue that we hear about every couple of weeks or so. Such stories help offset the horrific instances of animal cruelty and torture which we also hear about every couple of… Read More ›
You know you’ve met a friend when…
You find yourself saying, “You mean it’s only been that long since we met?? A person who was a stranger a few hours ago unselfishly and beyond anything you would ever have dared to ask bails you out of an… Read More ›
Still Learning After all These Years
One of my favorite concepts, “still _____ after all these years,” borrowed from Paul Simon’s “Still Crazy After all These Years.” I think this is particularly significant to me because there are so few things I can say that I… Read More ›
Bridging the Void
In 1990 at the urging of a good friend, I took a class in the venerable game of bridge. I had just moved to a new city and was eager to start a more social life, with bridge being a major part… Read More ›
Cleo’s Address Book
This evening, I set out to write my daily post, when the calendar in the corner of my monitor screen reminded me that today is my mother’s birthday. Her name is Cleo, and I wrote about her in Today My Mother Didn’t Know Who… Read More ›