I love this picture some much. Even when you consider who it is if, it is beautiful in every way.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
...
I love this picture some much. Even when you consider who it is if, it is beautiful in every way.
...
To all of those people who are under the lamentable impression that I never smile in pictures.
(And yes, albeit a little one, that is a smile.)
...
I don't know what these flowers are called, but they grow by our creek and bloom every spring. They are most lovely are are one of our favorite things in the forest.
Sunday, April 17, 2011
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Othello
The only thing I can compare 'Othello' to is, well, The Dark Knight. But I never mention superheroes on this blog, so I won't elaborate.
'Othello' was...INTENSE. I mean, wow! That was High. Tragedy. Seriously. Iago was... a work of art, really. I really didn't think people back then were capable of creating villains like Iago. He was so evil and so brilliant, I said I wouldn't elaborate, but I can't talk about Iago without saying something about The Joker. Just the pure, raw, evilness. It is very much like The Joker.
Iago is driven by three things: Gain. He wants more money, that is why he keeps Rodrigo around. Sport. In one part, he actually says that he is doing what he is doing for the sport. (Again, The Joker comes to mind.) And revenge. He wants nothing more than to break Othello. For two reasons, one, he thinks Othello had an affair with Emilia, his wife. But he only mentions that once, his main reason is that Othello made young Michael Cassio his lieutenant instead of himself.
He develops this plain, this complex and yet simple plain. The entire play is basically about how he destroys Othello. He twists Othello's love for Desdemona, turns it into jealousy ("It is thee green-eyed monster that doth mock the the meat it feeds on."), and then into hatred.
Worst Character: Uh.... Iago? He is the ultimate villain, but, as I said, he was a work of art. The most insidious thing about him it how much everyone trusted him, "Honest Iago." They (Othello, Rodrigo, and Cassio.) all believed that Iago deeply and truly had their best interest in mind. They all actually thought that he was just helping them out, but in reality, he was just serving his own purposes.
Best Character: Michael Cassio. He was just a really good dude. Almost too good. That is, his noble innocence made him rather easy for Iago to use. I liked him very much. He was loyal and trustworthy and honest. He was, in fact, everything everyone thought Iago was.
In a Word: Intense.
Rated: R
Crowning Moment: I asked Kae if 'Othello' had a best part. She replied, "Uh, from page one to the last part." In the book where I read 'Othello', the play actually starts on page 363, but you get the point.
'Othello' was...INTENSE. I mean, wow! That was High. Tragedy. Seriously. Iago was... a work of art, really. I really didn't think people back then were capable of creating villains like Iago. He was so evil and so brilliant, I said I wouldn't elaborate, but I can't talk about Iago without saying something about The Joker. Just the pure, raw, evilness. It is very much like The Joker.
Iago is driven by three things: Gain. He wants more money, that is why he keeps Rodrigo around. Sport. In one part, he actually says that he is doing what he is doing for the sport. (Again, The Joker comes to mind.) And revenge. He wants nothing more than to break Othello. For two reasons, one, he thinks Othello had an affair with Emilia, his wife. But he only mentions that once, his main reason is that Othello made young Michael Cassio his lieutenant instead of himself.
He develops this plain, this complex and yet simple plain. The entire play is basically about how he destroys Othello. He twists Othello's love for Desdemona, turns it into jealousy ("It is thee green-eyed monster that doth mock the the meat it feeds on."), and then into hatred.
Worst Character: Uh.... Iago? He is the ultimate villain, but, as I said, he was a work of art. The most insidious thing about him it how much everyone trusted him, "Honest Iago." They (Othello, Rodrigo, and Cassio.) all believed that Iago deeply and truly had their best interest in mind. They all actually thought that he was just helping them out, but in reality, he was just serving his own purposes.
Best Character: Michael Cassio. He was just a really good dude. Almost too good. That is, his noble innocence made him rather easy for Iago to use. I liked him very much. He was loyal and trustworthy and honest. He was, in fact, everything everyone thought Iago was.
In a Word: Intense.
Rated: R
Crowning Moment: I asked Kae if 'Othello' had a best part. She replied, "Uh, from page one to the last part." In the book where I read 'Othello', the play actually starts on page 363, but you get the point.
Twelfth Night
Twelfth Night was by far the most delightful thing I have read in a long time. Since I read As You Like It.
It was glorious. I was genuinely splendid on so many levels. The plot, the characters, the writing style. All of it.
Best Character: Feste. Feste was not only my favorite character in Twelfth Night, but he is definitely one of my all time favorite Shakespearean characters. All throughout the play he was there with something clever to say, and, unlike with Touchstone, I actually *got* his jokes! And he had nice songs to sing, with his beautiful, beautiful voice. He was anything but a 'fool', he really was the wisest person in the play. As Viola put it:
"This fellow is wise enough to play the fool;
And to do that well craves a kind of wit:
He must observe their mood on whom he jests,
The quality of persons, and the time,
And, like the haggard, cheque at every feather
That comes before his eye. This is a practise
As full of labour as a wise man's art
For folly that he wisely shows is fit;
But wise men, folly-fall'n, quite taint their wit."
He was my most favorite character. I also really liked Viola, Sebastian, Antonio, Sir Toby, Fabian, Maria, and well just about everybody.
Worst Character: Malovio. "Overweening rogue." He was rather obsessed with himself, and thought that there was really no way Olivia could not fall in love with him. Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, Fabian, and Maria, all couldn't stand him, and all were very board, to they cooked up this brilliant scheme (It was mostly Maria's doing.) to make Malovio think he was crazy and going mad. (They also had a good deal of help from Feste.) It was really very funny!
In a Word: Delightful.
Rated: PG (Some material may be inappropriate for small children.)
Crowning Moment: Oh, the whole play was just wonderful, every where there were all of these glorious lines. Of course, the very best part was the end where everything fall in place. I really just have to say "Read the play." I really can't do it justice in a blog post. You should just read it.
"If this were played apon a stage now, I would condemm it as an improbable fiction"
It was glorious. I was genuinely splendid on so many levels. The plot, the characters, the writing style. All of it.
Best Character: Feste. Feste was not only my favorite character in Twelfth Night, but he is definitely one of my all time favorite Shakespearean characters. All throughout the play he was there with something clever to say, and, unlike with Touchstone, I actually *got* his jokes! And he had nice songs to sing, with his beautiful, beautiful voice. He was anything but a 'fool', he really was the wisest person in the play. As Viola put it:
"This fellow is wise enough to play the fool;
And to do that well craves a kind of wit:
He must observe their mood on whom he jests,
The quality of persons, and the time,
And, like the haggard, cheque at every feather
That comes before his eye. This is a practise
As full of labour as a wise man's art
For folly that he wisely shows is fit;
But wise men, folly-fall'n, quite taint their wit."
He was my most favorite character. I also really liked Viola, Sebastian, Antonio, Sir Toby, Fabian, Maria, and well just about everybody.
Worst Character: Malovio. "Overweening rogue." He was rather obsessed with himself, and thought that there was really no way Olivia could not fall in love with him. Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, Fabian, and Maria, all couldn't stand him, and all were very board, to they cooked up this brilliant scheme (It was mostly Maria's doing.) to make Malovio think he was crazy and going mad. (They also had a good deal of help from Feste.) It was really very funny!
In a Word: Delightful.
Rated: PG (Some material may be inappropriate for small children.)
Crowning Moment: Oh, the whole play was just wonderful, every where there were all of these glorious lines. Of course, the very best part was the end where everything fall in place. I really just have to say "Read the play." I really can't do it justice in a blog post. You should just read it.
"If this were played apon a stage now, I would condemm it as an improbable fiction"
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Friday, April 8, 2011
Spring
We have reached that glorious point where it gets greener every day.
Every time you look up, the trees are a bit fuller than they were the last time you looked. And when the sun is setting, it shines through the leaves and it is the most beautiful thing in the world to me.
It is delightful, really. Every year, I forget how green it gets. It is amazing. I was looking out the window a few times today, and I kept wondering why the trees across the road looked blurry, and then I realized! Leaves! It was all the little buds and leaves.
Glorious.
Ferns
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Puddles of Sunshine
The Sky falls, like tears of stars, it falls to the earth
The Sky falling, the clouds and sunshine, it falls as water, the joy and laughter of stars
Down to the earth and lands in puddles, puddles of the sky sit amongst the grass
I looked down and I saw the trees, in the puddles of the sky
I looked down and I saw the clouds, in the puddles of the sky
I looked down and saw puddles of sunshine that fell with the falling sky.
Monday, April 4, 2011
King Henry IV
I recently finished reading King Henry IV parts I and II. They were reasonably interesting but not overly so. As I really do not have much to say about the two plays, I figured I would just cover them both in one post.
Best Character (For both plays): Prince Hal (Prince Henry, son of King Henry IV, afterwards King HenryV.) I found him most likable. I also liked his friend, Ned Poins very much. The two of them were great together.
Worst Character (For part I): I really did not like Henry "Hotspur" Percy. I just really did not like him. I was rather happy when Hal killed him.
Worst Character (For part II) I really could not say.
In a Word: Interesting.
Rated: PG13, drinking and some language. (If you took out Falstaff, it could be PG.)
Crowning Moment: I believe that my favorite parts in both plays were when Prince Hal and Poins were playing pranks on Falstaff. In part I, they all (Hal, Poins, Falstaff, and a few of Falstaff's friends.) planed a highway robbery, but Hal and Poins didn't show up, and after Falstaff and his friends held up the travelers, Prince Hal and Poins (in disguise) held up them. It was pretty sweet. And in Part II, they dressed up as waiters at the tavern where they always are loafing around, and picked on Falstaff.
It was, as I said, reasonably interesting. But not nearly as interesting as some of the bard's other works, say, Julius Caesar or Othello.
I do, though, look forward to reading 'King Henry V' and seeing what becomes of Prince Hal once he is King.
Best Character (For both plays): Prince Hal (Prince Henry, son of King Henry IV, afterwards King HenryV.) I found him most likable. I also liked his friend, Ned Poins very much. The two of them were great together.
Worst Character (For part I): I really did not like Henry "Hotspur" Percy. I just really did not like him. I was rather happy when Hal killed him.
Worst Character (For part II) I really could not say.
In a Word: Interesting.
Rated: PG13, drinking and some language. (If you took out Falstaff, it could be PG.)
Crowning Moment: I believe that my favorite parts in both plays were when Prince Hal and Poins were playing pranks on Falstaff. In part I, they all (Hal, Poins, Falstaff, and a few of Falstaff's friends.) planed a highway robbery, but Hal and Poins didn't show up, and after Falstaff and his friends held up the travelers, Prince Hal and Poins (in disguise) held up them. It was pretty sweet. And in Part II, they dressed up as waiters at the tavern where they always are loafing around, and picked on Falstaff.
It was, as I said, reasonably interesting. But not nearly as interesting as some of the bard's other works, say, Julius Caesar or Othello.
I do, though, look forward to reading 'King Henry V' and seeing what becomes of Prince Hal once he is King.
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