#23 Write one letter to my Aunt Frances per month

Today I am sending off the first of my monthly letters. I wrote and printed the letter the other day but I hadn't mailed it out yet. Today is the day it will be in the mailbox and by tomorrow it will be on its way to NYC.

In this letter I included a copy of my short story Housewife Circa 1950. Perhaps by the time I send her the next letter, I'll have enough of my chapbook done to send her a few poems.

#1 King John 2/27

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to see why this is not one of Shakespeare's more popular plays. A lot of politics, not much plot, and what story there is isn't similar or even close to the truth of what the reign of England's King John actually was. So why read this play? Especially given that the most significant event of his reign was completely overlooked in the play: the signing of the Magna Carta.

Taken as a cautionary tale, there are some significant details. Within the context of Shakespeare's times, King John's conflict with the representative from the Pope that results in the war that dominates the play is obviously meant to remind the contemporary (then contemporary audience) of the split between England and the Roman Catholic church. That his fate turns so drastically when he goes to the Popal representative simply reinforces that theme. One of the characters, in the final act, monologues about how important it is that England stand strong, that its citizens are not only its greatest strength but also its greatest weakness. This play being written and originally performed in a country still reeling from the repurcussions of the Hundred's Year War.

BTW, if I were reading these plays chronologically then the next play ought to have been Henry VI Part One. However, I decided to go ahead and read the historical plays, or at least the English ones, in historical chronology. Which means I'll be reading Richard II next. Then Henry IV, V, and VI . . . all the parts and such. I have Henry V on dvd so I am looking forward to watching the dvd (again) after reading the play for the first time.

# 86 Choose a football team to follow in 2007

Woot!

The team has been chosen. I watched the official first game of the NFL season. I had a choice between the New Orleans Saints or the Indianapolis Colts. Both play in an indoor stadium so that's good. But then the Saints have a cousin of Michael Vick's on their team so I couldn't back them up for even one game let alone a whole season.

I decided that the first team I rooted for, with an indoor stadium and nothing to offend me morally, and win the game while I am rooting for them would be my team of choice. Lucky for the Colts Rob didn't tell me that they had won the Superbowl last year or I probably wouldn't have chosen them at all. I prefer to root for the underdog.

But halfway through the game we had a tie so it wasn't looking too promising anyway. If the Colts lost I would just begin all over again on Sunday while watching . . . some other teams play. Anyway, the Colts not only won but they soundly defeated the Saints. Woot! Final Score: 10/41 Colts! (The final touchdown was a recovered fumble with an 83 yard return! I almost sound like I know what I'm talking about, don't I?)

So there! Done! Now I just need to get more familiar with my team's lineup, both offensive and defensive.

PS: Peyton Manning apparently is helping a children's hospital that now bears his name. Seeing him talk about the importance of his giving back to the community made it easier to choose the Colts.

PPS: Okay. So the Colts beat the Bears last year at the Superbowl and anyone who knows me knows I have an issue with all things Chicago so that also gave them an edge.

#1 Titus Andronicus (1/27)

I read Titus Andronicus this weekend. I can see why there is some debate surrounding the authenticity of the text. Did Shakespeare write it? Probably. I didn't feel like it was clearly not Shakespearean; more an immature Shakespeare, a writer who was not yet comfortable with his craft.

I also read the Spark Notes for the play to help ensure that I was following the plot properly because Rob doesn't always understand that when I am holding a book open in front of me that I am not able to multitask and Romanov has no awareness that frequent interruptions make it hard for me to focus. Men!

In the above mentioned notes there is a commentary re. the verbal attack a young woman makes upon an older woman. The young woman is then taken off stage where the older woman's two sons rape her.

For the insults she unleashes on Tamora, some even believe that her rape is fitting retribution. However, others argue that her behavior is completely in keeping with the standards and behavior of ladies during the Elizabethan era, and that taking offense at her coarseness is just the prudish reaction of a contemporary reader.

Emphasis added! Notice that it is the contemporary reader, not the reader in the Elizabethan era that thinks that "rape is fitting retribution." I was horrified by this note. Glad it was there. I forget these things sometimes, that there are people in this world who still believe that women invite rape into their lives, that women want it, that secretly we like it and are even turned on by it.

After a quick search I found that there is a BBC production of this play out there but I could not find it on dvd. There is a movie with Anthony Hopkins playing the title role available. If you like your Shakespeare very violent (this is his bloodiest), including multiple murders, rape, mutilation and even cannabalism, then here you go!

Note: There are a lot of allusions to Roman mythology which would be lost without some contextual background. The edition I read did not have notes to help with this. I did not need them. Other readers might.

# 95 Get a Public Library Card

Today Rob took me to the local library where I not only got a library card but borrowed three books: a collection of Shakespeare's plays, Dream When You're Feeling Blue by Elizabeth Berg, and Writing as a Way of Healing by Louise DeSalvo.

So one down, one hundred more to go, and using this one to help me finish another.