He That Has Good Judgment ...

... relies not wholly on his own.

Bells Again

Remember that one week this summer, when I had to travel to a friend's wedding and couldn't write the weekly column?  Well, 'tis the season again.  This time it's a young lady I've known since we were both about ten; and while I don't have an excruciatingly long car ride to her church, I am singing with my siblings for the ceremony—which process comes with its own hassle of practices.

Recipe for an Absolutely Smashing Concert

(1) Charming singer.
(2) Wonderful friends.  (Sorry, no link for that!  You'll have to find some of your own.)
(3) Song I had not heard before from opera that I only vaguely knew about that is (a) related to my studies, (b) for some reason vaguely reminiscent of the graduate life, and (c) amazing!

Love Your Neighbor ...

... yet don't pull down your hedge.

The End of Scott: Or, a True History of One Morning Between the Hours of Six and Eight in Our Nation's Capital

I arose somewhat earlier than was my usual wont, for I had much to accomplish on that particular morning which could not readily have been undertaken in that condition in which nature so inclines me to be found at these early hours, namely, in that state of recline which is so pleasant at the beginning of the day and so necessary at the end of it.  I arose, and heard with mild chagrin a rushing sound, as it were of a river contained within porcelain walls, and hurtling down from a great height with such savage force as might have dashed a rider in a boat that sought to traverse it with much danger into the depths towards which, drawn by those intransigent forces that surround and direct, almost unseen, animate and inanimate creation alike, the river itself was irremediably drawn.  My roommate was in the bathroom.

Three Guesses What I Did Last Night

WNO managed to put on a pretty good Anna Bolena.  The costumes weren't quite as awesome as below, but Sondra Radvanovsky's Anna was ... with all respect to Netrebko ... pretty nearly this good.

Two Things a Man Should Not Be Angry At:

... what he can help,

In the Cool

Where else would you be with Bing?

In Defense of Liberty

Liberty gets a bad rap these days, especially political and religious liberty.  There are those on the progressive side of things, who pay lip-service to liberty but when pressed admit that they can only give it value to the extent that it comes under the double-headed banner of fairness and non-offensiveness.  There are those on the reactionary side of things, who openly deny that liberty is worthy of its former to-die-for dignity.

In Defense of Talking Stump

I'm not a fan of Clint Eastwood.  I haven't seen many of his movies (in fact, I don't think I've seen any except for Gran Torino).  Those who know me know I've got—personal and philosophical problems, with language and violence on film.  I spent most of The Dark Knight Rises with my head either between my knees or behind my hands.  This actually makes me uniquely qualified to be a movie critic.  After all, how many reviewers write from that perspective?

Deposuerit

I confess, I have been thinking about politics this week—probably more than a student of English literature should.  But I swear this selection was not inspired by those meditations.  Still, there's no denying it's a happy thought, this deposuit potentes.

He Is Not Laughed at by Others ...

... that laughs at himself first.