(Written on the occasion of the attempt to assassinate Queen Victoria in March 1882) From every quarter of your landThey give God thanks who turned awayDeath and the needy madman’s hand,Death-fraught, which menaced you that day. One school of many made to makeMen who shall hold it dearest rightTo battle for their ruler’s sake,And stake … Continue reading Poem – ‘Ave Imperatrix’
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Sunday Flotsam: New Apartment and Classics
1. Last week I took possession of my new apartment and have been moving in piecemeal ever since. I won't be able to get most of the furniture until next week, unfortunately, but I have almost all of my books moved. In the meantime I live among chaos, my worldly goods vomited out upon the … Continue reading Sunday Flotsam: New Apartment and Classics
Good Friday: No Flotsam
Fast and Pray
Friday Flotsam: Mostly Political History
1. We're still reading Thomas Paine in my American Government course (I'm going to be looking ahead this weekend, but I may have to go off-script because there doesn't seem much else being discussed in the coming weeks), along with his chosen opponent, Rev. Charles Inglis (later the first Anglican Bishop in the New World). … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Mostly Political History
Thoughts on ‘Unstoppable’
I've been meaning to check out Unstoppable for a while, the 2010 action-thriller starring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine. Now I have and it's about what I expected it to be; that is to say, a very cool, good-not-great piece of entertainment aimed squarely at the side of America that Hollywood generally tries to ignore. … Continue reading Thoughts on ‘Unstoppable’
Friday Flotsam: New Job and Some Other Stuff
1. The first news is that as of this week I have a new job. Come August I'll be teaching with Regina Caeli Academy: a classical-education homeschool-hybrid where kids learn at home three days a week then come in for Socratic discussion two days. I'm taking on high school-level American History, US Government and Economics, … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: New Job and Some Other Stuff
Talking ‘Miracle on 34th Street’ at ‘The Everyman’
Post for Christmas delving into the themes of Miracle on 34th Street (see also my review for more detail on the film): The world at the start of the film, thus, is the modern world; impersonal, materialistic, and competitive, dismissive of tradition and traditional values in favor of an endless pursuit of an uncertain goal. … Continue reading Talking ‘Miracle on 34th Street’ at ‘The Everyman’
Thought of the Day: Hollywood Friendships
I think the most positive aspect of Hollywood as an industry, in its golden era at least, were the great, intense friendships that sometimes resulted; people like Laurel and Hardy, or Jimmy Stewart and Henry Fonda, or Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing, or Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. The entertainment industry has always been a … Continue reading Thought of the Day: Hollywood Friendships
Poetry: “The Last of the Light Brigade”
There were thirty million English who talked of England's might, There were twenty broken troopers who lacked a bed for the night. They had neither food nor money, they had neither service nor trade; They were only shiftless soldiers, the last of the Light Brigade. They felt that life was fleeting; they knew not that … Continue reading Poetry: “The Last of the Light Brigade”
Friday Flotsam: Verne, History, and Broomsticks
1. Visiting relatives in Maine all this week 2. On the way up, listened to a biography of Jules Verne. It was certainly interesting to get a look into the life of such an important author, though the biographer is rather annoyingly intrusive; his thesis is that Verne is one of the great authors of … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Verne, History, and Broomsticks
Serpent's Den 