The List

Since I was sick the latter part of the week and the weekend, I didn't read any Shakespeare last week. I didn't really read anything much, and that is very unlike me. So I need to pick a play for this week. Hmm, what to read, what to read?

Here is a list of all of Shakespeare's works, in categories and listed by approximate publication date. I'm going to edit the list as I read them this year. I will strike through each work as I read it for this project. I will place an asterisk beside the works that I have never read, indicating a first-time read this year.

Comedies and Tragedies

The Two Gentlemen of Verona
The Comedy of Errors
Titus Andronicus
The Taming of the Shrew
Love's Labour's Lost
Romeo and Juliet
A Midsummer Night's Dream
The Merchant of Venice
The Merry Wives of Windsor
Much Ado About Nothing
Julius Caesar
As You Like It
Hamlet
Twelfth Night
Troilus and Cressida
Alls Well That Ends Well
Measure For Measure
Othello
King Lear
MacBeth
Antony and Cleopatra*
Coriolanus
Timon of Athens
Pericles
Cymbeline
The Winter's Tale
The Tempest
The Two Noble Kinsmen*

Histories
(in chronological order)

King John*
Richard II
Henry IV, Part One
Henry IV, Part Two
Henry V
Henry VI, Part One
Henry VI, Part Two
Henry VI, Part Three
Richard III
Henry VIII*


Poems

The Sonnets
Venus and Adonis
The Rape of Lucrece
The Phoenix and The Turtle*


*This list last updated 10/18/10

It's all Greek to me!

Ashley posted this list on her blog today, and it made me think of how many little commonplace phrases and "witticisms" we throw into our daily vocabulary, unaware of their origins.

"It's all Greek to me" is one such commonplace saying; everyone knows what it means when they hear it. The first time I read "But, for mine own part, it was Greek to me," from Julius Caesar, I thought "A-ha! So that's where that came from!" But other authors around Shakespeare's time -- Thomas Dekker, for one -- also used similar phrases.

The phrase had been around much earlier than Shakespeare, though. There is a Medieval Latin proverb, "Graecum est; non potest legi", that translates literally as "It is Greek; it cannot be read," attributed to monk scribes. I would think, though, that Shakespeare's use of the metaphor in Julius Caesar is what brought it into modern day usage. I like knowing that it meant the same thing in the Middle Ages as it did in Shakespeare's time and as it does today -- "I don't understand you; you might as well be speaking Greek."

I wonder what Greek-speakers say when they want to accuse someone of being unintelligible?

"When The Hurlyburly's Done...."

Shakespeare in a Year, and the real "Lady MacBeth"

I found this on Facebook and decided I would do it this year. Even though I'd be starting a bit late, the timing works out very well for me. Last spring I did a unit with Eler Beth to introduce her to Shakespeare, and this year, her freshman year of high school, I had decided we'd go a bit deeper and start reading some of the plays and more of the sonnets. So while she's getting her first real taste of the Bard, I'll be refreshing my memory. I haven't read any of the plays in a few years.

How old were you when you started reading Shakespeare? Which was your first play? Which was your favorite?

I read my first Shakespeare when I was twelve, and I was hooked. By the time we started reading him in high

school I'd read the major comedies, all but four of the tragedies, and at least two of the histories.

I never liked Romeo and Juliet on the whole --

I love Hamlet and MacBeth best of the tragedies -- my favorite comedies are The Taming of the Shrew, As You Like It, Much Ado About Nothing, and Twelfth Night, although at any given time I might put Winter's Tale and Measure for Measure on that list. The first time I read A Midsummer Night's Dream I didn't care for it. I was really too young to appreciate it, I think. But now I love it, and might occasionally put it in that top five list.

My sister Lois gave me a beautiful and very heavy edition of The Complete Works as a graduation gift when I was 18! I still have it, and it's still one of the best gifts I've ever received.

I will probably get Romeo and Juliet out of the way and read it first with Eler Beth this year. I believe it's usually the first one introduced to high school students.

But for the "Read in a Year" I'm going to start with MacBeth. I was always annoyed with the character of MacBeth. I never felt sorry for him because he allowed himself to be controlled by his wife, very much the stronger character. But the real Lady MacBeth was an interesting creature from history. Did you know she was real? Her real name was Gruath or Gruadh, and she was

full Queen beside MacBeth, not his consort. Author Susan Frasier King wrote an historical novel about her in 2008 -- I have a signed copy!! -- after doing much research on the woman and her time. There is limited material available on her, so it really took some digging. I loved the book and would recommend it. (I have not yet read Margaret of Scotland by the same author, but need to remedy that situation soon.)

My favorite lines from "Lady MacBeth" are these, from the prologue:

"I wrote an answer with the very hand Malcolm wanted, though my Gaelic script is worse than my Latin. Only a few words were needed for a refusal. I sent the note and most of the gifts back, and kept the silk. My handmaid, Finella, likes it."

I love that she gave the silk to her maid!

King does a really good job with this story. It is an epic tale told from Queen "Rue's" perspective. She is a warrior queen, powerful and smart. The MacBeth of history and his wife are nothing as they were portrayed by Shakespeare; no villain and villainess here, but a couple who are determined to stop the tyranny and unrest of King Malcolm's rule. King seamlessly sews together the facts we know of Lady MacBeth and her time with a beautiful, compelling, and even poetic way of telling a story. The result is a very powerful novel that I would highly recommend.

I will read Shakespeare's "MacBeth" this week, then I will re-read "Lady MacBeth" by King. Ah, yes, I look forward to this week!

Now, what will be the play for the next week??

"The serene philosophy of the pink rose is steadying...."

~~ Rachel Peden

The past week has been a roller coaster, and I have needed the "serene philosophy of the pink rose".

PART ONE:

My brother is fine, but we weren't sure he was going to be for a while. His surgery a week ago Thursday went very well. He was talking normally and ate a hearty dinner Thursday night. I stayed at the hospital with his daughter, my niece Kelly, that night until my sister P.J. got back to the hospital early Friday morning.

Around 9:30 Friday morning I got a call that he had seized and was in ICU. He had had his oxygen treatment and eaten breakfast; P.J. and her husband had gone down to get some breakfast, and Kelly had stayed in the room with her father. Right before they got back he started seizing. Kelly ran out into the hall, calling for help. When P.J. got into the room there was medical staff around him trying to get his mouth open. Phyllis walked up to his bed and said, "Brother, open your mouth!! Take a breath, Alton!" And he did!

After testing everything they concluded that his Dilantin levels were extremely low and that had caused the seizure. He has taken Dilantin regularly for many years. Every three months he sees his regular doctor, and the Dilanton levels are checked, among other things. He was due for his next appointment this past Tuesday, so apparently since his last appointment in March and this one his levels had decreased. The surgery and not getting his regular dosage on time at the hospital was, apparently, just enough to effect him.

He was in ICU until Sunday night, then they moved him back out onto the floor. He is doing very well, but he failed his swallow test miserably. So he is going to have to have speech (swallow) therapy. His vascular surgeon and the doctor who took care of him in ICU both have recommended that he have acute rehab there at the hospital for two or three weeks, just to get him stronger before he goes home. So that's what we're waiting on right now -- for him to be moved to rehab.

PART TWO:

While all this was going on I was worried about Thomas. His left knee had been paining him and was slightly swollen last week. He has trouble with his right knee from an old sports injury, but had never had this kind of trouble with his right one. He took ibuprofen and tried Aspercreme, but nothing helped.

Then Sunday morning he got up with his left calf swollen. He mentioned to me, casually, that his leg was a bit swollen, but it wasn't until late that evening that I saw it. Oh my goodness! His left leg from the knee down was swollen at least three times the size of his right leg, including his ankle and foot. I just about freaked out! My first thought, of course, was "blood clot"!

He finally assented to being taken to an urgent care center, where they did an ultrasound and decided it was not a clot. Phew! They drew blood, gave him a three-day prescription for Naproxin, and sent him home. Then, of course, I got on the internet, and checked out all the things that could cause sudden extreme edema in one leg. You know, I frightened myself, 'cause that's what the Internet's there for, right?

Next day I called our doctor to give him a heads up, and the urgent care doc had already called to let him know what they'd done. I was rather impressed by that. I made an appointment for Thomas for Thursday, figuring the blood test results would be back by then. Tuesday I got a call back from the doctor's office saying the blood work was back, and could we come in Wednesday instead, because there were some abnormalities. Of course, it was the scheduling nurse calling, so she couldn't really tell me anything. So I had to worry all night Tuesday and all day Wednesday about what they might have found.

Cardio-Vascular? Kidney failure? Rhumatoid Arthritis? Infection of some kind? Tumor? Gout?

The Naproxin was helping with the pain, and then swelling had gone down, although the left leg was still a lot larger than the right one. Dr. T. was very thorough and very patient with us. He said there was nothing in the blood work that really concerned him. He said sometimes you can get cysts behind your knee that will press on the veins and keep the blood from going back up your leg like it should. So they took x-rays. The x-rays showed nothing. He said that the cysts could have ruptured, in which case they wouldn't show.

I said, "So there were no abnormalities in the blood test?" I didn't want to get the scheduling nurse in trouble, but she had said.... He flipped through them and then said, "Well, the uric acid is high. Actually, I'm going to have to back up and call it borderline."

Aha! High uric acid. I knew what that could mean. I hadn't tortured myself with the Internet for nothing. "So, gout is a possibility?" I asked.

It is a possibility, but we're kind of waiting and seeing. He did go ahead and prescribe a low dose of Allapurinol to take along with Naproxin. He is to keep the leg elevated as much as possible when he's home. There is no gout in his family as far as we know. He doesn't drink or overindulge in red meat or shellfish, either. The blood work did rule out RA, by the way.

His leg is still swollen, although it is much closer to normal than it was, and the medicine is taking care of most of the pain. I'm hoping it goes away and doesn't come back. But we'll be following up with the doctor to check on things in a couple weeks.

Yes, it has been a stressful week, not at all serene!

Getting A Bit Dusty Indeed

Don't faint or anything! (This will just be a short post, anyway.)

Wow! I have really let dust settle on this blog. I guess I just haven't had anything interesting to write about, and it has been really busy around here -- truly. I don't even check my email very often anymore, and I know that's a definite sign of depression. We've had a stressful spring, but in general all is well.

We're enjoying a bit of summer break before I start Eler Beth back on an abbreviated schedule of school. We have found it works best for her if we take a few weeks off and then cover a specific unit of a specific subject for a few weeks, just an hour or two a day, during the summer. Then we'll take a few more weeks off and start a regular schedule in the fall. Then we take a couple weeks off during deer season, a couple weeks off during the holidays, and so on. It makes so much more sense than the way public schools have to do it.

The county school system here didn't get out of school until last Friday!!! I couldn't imagine those poor kids riding a school bus every afternoon in the heat we've been having. I wonder when they'll be going back to school.

Eler Beth can't wait until she turns 15 next year. She wants to take a driver's ed course so she can get her permit early. She's already talking about part-time jobs! (She wants to work at the local Pet Smart -- quelle surprise!) She's going to do some volunteering at a local no-kill shelter, and perhaps the library. Our local library has had to really cut costs, and they are taking on extra volunteers. (We have even discussed both of us becoming docents at The Louisville Zoo.)

I thought I'd try out one of the new blogger templates. This one is kind of cute.

My brother is having another surgery this Thursday. He has an aneurysm in his right carotid artery, the one that was cleaned out about 15 years ago. Two of my sisters and a niece are traveling to Ireland for a couple weeks, leaving this week, and later in the year my sister Maxine is taking our mother on a cruise! Woo Hoo!! My little Mommy will be quite the world traveler! Nothing so exotic for us planned this year, I'm afraid. That month-long strike canceled out a lot of our plans for the year, but I'm pretty easily amused, so I'll survive it.

Well, that's about it for today. Just a quick look-in. I'll try not to let quite so much dust settle before I get back here again.

23 Down and Many More To Go!

Thomas and I have been married for 23 years today!

"A Swarm of Bees in May is Worth a Load of Hay"

Or so says an old rhyme from England, anyway.

We're one week into May, and we've had thunderstorms, wind, bright sun, and temps in the 80s. Every day it's something different.

I had a migraine yesterday that has had me down most of the day today, but I'm slowly starting to feel a bit better. Thought I'd best make a post while I feel up to it, and while I'm thinking about it.

On Tuesday, April 27, a federal mediator met with the union and the company. We think maybe the mayor of the city called him in, but we don't know for sure; actually it could have been the company's shareholders who did so. The union didn't, and the company says it didn't. The negotiating team met with them for almost two full days and got everything worked out. The workers voted on the new contract this past Sunday, and it was ratified, 400+ for and 85 against.

The clause that was the main cause of contention was taken out. This was a clause that would have allowed the company to make changes to or do away with the medical benefits offered in the contract with no warning and without waiting for the contract to expire. This is what they had done to the non-union employees a couple of years ago. This was the cause of the strike. Several times union officials or striking employees were given an opportunity to speak to the media, and whenever they did and brought up this clause, it was cut out, so that to anyone who didn't know better it looked like the workers were just being difficult and that the company was offering a good deal. This was very frustrating to us, so much so that I was about to compose a fiery letter to all the media outlets, when we got word that the federal mediator was getting involved.

The strikers got even more than they wanted. They ended up with better benefits than the company was offering in the first negotiations. They had to take a bit less on the ratification bonus, but it was worth it.

The company played some stupid tricks, though, and tried to get away with something illegal. The second week into the strike they sent out letters calling back some of the union employees that they had laid off last year. One or more of them had the sense to take their letters to the union, and the union's lawyer investigated and then informed the company that it was illegal for them to do that. I had a feeling they would try to replace the striking work force with ones they'd laid off. This new group they have running the company really has no idea what it's doing. I expect to see some highly-placed heads roll after this.

Now for the fun part! Even though technically they went back to work this week, most of the employees have had to be sent home for lack of work. They apparently weren't able to keep up with things with just their small skeleton crew of supervisors and the 28 who crossed the picket line, so they aren't set up to full production yet. It will probably be the middle of next week or the week after before Thomas' department is in full swing. He only worked 4 hours this week. Of course, since he had registered with the unemployment office back in January when they were losing work because of the weather, and because he's been going online and keeping his record up-to-date, he should be able to claim the week. In the meantime, we're hanging in there, and we have our insurance back.

Days like today (or should I say, weeks like this week) I realize that I may have to remind myself of all that I should be thankful for. Yesterday was the day for Thankful Thursday, but I'm doing it today.

Things I'm thankful for:

A healthy family. I am aware of several individuals who are either dealing with serious illness themselves or have a member of their family who is seriously ill.

No flooding, tornadoes, or earthquakes have affected my family. And that is saying a lot when you look around the country, and around the world. My brother-in-law in Nashville was not affected by the recent flooding, and my sister-in-law in Nashville was only slightly affected.

A full freezer and a full pantry. I can cook healthy and tasty meals for my family. There are children in my area going to bed hungry, and parents who are worried about choosing between buying groceries or paying utility bills.

Having health insurance. There is nothing like that feeling of security when you know that you'll be getting your maintenance meds on time with little personal expense, and that a necessary trip to a doctor or dentist is just a co-pay away.

Being able to get outside in beautiful weather and play in my garden. We have done a lot of yard work lately, changed some of my flower beds, and got Eler Beth's fire pit ready for the year. It gives me a lot of joy to be able to arrange my plants and enjoy their blooms and fragrances.

Having unnecessary "necessities". I hope I don't ever take for granted things like my air conditioning, being able to wash and dry my clothes here at home, keeping up with friends and family via the internet, watching movies here at home with the family, staying in touch with my kids by cell phone, having running vehicles, and having a massive library at my fingertips.

I guess that's enough thankfuls for now.

I hope everyone else is safe and happy out there!