Journal 99
Friday - 12-3-10
Woke up sick. Bleh. Sore throat, the whole shebang. I decided it would be best not for me to go to practice today. Especially as I'm normally the harbinger of water! (That'd be just great -- me taking out the whole damn studio because people are asking me for drinks out of my water bottle while I'm sick...)
Thus, I spent a quiet day chilling at home.
I realized though, how rare it was, that I should have a (week)day off!! Thus, I decided to take advantage of my now open evening, and to go take care of an errand I had been meaning to do for some time: I wanted to go buy some nice journals in which to start a few translation projects. I intend for my first projects to be some of Langston Hughes' poetry, and a fair selection of Oscar Wilde's quips and quotations. I'd also like to translate them into French as I work -- simply to start using that language again. I do miss it so!! I bought some smaller journals for those purposes, and then I bought two larger journals for "odds and ends" translation -- quotes, memorable monologues, song lyrics, maybe some childrens' books, and documents of importance [Such as, "The Declaration of the Rights of Man," and the like...], etc.
Then, because you really can't let me alone in a bookstore, I headed up to the "foreign language" section, where I picked up two books in French ("Cyrano de Bergerac," and "Tartuffe") as well as five of Shakespeare's works: "King Lear," "Macbeth," "Othello," "Julius Caesar," and, "As You Like It."
I hadn't realized until the moment in which I was writing this, that every book I bought was a play!!!
Also, for everyone looking at my Shakespeare selections, who has noticed that 4 out of the 5 are Tragedies...
1. I commend you for knowing your Shakespeare!
2. It's not that I'm a depressed, miserable creature -- it's that I've never read 4 out of the 5 works that I bought.
"Macbeth," "King Lear," and, "Othello" are entirely new to me. "Julius Caesar" happens to be my very favorite work of Shakespear's, and while I already own it, I bought it again, specifically to have the, "Wordsworth Edition" of it.** I bought, "As You Like It," specifically to balance out all the death, betrayal, and destruction that I'd picked up! While I have never read, "As You Like It," I was fortunate enough to see an astoundingly funny adaption of it one summer, for my town's annual, "Shakespeare In The Park" event. Thus, it won out in being my choice to, "lighten the load," so to speak.
... Of course, I still didn't pick up, "Hamlet," (under the guise that I'd read it) -- or, "Romeo and Juliet," (same premise) ... ... ... Which just means I'll have to go back to the bookstore soon... Such a pity!
[** Wordsworth Classics is the publishing company that has printed *every* single English book that I have bought while living here in Moscow. It's not that it's the only company that is carried -- it's because their forewords and introductions/commentaries about the works are *impeccable!!* There is such a plethora of information and critical insights to be found therein, that, after I bought the first book from them, I have only wanted to buy from them.]
[Note: after having started, "Macbeth," however, I do have *one* grouse with Wordsworth now. It's minor -- but the notes they make for certain meanings of words or phrases are all found in the back of the book, and not on the same page as the words in question. To me, this disrupts the reading.
In their defense, however, some of the explanations are so detailed, or offer multiple interpretations of lines, or give such background on certain allusions, that it makes up for the minor annoyance of having to flip back and forth. I am impressed that they put so much time and effort into their research!]
After I amused myself royally in the bookstore, and kept myself under enough control not to completely bankrupt myself, I headed on over to see Pete at Prime.
He was busy, but we had enough time to have at least a bit of a chat. I even saw Boris again, briefly! [Boris is the one who had the quote about Checkov, in regards to men who don't drink or smoke.]
I went home about an hour or two later, and continued enjoying my rest. It's such a rare thing for me to have!!
Love,
Moscow Kitty. =^__^=
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