renewal

it’s only the 2nd days of the semester and already I have about 50 pages of readings to do. Granted, I’ve completed this week’s readings so it’s not exactly urgent, but I’m one who likes to be ahead with my course work (you never know when cramps are going to hit me). I had Shakespeare this afternoon, and everytime I walk away from that class completely enlightened. I don’t always agree with the prof’s arguments, but he has such a way of examining and clarifying and unfolding the text that no matter how many times I’ve read a certain play, he will show me ALL THIS STUFF I’ve missed. It’s so wonderful.

I’ve started on my Aristotle readings and so far it’s smooth sailing. The metaphysics are fun to read, but the logic stuff (post an, esp) is dull. i think I still have unfavourable emotional residue from Modern symbolic Logic. i did all right in that course, and thinking back – it was fun and interesting. But that’s me reminiscing after freaking out over the exam, so I don’t know how valid (harhar) my opinion is.

I started a new course with Kingwell, and I am so psyched about this course. After much shenanigans and money spent, I got myself a copy of ‘Philosophies of Art and Beauty’ – can’t wait!!!

Hmm, I’ve got my eyes on the Estee Lauder pleasures hand cream and the clarins bb cream. Together, they will set me back $00 (not including tax). The only time I’ve splurged on cosmetics is on these gorgeous Dior eye shadow pallet, and shishedo lipstick and liner… Do I deserve unecessary luxuaries? Shoppers has a $10 back for every $50 purchase… eeeeek! Should I?

PS: Kim Woo bin is killing it in school 2013

UPDATE: My make-up obsessed friend recommended that I get samples from Sephora before i buy them. Smart!!

 

manners

people have got to learn them! I’m encountering a particularly bad case at work. I teach on the side and there is one private student who is unable to stick to a schedule. Granted, she is an athlete, so I am giving her some leeway – but her organization does not impress me. I recently heard back from a friend who’s also dealing with some unreasonable people and I don’t understand why some people are unable to figure what what happens in the next week of their life!

Sigh–is it really too much to ask?

Anywho, I am working on my Shakespeare comparative exercise. We are given a 2 page length limit so it’s a pretty short assignment – but that just makes editing that much harder!! Here’s a teaser (hasn’t been manicured yet–so beware):

Theses remarkable torrents of correlations also venture into the perimeters of their working lives. Social classes and cultural conformity were strictly enforced and were very much an integral part of everyday life in the Elizabethan and Victorian era. For Shakespeare, social hierarchy provided the backdrop and often, the major source of conflict in many of his plays. His characters are caught between the desire to break away from those customs to fulfill their own yearlings and the hesitation to reject social conventions. The central hurdle for Romeo and Juliet is the parental opposition from both families (who consider each other to be socially inferior). For Macbeth, the path to the throne is not by loyalty to the king, but by murder and deceit. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Bottom, the simple minded weaver, is given the most profound vision of the ballad. Shakespeare was not a member of the aristocracy and had none of the usual symptoms of “high society” about him. He was particularly sympathetic to the plight of women and of the lower classes. He often attributes intelligence and insight to the under privileged characters, rather than those of the nobility…

(I can’t get the font size to stay consistent on this blog. sorry)

I am going to follow this paragraph with:

For Shakespeare and Holmes, the casts of characters are not only governed by social hierarchy, but also by sex. Even during the Elizabethan era, women were not permitted to be on stage and all of the female roles were usually performed by young, somewhat inexperienced boy actors. Shakespeare was a savvy playwright who knew to write to his actors’ advantage. And hence, there are very few women characters in Shakespeare’s plays. Holmes, in stark contrast, is infamous for his vocal pronouncements of his disregard of women kind in general. His treatment of women is generally regarded as racist… 

GET – SET – GO

Goodmorning, my lovelies!

I am dead exhausted, even at 9am in the morning. I got home from school at around 9pm last night and spent the better half of the night scanning PLAOT,  HUME, MILLS, and BORGES, which is all good and swell, but means that I had to refine my notes (I am in the habit of doing this, completing the half sentences and etc) close to midnight. And this means that i have to do my readings in this morning. Right now, if i am to be precise.

I am not a morning person, i can often seem like one because i force myself to be sociable (the effects of coffee, i assure you) and quite productive – but really, I am a true night owl. I didn’t even realize it was midnight last night until I got a reminder on my ipad about the readings.

So yes, I finally finished reading Meno (the correct translation, I was a fool and read the Gutenberg one) and I am heading into the Norton Anthology of Shakespeare (beauuuuutiful book, too highly priced for my student bank account – i scrambled and got a copy from the library) to reread A Midsummer Night’s Dream. I am indecently excited about reading the norton edition because of all the fabulous intros and contextual material and all that great stuff you don’t find in cheap editions.

I can safely say that I have been eating like a junkie lately – fries and rice and meat and some more fries. I’ve given up trying to bring food to campus because my backpack is hurting quite enough already without the addition of microwavable goods. It doesn’t bode well for my savings nor for my health – so I am going to arrange to have lunch with a friend who’s working in the city. She’ll have scouted places with good food – hopefully.

Astonishingly, i’m still on my first mug of coffee, though it’s gone cold now – i shall nuke it and return to my studies.