while nature wantons in her Pryme

[freckles_and_doubt]

Yesterday was Star Wars day, which means, ye gods, it's May. You can tell by the weather, which is still pleasingly damp and becoming bloody cold with proper wintery gravitas, and my state of fret. I give a conference keynote in less than two weeks, and the paper currently consists of about six pages of notes with "aargh" written at intervals, and a giant pile of books on the school story, through which I propose to wade this weekend.

You must forgive my lack of blogging: my moments of free time, of which there have been significantly few owing to an insane rash of meetings interspersed with angsty students, have been pretty evenly divided between finding succinct and creative ways to be rude about the Hogwarts idea of education, and retreating from same into a re-play of the first Mass Effect. (Because I played so badly first time around. My skills and tactics were horrible - I realise, post the Mass Effect 2 experience, that I managed to play the first game entirely without using cover, which does explain the wear and tear on the medi-gel. This time round I am pwning it slightly more handily, as well as picking up all the bits I missed).

It also means it's a new month, and time to acknowledge my debts. (This is becoming easier given that my blograte is so far down. This is a temporary state of things, I promise.) Reading chronologically, April has nicked bits thusly:

• 2nd. I actually have no idea where I dredged this up, it's one of those phrases which has passed into the proverbial lore of the slightly pretentiously gothic. It's actually Falstaff, from Henry IV Part II, a play I have never actually read. (Although I studied Henry V for A-Level, and am rife with opinions about it). The correct quote is "We have heard the chimes at midnight". I vaguely associate it with Thurber, although I suspect that's just the slighly ponderous gait of the phrase.
  
• 3rd. A quote from a rather amusingly sadistic nursery rhyme sort of thing, in which there were three in the bed and the little one said "roll over", so they all rolled over... etc. In retrospect, it's rather dodgy. You start out with a veritable orgy of ten in the bed, and whittle them down until the little one ends up splendidly alone and going to sleep. I remember my mother singing this to us, I have absolutely no idea where it originates. It does resonate rather well with my sleeping habits, though.
  
• 10th. A fragment of Magnetic Fields in marginally depressive mode. The song is "Infinitely late at night", off their album I; the flavour of the tune is sort of languidly-swaying French-ballady, a mode I associate with the fake-Frenchy elements of "Those Canaan Days" from Joseph. (News from the front: I can still recite all the colours of Joseph's bloody technicolour dreamcoat).
  
• 17th. "Jade Lady" is the name given to Phyrne Fisher by her luscious Chinese lover Lin. It refers to her tendency to look like a Manchu princess apart from the bright green eyes.
  
• 20th. The obligatory David Bowie quote, here from "Cat People", which is a song I seem to mine fairly regularly for quotes, it being strangely congruent with my interests.
  
• 22nd. Quote and song title from Postal Service, one I've actually used before, but it's such a lovely image. (Although the song is apparently about nuclear war, it has an odd balance of apocalyptic and sappy: "I've got a cupboard with cans of food, filtered water, and pictures of you/ and I'm not coming out until this is all over...")
  
• 28th. I actually referenced this one: Joss Whedon on cats.
  
• 30th. Quite one of my favourite quotes from The Avengers, entailing probably my two favourite characters in the film, and deploying the nicely Whedonesque balance of reference, fan service and tongue-in-cheek, ironic reinterpretation. Postmodern, in fact. Damn, I must write that review. Maybe tomorrow, if I conquer the school story theory.

Allons-y! Dissing Dumbledore waits for no man, although it may actually wait until I've finished Virmire. Dammit. My self-discipline is not only a small, fluffy, reluctant thing lurking on a rock somewhere, it's lurking on a rock while hunched manically over a computer game and refusing to be distracted. Sigh.

Comments

[strawberryfrog.livejournal.com]

The Magnetic Fields played a lovely, sit-down gig on the south bank a couple of weeks ago. Sadly, "Infinitely late at night" as not one that they performed.

[extemporanea.livejournal.com]

They're on tour for the new album, aren't they? Love at the Bottom of the Sea. I am infinitely jealous that you managed to attend a gig, absolutely regardless of what they played. I've been following the tour blog (somewhat erratically) - sounds amazing.

[strawberryfrog.livejournal.com]

Yes, they are singing songs off the new Album Love at the Bottom of the Sea, e.g. "A pity she does not exist, a shame he's not a fag / the only girl I ever loved was Andrew in drag".

And drinking tea. Rock and roll.

[rumint.livejournal.com]

My favourite Avengers quote has to be 'Puny god...', Hulk totally stole the show IMHO.

[tngr-spacecadet.livejournal.com]

Agree'd. He was fabulous and that was the best line ever.

[rumint.livejournal.com]

Avengers rewards a second viewing, watching the audience reaction is fun when you're ready for it. Our second viewing was in 2D, and it was surprising how it lost a certain immediacy compared to the 3D in the big fights.

ExTemp, I look forward to your review :)

[extemporanea.livejournal.com]

So do I. Because, dammit, I'm not getting time to write the wretched thing. Or, in fact, to see the movie a second time. Life is very frenetic in the conference run-up.

I want to see the 2D version because there are things I want to see rather than peering through the gloom at the vague lurking things. Phooey.