Good evening, citizens, and welcome to Monday the 13th. The 11th was our 19th wedding anniversary (spouse and mine, not backtalk's) so we exchanged gifts. For her: the LoA edition of Hainish Novels & Stories, Vol. 1*; Menewood by Nicola Griffith, sequel to Hild (2013); and Emily Wilson's new translation of The Iliad.
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| Scholar and ink enthusiast Emily Wilson |
A yearlong subscription to the Criterion Channel for me. I think I got the better of the deal. Which has always been true in regard to our relationship anyway.
For some reason, there are no birthdays or anniversaries stored in my calendar app, but French literary critic Roland Barthes's birthday is – 12 November 1915. I've been receiving alerts for years. I have no memory of creating the event and therefore have no idea why I felt compelled to set an alert. But I haven't bothered to remove it. I think I like the randomness of it. We toasted with some pink bubbly on Sunday**, she with the standard "Happy anniversary," and I with "To the death of the author." [glasses clinked] I had to explain, and I did so with a song sung to the tune of "Frère Jacques." Roland Barth-eh, Roland Barth-eh, Morte de l'auteur, Morte de l'auteur...
I'm not sure who she thinks she started dating in 1994. Though a better question is "Why?" Did she think she could change me?
Have a happy Monday for me.
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| The Dude in 1979 |
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| Tête-bêche covers by Gerald McConnell/Jim Gaughan |
** Saturday was the official anniversary, but some friends were screening Barbie and invited us (I suspect because they wanted to borrow our projector). I opted to stay home and browse the Criterion selection, and the family returned a few hours later looking somewhat defeated and bemused. I got the better of the deal again.
For the record, the first movie I watched with the new sub was Matango (Attack of the Mushroom People) by Ishiro Honda; a movie I haven't seen since the mid-seventies. Criterion so snooty.
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