Arnold George Dorsey must have thought quite deeply about the answer to Shakespeare’s question, one which seems, at least in his case, to have boiled down to, “quite a lot, really.” Born eighty-eight years ago today in Madras, India (the date is sometimes given as May 2), young Mr. Dorsey riffled through several options before… Continue reading Quote of the Day: What’s in a Name?”
Category: Quote of the Day
“War makes strange giant creatures out of us little routine men who inhabit the earth”–Ernie Pyle
Ernie Pyle died 79 years ago today, on April 18, 1945 in the Iejima Okinawa Prefecture of the Empire of Japan, killed in action while doing what he loved. Having missed out on his first ambition–to serve in World War I–he undertook the study of journalism at Indiana University, and eventually found a career at… Continue reading “War makes strange giant creatures out of us little routine men who inhabit the earth”–Ernie Pyle
“Houston, We Have A Problem”
The title of this post is a slight misquotation of the original, which stems from April 14, 1970 and--in the words of Jack Swigert, Apollo 13's Command Module Pilot--was actually, "Okay, Houston...we've had a problem here." The post title comes from the 1995 film, Apollo 13, and has passed into the vernacular as the authentic… Continue reading “Houston, We Have A Problem”
There is Nothing Like a Dame: 75 Years Later
I saw my first movie ever in the UK, when I was five years old. it was 1959, and Dad was on leave from Nigeria. We were living in the family home in Droitwich, and Granny, Mum, and I went to Birmingham's West End Cinema to see a much-celebrated American import. Those were the days… Continue reading There is Nothing Like a Dame: 75 Years Later
The Nattering Ninnies Come for Hillaire Belloc
Yesterday's Telegraph article, about the latest children's book to be given the "trigger warning" treatment, put me in mind of a post from several years in which I held forth on the usefulness of the books which we are now--apparently--too frightened to let our children read without first blighting their minds and prejudging their responses… Continue reading The Nattering Ninnies Come for Hillaire Belloc
Quote of the Day: Worlds Beyond Earth
“I have loved the stars too truly to be fearful of the night”– Sarah Williams Sarah Williams was a British Victorian poet who is best known for “The Old Astronomer,” written in the person of an elderly astronomer on his deathbed who speaking to his young pupil. Her output is short, as was her life (1837-1868),… Continue reading Quote of the Day: Worlds Beyond Earth
“No Good Deed Goes Unpunished”–Ain’t that the Truth? Ask Me How I Know. LOL.
The words "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished." They've become a 21st century meme, one to which--whatever side they're on--people nod their heads, sure that they're in the right of it, whenever a POV appears which supports their own. But their origins are a bit less binary, and a lot more vague. And their application, in… Continue reading “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished”–Ain’t that the Truth? Ask Me How I Know. LOL.
Paean To A Plain Woman, And a Few Recollections in Tranquility
My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips’ red; If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun; If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head. I have seen roses damasked, red and white, But no such roses see I in her cheeks; And… Continue reading Paean To A Plain Woman, And a Few Recollections in Tranquility
QOTD: Richard Feynman on the Unknown
You see, one thing is, I can live with doubt, and uncertainty, and not knowing. I think it’s much more interesting to live, not knowing, than to have answers which might be wrong. It comes at about the middle of this interview excerpt: https://youtu.be/cRmbwczTC6E A man of science. Not a religious man, but one who… Continue reading QOTD: Richard Feynman on the Unknown
Quote of the Day: The Verger
“I can tell you that, sir…I’d be verger of St. Peter’s, Neville Square.”–W. Somerset Maugham, The Verger It’s from one of my all-time favorite short stories, The Verger, by W. Somerset Maugham. Now I’m not–intuitively–much of a fan of Somerset Maugham, but The Verger, a little story I was introduced to by a British neighbor, probably around… Continue reading Quote of the Day: The Verger