Lord Byron Was Right

Byron loved his animals. He especially loved dogs. When Boatswain, his beloved Newfoundland, died, he erected a monument with the following words:

Near this spot are deposited the remains of one who
possessed Beauty without Vanity,
Strength without Insolence,
Courage without Ferocity,
and all the Virtues of Man,
...without his Vices.
This Praise, which would be unmeaning
Flattery if inscribed over human
ashes is but a just tribute to the Memory
of Boatswain,a Dog.
--Lord Byron


That is another reason why I love Lord Byron. He may have been "mad, bad, and dangerous to know," but he loved animals. That's enough for me! Besides, Lady Caroline Lamb is the one who said that about him, and she was a fruitcake.

Why Graduate School in Literature Ruins You

It completely alters the way you view the books out there, and what was once acceptable literature suddenly becomes rubbish. At one point in my life, I could go into any book store, and if I didn't curb myself, could end up with stacks of books. Recently, however, I walked into a local Barnes and Noble, stayed for a couple of hours, and finally found one novel and one book by Pope Benedict XVI that met my....um, for lack of a better word...standards.

Quite frankly, the very idea that I might have standards is worrisome to me. I'm a mountain woman, after all. Am I supposed to have intellectual standards?

Yikes. Somebody slap me.

The fact remains that, after spending so much time reading, re-reading, analysing, writing essay after essay, and discussing poetry, classic novels, plays, etc., I can no longer pick up the latest trendy novel and actually take it seriously.

Yep, there was only one William Shakespeare, one Lord Byron, one Geoffrey Chaucer, etc....and, alas, they are not among us in 21st century America!