working during the holidays is truly a travesty, although i am extremely fortunate to be able to work from home and take a good long time with my family ... or sitting alone at a computer at my brother's house (wonderful brother), which reduces me to talking like a robot to the dog. please, please just do not ask.
also please, do not forget the poor, neglected little blog of this title. that is, green girl and i neglect it frequently, but so do most others. it certainly got the shaft when i my semester was in full swing, and so green girl had no adversary. it somehow is a quasi-political which means also philosophical little blog; not quite sure how that happened as i usually do not touch politics with a ninety-nine and a half foot pole. (i have not seen the grinch special for years, naturally eschewing jim carey's frightening representation of it, but i have always had an affinity for that line).
i would also like to promote this painting, which is one of my most favourites of all time, by francisco hayes. (in case you are wondering, it is entitled very brilliantly "the kiss.") when i was writing my undergrad thesis on eliot, i would sometimes just stare at it. now i have my blog to help me waste my time.
and, of course, joyeaux Noel. A most blessed and joyful Christmas season and an exciting, sober new year.
i made it back to michigan in one piece, more or less, and woefully underprepaired for Christmas. after sleeping for eleven glorious hours at my brother & his wife's, met up with the ol' fam. as i got into the car, my nephew put his hand to my face and said "jaime, you're here." went to john k. king with sara for some last minute shopping; chilled with otto, and i'm not really sure what i did yesterday besides take a nap with said nephew. what a day ... back to st. josephat's with sister katy this morning and then to grandparents. so contenting to be back in the family circle although i'm a little short on sleep; ah, c'est la vie.
next step: as soon as it stops being cold and rainy and muddy, will be on ponies, who need to be a little straigtened out after being able to run amok with small sisters on their backs. although, "the little girls" are not so very little any more; margaret is over five feet now.
was listening to over the rhine with sara and came upon the lines "thank God for this new laughter / thank God the joke's on me." the joke is on me, indeed, and thank God.
more later ...
i have successfully completed one semester of graduate school, with only semi-meltdown but everything in on time. once i get home to michigan (as opposed to home to virginia, which will not be happening any time soon), i will have time to think about something besides 1)irony and aristotle in sidney's "apology for poesy", 2)the reductionist view of beauty in the aesthetic philosophy, and 3)the rhetorical situation of modern fiction as created in percy's novel lancelot and also cicero's interdependence of speech and reality in book III of the De Oratore (recommended reading) and i will also ride my horses a lot and play with my nephew and miss my most wonderful ever (see photo at left, with very cute niece). 'till then ... happy trails!
