To the seats with the clearest view

[sovay]

Right; I have a life somewhere around here. Where did I leave it?

Most of yesterday was spent in the company of fleurdelis28, with whom I have spent far too little real-world time lately. As is traditional, we met in front of the Coop in Harvard Square and then didn't leave for hours—only hunger drove us from our respective contemplation of Dorothy Sayers and Robert van Gulik to Cafe of India, which delighted me by including goat curry in its buffet. (grailquestion, I still maintain this is your fault.) After which we repaired back to the Coop; I got her The Nine Tailors as an only mildly belated birthday present, we agreed that there are too many good books in the world and not enough disposable income, and we were both slightly disturbed by the existence of a children's novelization of Dead Man's Chest. Probably this sparked the conversation that, hours later, led to our Odyssean quest with muchabstracted for a video store that carried Curse of the Black Pearl on VHS, so that we could watch it on the actual television rather than fleurdelis28's laptop. You'd think that with a sequel out this summer, stores would carry multiple copies of the first movie and thereby make a killing, yes? Apparently this is not the Blockbuster way. Thank God for weird independent video stores.

It was drizzling the whole time, somewhere between mist and real rain, so that I kept opening my umbrella only to find that I didn't need it after all; but the moment I closed it up, the rain would pick up again. The streets were full of hazy reflection from the streetlights and wherever we walked, fleurdelis28's apartment seemed still to lie in the same direction like a sort of moveable north. (Or it doesn't want to be found: when we came down on the subway that afternoon, we were too busy talking about Disney's Beauty and the Beast to get off at the right stop; and as we made our way back from the wrong stop, we were so involved in analyzing Javert from Les Misérables that we walked right past her street.) More than once, one of us remarked that we were either in a David Lynch movie or the kind of plotless indie film in which lots of aimless conversation itself comments on the human condition. We traded horrifying landlord stories. I left my umbrella in the weird independent video store and one of the clerks actually ran out into the night after me. This was the kind of excursion where people decide halfway home that Thai food sounds like a good idea, and then someone detours into Whole Foods instead, and the next thing you know it's chips and sushi and macaroni and cheese eaten on the floor in front of the couch while kitchen-cleaning housemates in the other room necessitate cranking the television up to surround-sound volumes and anyway you're dissecting plot and character during the action scenes . . . It was awesome. I need more random nights like this in my life. Also to see fleurdelis28 and muchabstracted in person more than, oh, once every three years. We're living in the same city. This is ridiculous.

Continuing my downward slide into online publication, my poem "Bonny Fisher Boy" has been accepted by Scheherezade's Bequest. It's drawn from Eliza Carthy's "Fisher Boy" and it was written for amphibiouswords. And when I get done with my current story, perhaps I will write something that is not about the sea.

Lastly, I nicked this from tithenai. Silly me, I thought it was going to be a meme in Latin . . .*

Emperor You scored 100%!

All hail the Emperor of Rome! You reign supreme amongst all of the Romans. Anything you order is obeyed without question. The wealth of Rome is your to do with as you please, and all of the people bow when your chariot rolls by. You are both loved and feared for your power, and your name will be remembered for all of history. Someday, people will be quoting you—in your own language, of course!

My test tracked 1 variable How you compared to other people your age and gender: You scored higher than 99% on Knowledge

Link: The Latin sayings Test written by NurseTim on OkCupid, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

*Incidentally, lux sit does mean literally "let there be light," but Jerome's Vulgate uses fiat lux—let light come into being. This message has been brought to you by the letter Pedantry.

Comments

[dsgood.livejournal.com]

"More than once, one of us remarked that we were either in a David Lynch movie or the kind of plotless indie film in which lots of aimless conversation itself comments on the human condition."

The world is just a B movie
About my life and hard times.
The world is just a B movie,
And I keep forgetting my lines.

And there's a movie based on that song.

[seajules]

Congratulations on the acceptance! I can't wait to point people toward it when it's up. *G*

That really does sound like a fabulous evening.

[sovay]

And there's a movie based on that song.

Okay, that's too recursive to live.

[fleurdelis28.livejournal.com]

fleurdelis28's apartment seemed still to lie in the same direction like a sort of moveable north.

You're onto me -- Jack Sparrow's compass retired after two and a half centuries and became my apartment.

Actually, that would explain a lot about my life. (But not the gas leak.)

[sovay]

Jack Sparrow's compass retired after two and a half centuries and became my apartment.

Honestly, the way things seem to work around here, that's within totally plausible limits of weird. Awesome.

(But does your house really point to my heart's desire? It didn't seem to have quite enough books to me . . .)

(But not the gas leak.)

Ergh. Has that been fixed?

[sovay]

Congratulations on the acceptance! I can't wait to point people toward it when it's up. *G*

Thank you! It is still totally your fault, you realize. : )

[seajules]

Oh, I happily accept the blame. *G*

[fleurdelis28.livejournal.com]

(But does your house really point to my heart's desire? It didn't seem to have quite enough books to me . . .)

That's because I recently brought back most of the portion of the University library that I've been hording since my 1L year. You should see my parents' house... (How many books does a compass need?)

Ergh. Has that been fixed?

Someone's coming first thing tomorrow to move the stove (in our just-cleaned kitchen!) and turn off our gas so that they can turn on everyone else's. I think we're due to get our replacement stove around the end of the week.

But nothing blew up, which is I suppose the important thing.

[rymenhild.livejournal.com]

Now, if I were to guess what the three of you would do if you spent a day together, I would guess something very much like that. You all have the capacity to appreciate randomness. (Actually, the last time I hung out with muchabstracted and fleurdelis28, we ended up on an unplanned but nevertheless very pleasant walk across the Harvard bridge. The randomness was a large part of the fun.)

[schreibergasse.livejournal.com]

Silly me, I thought it was going to be a meme in Latin . . .

Yeah, that was way too easy.

[sovay]

You all have the capacity to appreciate randomness.

We are Brownian motion.

[sovay]

So do you want to write the meme in Latin or should I?

[sovay]

(How many books does a compass need?)

How much wood . . . I mean, I have no idea. But anything that's a heart's desire of mine by definition involves lots of books.

Someone's coming first thing tomorrow to move the stove (in our just-cleaned kitchen!) and turn off our gas so that they can turn on everyone else's.

Okay. That's good. Because, really, this was possibly the worst piping/plumbing arrangement I've heard about since beer came out of that woman's kitchen tap in Norway—and at least that had a humorous outcome.

But nothing blew up, which is I suppose the important thing.

It is always a factor to be considered. "How was my day? Well, nothing blew up . . ."

[fleurdelis28.livejournal.com]

How much wood . . . I mean, I have no idea. But anything that's a heart's desire of mine by definition involves lots of books.

Well, I assume you aren't expecting my apartment to be your heart's desire! (You might be out of luck for the current lease term if it is.) It just directs to useful things, like those blue cheese whatsits.

This is also the first time in my life that anyone has ever accused me of having anything less than way too many books. Library purge or not, I am highly amused.

[lesser-celery.livejournal.com]

my poem "Bonny Fisher Boy" has been accepted

Congratulations. Cool poem.

[sovay]

Thanks!

[sovay]

It just directs to useful things, like those blue cheese whatsits.

Mm. That's true.

This is also the first time in my life that anyone has ever accused me of having anything less than way too many books.

I have exacting standards.

Lux Sit Indeed

[jtglover.livejournal.com]

Hi there -- I found you via greygirlbeast and lately I've been reading Singing Innocence and Experience. Love your writing! I studied Classics as an undergraduate and later as a graduate student in ancient history, so it's been pleasant running across some of the references in your stories. I was inspired to comment because "Lux Sit" is the regrettably ambiguous motto of my alma mater, the University of Washington. Someone was asleep at the helm when Motto-Choosing Day day arrived.

[sovay]

. Love your writing! I studied Classics as an undergraduate and later as a graduate student in ancient history, so it's been pleasant running across some of the references in your stories.

Thank you! I'm very glad to hear that my geekiness does not go unnoticed. : )

Someone was asleep at the helm when Motto-Choosing Day day arrived.

Yeah. Condolences.

[shewhomust.livejournal.com]

On Bamboroughshire's rocky shore
Just as you enter Boumer Raw...



Ah, yes - as it happens, I was there on Sunday.

And the States all have Latin mottos, do they? We live and learn...

[sovay]

I was there on Sunday.

That is a lovely photograph.

And the States all have Latin mottos, do they?

Some of them are in English; by no means, however, do I know all of them off the top of my head. I had to look up Massachusetts', and I grew up here. Ense petit placidam sub libertate quietem. "By the sword, he seeks quiet peace under liberty." Okay, so it's a little redundant . . .