Thursday, November 16, 2006

Et in Arcadia ego

So instead of this being a rather dull "blog"...

Finished reading Evelyn Waugh's Brideshead Revisited a while ago. It seemed a little slow at first, but once the story gets going, it becomes very interesting. If you read the reviews of it on Amazon, everyone pretty much gives the same, yet fairly accurate story synopsis. The majority of the story, with the exception of the Prologue & Epilogue, is set in the past; the Prologue & Epilogue are set during World War II, when Charles Ryder is a captain & ends up returning to Brideshead, a place he visited years ago when he was just a student at Oxford & he met Sebastian Flyte by way of Sebastian throwing up through his window.

Sebastian is from a wealthy family who owns the estate at Brideshead; he himself seems very eccentric, carrying around his teddy bear, Aloysius, & referring to him as if he were a person. He is also, as Anthony Blanche puts it (in trying to get Charles to turn against Sebastian), very charming, as is the rest of his family, who Sebastian won't let Charles meet. He eventually does, however, & Sebastian's life takes a drastic turn & he becomes an alcoholic. Charles & Sebastian both eventually go their own ways, but both leave Brideshead; Charles vows never to return.

Years later, Charles is married with children, but is unhappy in his marriage. he is also an architectural painter, & when coming back to England from a trip to South America, he meets Sebastian's sister, Julia, on the ocean liner for the return trip. Each eventually begins an affair with the other; Charles does eventually divorce his wife, but Julia is more reluctant because of her Catholic upbringing. They return to Brideshead, as does the youngest Flyte daughter, Cordelia, who tells Charles that Sebastian is living with monks as a sort of janitor (or something like that), & still drinks. Meanwhile, their father-- their mother died shortly after Sebastian ran off & after Charles left Brideshead-- returns from Venice with his mistress, where he has lived for years due to his hate for his wife, but he is weak & dying. Charles & Julia's relationship is rocky, especially when it comes to Lord Marchmain (the father) receiving last rites. Throughout the novel, the agnostic Charles rails against the Flyte's religion (he says to Sebastian at one point, "You can't believe all that," after asking him if the church tried to get them to believe "a lot of nonsesne"), even up to this point. Julia still sends for the Father when her father lays dying, & even Charles ends up praying, & Lord Marchmain crosses himself.

In the end, Julia decides she cannot marry Charles, & he leaves Brideshead once more, only to return a few years later in a state of disgrace, but still full of nostalgia.

And it's written so well. Other people speak of "Waugh's prose," even though it's not a poem. The narrative seems to flow because of how it's written, & it also really takes the reader from those carefree days when Charles felt he was close to a sort of heaven to the eventual decay of that Arcadia. It's really very sad to see Sebastian go from an outgoing kind of person to a depressed drunkard.

And religion obviously plays a large role in the story, chiefly because Waugh converted (& the Epilogue implies that Charles may have, as well). But one reviewer mentioned that it seems like religion is the main cause of the Flyte's sorrows. One said Sebastian became an alcoholic because he was homosexual, but I didn't get that at all. His & Charles' relationship was extremely well handled so that it could be taken either way, really. But it seemed to me that he became an alcoholic because of his family; whenever he had to stay at Brideshead, he always went & found ways of procuring alcohol, & then they tried to use other people to tie him down & act the way they wanted him to. And Charles snaps at Sebastian's older brother, Brideshead (whom is sometimes called Bridey), that maybe without their religion, Sebastian may have a chance at being a happy & healthy man. The pious Bridey, however, seems to take little or no notice. It seems strange, maybe like a paradox, how while religion seems to mess with all the characters, it also acts as something that many of them cling to.

And I agree a lot with Cordelia when she said that modern art is all bosh, because so much of it is. Bosh, that is.

Am apparently being kicked off the computer.

Saturday, October 07, 2006

Skirts

I actually don't really like wearing skirts, but found some that I actually like.

First being the skirt Kari wears in the episode with the myth of being carried away by balloons. Second, this skirt from Hot Topic, and this one, but really because I like the tights or whatever they are.

That is all. ;)

Tuesday, September 05, 2006

So...

...I ask the general public, how much worse can this year get?

Drawing/Painting III is fine. But I am stuck in a Telemedia 1 class until January, & looking at the people in it, I wondered why they were in the class. Some of them looked like it was just another art credit, & they didn't really care about it at all. It was completely out of character for a Telemedia class. Even back when Shapiro was teaching, it didn't feel like it did today.

And now, I supposedly have release time A4 and B4. Not amused. Went to see if maybe I could just sit around with the Studio people. But since they were in the middle of a critique, Giordano merely said, "You have to go around," & then promptly ignored me.

To be blunt, I was pissed off. He himself said anyone who didn't get into Studio had the option of coming up & sitting around if they were able. But what really pissed me off was the blatant disregard. I'm not in Studio, so fuck me, I suppose. And I saw people in Studio who, honestly, I never liked their art or their attitudes.

GO CARVER RESPECT!!!!!1111!!1!1

I am so sick of Giordano, of this stupid school. Oh, yes, I'm glad I'm not in Woodlawn, but Carver has never been anything "special" for me.

I feel somewhat ill. Think I ate dinner faster than would normally be advised.

And DeviantART thinks it's cute to upload at a snail's pace.

The funny thing is, I remember in D/P II, he let people walk in front of our critiques all the time. But then again, we were ickle sophomores. And besides, Carver is full of teachers who think their class is the most important class in the world & God forbid that any sort of interference should occur that would keep you from their most important class!

The best thing that happened today was when I was flipping through the September issue of Elle-- which I really would like, but I'm currently broke; do they have back issues one could order?-- & there's a whole page filled with mediaeval-esque things, like stills from a Robin Hood movie, Joan of Arc, &... two Waterhouse paintings. If I was a more outgoing person, I would've shrieked. It was Marianne (?) Leaving the Judgement Seat of Herod & Soul of the Rose.

So I really want that magazine. For other reasons, but that kind of cinched it. The September Vogue, too. I don't hold with Marie Antoinette-- if she hadn't been so spoiled, she wouldn't have literally lost her head-- & I would never wear frilly things like designers are now coming out with, but I like looking at the pictures of it. Especially because of the colors. But I did the math, & if I were able to get both magazines-- probably impossible-- it would cost almost $9.

I really can be very greedy.

...But right now, I am really annoyed at DA. Since it's not the computer's fault.

And it rained again today, which was nice, I guess. Wasn't really aware of it today.

And R.I.P. Steve Irwin.
-------------------------------

music: Lullabye for a Stormy Night-- Vienna Teng

Sunday, August 27, 2006

Oh, no fair.

This is the lady playing Bellatrix LeStrange in The Order of the Pheonix movie next year. But look how pretty she is. This isn't fair; I'm supposed to hate Bellatrix LeStrange.

Oh well. :p

Monday, August 21, 2006

Turtle!



It's very comfortable, too. (So I wish the weather would turn cooler soon...) And the turtle! And the thumb holes, too. It's nice.

Monday, August 14, 2006


Hello Kitty hairband, bought yesterday at the Visionary Art Museum. I thought it was cute, & I was feeling kind of depressed (darn that music they were playing!), so I got it. That & I don't have anything to wear that's yellow, because I don't really like bright colors. So I thought it would be interesting.


by cherryfeather

Saturday, August 12, 2006

"Quiet is boring. BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORING!"



Because more people should read The Shoebox Project (as if many, many people don't already). Well, it helps to be interested in harry Potter, & even more if one is interested in the Marauders-- that is, Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot & Prongs. I would write something more coherent, but I'm still struggling with that.

So here's some more lovely pictures, ha ha.

For some reason, I find the new Juicy Couture ads very intruiging (sp) & very aesthetically pleasing. And the guy having the moxy (ha ha) to go ahead & dress the way he's dressed.

Few & far between are the times where I flip through a magazine & think, "Oh, he doesn't look half bad." This is one of those rare times. (The hair!)

Why does Anne Hathaway always look so pretty?

Yay, Germany finally gets noticed! And I like colors in the dress.

And some (rather large) pictures of my messenger bag (I was somewhat bored earlier):

The whole thing.
Switzerland. Seeing as I'm Remus & all.
Close up. There's the Phantom pin Lauryll gave me when she got back from New York.
I do believe in commas."
Under the flap. The mysterious cord, by the way, belongs to my CD/MP3 player.
And so roomy, too.
And me. Wearing my grey jumper. Yes, I wear a jumper. It's very comfortable.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Yay

I decided to make a "fashion" blog (or whatever), mainly because I was bored. Yes, call me lame, but whatever. If Photobucket ever decides to stop having fits, then I can post pictures of what I scanned out of Seventeen & Teen Vogue, & hopefully I won't get sued.

Let me see if Photobucket works, then. First random thing that I find likeable:

The H&M sweater dress (from the Sept. Teen Vogue). The cheapest thing I think I've ever seen in that magazine ($25) & it looks very comfortable. (The scanner made the lines; couldn't figure out how to get rid of them, but whatever.) I kind of want one. It looks so comfy. ._.

Black polka dot dress! (Sept. Seventeen) Doesn't it look 1940's-esque?

From Sept. Teen Vogue as well; Peterhof castle in Russia. Isn't that amazing?

The ads for Vera Wang's new fragrance, "Princess."

Lillian Gish. Isn't she pretty?

The Phantom of the Opera. (I want to see the musical... I've seen the most recent movie (with Emmy Rossum) & the 1929 reissue of the original movie (with Mary Philbin).)

Oh, now I want this. (Happy (belated) 40th Birthday, Hansi!)

Thanks for bearing with this... random post. Most of them will probably be like this though, so beware...
Another test

test

Yay for another thing!

Will post more another time. Must away.