Art

She’s The Man: Modern Retelling of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night”

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She's The Man
She’s The Man

I happened to see this movie trailer for the teen comedy “She’s The Man” posted on Apple’s movie trailer site, and I realized quickly after reading the names of the characters that this is a modern re-telling of my very favorite Shakespeare play ever — Twelfth Night. I read the play in high school English class, after I knew I was gay but before I was comfortable telling other people that, and I was fascinated by the cross-dressing aspect of the play. Hey, there wasn’t exactly any healthy gay teen literature around at the time, so I took what I could get.

So… is this movie going to piss me off by screwing up my favorite play? Is the movie going to piss me off by portraying tomboys in an unfavorable light? It has Amanda Bynes in it, who is a great young comedic actress, so that’s a point in it’s favor. But she plays the cross-dressing Viola, and she’s not exactly convincing. A large part of that is the hair; she needed a way-better hair cut. But I’ll see it anyway. It looks silly-fun.

2022-03-15 Update:
Oh, past self, you silly kid. You’re trans; that’s why the cross-dressing appeals. It was a cute silly movie.

Here’s the actual trailer.

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Cell-Phone Etiquette

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Wired has the umpteeth article on how to be polite with your cell phone, covering all the stuff that anyone with common sense should be able to figure out without this article, and some of which I wrote myself almost ten years ago.
I have to disagree with one point, though: “Don’t talk on the phone while you’re grocery shopping. For whatever reason, the acoustics of a shopping aisle seem to amplify your voice. Also, talking on the phone tends to distract you from what’s going on in your immediate vicinity and I need to get around you to reach the Cocoa Puffs.”
Buzzzzt. Sorry, wrong answer. Being able to call and verify the items you may have forgotten and thus save an extra trip to the store is the single most useful experience of owning a cell phone, aside from calling in a vehicle emergency.

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Iraqi Invasion: A Text Misadventure

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Defective Yeti writes a hilarious text adventure game similar to the classic Zork, only you’re George Bush. Naturally, you’re pretty stupid.

Iraqi Invasion: A Text Misadventure
Revision 88 / Serial number 54892
Oval Office
You are standing inside a White House, having just been elected to the presidency of the United States. You knew Scalia would pull through for you.
There is a large desk here, along with a few chairs and couches. The presidential seal is in the middle of the room and there is a full-length mirror upon the wall.
What do you want to do now?
> INVADE IRAQ
You are not able to do that, yet.
> LOOK MIRROR
Self-reflection is not your strong suit.
> PET SEAL
It’s not that kind of seal.
> EXAMINE CHAIRS
They are two several chairs arranged around the center of the room, along with two couches. Under one couch you find Clinton’s shoes.
> FILL SHOES
You are unable to fill Clinton’s shoes.

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What have you given us, Dr. Franklin?

It’s Benjamin Franklin’s 300th birthday.

The story goes that, as Franklin left the Constitutional Convention in 1787, he was approached by a Mrs. Powell, who asked him, “What have you given us, Dr. Franklin?”
“A republic,” he replied, “if you can keep it.”

With Alito, looks like that’s pretty much gone, now.

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Religious Freedom Day

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Celebrate while you still can, folks. In a few years this holiday will disappear and we’ll all be required to be Baptists.

Religious Freedom Day
Each year, the President declares January 16th to be Religious Freedom Day, and calls upon Americans to “observe this day through appropriate events and activities in homes, schools, and places of worship.” The day is the anniversary of the passage, in 1786, of the Virginia Statute of Religious Freedom.
The goal of ReligiousFreedomDay.com is to promote and protect students’ religious expression rights by informing educators, parents, and students about these liberties.

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Heavy Words Lightly Thrown: The Reason Behind the Rhyme

Heavy Words Lightly Thrown: The Reason Behind the Rhyme
by Chris Roberts examines the history behind children’s nursery rhymes. Most children’s rhymes came from adult songs and poems that were handed down and altered over centuries, and most were expurgated for childrens ears in the Victorian age. Roberts traces many of them further back and examines various theories of their origins. Hearing the unexpurgated versions is interesting, and the book is an entertaining read, but is a bit light on sources and a bit long on speculation, with a few too many off-topic asides. Many of his explanations make sense, but a few too many of them seem to have the same set of explanations, or no clear reason why one theory would be preferred over another.

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