Mojo, The Bard, & Me

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

It is a life that I have desired: I will thrive.

 

Bardolf

The Merry Wives of Windsor      Act I, Scene iii, Line 18

 

What a great line! Imagine if we all had the opportunity to say that! I suppose in theory, most of us should? Yes, I put a question mark on that one.

By the way, the life that Bardolf is referring to is the life of a bartender. Yes, a bartender. I think there was a time when I thought that a bartender would be a good job, but as I grew older, I realized that being a bartender would mean helping some people drink themselves to death, and that’s not a good thought. Also, I know one bartender who’s now homeless. So I don’t think that I would have Bardolf’s enthusiasm for that particular job. But, to each his own, eh?

So, to end on a more upbeat note - the host of the tavern in today’s scene tells Falstaff that he will hire Bardolf, and Falstaff’s line to Bardolf, that precedes Today’s Totally Random Line, is

Bardolf, follow him. A tapster is a good trade: an old cloak makes a new jerkin; a wither’d serving-man a fresh tapster. Go; adieu.

FYI

Tapster = bartender
Jerkin = jacket

A day without a Falstaff line just isn’t a proper day, is it?

What about this withered serving man;

Would he make a fresh tapster?

Yeah, I don't think so.