Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

But, before God, Kate, I cannot look greenly, nor gasp out my eloquence, nor I have no cunning in protestation; only downright oaths, which I never use till urged, nor never break for urging.

  

Henry

King Henry the Fifth            Act V, Scene ii, Line 143

  

Well if you think that’s long, I’ve only taken a few lines out of Henry’s speech to Katherine. He goes on and on. He’s trying to talk her into marrying him, whilst struggling with a language barrier. Neither his French nor her English is very good, so it’s a difficult conversation in which he’s doing most of the talking. Somehow or another he succeeds.

Historically, this is an attempt to unite the leadership of England and France. Henry V has conquered most of France and now has made a treaty with French King Charles by which Charles gets to remain king of France for his lifetime, but upon his death the rule passes to Henry. Henry indeed succeeds in marrying Katherine, but then will  die fairly young, and the plan to unite the countries falls apart with Henry VI who assumes the kingship as a child and never really grows into the job.

Bottom line: if Henry had lived a full long life, and if his son were a bit more capable of a leader, France and England might be one nation today. And if wishes were horses beggars would ride. Hey, is that a Shakespeare line? Nah, just looked it up. It’s an old Scottish nursery rhyme.

See, not everything is Shakespeare! BTW, no extra charge for the history lesson today.

Okay, I spent a good ten minutes or so looking for a pic for today. I give up. 

I guess I don't have as much perseverance as Henry had.

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

Come, where is this young gallant that is so desirous to lie with his Mother Earth?

Charles
As You Like It   Act I, Scene ii, Line 191

Charles is the professional wrestler who’s come to town and is ready to challenge anyone who wants to wrestle him. Orlando, the protagonist of our story, is going to wrestle him. Charles is boasting that whoever wrestles with him will end up losing. As you know, Orlando wrestles him and wins. It just goes to show you that it doesn’t pay to be a braggart.

I don’t care for braggarts. It’s funny, but it seems that many people do, and I’ve never quite understood that. It would seem that Will didn’t care for braggarts too much since he has this guy lose the match. So perhaps Will and I have that one thing in common?

Buster Mojo seems to be pretty comfortable with me, and since I'm not a braggart, I'm going to assume that he doesn't care for braggarts either. 

So that makes three of us, so far: Will, me, and Mojo.

 

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

So foul a sky clears not without a storm.

 

King John

King John               Act IV, Scene ii, Line 109

 

I haven’t been able to make time for Will much this week, due mostly to the presence of Mojo and the absence of Patrice. But today I felt I just had to get back to it, so I’m taking care of it here at work. I’m picking today from an online source, not the hardcopy book I usually use. And what an appropriate line! The skies in these parts have been very clogged with Canadian forest fire smoke this week. They are clearer today, and there has not been a storm to clear them, but I’m thinking that a storm would be the best way to really clear them up.

It occurs to me that King John was probably not talking about Canadian forest fire smoke when he mentioned foul skies.  As I read through this scene, I find that it’s a tough one. I’m not sure what his foul sky refers to. I’m pretty sure it’s figurative as opposed to the literal one we’ve been dealing with here in the northeast.

Ah well, let’s just leave it at that and move on.

 I took this pic of the parking lot at the height of the smokey skies the other day. If you look closely, you can see the yellow spot on most of the windshields. That was the reflection of the sun through the haze. It was rather strange. It reminded me a little bit of the description of the Dead Marshes from Tolkien.

Foul sky indeed.

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

If you shall chance, Camillo, to visit Bohemia on the like occasion wherein my services are now on foot, you shall see, as I have said, great differences betwixt our Bohemia and your Sicilia.

Archidamus

The Winter’s Tale                          Act I, Scene i, Line 1

Well, it’s the first line of the play, so I couldn’t cut off the sentence, now, could I? These are two lords talking and just sort of introducing the audience to who the main characters are and where this play is set. Not too much to say about this.

So perhaps you won’t mind if I key in on the word betwixt? It’s simply an older version of between, obviously, but oh, so much more delightful. Don’t you agree? But let’s just keep that betwixt you and me, eh?

My associate requested that I pick him up a Bai. Well, it turns out I had a choice betwixt four different flavors. Do you think I managed to choose correctly?

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Of one or both of us the time is come.

 

Earl of Warwick

King Henry the Sixth Part II         Act V, Scene ii, Line 13

We are in the midst of the battle of Saint Alban’s, and Warwick is talking to Clifford. He’s telling Clifford that one, or both, of them is going to die. Then the Duke of York shows up and tells Warwick that he wants to fight Clifford. In the end Warwick leaves, and York kills Clifford. So Warwick turned out to be right, it was Clifford whose time had come, though not at the hands of Warwick. Warwick survives, so it wasn't both of them whose time had come.

Your time has come. We say that to mean your time to leave this earthly existence has come. But we just say your time has come. I guess you could say that to someone who was waiting for their turn to use the bathroom, but if you did, they would probably look at you funny. 

If I was waiting to use the bathroom, and you came out and said Your time has come, this is probably how I would react.

 

Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Such Brooks are welcome to me, that o’erflow such liquor.

  

Sir John Falstaff

The Merry Wives of Windsor         Act II, Scene ii, Line 151

  

Well it turns out that a Mr. Brooks is at the door, and he’s brought some liquor with him. Falstaff is making a pun with the guy’s name. Pretty funny, eh?

What would you like to talk about? Drinking? Puns? Falstaff? Nothing? We could do nothing. Even though nothing will come of nothing, occasionally nothing can be a good thing.

Well here's something that's not nothing. It's a hole in the text. What the heck? 

And who are we going to hold accountable for this?

Oh well, too cute to be mad at.

 Today’s Totally Random Lines

 

Who’s born that day

When I forget to send to Antony,

Shall die a beggar.

  

Cleopatra

Antony and Cleopatra           Act I, Scene v, Line 72

 

This whole scene is about how much Cleopatra is missing Antony. Apparently she writes to him every day whilst he’s in Rome. That’s what she’s referring to in the lines above, and that's all she's saying here - that she writes to Antony every day.

I don’t like to pass up the opportunity to point out famous Shakespearean lines when our Totally Random Daily lines come close to them. After all, we pretty much never hit the famous ones in our random fashion.

Just a few lines further down Cleopatra gives us one of her more famous lines, referring to when she was younger, and in love with Caesar, in a time before she met Antony. Apparently she had a fling with all the Roman greats of her time. She refers to that time as

                  My salad days,
When I was green in judgement:— cold in blood,
To say as I said then!—But, come, away;
Get me ink and paper:
He shall have every day a several greeting,
Or I’ll unpeople Egypt.

And that’s the end of act one.

My salad days. I dunno about salad days, but I’m feeling pretty good about my current days; call them my dessert days. After all, I get to use the senior parking spot, and I’m smart enough to cheat with an electric bike. 

(2) I'm Glad I'm Not Young Anymore - YouTube

I'm not sure if I've given you this one previously, but that's okay because it's a good one.