The intelligentsia

‘Wherefor art thou Toby and whyfor do you live so far away?’ This phrase rings in my head as I bear witness to ‘a modern and most dramatized interpretation of Shakespeare’s sensational and beloved masterpiece, Romeo and Juliet,’ as the brochure proclaims. Ellary my niece, a surprisingly articulate 20-month-old child, decided Juliet’s line needed an addendum. She speaks of her uncle toby, (the family dog). In her blogging brilliance (http://ellary.wordpress.com) she unpacks the emotional distance Juliet feels from her Romeo. She could indeed take it a step further and explore the many other questions often asked by a heartsick lover. She’s discovered the important and thought provoking questions of wherefor and whyfor, but what about whatfor and whenfor and howfor? I digress, as they say, ‘they’ being the academic with his glasses in hand, continually crossing and uncrossing and recrossing his legs, with a fire warming his back and thus his intellect, and with the flames igniting his ever expanding mind. ‘It’s like the universe, really.’ And don’t forget the beard he strokes contemplatively and with purpose. But seriously, I’m doing all these things right now.

Apparently I’m subject to the whims of a sporadic mind. I did go to see some Shakespearean plays this past weekend. And I did realize that Shakespeare in a park with a grassy knoll for a backrest is really the best way to watch this master at work. Needless to say, after two tragedies back to back, R&J and Othello, I demand that ‘someone get me one of those UV lamps immediately.’ Depression, that sneaky, cunning, serotonin depleting disease… it’ll get you. But in even more seriousness, Seattle summers invite locals to many events all over the city. Tour de Fat (combining biking, beer, and ridiculous costume wearing), Shakespeare in the park, movies at the brew houses and $3.50 Imax viewings of Inception have all entertained me thus far.