Two Gentlemen of Verona

Quotes I like:

"Proteus: ... For he was more than over shoes in love.
Valentine: 'Tis true, for you are over boots in love ..."
(Act 1, Scene 1, lines 24-25.)
This reminds of the phrase "Head over heels in love." I wonder if it came from Shakespeare.

"Lucetta: Fire that's closest kept burns most of all."
(Act 1, Scene 2, line 30.)
I like that line. It's pretty.

"Valentine: Ay, Proteus, but that life is altered now.
I have done penance for contemning Love,
Whose high imperious thoughts have punished me
With bitter fasts, with penitential groans,
With nightly tears, and daily heartsore sighs,
For in revenge of my contempt of love,
Love hath chased sleep from my enthralled eyes
And made them watchers of mine own heart's sorrow.
O gentle Proteus, Love's a mighty lord
And hath so humbled me as I confess
There is no woe to his correction,
Nor, to his service, no such joy on earth.
Now, no discourse except it be of love.
Now can I break my fast, dine, sup and sleep
Upon the very naked name of Love."
(Act 2, Scene 4, line 131-147.)
This speech is full of passion and I love it.


General Thoughts:

Overall, I liked this play. I didn't really agree with the ending. Both Julia and Valentine forgive Proteus all his sins. Proteus forsook Julia, his love, and pursued another woman, Valentine's love, Sylvia. Proteus had Valentine banished so he could pursue Sylvia. And Proteus tried to rape Sylvia in front of a disguised Julia and a hidden Valentine. And they all forgave him! I feel like he is the villain of the play and everyone forgives him in the end. I wouldn't have.

2014 ... The William Shakespeare year ... For real this time

2014 ... The year I read the complete works of William Shakespeare. ... For real this time.

... Each book (ie. play) is commented about on my blog. Here they will be permalinked so just click on the title to go to that blog post. ...

The Plays

1. Two Gentlemen of Verona
2. Taming of the Shrew
3. Henry VI, part 2
4. Henry VI, part 3
5. Henry VI, part 1
6. Titus Andronicus
7. Richard III
8. The Comedy of Errors
9. Love's Labours Lost
10. Richard II
11. Romeo and Juliet
12. A Midsummer Night's Dream
13. King John
14. The Merchant of Venice
15. Henry IV, part 1
16. The Merry Wives of Windsor
17. Henry IV, part 2
18. Much Ado About Nothing
19. Henry V
20. Julius Caesar
21. As You Like It
22. Hamlet
23. Twelfth Night
24. Troilus and Cressida
25. Measure for Measure
26. Othello
27. All's Well That Ends Well
28. Timon of Athens
29. King Lear
30. Macbeth
31. Antony and Cleopatra
32. Pericles, Prince of Tyre
33. Coriolanus
34. A Winter's Tale
35. Cymbeline
36. The Tempest
37. Henry VIII

Holidays and Rooms

So I have been really bad at updating my blog. lol. And I have things to talk about. Like Christmas and my room and the bathroom and um ... yeah that's about it.

So ...

Christmas was fun. Since it was on a Sunday we had church. Steven and I went to our parent's family ward. They had all the children doing a program. It was only sacrament meeting so that was nice. (It's always something like a program / just sacrament meeting whenever Christmas Day falls on a Sunday.) It breaks with our tradition though of staying in our new pjs all day. We have to get dressed for church. lol. Oh well. I got so fun stuff. As a last minute addition to my Christmas list I put a new stereo / CD player on there. And I got one. I didn't expect to get one so that was a surprise. This one is cool because in addition to the five CD changer it has a place for a MP3 player hookup, with a little shelf to keep it while it with the stereo. That really nice. It's an AUX cable hookup so it works with any MP3 player. I got a new shirt and jeans. But they were both too big so Mom and I exchanged them. Mom's gift (the reason for the exchange) was a new shirt and jeans. But I also got a new spring dress (which is striped and actually really cute), a teal cardigan, and a couple of new tank tops. My older tanks are too small. I still need to go back and see if the have any whites there. They were out of my size when I got the pink and black one. I feel like I got something else while we were there but I can't remember. Shirt, shirt, dress, jeans ... Oh well, I got a new slip too but that doesn't really count does it? lol. I got lots of small things too. I got a puzzle (which we put it together already), socks, candy, a super bright flashlight, a couple of pairs of earrings, popcorn ... Chad/Amber gave me an adorable Thumper (the rabbit from 'Bambi') stuffed animal. It's official Disney merchandise (or so the tag says) so he looks exactly like Thumper and he is really soft. Steven gave me a Barnes and Noble gift card. I'm saving it for one of the books I want in paperback. If I use it wisely maybe I can use it for two of them. But I haven't looked to much into that because I'm not ready to read any other books yet. (I'm almost done with The Two Towers.) One of my Grobie sisters sent me a gift to. We can do that because we live in the States. It's more difficult to send our Europe sisters gifts because all that international stuff. We send cards though. (I say we but I have yet to send anything to anyone. I'm such a bad friend. I've known them for about three years and I have never sent a card. Bad Krysta. lol. I've never had extra money. But I'm working on a Groban stash so I can use that. Random. I know.) Anyways, Theresa sent me a bag that she was planning on donating to Grobanites for Charity but I asked for it instead. lol. She sent my goodies to. Like chocolate, a yo-yo, some nail art things, oh and she sent Josh. I LOVE that part! It was so unexpected. It's a Straight to You tour pass with a fabulous photo of Josh Groban on it. I hung it on my door. It makes me smile. From the Grandparents I got a handmade lovely, fluffy (seriously it's so soft) scarf and hat, cute Santa Claus salt and pepper shakers, and money, among other things. I think that's about it for Christmas.

The bathroom has been painted and tiled and has been waiting for the shower glass to be put in for a couple of weeks. Last week, Thursday I think, the guy came and put the glass in. It's done now. And the bathroom looks so much nicer now. Dad made the shower slightly larger because he wanted to get rid of the gap between the shower and the counter. It's nice to not have that gap there. Spiders would die there and Brian and I were to lazy to vacuum them up. lol. But I really seems like the shower is bigger. I probably has to do with the glass not having stripes on it too. It's clear, minimal frame, two-way swinging door, shower now. It's really nice. I also like that the walls are darker and not so crazy yellow. I never liked getting ready in there because it had odd lighting. But now I don't mind it. My next task with the bathroom is to organize the drawers and underneath the sink. I saw some nice, clear divider things at Target yesterday that I want. I can't buy them yet but I wanted to organize it all soon anyways. (That is on my to-do list for tomorrow morning.) I have to remember not to expand my stuff over to the other three drawers because Eric is going to want space when he gets home next month. I'll see what I can do. lol.

Speaking of organizing, my room is pretty much done. Yeah, I know I've been saying that for a while. But this time it's true. I just have aesthetic things to do now. I have a box of magazines to sort through. But it's in a box so it's not as much of an eyesore as when they were in piles on the floor or in a laundry basket. And I'm covering all of my books to be white. But I need more gift wrap from the dollar store. More about that project when I'm finished. :) I have found that I have a lot of t-shirts that I still don't wear so I'd like to sort through those (again) and get rid of some of them. I was thinking I'd put them all in a box and if I wear it during a month period it gets kept and put in the drawer. The other ones get donated or have to have a really good reason for staying. I thought I had paired it down enough before but I still feel like I have tons of shirts. lol. I never really had a spot for my laundry baskets in the other room and I made sure that I have a spot for them in this room. Guess where I put them? My laundry basket sits in them, which is in my closet, next to my extra hangers. (Did you know I have different hangers then the rest of the house? I wanted my own non-mismatched set. So a few years ago I bought my own. It's really nice. lol.)

Let's see ... It's a new year! 2012! That's big. It's doesn't seem like it should be 2012. I graduated high school in 2006. And it certainly does not feel like it has been six years since then. ... I don't really have any major goals for this year, just I renewed vigor to do the old goals. Read scriptures daily, pay tithing, blog, be happy. This year I did want to actually do some of the creative stuff I have in mind. Actually, the white book thing is the first thing I'm doing with that. I might read Shakespeare this year but I have a feeling not so much. I have several other books I'd like to read this year so I have a feeling I won't get to those this year. I still want to read them someday. lol. Also this year I am hoping that I can keep my room way more organized, and clean, that before. So far I'm liking it so that should be okay to do. Before I would not have space and I would get bored so things ended up on the floor. As far as the actual year's events go ... I have two wedding scheduled so far, a niece being born, Eric comes home next month, and I have the tennis Opens already in my calender. (The Australian Open starts on Monday. Yay!) Who knows what else is going to happen this year. lol. Steven, or I, could get married. But I don't foresee that happening. Maybe, maybe, engaged but not married. lol. (Neither one of us is dating at the moment, just so you know.)

Um ... Saturday Song posts. I was going to mention those. You may, or may not, have noticed that I haven't posted any this year yet. I'm still debating on if I want to do that weekly or just monthly. I am leaning more toward monthly because I don't know if I have enough songs in mind to do 52-ish of them. I'll look later this week and see if I do or not. If I do then I'll most certainly post last weeks post as well as schedule several of them for the future.

I think that all the topics I wanted to talk about. Unless you want to hear how my reading of LOTR has been going? lol. (I still super fun, btw.)

It's Been A While

I haven't written here for a while, have I? Sorry. I bet you're dying to know what's going on in my head. lol. And I have a lot of thoughts today. This will be a long post, so bear with me.

As I did mention the other day, I have been working on redesigning all of my blogs. I haven't done much because I have been distracted. Tomorrow I don't have work so I do plan on working on some of the ideas I have. You probably won't see any changes for a while though.

I have also been working on finalizing this month's Saturday Sing posts. I have one and I know what they are all going to be but I need a few more videos. I'm definitely doing that tomorrow. Also with Saturday Song posts, I have decided on my December songs. I just need to gather those videos too and I can be all done through the end of the year. I did want to ask people if you like these posts every week. I like making so I'll probably keep doing them next year. But I want to know your thoughts, so leave a comment.

I have been working a lot of long shifts the past couple of days. It's nice to be working. This weekend and next weekend everyone has some all day shifts. November is super busy. We have the end of football season and the beginning of basketball. Also there is the minor sports here that are also going on this month. Like I said, it's nice to be working but at the same time I miss sleep. I make sure that I sleep in on my days off. It's never late but I don't set my alarm and I let my body wake up on it's own.

On that note, going on walks with Lauren every week has been a hit-and-miss sort of routine now. But as it is turning colder here in Utah we haven't been going very often anyways. I do miss exercising on a regular schedule so I might start some sort of indoor activity. The thing is I never know my schedule until the week before. I have thought about asking for a day off, say Mondays, and then I have a set day that I never work that I can have to do personal stuff on. But I haven't asked yet. I'm still thinking if I really want to do that.

My email account has not been cleared out for a really, really long time. Until today. I finally went through and deleted all the emails that I absolutely do not need. I also unsubscribed to a few of the emails I get regularly that I don't need anymore. I'm sure there are a few I missed so I'll get those as they come in. But now I feel like I can use that email account again. I won't lose any emails in my digital pile of papers.

This year I pretty much failed to read Shakespeare. So I gave up for this year and I've been reading a couple of other books just to pass the time. Next year I will read all of the plays. Since I did read the Shakespeare biography this year I will not read it next year. But I will reread the two plays I did read. I still plan on writing out my reviews for the plays as I read them. So look for those next year. I think this year with the biography taking months to read I just put to much pressure on myself to read them all.

Halloween was fun. I did make a costume but I really didn't care for it overall. So yeah. It was a "Raining Cats and Dogs" sort of theme outfit but, like, I said, I didn't really like it. I should have just been a pumpkin like I originally thought of doing. We have a few pumpkin costumes in the ceder chest that Mom made several years ago. I really should have just picked something we already had. Oh well. Lesson learned. If I don't absolutely love don't make it. lol.

My brother, Chad, gave me a book to read about emotional intelligence last week. I was finishing a novel at that time so I didn't look at it until today. It seems like a very interesting book. It teaches about self-awareness strategies, self-management strategies, social awareness strategies, and relationship management strategies. I look forward to read it and working on those. I let you know what I learn. lol.

My friend sent me an email several months ago asking me to send her some photos for a project she's working on and I haven't done that yet. She said there was no rush but now I'm starting to feel bad that I haven't done anything with that yet. So perhaps I'll look through my photos tomorrow and see if I can get those sent to her soon. I did send her an email back last week telling her I had not forgotten about it. lol.

Brian, my youngest brother, left for his mission today. Well, he went to the MTC today so he isn't in Wisconsin for a couple more weeks. He packed his room and everything too. Dad and Mom took the day off of work to take him to Provo. I don't know if Dad was planning on packing up Brian's furniture today of not. I guess I'll find out when I get home.

Have I told you what the plans are for Brian's room? I don't think so. My room and Brian's room are getting repainted and the holes patched. We're packing all of Brian's things anyways since he'll be gone for two years. And then it get patched and painted. I'm not sure what colors the rooms are going to be. I think Mom just wants them to be some sort of white. Anyways, after Brian's room is painted we are getting my furniture out of the garage and moving me into that bedroom. I am soooo excited to sleep in my own queen-size, low to the ground bed again. And I'll have more floor space. Hopefully I want feel so crowded in that room verses the room I am in now. After I'm all moved into that room my current room is going to be painted as well. And I believe that Eric's furniture will stay in there so that he can be in that room when he gets home from his mission. I do plan to purge my stuff of all the random papers and magazines that I don't need as I move over to the other room. I am going to try and keep my room clean and organized. I have to figure out where my furniture is going to go in the new room. Maybe I'll draw up a version of the room in SketchUp so that I can play around with where I want everything to go. But the main thing is I am really excited to get my own bed back. I'll be able to sleep without any back pain in the mornings and I'll be able to sit on my bed and reach the floor at the same time. lol.

I told you this was a long post. lol. Congrats if you read it all. I give a virtual pat on the back.

Family Vacation - Tuesday

Everyone but me went to the Saint George temple this morning. I didn’t have my recommend with me. So when they all woke up around 6am or 6:30 I got to sleep in until 7:30am. I did throw on some clothes and eat breakfast with them. I had toast with peanut butter topped with bananas and some apple juice. I also grabbed a USA Today newspaper on my way into the breakfast room. It’s seems odd that I only read the newspaper when I’m in a hotel. But I really do love the paper. USA Today is my favorite. Anyways, I read that while I munched on my toast. On my way back I made myself a hot cocoa. That was about 8:30am. The family left for the temple around that time.

I turned on the tv really quick while I was getting ready and I got sucked into ‘Moonlight’ episodes. I love that show. Alex is so sexy. I finally showered after I watched a couple of episodes. Like I said, I got sucked in. They were showing the really good ones. lol. One of my favorite episodes was on. The one where you find out about Josef’s half-vamp girlfriend. I love Josef. He is so funny but he really cares too.

Since we are going to see ‘The Winter’s Tale’ this afternoon I needed to read the rest of the play before that. So I read for a couple of hours. I actually finished the book about ten minutes before we got to Cedar City. For this play they set it in more modern era so the actor’s were dressed in suits and pretty Victorian-esque dresses. It was really great for me. I was imagining as I read the play old-English clothes, not Victorian suits. So even though I just read the play I saw it differently. That was fun. The play itself is a great play. I loved seeing it. Everyone seemed to enjoy it. In the program there is a summary of the play. Mom and Dad read it. And I skimmed through it. Brian and Steven just watched the play. But they said they weren’t confused. They could follow along easily enough. It really is a pretty easy play to follow. A few of those actors were so cute, in and out of costume. lol.

We went to Red Robin for dinner and as always it was good. Brian actually got two burgers. It was pretty funny. He finished his first one and was still hungry so he got another one. For dessert we went to Iceberg and got ice cream shakes. Then we went to the Saint George temple visitor center. And then we went back to the hotel. We were going to go swimming or something. Mom and Dad went to bed early and I turned on the tv. So we didn’t go swimming. I ended up watching ‘Phineas and Ferb: Across the 2nd Dimension’. (It’s the movie.) It was okay. I prefer other shows to that but it was a nice random show to relax to.

I went to bed, and sleep shortly after, around 11:30pm. I got another blanket from room service because last night I got cold sleeping on the hide-a-bed/couch.

We are heading to Vegas tomorrow. We’ll leave here around 10am or 11am.

The Winter's Tale that we saw. It was really good.

Ticket stub.

My book. I really like the blue. It goes well with the winter theme. lol.

The Saint George temple at night

Family Vacation - Monday

This morning we left for our family vacation. We aimed to leave at 9am. We woke up at 7am and had prayer. I actually didn’t sleep all that well last night. I woke up about three times. (Every time I woke up I got up and turned Satine’s heat on so she could stay warm. I really need to get a new heat pad again that stays on all the time. Sooner then later because it’s becoming wintertime.) Anyways, we all piled in the car after we were completely packed and the car wouldn’t start. lol. The battery had died down because the doors were open all morning. So we plugged in the battery charger and waited a few minutes. Then it started and we were officially on our way at 9:30am.

I read a little bit of the play for about an hour. I decided last week to read ‘The Winter’s Tale’ before we go and see it on Tuesday. It’s odd reading it and not seeing what is going on because I didn’t find out Hermione was pregnant until the second scene. And she’s really pregnant. She gives birth in the next scene. But knowing that she is makes the first part make more sense. In the biography that I read about Shakespeare, Stanley H. Wells said that Shakespeare’s plays really were made for an audience and a stage not necessarily for reading. So hopefully when we watch the play on Tuesday at the Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City my family will not be confused. I won’t because I will have read the play by then.

On Saturday I asked, via Facebook, if anyone wanted to snake sit for me this week. Satine started shedding last week and with the weather predicted to be cold this week I felt more comfortable having someone check on her. I would have preferred to move her to someone’s house for the week because he heat pad that I am using now turns off after an hour and I like to keep it on as often as I can. Ammon, who so graciously volunteered, said his mom didn’t want her in the house. So I just gave him a key. I told him to come in the morning and turn the light on and the heat pad on. And then come again at night and turn the light off and turn the heat pad on again. I also asked him to fill up Satine’s water dish if it’s empty and to make sure her house/box is in the heat corner. She’ll be fine but I know that I’ll love seeing her when I get back. I always miss her when I go on a trip.

Today we stopped at Kolob Canyon in Zions on our way to Saint George. We went on a mile hike to a scenic lookout spot. It was really pretty. We could see the Grand Canyon too.

We got to Saint George a little after 3pm. We checked into our hotel and then Mom and Dad went and ran some errands. Steven and I went and swam in the pool for a half an hour. And Brian stayed in the room and worked on his talk that he is giving on Sunday. At 5pm we went to dinner at Iggy’s. I got the Parmesan Chicken with pasta. The idea was good but the food was just okay. I have had way better Parmesan Chicken made elsewhere. I did get a hot chocolate that was super yummy.

Tonight we went to see ‘The Little Mermaid’ at Tuachan. I thought it was great! I had heard the music before so I was really looking forward to seeing the musical. It was funny and really good. I liked how they used the stage to its full capacity. There were stage extensions and they had water on the stage and even fire and bubbles. It was great. Next season they are showing ‘Aladdin’. I didn’t know that Disney was making that one into a “Broadway” play.

We got back to the hotel after 11:30pm. I went to bed at about 12am.


And photos ... as always, click on them to make them larger.

Kolob Canyon

Kolob Canyon ... it's pretty.

We walked this mile long scenic trail. It was nice.

Steven and Brian and I all taking a photo of ...

... a little tiny lizard. lol.

That light blue mountain/rock is the rim of the Grand Canyon.

It's way out there.

The Hanging Valley ... I think that's so cool.

Due to copyright stuff, no pictures were allowed during 'The Little Mermaid' but I took this before it started. It really was an awesome show.

The Program is so simple. I really like it.

Pre-Script - Family Vacation

Our first day of our family vacation was today. I wrote a lot about it but I need to write more and put photos. And I'm really tired right now. So I'm gonna post it tomorrow morning. I'll probably end up doing that the whole trip. We have some late nights planned.

I can give a summary of what we're doing.

Today, Monday, we are in Saint George. We went and saw 'The Little Mermaid' tonight. We're staying in a hotel here. Tomorrow, Tuesday, we are going to Cedar City to go see 'The Winter's Tale' at the Shakespeare festival. We will be staying in Saint George that night as well. Wednesday we are going to Las Vegas and seeing 'The Lion King'. We'll stay there that night. And then the rest of the week we are going to Zion's National Park. We're planning on hiking The Narrows and Angel's Landing. We come home Saturday evening.

It's gonna be a great trip.

:)

Random Today

Today I slept in. That's fine. But I don't feel to well today. At about 6pm I had a really bad headache. Even after I ate dinner I had a headache. It was sort of a migraine too because light and sound made it hurt. Lots of my headaches are small migraines. Very rarely do they turn into really bad migraines. Every Sunday I actually feel like I get a tiny one near the end of church. It's the florescent lights that make it bad, I think. But yeah, I have had that all day.

Today my friend, Laura, asked if I could watch her baby, Joshua, on Friday. And afterward hang out that evening. So that'll be fun. I haven't seen her in a long time. But I have to be to her house before 7am. So I have to get ready really early. (Oh, which reminds me, I need to Lauren I can't go walking that day. I'll tell her Wednesday morning.)

Tonight we, my brothers and I, watched a couple more episodes of 'White Collar'. And then I watched more 'Stargate SG-1' episodes.

I really need to read more plays or else this idea is going to be a two year thing and not just a one year thing. lol.

Books mostly

I have been wanting to make that recycled container for a long time. And now I have one and I can make the next one faster then I did today. I think I'll use it the most for storing small things in a large bag. I might use it in my church bag for some things. When I drive again I'll make one for my car. I was also thinking I might paint the outside of the container to more personalize it. But I'll have to think about that.

Ammon and I went and saw 'Thor' tonight. I thought it was really good. I had never really read the comics or knew the mythology behind the story so it was all new to me. I really liked the movie. It was a good stand alone movie. Although paired with the new 'Avengers' movie it'll probably be good too.

Tomorrow I should/need to read a play. I am falling behind. But I know that all this pressure is not making me read any faster. I keep wanting to read other books. Maybe I should pick a book that I have been wanting to read for a while and put a bow on it and put it on my headboard. That way I'll have something that I really want to read but that I can't. Not until I read all of the Shakespeare books. It'll be my reward. But not a series. Well, maybe a fast, easy one. Like the Insider series (Inside Out and Outside In) by Maria V. Snyder. I have only read the first one. But I was thinking I should read a single, really good book. Like Pathfinder by Orson Scott Card. I have heard many good things about that book. I was looking at it the other day in Barnes and Noble and it does seem really good. A random guy actually told me that was a good book. lol. But I don't have any of those books so I'll have to see what's on my shelf that can entice me to finish reading Shakespeare.

Today = Laziness

Not much has happened today. I slept in really late today. When I was eating lunch/breakfast I was watching tv and there was a National Geographic Magazine's Top 10 Photos Of 2010 show. It was very interesting to see the stories behind some of the photos of the past year. And it also got the photographer inside of me excited to photograph. To bad there is nothing around that is photo worthy. I was going to watch Torchwood too, today, but the website I get them from doesn't have a good one yet so I have to wait a bit longer before I can watch the third episode. I really need to read some Shakespeare plays next week. I am running behind on the schedule. I also, finally, need to go through my computer and change some things. (ie. Facebook, passcodes, email addresses, etc.) But, yeah, today was totally a lazy day. I'm actually still in my PJs. That's how boring and lazy I was. lol.

Will I Finish This Year?

I was thinking today I have a lot of reading to do if I am going to read the whole works of William Shakespeare before the end of the year. I have only read one play so far. I have 36 books to read in 167 days. I calculate that out to be one play every four days. I am pretty sure I can do that. I read the first on in a day.

I created a new stand-alone page called 'The Shakespeare Year' to help keep me on track. It has the calender and the order that I am reading them in.