The adorable James Norton, who plays Prince Andrey in the BBC's "War and Peace," is unfortunately not a close relative but I'd love to change that. It's a beautiful series, though showing on AandE and so crammed with commercials as to be virtually unwatchable. But so well done, I'm sticking with it. That Tolstoy guy sure could write. Thrilling. They sing a lot in Russian, haunting minor-key melodies which make me shiver. I guess it's my Russian blood. But not as much as Mr. Norton makes Natasha and me shiver.
And this, which make me shriek with laughter because it's me: I spent an hour yesterday on the phone with Hewlett-Packard when my two-year old printer suddenly, out of the blue, for no @## reason, stopped working:
Went with friend Gretchen to "Big Mouth" on Sunday at the Panasonic - what fascinating stuff Mr. Mirvish is bringing in for our delectation. This is a Belgian actor's one man show, spouting speeches from Pericles to Ann Coulter to show how orators through the millennia have used words to move us. Flawed but always interesting.
And then Downton. Perfection! Wonderful to see my friend Dame Harriet Walter back on as Lady Shackleton, sparring with Dame Maggie. (I wonder if the actors who played Matthew and Sybil and who left this series have come to regret what seems a rash decision. Where are they now?)
Yesterday, Monday, a meeting with the brand new Ontario chapter of the Creative Non-fiction Collective, a small, select group. Much discussion of how little money there is in our profession, but also laughs and encouragement. Good to meet other crazy people.
Heard from a former student today, a beautiful note that meant a great deal.
And then Downton. Perfection! Wonderful to see my friend Dame Harriet Walter back on as Lady Shackleton, sparring with Dame Maggie. (I wonder if the actors who played Matthew and Sybil and who left this series have come to regret what seems a rash decision. Where are they now?)
Yesterday, Monday, a meeting with the brand new Ontario chapter of the Creative Non-fiction Collective, a small, select group. Much discussion of how little money there is in our profession, but also laughs and encouragement. Good to meet other crazy people.
Heard from a former student today, a beautiful note that meant a great deal.
Every step of this journey has taught me so much; but I found the most valuable thing of all in your classes, readings, and summer writing workshop — my voice!
You helped give me the courage to dig deep and to write ‘true’. Without your support and encouragement, I’d likely still be looking at a blank piece of paper instead of over 200 garbled, incoherent pages that I now hope to wrestle into some kind of readable form.
Keep on teaching and writing — you have a passion and a gift for both
Thank you, dear friend. I don't know about the gift but I do know, for sure, about the passion.
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