Saturday, January 13, 2007

Solitary Mockingbird


Harper Lee, author of the extraordinary 1960 novel "To Kill A Mockingbird," attended a high school play in Montgomery, Alabama, Wednesday night. The students from two high schools, black and white, came together to perform the play with a contemporary emphasis on diversity and racial issues. The somewhat reclusive Ms. Lee, now 80 years old, did not address the audience but she did receive an award and spoke with the students at a private reception.

"To Kill A Mockingbird" was Ms. Lee's first and only novel. It almost seems a shame that such a powerful writing voice has never again been heard. It's true, of course, that some of our most eloquent writers have only one novel within them, and we are thankful for what they give us.

John Grisham, who is a prolific writer, is involved in a rather bizarre legal matter. It seems that Grisham and an Albemarle County, Virginia, couple accused a woman of sending them anonymous letters between 1996 and 1998. They allegedly had handwriting analyses done, which resulted in the police paying the woman a visit. She, in turn, filed suit against the three of them for causing her emotional distress. The suit had been dismissed after a judge reviewed depositions in the case. On Friday, however, the Virginia Supreme Court reinstated the lawsuit, ruling that the dismissal had been premature and that the plaintiff's claims were sufficient to warrant a trial.

In today's Twisted Linguistics, we see these Words Gone Wild:

psycosis - One's demented sister.

rememberance - Reattaching severed body parts. (See John Wayne Bobbitt for details)

felling guilty - Knocking over people who've done bad things.

through myself in - Something your alter egos will do if you let them out.

concience - The concierge in a flea-bag hotel.

chrismas - Faux holiday in February.


How will you be defined in the dictionary?



Serena Joy --
[adjective]:
Visually addictive
'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com


What cocktail are you?
You Are Rum

You're the life of the party, and a total flirt
You are also pretty picky about what you drink
Only the finest labels and best mixed cocktails will do
Except if you're dieting - then it's Diet Coke and Bicardi all the way

18 comments:

JuJu Martini said...

JuJu Martini --
[adjective]:

"Smells like teen spirit"

I love these quizzes...off to take the alcoholic drink one...

JuJu Martini said...

You are a Martini:

You are the kind of drinker who appreciates a nice hard drink.
And for you, only quality alcohol. You don't waste your time on the cheap stuff.
Obviously, you're usually found with a martini in your hand. But sometimes you mix it up with a gin and tonic.
And you'd never, ever consider one of those flavored martinis. They're hardly a drink!

With a persona name like mine, what else can I be but JuJu Martini!

Serena said...

Indeed! A martini by any other name just would not be right.:)

rkfinnell said...

roxan --
[adjective]:

Similar to butter in texture and appearance


***You Are Sex On the Beach***


When comes to drinking, you like it to go down smooth.
You really don't like the taste of alcohol - just its effect on you.
So, you're proud to get drunk on fruity, girly drinks.
Because once you're liquored up, the fun begins!

That does describe me. I pretty much hate the taste and make my drinks fairly weak.

rkfinnell said...

There's always a copy of To Kill A Mockingbird in my house. I haven't read it in some time though, but I still claim it to be my favorite.

Serena said...

Wow, Roxan, you got Sex on the Beach. I'm jealous. LOL.

I always have a copy of TKAM on my shelves, too. When one gets worn out, I buy a new one. And I have no idea how many times I've seen the movie, but every time it comes on TV I stop what I'm doing and watch it again.

rkfinnell said...

My daughter bought me a DVD of TKAM when she bought me the player for Christmas. Said she'd never spent so much on a DVD before.

I hope they don't try to do a remake. Only the original or nothing.

Serena said...

Hollywood being Hollywood, you know somebody will try it sooner or later. I agree with you, though -- there's nothing like the original. A remake would be sacrilege, IMO. You know what? I am an idiot. I hadn't even thought of buying a DVD and saving myself from having to wait for when it's on TV. I'm going to go order it right now. Thank you!

Rex Zeitgeist said...

rex zeitgeist --
[noun]:

A person who falls into an outhouse and dies


OH SHIT!.......I am an outhouse corpse.....

Rex Zeitgeist said...

You Are Tequilla

When you drink, you're serious about getting drunk!
You'll take any shot that's offered up to you...
Even if it tastes like sock sweat!
And you're never afraid of eating the worm.

Yikes again..

******


I first read and watched 'To Kill A Mockingbird' when I was in the 6th grade.....Very powerful and moving.....An American classic

Serena said...

Oh, Lord, Rex, that's awful! I'd take that dictionary thing again, make it give you a better answer. LOL.

Tequila - good.
Worm - I'm with you - Yikes! Some people actually eat it. I don't see how they do it. Ugh.

Anonymous said...

Me was saspirilla.
Me is off to strap on me six shooters and buy a ten gallon hat.

Maybe me took the wrong test...

Serena said...

SM, maybe you'd better retake the exam. I don't think saspirilla is even alcoholic, is it? Be careful with those six-shooters; you don't want to accidentally shoot the chickens.:)

Camille Alexa said...

***You Are Tequilla***


Like Rexzeitgiest.

Funny thing is, tequila is the only hard liquor I won't drink, EVER. Not since New Year's of 1987, anyway (and yes, I was underage, thank you very much.)

Serena said...

Oh, my goodness, LBB -- you're but a child.:) I don't drink gin for much the same reason. It was a high school dare, best forgotten.

Corn Dog said...

If you haven't seen the movie, "Capote", it is great. Harper Lee was a friend of Truman Capote's and went around with him quite a bit, particularly in the investigative stages for his book "In Cold Blood." Both of them were brilliant writers and childhood neighbors. I think they were very accurately portrayed in the movie. "To Kill a Mockingbird" has never gone out of print which is amazing. For some sort of anniversary edition, the publisher asked Lee to write a forward and she said something like the book has never had a forward and never needed it so why would she do it now. She did not. Supposed Capote is the character Dill in "To Kill a Mockingbird." There has always been some speculation that Capote helped with the writing, which Capote would deny at times and other times not. Frankly I think he was an author/actor until he got tangled up with "In Cold Blood" which was his undoing.

Serena said...

CD, I didn't see 'Capote' and did not know that Capote and Lee were friends. How interesting! I don't really see his voice in TKAM, though. I do believe that's all Lee's.

I agree with you that 'In Cold Blood' was Capote's undoing. He broke the #1 rule for a writer in those circumstances -- he got too personally involved.

Scott said...

Unsurprisingly,

I AM BEER

You don't need to get totally wasted when you hit the bars.
More of a social drinker, you just like to have fun with your friends.
And as long as the beer keeps flowing, you're a happy camper.
But don't mix things up: "Beer Before Liquor, Never Been Sicker!"