My Cathedral
Like two cathedral towers these stately pines
Uplift their fretted summits tipped with cones;
The arch beneath them is not built with stones,
Not Art but Nature traced these lovely lines,
And carved this graceful arabesque of vines;
No organ but the wind here sighs and moans,
No sepulchre conceals a martyr’s bones,
No marble bishop on his tomb reclines.
Enter! the pavement, carpeted with leaves
Gives back a softened echo to thy tread!
Listen! the choir is singing; all the birds,
In leafy galleries beneath the eaves,
Are singing! listen, ere the sound be fled,
And learn there may be worship without words.
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)
Boomshine
Boomshine is the prettiest game I’ve seen in a while! Actually, the visual component is just very simple and not overly compelling, but the music/game sounds are beautiful and just a little bit mesmerizing. Complementing the soothing music, the player can attempt each of the 12 levels repeatedly until completed, so one never has to “lose.”
The Real Computer Monster
Created by Jim Henson and Frank Oz.
Ella Fitzgerald’s Birthday
“I know I’m no glamour girl, and it’s not easy for me to get up in front of a crowd of people. It used to bother me a lot, but now I’ve got it figured out that God gave me this talent to use, so I just stand there and sing.”
—Ella Fitzgerald (1917-1996)
William Shakespeare’s Birthday
. . . or at least the day generally accepted to be William Shakespeare’s birthday.
XCI
Some glory in their birth, some in their skill,
Some in their wealth, some in their body’s force,
Some in their garments though new-fangled ill;
Some in their hawks and hounds, some in their horse;
And every humour hath his adjunct pleasure,
Wherein it finds a joy above the rest:
But these particulars are not my measure,
All these I better in one general best.
Thy love is better than high birth to me,
Richer than wealth, prouder than garments’ costs,
Of more delight than hawks and horses be;
And having thee, of all men’s pride I boast:
Wretched in this alone, that thou mayst take
All this away, and me most wretched make.
—William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
The Arrow and the Song
I shot an arrow into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For, so swiftly it flew, the sight
Could not follow it in its flight.
I breathed a song into the air,
It fell to earth, I knew not where;
For who has sight so keen and strong,
That it can follow the flight of song?
Long, long afterward, in an oak
I found the arrow, still unbroke;
And the song, from beginning to end,
I found again in the heart of a friend.
-Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882)
Leonardo da Vinci’s Birthday
In jest, I like to claim da Vinci as a distant cousin, as the Italian side of my family is from Anchiano and Lucca, but I haven’t traced my family back that far. (Although maybe someone knows more than I do—any family members care to comment?)
Anyway, there are many places to learn about this extraordinarily intelligent and talented man, including Wikipedia and the Art Renewal Center.
(For the record, though I like to claim da Vinci, I’d like to take this opportunity to disclaim The Da Vinci Code.)
It’s John William Waterhouse’s Birthday
The Annunciation
John William Waterhouse (1849-1917)
