487 years ago, Anne Boleyn was executed for having a miscarriage or two, birthing a daughter instead of the desired son, talking back to her husband, not for the trumped up charges of adultery, incest, and treason.
Here's a link to some poems I've written about her.
This is a good overview of the struggle for women's suffrage. I was familiar with most of the suffragists from a course I took in college, Women and American Society and a suffrage lecture series. I still learned some new things.
This is a book for "Young Readers" which I didn't realize when I picked it up. It wasn't that noticeable--it didn't detract form the history. I really enjoyed the photographs, drawings, and political cartoons that Conkling included.
It dawned on me as I was washing the dishes last night that Raquel (Rachel) Leviss one of the principal Scandoval participants has a similar arc to that of Eve in the 1950 film All About Eve.
All About Eve follows Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter) as she worms her way into the life of the great theater actress Margo Channing (Bette Davis.) Eve haunts the theater of Margo's latest smash play, until she is invited to meet the star. Soon she is working as Margo's assistant. Eve is seemingly sweet and innocent. Only Margo's maid Birdie (Thelma Ritter) sees through her act. Eve tries to steal Margo's fiancé Bill (Gary Merrill) and plots with Margo's best friend Karen (Celeste Holm) to make Margo miss a performance. Understudy Eve takes her place to rave reviews. Later Eve almost breaks up Karen's marriage.
Then there's Raquel. She begins dating James Kennedy and first appears on Vanderpump Rules in Season Five. (The show is currently in Season Ten.) She volunteered at Vanderpump Dogs and became more involved with the cast. She starts working at SUR and becomes a series regular in Season Nine.
Becoming a cast member by dating one is nothing new. Exhibit one is Tom Schwartz. James apparently admitted that he dated Kristen to get more time on the show. Then Brittany Cartwright dated Jax Taylor and became a series regular, and Beau Clark dated Stassi Schroeder and became a series regular.
Maybe Raquel realized that James wasn't the right choice. She tells of a horrible Thanksgiving; after James trashes her parents, she predicts spending holidays choosing between her family and James. He was definitely verbally abusive to her at times. It apparently continued after he quit drinking.
Or maybe Raquel had another idea. James' rages threatened to keep him out of cast trips and parties, and even dj jobs. A series regular gig can end at any time or be edited out. Raquel had to do something to keep her job.
Did Raquel pull an Eve and go after Sandoval after seeming to befriend Ariana and study her like a book (a la Eve)? Sandoval is vain enough to fall for something like that. Even if Raquel is a femme fatale, Sandoval doesn't get a pass on this. In All About Eve, Margo's fiance Bill rejects Eve's advances; Sandoval didn't (if he didn't initiate things himself.)
It's been surreal to watch Vanderpump Rules episodes filmed months ago, knowing what we do now. I wonder if Tom and Raquel realize how horrible they appear to us: Tom smirking as he lies about Raquel, Raquel pretending to care about Ariana, while probing into her sex life, the whole Tom Schwartz/Raquel "hook-up" at Scheana Shay's and Brock Davies's wedding.
This is what can happen if a peacock thinks more of his brand than his partner.
Yesterday was the tenth day since my possible exposure to Covid. When I came back from Jace's night walk, I happily tossed my mask. I was using a KN95, which was tighter and more uncomfortable than the type I wore during the height of the pandemic.
Today is the last day of the Federal Covid-19 Public Health Emergency. Luckily, I heard what that means and picked up some Covid tests at CVS. As of tomorrow, I'd have to pay for them (I think.) The pharmacist gave me eight.
I hope I never have to use them.
I really enjoyed this novel about John Wilkes Booth narrated by John Surratt, the one conspirator who was not killed or executed after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. In the novel, Surratt is more of Booth's dupe than a partner in conspiracy.
The novel has Surratt in 1916 looking through his old diary and old photographs for the first time in fifty years and reliving the time before the assassination, even his chance meeting with Lincoln himself while working as a photographer's assistant.
One thought of Surratt's really stood out to me when Surratt is helping to photograph some of the Confederate dead.
I thought of how rapidly the war was shrinking into an historical irrelevance. Already the relic-hunters, scavengers, and little boys were returning to its battlefields to collect the war, sell it, trivialize it. We Americans have no real need for history: we spit it out like a cherry pit. Would our descendants in the next century stand like tourists above the hills of the famous Civil War battles, ignoring the ghostly screams of the past from the valley below?
It's been a week of medical appointments. This is more Jeff's story than mine, and I'm not comfortable writing more about it. To add to the fun, we were both possibly exposed to Covid last Saturday. We haven't had any fever and tested negative twice. Our doctor recommended we wear masks for a few more days. I would hate to be the cause of some kind of breakout.
I'm not worried about getting sick as much as I'm annoyed by inconvenience. There are several things that I would like to do this weekend, and the weather will be beautiful. But I want to be cautious. There's an outdoor dog-friendly event for the new part of the NRVT, two arts shows/sales, a dog event, the Westport Library book sale.
I made margaritas tonight in honor of Cinco de Mayo and Lola's designated birthday.
So what if it's unseasonably cold, it's May.
Maybe we're paying for the warm weather this winter.
May is my second favorite month. Mainly because it's my birthday month. I also love how spring settles in, the lilacs, the lilies-of-the-valley. There's Cinco de Mayo which we'll always celebrate as Lola's birthday. We'll have a mint julep in honor of Derby Day.
May signals that the end of the school year is near. Then there's Memorial Day, the unofficial beginning of summer, the first three-day weekend since the beginning of the year for many.
Here's to May.
