A New Obsession

To take my mind off of life as a grown up, I have become obsessed with all things vampiric. Well, it IS also work-related (and thus part of being a grown up) since I AM teaching The Vampire Image in Fiction and Film in my high school. We just finished Stoker's novel--talking about narrative structure, the influences of the writing and reading contexts on interpretation/ misinterpretation, narrative reliability, etc.

To indulge my current obsession, I'm gathering better resources for the next time I teach the course. I had a very strong guest speaker from the UW come in to talk with the students about his own new class (similar to the one that I've taught for years, but at a much higher and philosophical level). Bestill my research-starved heart.


I'm also starting to gather online resources for a possible technology-oriented extension of the course for next year. Why not parallel the fledgling technologies in the novel with our contemporary experiments of today? Why not use the podcasts, blogs, and Web technologies to illustrate our classroom journey toward truth in Stoker's text (and the genre)?


As I traveled into the world of these new resources, I came across a Web site (All Things Dracula) with a Christie's auction listing for the April, 2002 sale of Stoker's original manuscript. I had to wipe away the drool. The auction listing noted missing pages and the reassembling by Stoker of the pages in the collection. What a phenomenal parallel between the writing process and the narrative structure/devices of the text! The novel draws clear attention to the problems of archiving and organization of notes. It focuses on fractures in truth as a result of lost artifacts, multiple translations, and misinterpretations. Drool again. Oh to be able to get my hands on such artifacts of research--to reach into the past and touch the King Vampire of the textual writing moment. While the Rosenbach Museum in Philadelphia houses much of Stoker's plot notes, research on Vlad Tepes ,

and novel outlines, one wonders what has been lost along the way. Like the elusory Dracula image of the vampire in Stoker's novel, such tools and artifacts of literary history currently escape my curious grasp. I ache to delve into those archives of classic literary folklore and the psychological process of the long-dead writer. I want to know what was going on in Stoker's head. What was his full intention? Like Seward, it is not enough for me to just trust in the artifacts. I need to know the beliefs and truths. I need to commune with the literary dead. I desire to travel the research path to uncover my own vampires of the text. But alas, I do not have the means of Lord Godalming, nor the protective support system of Mina. I fear I would end up like Lucy, the walking UnDead, until someone cuts off my head (or my funding).

If you've read Stoker's novel, and you are still wondering what a leiter-wagon looks like, check out this link.

I ramble. I really just wanted to say that I've a new obsession. Bah! I'll go read a few chapters of The Historian now.

Tales from the Remodel

Yes, it has been quite a while since I last posted. The girls and I have been a little busy -- moving into my new office space, cleaning up drywall dust, painting, and then trying to figure out what to do with my life now that I'm a grown up. I'll leave the latter story for another day. It involves applying for another job -- my dream job, actually. Best to stick with the concrete--uhh, drywall dust.

Here's all of the post-new-drywall but pre-installation
of new vanity, mirror, light, and wall cabinet

This is a post-installation but pre-paint picture. I painted today. Damn, my back hurts.

Here's the final color scheme. "Quaking Aspen" is the name of the green. It actually looks better in person than in this picture. Think a little more sagey than minty.



And, here's my absolute favorite part of it all --the new faucet fixture. I've always wanted one of these hot/cold porcelain fixtures. And, now that I'm a grown up, I can have one! Ha!

Maybe I'll go take a bath now.

Or, maybe Tillie has a better idea.