So what’s been going on in Laura-land … ?
Thing the First
Whelp, my lovely husband is blogging again, which is a joy. His blog is a little bit of everything: writing samples, shameless other people promotion, personal stuff. Rants, probably, at some point. His most recent post is–hey!–a lot of random stuff.
And just for the record, he had me try that Switchel thing, and it went like this:
Him: Try this.
Me: No.
Him: Oh for–it’s lemonade.
Me: Okay. (drinks)
Him: Made with vinegar.
Yeah, it was nasty. You should totally make it and try it.
Anyway, head on over there if you’re interested in reading the blog of that guy I blame for everything.
Thing the Second
Finished listening to the Hamilton soundtrack, and have scattered thoughts that I may blog about later on in more depth …
- So much of it is about words and writing, and I love that–because I would, yes, but also we forget how much of history and art relies on writing and language.
- And this musical seems to play with and get off on language in a way that reminds me a bit of Sondheim (and is also connected to the ways the musical is playing and grappling with history).
- Holy hell, the ambition–and I mean, the ambitions of the characters, yes, but also the ambition of this show, and it’s been a while since I’ve gotten to love something for its ambition without also loving it for and despite its flaws. Granted, I’ve only heard it and not seen it, but this is really solid (there are a couple of spots where the marriage of hip-hop and theater doesn’t seem happy, but there aren’t many, and I could probably make a case for that reflecting some of the uneasy marriages in the play? So yeah) and it just soars.
- Jonathan Groff, you glorious fop, I just don’t even.
- I love Lafayette and I do not care who knows it.
- And, you know, I really really liked it a lot, right, and then we hit “It’s Quiet Uptown.” And I don’t know if I’ve ever heard or seen or read anything that encompasses marriage and pain and grace so well. And connected to that is the idea that no one ever knows how a marriage works except for the people in it, and Eliza’s movement into and out of Alexander’s narrative, both willingly and not, and her eventual narrative and legacy. And so that’s the moment I fell.
- We will not speak of the reprise of “Stay Alive,” okay? I have a little boy, so that’s a giant nope.
Scott and I are driving to see Jason this weekend, so we’ll have some time in the car for him to hear it, and I really hope he likes it. I think he will. The last album we both really got into was Hazards of Love, and it’s been too long since we’ve geeked out about music together.
Thing the Third
Okay, there is no third thing. So, you know what? How about some stuff to read? None of it is new stuff, because I’m currently making my way through Mr. Mercedes and playing Stephen King Trope Bingo, but hey!
- Three Stories, by Karen Sorenson – Three interconnected short stories about family, love, and the slow process of moving on.
- Hide Behind, by Jason Kimble – “It’s never gonna fruit ‘cause you stole it.” (It’s never too early to get in that Halloween mood, and this will do it.)
- The Cursed Headdress, by Your Humble Narrator – Because why not, right? I call this one my Hellboy homage–the Teachouts and (another) Lovecraftian nightmare.
Laura E. Price 