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- 2026 Shakespeare Reading Project: Much Ado About Nothing
- “I don’t represent anything.” — Liz Phair
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- “Some syllables are swords.” — Metaphysical poet Henry Vaughan
- “To me, music is no joke and it’s not for sale.” — Ian MacKaye
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- “Ballet taught me to stay close to style and tone. Literature taught me to be concerned about the moral life.” — Joan Acocella
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I highly doubt the readers of this blog would ever challenge the voracity of your obsessions.
While I checked out some of Amazon’s “Readers who liked this loved this”, I read an excerpt from his self-help book.
“So many people go through life with unrealized ambitions, reluctant to take the steps necessary to achieve true peace of mind, whatever that may be, because they have been overwhelmed by lifes pressures. Now its time to grab life by the throat and not let go until you succeed.”
I loved that! Here we are reading a book about peace of mind and realizing our fullest potential and the opening metaphor is choking the living shit out of life. The man is authentic and true to who he is.
I totally know how you feel, Sheila. I was so obsessed with the film Master and Commander for a while, there was like 2 months when I literally had nothing but that movie in my DVD player. Every time I came home from work or errands, I would just turn on the TV and play that DVD on instinct. When I needed background noise while cleaning the house, that movie was the soundtrack. Bought the special edition DVD. Bought the “making of” book. Basically, I stopped just short of making one of those teeny-bopper fan listings. It was sick.
I loved it.
David – hahaha!! Great observation!!
Emily – I so know what you’re talking about. It’s like a fever – and it has to come out of your system naturally. I have that – not with TOO many things – but when it comes over me, I just have to ride the wave. It’s fun for me, actually. Even if people get embarrassed for me, or whatever.
It was great, though – the other night David and I went out (he’s commenting here, too) – and I said, “Okay. I need to talk about Rocky for a while. Is that okay?”
And we ended up having the best conversation about it – it was so so cool. Because obviously it’s about more than just the movie. It’s what the movie is saying to me, where I’m at in my life right now, blah blah …
I’ve been meaning to tell you this story in one of your posts about Rocky…
In my senior english class in highschool, I was prepared to do the research and analytical papers that are required and I was actually looking forward to it.
Fate handed me a teacher who couldn’t care less about English. She was more interested in the cheerleading program that she sponsored so most of the time we got busy work while she touched on things like Beowulf and research papers (which we never completed past the first rough draft).
As the year raced by, the analytical assignment started looming and she just didn’t have time to map out a huge assignment so she went down to the local video store and rented Rocky I, II and III. We spent two weeks watching these movies. At the end, we were required to write a 3 page character analysis on either Rocky, Adrian or Pauly.
The 17 yr old boys in class were thrilled. I, being the literary nerd, was PISSED!
So, as great as Rocky may be, he totally ruined my senior English experience!
Sheila – I am actually a little disappointed that you haven’t kidnapped Sly and made him give you live commentary on Rhinestone. If you wore the Alexa get-up he’d totally come along with you. “Now, OK, be cool… don’t get irregular.”
i’m in *awe* — complete and utter AWE — of the way you just totally immerse yourself in your obsessions.
it’s an endearing, inspiring and underrated personality trait. oh, and there’s the humour aspect to it too… it’s just a winner all-around!
you’re a MAGNIFICENT writer.
De – oh my God, that is SUCH a funny story!!
Nightfly – hahahahaha I did read a funny comment from Stallone somewhere in regards to Rhinestone – something like:
“It’s like we all collectively decided, at the same moment, to try to ruin our careers.”
De,
That IS a great story.
When I was in college, my absolute favorite professor of all time came in to my colonial American history class a day or two before Halloween and bluntly announced to everyone “look, I’m fucking hungover, okay? I don’t feel like lecturing today.” Then he popped in a tape of the Disney version of “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” narrated by Bing Crosby, which was entirely appropriate to the context of the course, when you think about it. That brief little cartoon actually ending up kicking off a Shelia-esque (yes, I think she’s earned the label) obsession with both Washington Irving and Bing Crosby for me.
Emily – hahahaha I love professors like that.
Sheila,
The great thing about him was that he wasn’t a flakey type in spite of pulling stuff like that. He was a great lecturer. He could interest you in any subject he knew well just by talking about it. Colonial America became REAL to me, the way he described it. He made you want to work hard and learn, if only because you couldn’t bear the thought of letting him down. Someday, I have to tell the story of what he said to us in class the day of the Columbine shootings. It was DEVASTATING.
Oh man. he sounds wonderful. Yeah, you have to tell me about the Columbine thing.
Great quote, Sheila. Thanks to you, I can hear it in my head in Sly’s actual voice (not his Rocky voice).
Emily, I definitely second your college professor experience. The good ones stay with you for a long time. When you’re ready to tell it, consider me on line for the Columbine story too.
This is awesome.
I am soooo in love with your new obsession right now. I can’t even tell you. I TiVo-ed Rocky last night and can’t WAIT to watch it again.
Oh my God!! I just got off the phone with you and the kids are watching “South Park” (aka the funniest show in the world). It is the one with Sylvester Stallone on it!! ha hahahah!!