The Castillian Blog

Buy This Book and laugh. From Amazon

Labels: animal antagonists, art, fun for the whole family, Harrison sightings, literature, reading material, Shameless Plug, stories better left untold

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Perfect Porches

Y'all might remember that Harrison was at the Neshoba County Fair a couple of years ago. I was negligent in following up and posting that the book is available at Amazon: Perfect Porches: Designing Welcoming Spaces for Outdoor Living.

Labels: Harrison sightings, literature, porches

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Rules for Writers

Dr. Parrott has these "Rules for Writers" from William Safire on his Belhaven blog. Good stuff.

1.If any word is improper at the end of sentence, a linking verb is.
2.Verbs have to agree with their subjects.
3.And don’t start a sentence with a conjunction.
4.Proof read carefully to see if you words out.
5.Remember to never split an infinitive.
6.Do not put statements in the negative form.
7.If you reread your work, you can find on rereading a great deal of repetition can be avoided by rereading and editing.
8.The passive voice should never be used.
9.Place pronouns as close as possible, especially in long sentences, as of 10 or more words, to their antecedents.
10.Writing carefully, dangling participles must be avoided.
11.Take the bull by the hand and avoid mixing metaphors.
12.Last but not least, avoid cliches like the plague.

Labels: BU, engrish, literature

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Ulysses

Happy Bloomsday.

Labels: drunk Irish ambulation, literature

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Greenwood Cemetery

Staples and I visited Jackson's historic Greenwood Cemetery today after we checked out the new Congress Street Market at The Commons.

Buried at the cemetery are 7 Mississippi Governors, 6 Confederate Generals, 14 Jackson Mayors and judges, clergymen, and folks like Eudora Welty.

There are dozens of unknown Confederate soilders buried there under the Bonnie Blue Flag.

The star angel photographed by Welty and used on the cemetery brochure was damaged last month when a century oak fell on it. There are plans to restore it, but for now, it reclines on the ground and is missing an arm.

Labels: City of Jackson, History, literature

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Prince Caspian

Just recently I saw a trailer on TV for The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. I was unaware they had even decided to continue the franchise, but very glad they did. My first thought was, "Why hasn't someone posted this on The Castillian Blog?" Here it is...

Labels: Chronicles, inter-dimensional cross-rips, literature, movies

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One Wiki To Rule Them All

Behold, Lord of the Rings wiki.

Labels: literature, Morgoth, stories better left untold

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Willie Morris Birthday Party

Thursday, November 29, is the 73rd anniversary of the birth of Willie Morris. My house sits on the property that was his birth residence (he and his family lived in Belhaven for six months before moving to Yazoo City; the house they lived in was raised during the 1950s and my current house was built on its location). We will have a "birthday party" on my porch, so come by after work or any evening engagements and sit on the porch and have a drink in Willie's memory. Bring a work of Morris if you would like to read aloud. We will be providing Willie's favorite whiskey (George Dickel) as well as another Willie Morris drink of choice: white Russians. The event is low key. Eat before you come. Location: 1125 Poplar Blvd (Corner of Poplar and Monroe: Street Parking available on both Poplar and Monroe)

Labels: fun for the whole family, literature, porches, Willie Morris

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A Price Too High

Some of y'all might know I helped Judge Charles Pickering with his first book "Supreme Chaos: The Politics of Judicial Confirmation & the Culture War" that came out in 2006. His second book is to be released next month and it is titled: "A Price Too High: The Judiciary in Jeopardy."

Supreme Chaos Blog

A Price Too High Blog

If you're interested, you can preorder "A Price Too High" at Amazon.com for $22.41 (jacket price is $33.95).

The publisher, Stroud & Hall, has some information on the book at its website including some advance endorsements, also the table of contents, a few excerpts and other details.

Labels: literature, politics

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New Tolkien

"The Children of Hurin" released by Houghton Mifflin, is a publishing event: It is the first new book by the creator of "The Lord of the Rings" in 30 years. The publisher calls it the culmination of an effort to bring to the public the vast body of work J.R.R. Tolkien had left unpublished, and largely unfinished, when he died in 1973.

Tolkien began writing "The Children of Hurin" 99 years ago, abandoning it and taking it up again repeatedly throughout his life. Versions of the tale already have appeared in "The Silmarillion," "Unfinished Tales" and as narrative poems or prose sections of the "History of Middle-earth" series.

But they were truncated and contradictory. Outside of Tolkien scholars and Middle-earth fanatics, few read them....

Houghton-Mifflin has treated the work well, hiring Alan Lee, who won an Academy Award for art direction for "The Lord of The Rings: The Return of the King," to create stunning color illustrations....

The story is short by the standards of "The Lord of the Ring," covering just 259 pages, the rest of the book consisting of an introduction and appendix in which Christopher Tolkien explains how he went about his work. The details are unlikely to be of interest to the casual reader, but the bottom line is this:

Christopher Tolkien says that in reconciling the various versions of his father's story, he added no new material, save for an occasional transition. The words, he says, are virtually all his father's.

Read the full article here and buy the book at amazon here (hardcover) or here (paperback).

Labels: literature, Morgoth

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WWWW?

Today is the 72nd anniversary of the birth of Willie Morris, an event occurring in Jackson, Mississippi in the Belhaven neighborhood. (1)

To celebrate, we ask ourselves, "What Would Willie Want?" (2)

The answer, come by the birth site of Willie Morris today after work or tonight after any engagements and sit on the porch and have a drink.

In the spirit of WWWW, the event is low key. Eat before you come. There will not be decorations. There will be some drinks available but if you are particular, take any necessary precautions.

Really, there isn't an "event" other than people may be coming by to sit on the porch. Hopefully in January there will be some house warming parties and I'll be sure to invite you to those. (3)(4)

So, hope to see you this evening. (5)

1125 Poplar Blvd (Corner of Poplar and Monroe: Street Parking available on both Poplar and Monroe)

# # #

DISCLAIMERS

(1) Willie Morris was born on November 29, 1934 in Jackson, Mississippi. I'm not sure where yet (hospital? doctor's office? midwife's house? at home?) but for the first six months of his life, he and his family lived at this location. They then moved to Yazoo City. The house they lived in was raised during the 1950s and the current house was built at its location.

(2) "What Would Willie Want?" copyright 2006 by Kelly Thompson

(3) My "window treatments" have not yet come in yet and I'm not going to have any house warming parties until that time. I will be hosting a New Year's Eve Party that you are also invited to - but those invitations will go out later.

(4) Perhaps this will be a yearly celebration and if so, perhaps next year it will be less low key.

(5) Invite your friends if you'd like.

Labels: literature, porches, Willie Morris

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Re: Distances

Practically speaking, distances from city to city are referred to in terms of travel distance or time, rather than actual geographic center-to-center proximity. So I thought that, edge-to-edge it might work...

Nope. The distance from Presidential Hills Drive, just as you leave Jackson and Medgar Evers Blvd turns into Hwy 49, to Bus Station Dr., the first cross street just as you enter the Yazoo City city limits is 34.9 miles.

HOWEVER... the distance from 1125 Poplar Blvd, Jackson, Mississippi, Brian's residence, to Bus Station Dr, Yazoo City, MS 39194, according to Google maps, is EXACTLY 42.0 miles.

So, nice one Willy! And nice one Brian. Douglas Adams would be proud.

Labels: literature, Willie Morris

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Willie Morris

Mississippi author Willie Morris was born to Henry Rae Morris and Marion Weaks Morris on November 29, 1934 in Jackson Mississippi. Six months later they moved to Yazoo City, the town linked in life and legend and lore with Morris. Yesterday at lunch, checking the land deeds at the Hinds County Chancery Court, I verified that for those first six months of his life, Willie Morris lived at a house (since torn down) on my property in Belhaven. It will be interesting to know where he was born - whether at home or at a hospital or elsewhere. But this is just one of those fun facts you discover in Belhaven. If he was born at home, I might try to get a little plaque for the front yard (likely not an "official" historic designation but something low to the ground, approved by the historic district). Maybe something like, "Former homesite of Henry Rae Morris and Marion Weaks Morris and birthsite of celebrated Mississippi author Willie Morris. Willie was born here on November 29, 1934 and spent the first six months of his life here before his family moved forty-two miles north to Yazoo City. Willie died in Jackson on August 2, 1999."

Labels: literature, Willie Morris

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