I saw the Magna Carta today.
I also learnt that there are more than one – dozens of the things, actually, since it was issued several times, and each time one was sent to every county. Frankly, I’m surprised I haven’t tripped over one before. Anyway, the Bodleian is currently displaying some of them, and I went along to have a look – was quite a surreal experience, but very fun and interesting. Our Vicar would be proud.
That opening sentence was quite unusual – which leads me to remark; Danielle had a good idea the other day, well I think she may have borrowed the idea, but it is good nonetheless. The idea is that you type out the first sentence from the first day/entry of each month, on your blog, and thus present a progress of the year. Just one sentence per month. Well, I only started in April, but I’m going to count the 10th April as a ‘first day’.
April – Why, hello there.
May – May 1st is coming to an end in England, and thus comes the close of Magdalen’s May Day.
June – We’ve all heard about the difficulties authors have with their second books – especially if these authors have had phenomenal success with their first books.
July – I don’t read Science Fiction, but I think it’s true to say that a lot of it is about making humans.
August – I’m back, I’m back!
September – This year has been one of lengthy absences in the world of Stuck-in-a-Book, and for that I apologise.
October – I’m sure most of you have been in this position: you want to tell someone a funny quotation you’ve read, only you can’t remember the book, author, page or even the quotation properly.
November – If you’re not singing Dolly Parton in your head right now, then either a)you’re too young b)you’re too sophisticated, or c)you’re too sane.
December – Another week of being rather lax with blog posting – as I scroll down the section in the column which categorises posts by months, I’m astonished that I managed 28 in October and May.
What a strange collection of month-openings… and many of ’em apologising for my reticence. And not much about books there! How accurate a cross-section of my logging this is, I leave up to you…
Simon I’d dearly love to travel along with you on your journey! It all sounds so fascinating. Come over here and I’ll take you to the Newberry Library in the city, for a field trip. They have manuscripts dating back even earlier than my birth, if you can imagine that! Medieval manuscripts, etc. I’m going to try and find time to volunteer there next year, so I can see some of those lovelies for myself. I’m hoping they’ll let me photograph some (sans flash, of course!) and blog about the whole experience. Keep fingers crossed…
I seem to talk about the weather an inordinate amount of the time if you go by my first lines! I swear I have a book blog, not a weather blog! I’m very curious about your July and November lines—must go find out how you related Dolly Parton to books! And nothing like seeing the Magna Carta (or one of them anyway) at work!
If you have the odd three and a half million dollars you could put in a bid for the one coming up for sale ere long!