day 2

This time will fly by, I know it. Before I know it, I'll be saying "There are only three days left. . . ."

sigh.

Yesterday, it occurred to me that the scholar's collar will be finished well before the end of hell month if I don't ration the amount of knitting I am allowed to do each day. I measured everything up and came up with only a half inch allowed a day! (it's a short scarf. . . .) Well, I blasted that limit yesterday. By another 5 or 6 inches. I did however come up with the rather sensible notion of harvesting all the articles I have stacked up and filed, accumlated over 5 years of postgraduate seminars and other handouts. If I find just one a day, that's 30 more secondary sources I didn't have. (that I do have, but just haven't quoted or 'applied' to the work I've been doing.

The king always marvels at my ability to make something good out of 'found' stuff. Why not here?

I would prefer to work with the primary texts, but if they want also a bit of a hash on what others are saying. . . . so be it.

Feeling a bit low today. I worked myself into a proper gloom last night, considering all the gritty details necessary before this thing can be put to bed. Is it physically possible? Then there's the simple fact that I don't see an answer to this problem of how law and ethics should relate. I comfort myself with the recognition that no one else has found a 'solution', either, over centuries of ponderings. But the centuries of pondering has left quite a layer of guano that has to be scraped away and it seems I can't say anything without finding myself neck-deep in the stuff.

Hell, I can't even talk about 'foundations' without being bombarded by the 'foundationalist/anti-foundationalist' dispute! And if you want to talk about 'rational', do you have to distinguish between Kant's reason and the Enlightenment's idea of it? Oh God - help me! (and I am speaking literally, here.)

The days continue fine. The door is open to the screened porch and I begin to hear more crickets instead of locusts. I am always surprised to realize that the transition has taken place, outside of my awareness.

I have resolved the 'which came first' puzzle in the question of Maman's birthday vs. anniversary: "a" comes before "b" - so anniversary is first. Card (ok - letter, I didn't go shop for a card) duly sent yesterday. My brother reminded me "you have to eat", so we're going out to dinner tomorrow night. Should be fun, actually. We're going to a favorite German restaurant. With any luck, the weather will continue fine and we can eat outside! Killer schnitzel. Spaetzle. Rot kraut. Weiss bier! yum.

And now: back to my regularly scheduled program.