My friends Sherman and Amanda are delightful. Friday night, Halloween activity #1 was an Edgar Allan Poe evening in Old Town Alexandria. Jana and I joined Sherman, Amanda, and Sherman’s mom and stepfather for chili and some literary fun. The ambiance was incredible, with candles, scary music, a motorized raven, Raven beer from Baltimore, and a very impressive PowerPoint presentation (apparently Sherman’s love of PowerPoint runs in the family!).Once Sherman finally made it off the campaign trail (knocking on doors for Obama in Northern Virginia is a like shooting fish in a barrel, but I admire his commitment), we began our evening with a short introduction to Poe. Then, we transitioned to the very informative PowerPoint that Nancy, Sherman’s mom, prepared. It was Halloween and "The Raven" trivia, so you know I was happy. We didn’t keep score (darn), but I think Sherman might have beaten me.
The text for the “The Raven” was in the PowerPoint, so we took turns reading stanzas, all chiming in on “nevermore.” It was at this point that I knew I had found a new potential friend for Kath in Nancy, a hunch that was solidified later when she read/recited from memory the Seuss book that she and Sherman loved the most when he was a child. Let’s just say the voices she used were quite familiar and my new priority is to find another literary theme around which to organize an evening and facilitate the meeting of Kath and Nancy.
Jana and I read a favorite poem of Sherman’s, “The Cremation of Sam McGee,” (http://www.wordinfo.info/words/index/info/view_unit/2640) which was delightful and appropriate for someone wearing a Sarah Palin costume. Sherman read Rabbie Burns’ “Tam O’Shanter,” (http://www.robertburns.org/works/308.shtml) complete with an iffy Scottish brogue (I wished someone had been with me at Halloween activity #2 where my friend wore a tam o’shanter). Amanda wrapped up the evening with “The Masque of the Red Death” (http://www.online-literature.com/poe/36/) and I think her future is in reading books on CD. She has the most soothing voice ever.
Stay tuned for future literary events and big meeting of Nancy and Kath. It’s going to be a good one.
4 comments:
Maybe I could reprise my circa 1965 reading of "The Congo."
I once won a speech contest wit "The Raven," but "Tell Tale Heart" was always my favorite.
!! I did a reading of "the congo" as part of a project for my dance improv class in college :D
there are strange things under the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold... Good times. That was Poe
one test for forensics so I probably recited it 100 times
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