Mishmash Musings

I’m currently watching the 2008 film version of Brideshead Revisited. This is a story that always takes me back to my high school days because I had to read the Evelyn Waugh novel for my English Lit class during junior year. I really enjoyed the book (it was my first exposure to Waugh), so it’s one of the things that will forever represent high school to me.

It’s been nearly 20 years since I graduated, which means 95% of my memories of that time have faded. But along with Brideshead, there are a few other nostalgia triggers that take me right back to my teenage years. For instance, whenever someone mentions Cicero or Vergil, I recall grueling hours spent laboring over translations of the Orations Against Catiline or the Aeneid. Hamlet and Macbeth are also high school lit staples, and I still remember the various soliloquies that I had to memorize.

It’s not only books that set off my memories, of course. There’s always Old Style and Milwaukee’s Best, the cheapest beer available for us. Or that hot dog joint on Westgate Ave. that we used to go to for lunch all the time. Softball, badminton, floor hockey, and other sports I used to play.

Seriously, I cannot believe it’s been 20 years since I first stepped foot in high school. Where has all the time gone??

As someone who hates to fly, I always take news of commercial airline disasters pretty hard. I was shocked to learn that Air France Flight 447 essentially disappeared en route from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Paris, France. Authorities speculate that the plane went down somewhere in the Atlantic, perhaps near the coast of West Africa.

Because there was no radio contact (except for an automatically transmitted message about electronic problems) from the aircraft prior to the incident, investigators still have no idea exactly what happened. Current speculation is that the plane encountered difficulties because of turbulence and stormy weather, with lightning perhaps playing a role in the accident.

Then again, there could have been some kind of explosion, possibly due to terrorism — though no groups are claiming responsibility at this point. Yes, this is a longshot, but it’s a possibility. As at least one new report pointed out, if Pan-Am Flight 103 had exploded over the ocean instead of Lockerbie, Scotland, authorities never would have figured out what happened because the black box would have been lost.

My thoughts are with the families of the passengers and crew at this time. It must be so hard not knowing what happened. I hope the wreckage is found sometime soon.