By Jane Elliot
I've heard them lilting at our ewe-milking,
Lasses a' lilting before dawn o' day;
But now they are moaning on ilka green loaning—
The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.
At bughts, in the morning, nae blythe lads are scorning,
Lasses are lonely and dowie and wae;
Nae daffing, nae gabbing, but sighing and sabbing,
Ilk ane lifts her leglin and hies her away.
In hairst, at the shearing, nae youths now are jeering,
Bandsters are lyart, and runkled, and gray:
At fair or at preaching, nae wooing, nae fleeching—
The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.
At e'en, in the gloaming, nae swankies are roaming
'Bout stacks wi' the lasses at bogle to play;
But ilk ane sits eerie, lamenting her dearie—
The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.
Dool and wae for the order sent our lads to the Border!
The English, for ance, by guile wan the day;
The Flowers of the Forest, that fought aye the foremost,
The prime of our land, lie cauld in the clay.
We'll hear nae mair lilting at our ewe-milking;
Women and bairns are heartless and wae;
Sighing and moaning on ilka green loaning—
The Flowers of the Forest are a' wede away.
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I didn't get out much on Tuesday because of all the work I have to get done before Thanksgiving! I did finish my write-up of Next Gen's terrible "Genesis," but I'll post it tomorrow, since I usually post Trek retro reviews on Friday (I missed last week because of Harry Potter and I'll miss this week because of the holiday so I'm posting in the middle -- if nobody reads my review or ever watches this episode again, no big loss). I had loads of laundry to fold, so I put on Away We Go, which I had mistakenly believed was a quirky comedy. (Maya Rudolph's husband has the same name as mine, though not in the film, so I was expecting to identify with her, ha.) It's actually quite serious and sad in parts, though excellent, with great acting and a screenplay full of interesting little surprises. There are some nice comic moments, many of which belong to Allison Janney and Maggie Gyllenhaal as two of the nutty old friends/relatives the main characters meet as they go off in search of an extended family for the baby they're expecting. I highly recommend the movie, but don't blame me if it makes you cry.
Adam had tennis in the late afternoon and we braved horrific traffic to get him there -- it took me 25 minutes to drive perhaps a mile and a quarter from my house and back -- thankfully Paul picked him up so I could take a much-needed walk. We all watched Glee, which I enjoyed in a fairly superficial way. Carol Burnett is always a pleasure to see but was seriously under-used, the Nazi-hunting jokes got old very fast, and in the end I felt like the entire idea that Nazi-hunting had ever been necessary was being ridiculed, which pissed me off, particularly with the crack about wanting to send Sue to Israel. The storyline was much kinder to Kurt and Finn, but what else is new...the show is always kinder to the boys. It's ridiculous that Kurt didn't get a substantial solo at his own father's wedding; at least the show is taking his bullying seriously. Then we watched The Sarah Jane Adventures' "Lost In Time," which was a bit uneven -- fairly tame ghost story, Nazis too stupid to be believed, lovely Lady Jane Grey -- but pleasant, though I'm a little bummed at how much of this season has involved the group not working together so much as each off on their own adventures.
A zebra shark swims in the large central salt water pool at the National Aquarium.
During the dolphin show, the dolphins born at the aquarium play with balls, frisbees, hoops, and other interactive toys...
...and mimic the trainers' behaviors like turning in circles, waving, and posing.
Paul's brother Jon's son Noah admires a pig-nosed turtle, and possibly his own reflection, in the Australia region of the aquarium.
A poisonous death adder hides under the leaves in the same regional exhibit...
...and a crocodile appears unimpressed at smiling visitors.
In the upper levels of the large round salt water tank, a moray eel watches fish swim by...
...while lower in the round tank, sharks swim in circles around a wide viewing area.
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