“Leave them that plague, which in time will consume all their vigour, and marital spirits.” Such was a statement attributed to the Goths upon their descent into Greece after considering the conflagration of all the books in that fabled land. This comes from the Burton, as I duly continue this plod, easily six months onward, as I grasp the hefty tome each morning when nature beckons.

My reading has continued, often with élan, though the silence of my peers has muted my thoughts on the Wedgwood and I have made tremendous gains in the O’Neil have placed that aside so as to afford my beloved time immerse. I picked up a few obscure titles this past weekend and read all of the Cartier Project by Miha Mazzini. the author is Slovenian and the novel was penned in the late 80s, a time of gathering storms, to use a soiled metaphor. A filmmaker by trade, the novel proceeds as a series of scenes, not unlike the Turgenev, but centers upon a pair of Bosnians that the protagonists encounters and their own ambitions and hapless efforts to succeed. It was quite the delightful departure that I needed. So I proceed, indeed lacking in marital spirit.