Frog Hospital: The Plantaganets

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

The Plantaganets

The Plantaganets

By Fred Owens

The Plantaganets were rulers of France and England many centuries ago, King Henry II and his descendants down to Richard III ruled from 1154 to 1485.

See the Lion in Winter starring Peter O'Toole as King Henry II in a very intense marriage with Katherine Hepburn who plays Queen Eleanor. This is a great film.

Or read a bit of historic fiction about the Middle Ages during the time of the Plantagenets. Read The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett.

Do you ever spend idle moments dreaming about the Middle Ages? I do.

Who Will Win, Trump of Clinton? Hillary Clinton will win because she will make fewer mistakes. She will play it safe and stick to her plan. Her only risk is the Big Dog -- he might go off script.

Gardening. I was working for the French family this morning. It wasn't so bad. Thinking about it, I didn't want to go to work -- too hot, no shade, just routine cleanup, no challenge, and I get bored working by myself. But when I got started at 8 a.m. the sky was foggy and the air was cool and work went smoothly. I trimmed raggedy leaves off the banana plant by the front door. I rolled up some scattered irrigation hoses and put them away. I raked and tidied in the newer garden. Then I dug small holes and planted succulents.

I looked at my shovel. I shouldn't be digging holes. I should be the guy who tells someone else to dig the hole. I should. If you ask me. This puzzles me. I'm stuck.

Then I looked up at the sky, the broad, blue sky. What is this glass ceiling she's talking about? All I could see was blue sky rising to infinity and God, if he lives up there. There is no ceiling, not where I work.

You need a ceiling and a roof to shelter yourself from the rain and snow and to give you shade when the hot sun bears down. You should be grateful to have a ceiling and a roof. Why would you want to smash it? Just step outside and breathe the fresh air. Join me. I'm out there right now.

It's Complicated. My head gets in a knot watching the Clintons on TV. They make it so complicated. Not Trump. He is what he is and I don't like him and I won't vote for him. Simple. But Bill and Hillary have the whole country outsmarted -- for our own good. I am mad at myself for going to vote them into office. They're driving me crazy.

Bill can't be President anymore, so they pulled a switcheroo and she takes the job and they both move back into the White House like they own the place. He is going to be trouble with a capital T. They're going to call her Madam President. What are they going to call him? And their marriage -- I don't care about their history. They are two old and tired people past their prime. Well, better than Trump.

All of Us. When the choice for President seems so unhappy, think of your own responsibilities. America is a good and great country because all of us, all 300 million of us, each and every one of us, have a duty to be good citizens, to uphold the law and to respect each other, to work together and to express honest differences. We're going to do just fine.