Prison Dramas, Bands and Ouija Boards - the Excellent Cats audition, sing and plot

[TheBroonOneAndTheWhiteOne]

Our feline overlords have so many current strings to their joint and several bows.

Auditioning for Series One of The Prison Cat, forming a band, and continuing to plot against their enemies by means of their Ouija Boards - will they even have time to sleep now?

The next step will probably be robovacs that empty themselves into the bins & then take them out for you.

Kitty’s Christmas present arrived today. I’ll build it over the holiday & she can supervise.

Or just be more interested in the box, of course.

🤣🤣🤣

Basil has a new love in his life.
The heater 🤣

It’s just occurred to me that for the second year running, I’ve spent twice as much on Kitty’s Christmas present as on anyone else’s.

Should I feel guilty about that….?

Nah.

You two probably spent more time together over the past year so seems fine to me!

Plus I then get to watch her enjoying it!

Okay, I've got a question which has sod all to do with cats.

It's an English Literature one.

How on earth did Mr. Rochester think he was going to get away with marrying Jane Eyre? Mrs. Fairfax knew about Bertha. Why didn't she say anything?
Yes it was bad luck that Bertha's brother rocked up at the altar but....................

It’s a long time since I’ve read it, but faithful old family retainer is my guess. Knew it was wrong but couldn’t bear to betray her master.

Yes, that's the only way it makes sense, but surely Mrs. Fairfax would have shrunk from inveigling Jane into an unlawful marriage which would have led to her bearing illegitimate children.

You’d think, wouldn’t you? It never occurred to me before.

My favourite authors are Georgette Heyer & Jodi Taylor, who writes the Chronicles of St Mary’s about time-travelling historians & various spin-offs.

Aha!

I've just finished watching the 1983 version of Jane Eyre. It's not a patch on the Ruth Wilson/Toby Stephens one.

But I had to put something on, having got to the end of To Serve Them All My Days.
🤣

Our most recently formed dementia choir sang in public today, with the children from the nursery.

It was beautiful just. And they presented me with a huge arrangement of flowers and a bottle of Chablis.

There's that, and also possibly fear of being turned out with no chance of getting any reference. Fairfax wasn't exactly young, that could have been near enough a death sentence back then, & Rochester doesn't come over as someone very concerned about such things.

That’s really lovely, Broon.

Yes!

That's a good point. I can see Rochester not GAF about Mrs. Fairfax or her references.
He wasn't very charming, was he.
Jane should've married that curate (St. John Rivers) and become a missionary. In a nice, sunny climate, far away from Mr. Rochester and his schemes.

I have a feeling (from a memory of talking to a friend who is a 19th century lit specialist) that part of what was innovative about the book in its day. That a readership of that time would expect the narrative to be that Jane escapes the thrall of the immoral man and makes the wise choice to marry the upright Christian and devote herself to a life of God. But she does the opposite.

Not very high-brow, but I remember the Brains Faggots advert being on at the same-ish time as the TV series of Jane Eyre and people talking about Mr Rochester doing the voice-over, not Timothy Dalton! 😀

I used to love a tin of faggots.

Also a long time since I read it, but I have the impression she knew about Bertha but not that she was Rochester's wife: I will have to re-read it now!
And I want to stand up for Rochester, when he lost Thornfield he settled a generous pension/allowance on Mrs Fairfax.
And one of the servants makes a comment that 'there's no stinting at Thornfield' so I think Rochester was generous, with money, anyway.
And St John would have killed Jane with work and lovelessness.
I think it's been done a lot, but it's interesting to compare Jane Eyre, who ends up with Rochester when he has a much reduced fortune and she has her own money, so they are more equal, versus the destructive relationships in Wuthering Heights, where everyone has a horrible time, yet it's considered a great romance (not by me, can you tell?)

My favourite Brontë heroine is Helen from The Tenant of Wildfell Hall, who I think would have got on rather well with Jane Eyre. Two strong women.

Kitty & I are having a cosy night in. Which seems a good idea, given what it’s like out.

Raven and I have been doing similar @EmpressaurusKitty She got bored with my choice of film though.

What were you watching, @RumNotRun?

Christmas horror films 😁. They were rubbish.