Greek antiquity tells the story of King Midas, who had a reputation for speaking without quite thinking things through. We are all pretty savvy about his problems with gold, but in the beginning he got his start being asked to judge a lute (or other fey grecian stringed thing) playing contest between the god Apollo and some other chap who’s name for the moment eludes me.
As the story goes, Apollo, being a god pretty much won the thing by a country mile. But Midas, feeling rash, decided in favour of the other guy. Apollo, also not known for long deliberation, blasted the other lute-ist (?) into oblivion and smacked Midas up the head informing him he had the ears of an ass – and lo! he grew a pair to illustrate the point.
I am going somewhere with this so bear with me.
He was a little sensative about this was Midas and would go about wearing a silk cap to keep this schtum. The ancient Greeks were, by their own account, a tolerent and libretarian collection of persons but fuzzy ears was the limit apparently.
Anyway, this little ruse de chapeau, as the French foppishly call it, worked on everyone accept his barber who, wise man, kept it quiet. But the secret preyed on him; he lost sleep, refused his ruffage, for all we know he gave Mrs Barber the wrong impression entirely. Anyway he suffered.
Unable to take it any longer he dug a hole in the group and whispered “Midas has ass’s ears!” into said hole and filled it in.
Much relieved he returned home, flung his arms around the misses and probably ate the Greek equivalent of a roast dinner - so grape leaves and feta or something like that, but the important thing is he would have eaten well and slept a better man for unburdening himself.
But by sheer bad luck it seems reeds grew from his hole which whispered to the trees which in turn told the birds who told the flowers who told Prince Charles who spread it about the town. And the barber got the chop.
My point is it’s hard to keep things inside. That and we should all have a good grounding in the classics.
It has been almost two years since I posted here, I entred politics as a profession and was told to knock it off or else. But it has preyed on me like our unhappy barber. I think Mrs Capt. has taken about all she can of my rants and rambles about the house so now that I am in a new job slightly less front line I have started again.
As before, I can’t promise to be witty or informed or make much sense but at least I know you kind souls probably won’t dob me in to HRH Charles, he’s such a gossip you know.
October 14, 2008 at 11:16 pm |
lautist. surely?
December 3, 2008 at 12:56 pm |
I just received a comment from someone responding to my posting on Office Cricket – two years after I posted it. This prompted me to visit the site again and I saw your latest post. So, you have a new job and a ‘Mrs Capt.” now then? Life has changed.