(no subject)

Cornell's Wordsworth Excursion volume allegedly finally comes out this December, completing that WW edition. It's swelled to almost 1300pp--even though there's no full-length manuscript to print, and they may not even be reprinting the Ruined Cottage manuscripts, since those got their own volume. It's the 1814 text, therefore the one that Shelley, Keats and Byron were shaken by. Never been able to get through it, despite multiple attempts--and Bk 1 and some other scraps being among the planet's best poetry. Maybe starting with Bk 2 is the secret, so there's no despair-inducing fallingoff.

(no subject)

Interesting, Bloomberg seems to take about as much from the Republican candidates as the Democrats, in polls. He takes a bit more away from supposedly maverick McCain.

Hard to squint through personal bias to assess these things, but aren't Giuliani and McCain both horribly unclear and unforceful speakers? I think a further year of McCain's ageing and Giuliani's "heroism"'s ageing may dim both substantially. My suspicion is that the Republicans would go with the Edwardsian Romney if they knew what they were doing--and I still fear the Democrats are making a mistake by not going with the Romneyesque Edwards. Obama strikes me as more charismatic than Hillary. Both are light years past Kerry, and seem rather smarter.

Watched some snippets of the 2004 debates. Comparing Bush in those with present-day Bush almost makes you pity him, he aged 20 years, fifteen of them anxious elf years.