i was deceived into wandering out of doors without a coat because it looked sunny enough. this was a mistake. complaint of the day: where's pantyhose when you want any? not even asking for a pair without runs, just any pair. i think the pantyhose monster was here last night and ate all of them.

jeanette winterson says that film and television have taken over the narrative function of novels, the way novels had taken it from poetry before, and thus a novelist's job is not to write a story with a straightforward, old-fashioned plot, because that's no better than printed tv. but i can't agree with that at all. plot is terribly important, i think. an old-fashioned one i mean. she talks disparagingly of books that are easy, and says we should go to television if we want easy. i'm not afraid of a difficult book, but i do wonder at this scorn of plot. why couldn't an old-fashioned narrative still make a good book today? i think that's why i like children's literature. it's the one place where the story has remained supremely important. remember isak dinesen's cardinal? "the story is the divine art. the human characters came on the 7th day only." and terry pratchett "stories don't care who takes part in them. what is important is that the story repeats" i think i have been losing patience increasingly with books that have dispensed with the traditional plot. it isn't because it's easier, but somewhere you begin to think that the writers like the sound of their own cleverness too much. i was looking at on the newly revamped jeanette winterson web. i don't like the way she writes informally but she has very cool links, including one for the london farmers' market which von might like. lovely pictures of apples invading london. i notice she had arts and letters daily too. *beam* she talked a bit about the fiona shaw medea, which i would like to see, only it's left dc already. the classics department has a review of it on their noticeboard.

gah i am sleepy. very very. i need to go to class though and finish some work before i go. i don't know why i'm tired but i am. oh friday, be here.