St. Benno

Saint of the Day: Saint Benno lived in the 11th century, and he was born a Saxon nobleman. He dedicated his life to the church and died as the bishop of Meissen, Germany in 1106 at almost one hundred years old. There is a great story about him that as he was walking and praying near a marsh one day, he heard a frog croaking so loudly that it broke his concentration. He admonished the frog to be quiet, and it was. Benno, then, however, remembered a verse in Daniel which states, "O all ye beasts and cattle, bless ye the Lord," and he thought the frog's croaking must be pleasing to God. He then told the frog to continue his croaking, and the frog and his friends croaked even louder than before.
Finally, an excuse to wear my frog T-shirt!

I haven't worn these shoes in over a year even though I really like them. They are Jessica Simpson shoes which I was hesitant to buy at first just because of the label, but they're really some of the most comfortable shoes I've ever owned. Every time I wear them, someone says, "But they're so HIGH!" Yeah, they're not that high. And they're wedges, so they have a lot of support and they're made of the softest material in the world. They're fantastic. I should wear them more.
St. Benno also gave me the opportunity to wear my sparkly frog earrings from Anthropologie:

I bought these online without having seen them in person, and I was expecting them to be kind of small and dainty. No. They are not. They are kind of huge. And that's why I have only worn them once before. I'm not really a giant sparkly earrings kind of a girl. But if I can't wear them on St. Benno's day, when can I wear them?

Reading:
Old English: Still translating the Life of St. George. No dragons yet in this version.

Middle English: CT - The Pardoner's Tale, The Shipman's Tale, The Prioress's Tale, and Sir Thopas.
The Pardoner's Tale is about three drunken guys who like to play dice. One day, they get drunk at a tavern, and a funeral goes by. They get so mad that death is killing off everyone that they decide to go find him and kill him in revenge. They start down the road and meet an old man who says he wants to die, but death will not have him. He tells them they can find death, though, underneath an oak tree up the road. When the three men get to the oak tree, there is a huge pile of gold underneath it. They decide they need to wait until nighttime to move the gold, so one of them goes back into town to get some food and drink for them all while the other two stand guard. While the one is gone, the two guards decided to kill him when he comes back so they don't have to share it three ways. Meanwhile, the one who went back to town buys some poison and poisons their drinks so he can keep the gold all to himself. When he goes back, the two guys kill him, then drink the poisoned drink so they all end up dying.

The Shipman tells a story about a frugal merchant who marries a woman who likes to spend money. He has a good friend who is a monk who often comes to visit. One time, the monk comes and early in the morning as the merchant is in the counting-house, the wife and monk meet in the garden. The wife confesses she has a debt of 100 francs that she wants to keep a secret from the merchant. The monk agrees to lend her the money. That afternoon, the monk tells the merchant he needs a loan of 100 francs, and the merchant gladly loans it to him. The monk then gives the money to the wife in exchange for having sex with him. She agrees, and the monk goes home. The merchant goes to visit the monk and asks about the loan, and the monk tells him he already paid back the loan to his wife. The merchant goes home and asks the wife about it, and she says she should be allowed to keep the money and she will pay the merchant back in sexual favors. He agrees. The end.

The Prioress's Tale gives the story of Little St. Hugh of Lincoln. He was 7-year-old boy who would hear a Latin song about Mary being sung as he walked to and from school. He liked the song so much that he learned it by heart even though he did not understand Latin. His route to school passed through the Jewish quarter, and the Jews did not like that he would sing about Mary as he walked through their neighborhood, so they killed him and threw him in the pit where they threw their waste. When he didn't come home, his mother went out frantically looking for him. As she passed through the Jewish quarter, she heard him singing the Latin song in praise of Mary and found him in the pit. The Jews who murdered the boy were arrested and executed, and Little Hugh was given a good Christian burial.

Sir Thopas is the tale in rhyme that Geoffrey Chaucer the Pilgrim tells as his tale. It's about a knight who decided he wants to marry a fairy queen, but he must battle a giant first. He goes to get his armor, and there is a lengthy description of all the armor he puts on. It's a really terrible poem, and the Host stops Chaucer from finishing it saying, "Thy drasty rhyming is not worth a turd!" And then the Host asks him to please tell them something a little more serious - this time in prose.

Contemporary American: I finished Maus. It was great! I highly recommend it.

Workout: Maybe. I actually did exercise yesterday because when I added my planned dinner into my food diary, I had already maxed out my calories, and I really, really wanted a glass of wine with dinner. So, that's how I got my motivation - exercise just enough that I get a calorie-free glass of wine. Ha! At least it worked to get me on the treadmill.

Food:
Breakfast - cheese toast, peach, coffee
Lunch - fish sandwich
Dinner - Swiss steak, cauliflower, sugar snap peas
Snacks - milk, cherries