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I finally finished translating Esther. SPOILER ALERT: the Jews win.
This has been one of my favorite bits of the Bible to read thus far. Maybe it’s just because I spent the last year reading everything with an eye to subtext (desperately trying to keep ahead of the 10th-graders), but I found it incredibly well-written. The structure is interesting–one commentator has noted that the whole thing is structured as a chiasmus (ABCBA, with each letter standing for an event). So we start with King Ahashverosh’s two feasts, and we end with two days of feasting for the Jews. After that we get Haman (the bad guy) raised to a position of power, and right before the Jews’ feast we get Mordecai (the good guy) raised to power.
There are tons of interesting parallels, too–one of the ones I haven’t seen anyone talk about yet (though I’m sure someone has) is the role of Haman’s wife paralleling that of Esther, Mordecai’s ward–Esther is obviously the more important character, but right after the scene where she agrees to plead for the lives of the Jews and takes on a position of real authority in doing so, Haman’s wife urges him to build a scaffold and hang Mordecai on it. Interesting gender/power dynamics there–as the commentator I’ve been reading notes, this is the only book of the Bible explicitly interested in sexual politics. Altogether a satisfying read, with the exception of the two words I just couldn’t find in the lexicon and am hoping I don’t get stuck translating. AND we’re spending most of the actual class time talking about the characteristics of late Biblical Hebrew, and getting into how scholars actually date texts–the nitty-gritty of the thing, rather than the vague “Oh, we know that this is from the third century at the latest” stuff you find in annotated Bibles and undergraduate textbooks.
Also, puppy!
Clementine likes to sleep in my stuff.
She’s taken to chewing on the corners of the woodwork, which is obviously very bad. So I got some of that no-chew-spray, which works okay, but not great. I found that a spray bottle of vinegar works just as well (thanks to Kat in my apartment complex!), and it’s really funny to watch her react to it–she kind of wants to play with it, but it obviously bothers her, so she jumps all around barking at it. This weekend my good friend Scottie and her good friend and roommate Jonathan have VERY kindly agreed to watch her and take her to the Blessing of the Animals service! Yay! I am a little worried that she’ll miss me a lot, or that she’ll destroy something valuable, or that I will miss HER a lot, but I am also kind of excited about being able to sleep in on Saturday morning.
Am off to make oatmeal scones. I make this recipe a lot, and would definitely recommend it. I never put the cream of tartar in, since I a) don’t have any and b) am not even sure what it does. I also don’t put raisins in, because I dislike them. Sometimes I do chocolate chips instead. If you’re looking for a way to make them lower-fat (the recipe does call for a stick of melted butter) there are lots of ideas in the comments. I just go with the butter.
Today’s edition of Guilty Pleasure Monday features my new favorite dessert: Dulce de Leche. This sauce/spread/candy is popular in Latin America, and is made from slowly heating sweetened milk. It’s like caramel, but milkier and thicker and gooier. Haagen-Dasz has a Dulce de Leche ice cream that’s super good. You can also buy the sauce at some high-end grocery stores…OR you could make it yourself, according to a recipe that my sister Penelope swears is authentic, and eat it by the spoonful when you are having a bad day. Or spread it on toast for breakfast…or put a dollop of it on top of your ice cream…
Ingredients: 1 can condensed milk.
Equipment: 1 small pot or heatproof glass bowl (glass works better because you can tell when it’s done more easily)
tin foil
larger pot or pan to serve as a double boiler (I guess an ACTUAL double boiler might work too…)
Procedure: Open can of condensed milk. Pour contents into smaller pot/bowl. Lick out inside of can. Cover bowl securely with tin foil. Put smaller bowl into larger and fill with water, hopefully about up to the level of the condensed milk. Put double boiler in the oven. Bake at somewhere around 400 degrees somewhere between 45 minutes and 2 hours (I think there’s a specific time/temperature, but I forgot it, and the recipe seems pretty forgiving). Dulce de leche is done when condensed milk is a medium brown all the way through. Take it out, let it cool, stir it, and eat it in massive quantities.
