Guscio: What if Shakespeare had a computer?

The term “Beware the ides of March,” the soothsayer's warning to Julius Caesar, did not originate with William Shakespeare. It was thought to have been created by the Roman King Romulus in 753 BC.

The early Roman calendar consisted of ten months beginning with March. The full moon, which usually fell on the 13th or 15th day of the month, referred to the “ides,” so the ides of March , in those times, marked the first full moon of a new year.

During the late Roman Republic, the festival celebrating the new year was held on the banks of the Tiber River on the outskirts of Rome. There was an abundance of food, wine , music and sacrifices offered to the Roman Goddess Anna Perenna, hoping for a happy prosperous new year.

A group of Roman senators upset with the increased power of their ruler Julius Caesar, stabbed him to death with their swords on March 15, 44 BC. According to present day physicians, after having been stabbed 23 times by those men, Caesar would not have survived long enough to utter those famous last words “et tu Brutus.”

Oh well, there is much more to this you can google.

I bet Shakespeare would have been so happy had he had a computer.

Hairy situation

I was reading a review of a book titled “Hair: A Human History” by Kurt Stern. The book is loaded with all sorts of fascinating hairy facts that you may - or may not - know.

Imagine, fifty to 100 hairs fall out of your head every day. Its kind of amazing we have any left. We acquired hair in the first place when animals left the sea for land. The environment they found themselves in was not very friendly. Fish and reptiles formed scales, birds got feathers and we got hair to help protect us.

It is interesting that the whorl direction in a cowlick determines whether a child is left- or right-handed. Violin bows are best strung with hair from the tail of a white Siberian or Mongolian stallion. How anyone discovered that I don't know. A strand of black hair from Che Guevara's corpse sold at auction in 2007 for $119,500. Shakespeare called gray hair "the ashes of his youth."

Until the 18th century barbers were surgeons as well . The red, white and blue poles at barbershops were there for patrons to hold on to while they had procedures done. The red and white stood for blood and bandages and the blue for blood as in the vein. All hairdressers should read this fun book because it is full of many interesting facts and tidbits.

April is for poets

National Poetry Month was created by the Academy of American Poets in 1996 to bring about more appreciation and awareness of poetry.

During April , libraries, bookstores and schools host events to celebrate this written word form.

The third annual Kick-Start Poetry Reading will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. April 7 at the Hilton Head Library. The free event will feature six local poets and musician Mike Nicholson.

Closer to home the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute will hold its first Voices and Verses Poetry Slam from 6 to 8 p.m. April 13 at USCB Bluffton. Anyone who enjoys reading or writing poetry and wishes to share their work may bring it.

My friend, the late Bluffton Poet Laurette, Oscar Frazier would love this and would be right in the front row cheering everyone on.

For information go to www.olli.uscb.edu. There is a charge of $15 for the evening.

Picture perfect

“Focus on the Lowcountry” is an exhibit featuring 17 member photographers now featured at the Society of Bluffton Artists Gallery through April 3.

The exhibit is the SOBA photographers' interpretation of the beauty of the Lowcountry from Darien, Ga., to Charleston,. The work of some 100 other member artists will also be on display.

The SOBA gallery is open from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Monday-Saturday and Sunday 11:30 a.m. until 3 p.m. The gallery is located at the corner of Calhoun and Church Streets in old town Bluffton.

For information go to www.sobagallery.com or call 843-757-6586.

Going places

An interesting little pamphlet caught my eye the other day. It was left on my door and of course I picked it up and read it.

A new transportation company called Jaunt is now available if you might wish to try it. This is not a tour company. They just get you to Savannah, Beaufort or Charleston and back. The trips are offered on set schedules that may be seen on their website www.lowcountryjaunt.com

The trips seem to be very reasonable to me if you do not need a car at your destination.

We need this sort of service here in Bluffton so people can park in a certain place and be picked up and dropped off at 30 minute intervals. Just a thought - it would ease our parking woes, too.

This story was originally published March 9, 2016 at 9:15 AM with the headline "Guscio: What if Shakespeare had a computer?."