Or both?
I was reminded recently of a reader’s comment in which she wrote that one of her hobbies is collecting quotations. My husband delivers a killer Jane Austen course at the university where he teaches. His students, unbeknownst to him, had been collecting quotations from his lectures and discussions all semester this past spring. Last week, on the final day of class, they presented him with nine pages of his quips, observations, one-liners, and other Riveroisms, complete with a title page, formatted to look like the beginning of an Austen novel:
DR. RIVERO-ISMS
A COMMENTARY.
IN ONE VOLUME.
- – – – – – – – – – -
BY A GENTLEMAN
- – – – – – – – – – -
VOL. I
Dr. Rivero, A Gentleman, is someone for whom his passion—literature, especially eighteenth century literature—is both career and hobby. I’m convinced that this integration of work and play is one of the things that makes him a great teacher. In his free time, he enjoys re-reading works he has already read a dozen or more times, watching historical movies, and thinking of ways both serious and comical to connect knowledge of the past with the reality of the present. He often jokes that he doesn’t read anything written after 1900 (not entirely true, but close).
On our fireplace mantel, we have a wedding photo, a graduation portrait of our son, a collage of photos from a trip to London a few years ago, and a framed poster of Jonathan Swift without his wig.
Need I say more?
If you love your job and career, and continue to do more of the same as a pastime or on a volunteer basis simply because it makes you happy, don’t be swayed by people who say you need to “get a hobby” for the sake of getting a hobby. You might be one of those lucky people who has found a way to integrate life and career, passion and profession.
For all Jane Austen fans, I offer below some Riveroisms on Sense and Sensibility. In future posts I’ll share more from other novels. His students prefaced their list with this:
From the class of Jane Austen, in the Spring of 2010, as recorded by his devoted students, upon subjects diverse in manner, come the following Dr. Rivero-isms:
On Sense and Sensibility
Regarding the age difference between Colonel Brandon and Marianne:
“I don’t think Austen underestimates the creepiness factor here.”
“There’s kind of a Lolita-like tinge to it.”
On Marianne’s excessive crying:
“Crying is hydraulic evidence you have feelings.”
On Lucy Steele:
“Lucy is like a weed. She will not die.”
“Not only is she bad, but she’s really good at being bad.”
On the men in Sense and Sensibility:
“Kind of like Tweedlee, Tweedledum, and Tweedledumber.”
“Do you need a neon sign? Willoughby is bad.”
Regarding Willoughby’s sudden rush of feelings:
“I don’t care if he feels as though a nail is being put through his left eye; he deserves it!”
““Crying is hydraulic evidence you have feelings.””
Oh my gosh, that is priceless.
Someday, I’d love to be able to turn my love of art and writing into a career, but one day at a time. <3