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Taylor, Dodge and Landon looked at the vast desert ahead of them. It looked remarkably like the desert they had just spent days trudging through. They’d be out of water soon.

Landon said, "I jus' don't know what this desert's comin' to. There’s bound to be life somewhere."

 
Dodge said, "I been walkin' aroun' in the same desert, saying the same thing. What we comin' to? Seems to me we don't never come to nothin'. Always on the way. Always goin' and goin'. Why don't folks think about that? They's movement now. People moving. We know why, an' we know how. Movin' 'cause they got to. That's why folks always move. Movin' 'cause they want some pin better'n what they got. An' that's the on'y way they'll ever git it. Wantin' it an' needin' it, they'll go out an' git it.”

Editor’s Note: In an effort to keep Quirk E. Cat from napping at his desk, we have assigned him to Advice Column duty. We apologize in advance.

Dear Quirk E. Cat,

I’m finding myself in a reading rut. I’m still reaching for my daily dose of literature, but staying focused and allowing myself to get lost in a novel takes so much more concentration these days. I’m all for reading at my own pace, but I’m a library purist and these days I feel like I’m cramming for an exam when I pick up a book. I used to read one or two books a week, but now I’m lucky if I finish a novel before my library’s three-week due date. Any tips for reigniting the flame that once burned for literature? I really don’t want to be fined by the library. I mean, it’s the library. They know me there.

[Movie still from Wonder Woman, Warner Bros]

We can hardly wait until the release of Wonder Woman, the first film in almost twenty years to be headlined by a female superhero. Yet in 2016, there was another movie about female superheroes—Hidden Figures, which highlights three amazing NASA computers. These women managed to overcome the intersection of racism and sexism to become essential personnel in the space program, with Katherine Johnson even personally calculating the figures for John Glenn’s historic spacewalk. Every bit as heroic as the Hulk smashing.

In honor of Women’s History Month, we have some other suggestions for historic women superheroes, women who went above and beyond to make a difference to the lives of those around them.

Of all the tens of thousands of manuscripts that were produced and copied during the Middle Ages, only a fraction have survived to our day. Some of these manuscripts are plain, written in black ink, and have no more than a few illustrations. Others are magnificent with colorful writings and illuminations plated in real gold. And then there are the manuscripts that are outright weird.

We would like to introduce you to four of the weirdest medieval manuscripts still in existence.

Wednesday, 8pm. Unitarian Church basement.

FRANKENSTEIN: Does anyone have any issues they would like to bring up?

DRACULA: Ah, yes. I have something. It is…about language.

[Photo by Omar Lopez on Unsplash]

As we continue to celebrate Women’s History Month, we’re taking some time to applaud the complex female protagonists we know and love. Here are four women who are living their absolute best lives – even if that means being deceptive and making some pretty questionable choices.