this is what i do when i'm supposed to be doing anything else

Wikipedia freefall (noun) - the gradual degradation of efficiency that occurs when you try to research a topic on Wikipedia.

Today:
Nicola de la Haye, who in her sixties spit in the eye of the French army while defending Lincoln (successfully!)-->William Longespée, 3rd Earl of Salisbury-->William II Longespée-->(LOST TIME)-->Diane de Poiters-->Henry II of France-->Diane de France-->(LOST TIME)-->Henriette of England-->Armand de Gramont, Comte de Guiche.

In case you are curious, Armand has the distinction of banging both Philippe, Duc d'Orleans only brother of Louis XIV of France and Philippe's wife, Henriette of England, daughter of Charles I and mistress of Louis XIV, and possibly fathering her first daughter. While hitting on Louise de La Vallière , who would become Louis XIV's official mistress.

If life was fanfic, this would be due to a thwarted passion for Louis XIV, who cruelly turned him away because of his Destiny to be A Great French King and He Must Think of Duty Before the Great Love of His Life Who Swam the Rhine For Him (really did that!). Just saying.

I need more hobbies.

Comments

[belleweather]

I am so glad there's a word for this thing that I seem to spend half my life doing...

[seperis]

I KNOW. It's such a comfort to realize there's a real word for what you're doing, like it makes it more legit or something.

(Currently on Joan, illegitmate daughter of King John and consort of Llewelyn II of Wales. Yeah, I don't know either.)

[synecdochic]

falling down the wikipedia history oubliette is a favorite pastime of mine :)

[seperis]

It's magic. Terrifying magic.

[mercurybard]

"wikipedia history oubliette" <-- that is an A+ description. And also how I went from Mount Everest to L. Ron Hubbard last night. *facepalm*

[out_there]

Wikipedia freefall! That's such a lovely description of lost hours.

(Mind you, I have clear memories of being a kid in the local library and losing hours through random reading in the Encyclopedia Brittanica, so it's not like Wikipedia itself is to blame. It just makes it really, really easy to do it away from a library.)

If life was fanfic, this would be due to a thwarted passion for Louis XIV, who cruelly turned him away because of his Destiny to be A Great French King and He Must Think of Duty Before the Great Love of His Life Who Swam the Rhine For Him (really did that!). Just saying.

Hee! But sometimes, life is almost as awesome. I mean, personally, I didn't know any of that but that is a very cool historical life.

[green_grrl]

I suddenly wish Dorothy Dunnett had written a new series. Or Neal Stephenson—he could have fun with it, too, as long as he got to toss in a few treatises on taxation, architecture, pharmacology, and gemstones.

[zana16]

Alexandre Dumas totally wrote Comte de Guiche fanfic, but sadly it was not de Guiche/Louis XIV UST. That would have been doubly awesome.

[dine]

it's comforting to know there's actually a term for this behavior. but it's not *new* behavior, as the encyclopedia and I were grand friends when I was young, spending many hours together - though I never managed my brother's feat of reading all volumes of the World Book from beginning to end

[cerulean_sky]

I thought there was a book I'd read about Armand and Philippe and Henriette, but actually it's about another prince/king/courtier and his wife and all the banging they all do. In case you're interested, it's The Traitor's Wife by Susan Higginbotham and most of it is pretty good. The end is sad and some parts are also sort of horrifying.

Just thought I'd but that one out there, though!

[petronia]

Oh yeah, the Comte de Guiche.