I’m a cask full of malmsey; a head-wielding hit;
I’m the end of a rifle; the target of wit;
When a cigarette’s done, I’m that last little bit;
I’m a shoulder of pork; and on me, you can sit.

Who am I?

UPDATE: Riddle solved by Asher. See comments for answer.

I am Walter from Angels; preceding in time;
A monastic superior; Bayes paradigm;
An existing conviction from previous crime;
And the Englishman Matt who penned many a rhyme.

Who am I?

UPDATE: Riddle solved by Asher. See comments for answer.

I’m a trait found in those who would pat their own backs;
To feel strong with your group; to be pleased with your acts;
The most prominent place; where the lions form packs;
And the furniture polish that joyed Johnson Wax.

Who am I?

UPDATE: Riddle solved by Asher. See comments for answer.

From A Midsummer Night’s Dream:

Thus have I, Wall, my part dischargèd so,
And, being done, thus Wall away doth go.

Shift around the letters, and it becomes:

Trump caved. Bigly.

So this wholly gaga shutdown has ended.

Now, a trial ahead.

I’ve just updated the Shakespeare Reading Group Resource Page to include an additional 8 plays, for a total of 24.

So if your dream roles include Cleopatra or Falstaff, the Shakespeare Teacher has got your back. Enjoy!

I’m a grey brand of vodka the French would distill;
Wasteful chase when I’m wild; I provide for the quill;
I’m the mother of fairy tales loved by us still;
And I’ll lay golden eggs, or an egg shaped like nil.

Who am I?

UPDATE: Riddle solved by Asher. See comments for answer.

I keep gas in the car; I make tracks on the field;
Where a group’s paid to think; how a failed project keeled;
Air for divers; a top with the shoulders revealed;
I’m where fish can be shown, and where sharks can be sealed.

Who am I?

UPDATE: Riddle solved by Asher. See comments for answer.

As promised, here is the post celebrating the blog’s twelfth anniversary. There are currently 1,230 posts in 122 categories, and 3,441 approved comments.

A lot has changed in the past twelve years. I’ve changed. The Internet’s changed. The world’s changed. The Thursday Morning Riddle hasn’t really changed very much, so there’s some comfort in that.

I’m looking forward to a new year of blogging. I want to continue the riddles and anagrams and political essays. I also want to bring back some of the old features that I think gave the blog a distinct character. I want to write more about Shakespeare this year, and more about education. I’m also planning to add some more play divisions to the reading group page.

Year 13 stretches out before us. Come join me as we discover it together!

It’s time once again to look back at the last year of blogging and pick out the top posts.

I warn you in advance that four of the five are about Individual 1. Say what you will about this administration, but it does inspire some of my most motivated writing.

The fifth post is an announcement about changes to the website that I’ve been planning for a very long time and that I was finally able to complete this year.

Here are the top five Shakespeare Teacher posts from 2018:

5. Space Force! (August 10)

When Republicans want to do something they think is important, like corporate tax cuts or building a wall, nobody asks them how they are going to pay for it. If something’s a high priority, you find a way. But when Democrats want to protect the environment or provide for universal healthcare, suddenly the nation has empty pockets. This essay shows how the president’s unexpected call for a Space Force might help us all find some common ground.

4. Shakespeare Anagram: Sir Thomas More (June 30)

I wasn’t going to be happy with the policies of a Republican administration regardless. But I feel like the scapegoating of Latinos and Muslims that is occurring at the highest levels of this government goes far beyond left and right, and actually represents a betrayal of American values, both liberal and conservative. The essay that precedes the anagram focuses on Latino immigration, and uses a powerful speech from Shakespeare to highlight the main idea.

3. Macbeth’s Twitter Feed (April 23)

In honor of Shakespeare’s birthday, I mocked up images of a fake Twitter feed. It was purportedly from the historical Macbeth, but it was written in the style of You Know Who. It turned out to be a surprisingly good match. Macbeth’s paranoia and arrogance matched the same qualities in the grandstander-in-chief. In some cases, I was able to simply modify real presidential tweets; in others, I just used actual quotes from the play. The two temperaments blended together seamlessly.

2. Anthem 2018 (July 4)

Heading into Independence Day, a lot of my Facebook friends were openly wondering if they could still be patriotic when our leadership was taking us so far astray. I had planned to write a July 4th post celebrating the best of America. While drafting the essay, I wrote the line “We have conquered worse than this when we were not as strong.” And that’s when I realized that the post wasn’t an essay; it was a poem. I’m really pleased with how it turned out.

1. Shakespeare Teacher 2.0 (August 31)

This was the year that Shakespeare Teacher went from being an entertainment blog to being a resource-rich website. This happened when I added a new page to support Shakespeare reading groups with role divisions. I also added a new page to display my Plantagenet family trees. What’s in store for the future? Now that I have a home page and an organizational structure in place, I might add some new features. I also may continue to update existing features. Stay tuned!

I’m the coins you might spare; a new phase the moon shows;
To switch trains on your trip; where the chart dips or grows;
I’m to diaper a baby; to put on new clothes;
And the progress the world makes, though some may oppose.

Who am I?

UPDATE: Riddle solved by Asher. See comments for answer.