Obscurorant 2.0

This past weekend I had occasion to venture down to the Fore River Shipyard, in order to catch the shuttle to George’s Island in Boston Harbor. I’ve written before of the Shipyard’s role in American naval history and while waiting on the dock I tried to imagine what the place was like during its hey [...]

The main problem with Fresh Air, is, of course, Terry Gross – I just find her style vaguely irritating. But she has on so many interesting guests it’s difficult to stop listening. For example, I just heard her interview with Brian Cox. Now I wrote some time ago about my ‘discovery’ of Mr. Cox, and [...]

like colorful birds set free in the trees… blossoms

I’ve written before of my long-standing fondness for the Salem Willows and the arrival of summer is generally the signal to head north and visit. One of the joys of a trip to the Willows, besides the ocean and junk food, is the arcade. Some of them, like the skee ball pictured above, have been [...]

I noted with interest this post concerning “songs that I’ve made a happy fool of myself singing along to.” My first impulse was to answer ‘anything from Annie, but technically speaking I don’t sing along to Annie, I sing Annie. Also, I occasionally favor folks with a rendition of Sunrise, Sunset, although that tends to [...]

For your consideration: an article on the sheltered childhood today’s kids lead. Whatever happened to ‘Come home when the streetlights come on?’ I was twigged to this article by an old friend at Twirling Towards Freedom, who took the time to gin up a map of the territory ranged by our ten year old selves.

So Friday night’s wine tasting at the Crane was quite nice and while sipping away in the Richardson building I even discovered a couple of white wines I liked. Plus there were prizes. Not for me of course: everybody is lucky and unlucky in their own peculiar way (such as cards and/or love as the [...]

“ The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers.” – Matsuo Basho

“Make haste to reassure us that you at home support and love us as we obey and love you, for if we find that you have sent us to leave our bleached bones in these desert sands for nothing, beware the fury of the legions.” – Anonymous Roman Centurion

A list of the podcasts to which I currently subscribe:

Books – fiction – where the main characters either is a vampire, or deals with vampires in some fashion. Honorable exceptions: Dracula, by Bram Stoker, and Anno Dracula by Kim Newman.

Note: this post was originally published as ‘ Thoughts on the Coming Anniversary’ on June 4, 2004 at my old joint. I felt it worth repeating. Over the next few days, as we approach the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, one catch phrase that will bandied about quite a bit is ‘the greatest generation,’ [...]

No doubt you have all been waiting with bated breath for some book reviews, eh? Well, I haven’t much time but I will try and oblige. The two most enjoyable books I’ve read this year? Julius Winsome, by Gerard Donovan, and Declare, by Tim Powers (for which he won a World Fantasy world). Julius Winsome [...]

Submitted for your consideration: passive-aggressive notes from roommates, neighbors, coworkers and strangers. I think this one is my favorite so far.