Books
The New York Review of Books edition of The Anatomy of Melancholy is 1382 pages long. Here's the problem with that. If I'm feeling melancholy, then I'm in no condition to read a serious 1382-page book with a lot of Latin in it.
The verb tabling means the opposite in British English from its meaning in American English. In the UK, to table an item means to begin discussing it. In the US, to table an item means to postpone discussing it.
Pets
My housemate's cat, Beans, looks so sad when no one is paying attention to her. The only time I see her sadder is when someone is paying attention to her.
Music
Imagine a mellow Caribbean beat slowly rising in volume. And then soft voices chanting: (God save the- God save the- God save the Queen) (God save the- God save the- God save the Queen) And, finally, a lead singer: God Save the Queen! And then let it go, mon, let
Music
Nick Cave is a bad, bad man who made a fine, fine video.
History
Many warbloggers and other assorted Iraq-war supporters fancy themselves to be followers of Winston Churchill. And one of the most widely read biographies of Churchill is the two-volume hagiography by William Manchester. (As a boy, I read the first volume. For boys, it's a good history.
Music
Of the songs I added to iTunes in 2006, here are the ones I played most often (many of these songs were not actually released in 2006): 1. "Are You With Me?" by Overnight 2. "Nature Anthem" by Grandaddy 3. "The Sun Shines Down on
Music
* "If Anybody Had a Heart" by John Waite * "Palestine Texas" by T Bone Burnett * "Going Going Gone" by The Vestals * "You Didn't Have to be So Nice" by The Lovin' Spoonful * "Seasons in the Sun" by Terry
Me
I flew down to the Bay Area to visit my sister this past weekend, and persuaded her to make a side trip to Tower Records on our way from Pleasant Hill BART to her house. The inventory was heavily depleted because the store has been going out of business for
Politics
An interesting post-midterm wrapup by Rolling Stone contained this questionable assertion by David Gergen: Voters don't want a whole series of confrontations over the next two years. […] Democrats have got to be willing to work with the administration […] That's going to be very hard for
Sports
It's been a great year for me as a college football fan. Ohio State is 12-0, Big Ten champions, and will play in the national championship game. California is 9-3 and Pac-Ten co-champions. San Jose State is 8-4 and will play in a
History
The Atlantic Monthly has posted a list of the 100 Americans who a panel of historians consider to be the most influential in American history. I suggested adding five people to the list: * Dale Carnegie * Frederick Taylor * H. L. Mencken (for his linguistic work) * Bill Wilson * Pete Rozelle I also