search

And Dragonflies and Bumblebees

On the streets today, people seem so smart and full of Spring. Though the temperature has dropped ten degrees from its high, the sun is still shining. It's 32 degrees and sunny in New York City.

I love the word "still," by the way. I have to tell you. It means so much more than its five letters.

On the train this morning, I read.

Elizabeth Costello is giving a lecture on animals now. She refers to Kafka's story about an ape, Red Peter, that is captured and brought into civilization. To avoid "life" in a zoo, the ape, Red Peter, decides to become human. He, the ape…

It's New to Me

David Bragin sent these alternate meanings to existing words. I Googled them and found they're two years old—although they still seem fresh'n'tasty to me.

I like "willy-nilly."

The Lovesong of J. Alfred Fratboy

"At the rager the chicks come and go
Talking about art or something, I don’t know."

The Basement Tour

Entertaining a nightly audience of 60,000 in your rumpus room.

Is More Information Better than Less?

Heuristics—and Dan Goldstein—say not necessarily. A more pop-culturish explanation is presented on Goldstein's blog, where he shouts out to an excellent Malcolm Gladwell interview on ESPN.

There, now you have an entire morning's work-avoidance strategy.

Fur = Cute

Even with lobsters—or is it the blonde thing?

<I>Stardust</I> Coming to the Screen

Neil Gaiman's lovely little fairy tale is going to be a movie. This could be good news, since Stardust has a deliberately simple storyline, unlike most of Gaiman's oeuvre and offers the best chance of a straight movie adaptation.

>As always, when Hollywood turns its gimlet eyes on a favorite work, I'm worried that it won't get it—so discover Stardust now before it gets the star treatment and then hope for the best.

Does PowerPoint Make You Stupid?

When I worked as a corporate speechwriter, my hardest job was weaning people off of their PP dependency and getting them to tell me what they did in conversational rhythms rather than bullet points. The people who downloaded the most data in pre-speechwriting interviews and delivered the best speeches at the events were the ones who'd never used that "gateway" program.

Besides, as far as I'm concerned Edward R. Tufte is a god. Read his books, if you haven't already.

A Few Random Musical Notes

1. My system, with the Moscode in it, seems to achieve greater soundstage width. In Ryan Adams' "Mockingbird," a tambourine rattles away far in the righthand corner of my room. It startles and impresses me every time.

2. In the Foo Fighters' "On the Mend," the highs seem much more alive; almost painfully beautiful. And the echo-y effect on Dave Grohl's voice is warm, well-controlled, and subtle but absolutely distinct.

3. There are incredibly tight and lifelike bass and drum sounds on Beth Orton's "Conceived."

4. I first noticed a kind of trickling, warbling, running…

Ivor Cutler, R.I. P.

An appreciation of a most singular man.