December 2009
29 posts
1 tag
The end of his rope
The white haired man in the coffee shop hung his head a little. “I just don’t think I can do it anymore.” The man sitting next to him seemed concerned and shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “You can’t give up.” “No, no. I’m too old anyway. What’s the use? I keep telling Carla that it’s not going to work.” “You need to stay...
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Auburn Road, the reading material
Three signs lined the property’s snowy curb: 1. “Future home of The Haunted Castle” 2. “St. Vincent Scout Lodge” 3. “Christmas Trees”
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On texting
“Oh come on, T9 word. You don’t recognize rhombus?” -B
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Nabokov, reworked
ooh marketing scheme, 1. allie, 0. (via Samantha)
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My new favorite (little) person
cute, cute
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On culinary arts
“Not that I’m bragging or anything, but the last time I made this, I got mad bitches.” -M.Z.
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Excerpt
“I’ve always been good at making money,” he said, “but I never learned how to save shit. I drink too much wine… I can be antisocial and temperamental and defensive. I am a man of routine, which means I’m boring. I have very little patience with idiots.” He smiled and tried to leaven up the moment. “Also, I can’t look at you without wanting to...
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The Lynching of Lamby-Pie: A Christmas Story
I had a white blanket trimmed in lace and a plush army of bunnies, kitties and bears – each with a name, gender and day of the week to sleep under my arm. (Apparently, I was the leader of my own polygamist stuffed animal sect.) My brother had a small quilt that he drug around Linus-style. My uncle had Lamby-Pie. The small lamb was toted everywhere, according to my Grams, who, out of dutiful...
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In transit
The delayed train means invisible scenic route due to that pesky type of nighttime that comes with being in the middle of who-the-hell-knows-where. Traveling at night requires much more self-entertainment focus. For example: Your book choice cannot just be that one you’ve been meaning to flip through, you know, the I-hope-this-is-impressive one you bought while out with your friend the philosophy...
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Blizzard, oh baby.
Nothing brings out community duty like the first winter storm. Brooklyn was cloaked in snow and slush and an army of shovels dug in a line. More than one welcome mat was swept up on the curb, crumpled and frozen. Shop keepers enlisted those brave enough to march out for coffee or bagels to help lift their security gates from the snow drifts. A street worker helped a couple push their car and the...
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Christmas Time Is Here
rejoice.
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On rules to live by
“Never wear lip gloss onstage. Your hair will stick to it when you head-bang.” -Taylor Swift
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Last-Minute Holiday Guide: Gifts for Nerds
Merry Christmas from Techland
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Movie Review: A context-free highlight
“Paul does manage to wheedle one dinner date, but their evening ends, as so many Manhattan nights do, with a dead body falling from a terrace.”
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Excerpt
“Legos used to be jumbled batches of bright bricks with the occasional wheel or axle. Now you can buy the Star Wars Venator-Class Republic Attack Cruiser kit, 1,170 pieces with instructions longer than The Brothers Karamazov. You build a cool spaceship, so long as you follow the directions – a useful skill, but no the same as constructing a cathedral out of nothing but cubes and...
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At my fingertips
the grapes of wrath.
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busy bee
Avatar Roundtable Discussion: Oscar Buzz, Metaphors and Blue Boobs Fringe’s Misplaced Memory Science: Sci-Fi Fact vs Fiction Tiger Woods Mistress Quiz: How Many Do You Know? what a week.
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Bravo, James Cameron
Caught a screening of Avatar tonight. It. Is. Stunning. Go see it.
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Blog post: A context-free highlight
“Hot, nasty tortoise fucking, what a great day.” Oh um, thanks, B.
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On zinging
“Bring it on, William. I’m reasonably confident you’ll be adding revenge to the long list of things you’re no good at. Next to being married, running a high school glee club, and finding a hairstyle that doesn’t make you look like a lesbian.” - The amazing Jane Lynch on “Glee”
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Excerpt
“I don’t think New York City is like other cities. It does not have character like Los Angeles or New Orleans. It is all characters – in fact, it is everything. It can destroy a man, but if his eyes are open it cannot bore him. New York is an ugly city, a dirty city. Its climate is a scandal, its politics are used to frighten children, its traffic is madness, its competition is...
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Sounds of a Brooklyn Christmas
1. Christmas carols through my headphones2. Barking dogs3. Car alarms
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Song of the day
“Don’t Worry About Tomorrow” by Van Morrison My Choice VM: 1. Madame Joy2. Into The Mystic3. T.B. Sheets4. Don’t Worry About Tomorrow5. Stepping Out Queen, Part Two6. Slim Slow Slider7. Wild Night8. Joyous Sound9. I’ll Be Your Lover, Too10. Contemplation Rose
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Friday, a list
1. A man on the train is hunched in the corner playing a hand-held video game. I should know the name, but don’t. He wears that wilted look that children get while they watch TV. Every few minutes you can see a bit of muscle movement in his face which I interpret in the way I see fit. I can’t tell if he wins after my view is obstructed by the pretty girl in the gold dress. 2. The...
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Excerpt
“When people start flipping out in the library, a special thing happens—patrons get interested; suddenly the porn on their screen isn’t as interesting as the fight that may be taking place just a few feet away. They don’t leave their Internet terminals to help out because they’re afraid they’ll lose their time (libraries learned this months ago during a rather sizable...
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Vivian Girls
play loudly for best effect
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J-School: How To Learn Nothing
Oh, what I wished I would have known when I needed to know it. A journalism education is acquired entirely outside of a classroom, yes. I should have majored in ANYTHING else, yes. A majority of universities with journalism programs are so out of touch with the working world it’s hilarious? Yes. Am I bitter? You betcha. I was duped. Slate, where were you when I needed you the most?...
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Excerpt
“In a neighborhood of stay-at-home moms, Shaun’s mother worked. A public-health nurse, she was the one you went to if you woke up with yellow eyes or jammed a piece of caramel corn too far into your ear.” - From David Sedaris’ “Loggerheads” in this week’s New Yorker
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Immune system, why?
seeks relief & peppermint tea.