The Bronté« family were all geniuses, probably including brother Branwell who dissipated himself with coke and booze. Why genius ran so rampant in the family has been the subject of countless books, one of which I’m currently reading: Charlotte Bronté«: … Continue reading →
Hey, why not?: If you can’t seem to kick that awful nail-biting habit, you might as well get some flavor out of it with KFC’s new chicken-flavored edible nail polish. It comes in two different flavors ”“ ”˜Original’ (beige), and … Continue reading →
George Eliot was the pen name of Mary Ann Evans, the 19th Century English novelist who lived for years with the married critic George Henry Lewes and wrote seven novels, including the highly-praised Middlemarch. I’ve never read it. In fact, … Continue reading →
I’ve written in praise of Allan Bloom’s book The Closing of the American Mind several times before, but here I go again. It was published in 1987, which is now very close to 30 years ago. And yet its relevance … Continue reading →
Democratic bigwig and former US senator Harris Wofford, 90, is engaged to be married for the second time. To a man. A man who is 50 years younger than Wofford. It’s that last part that’s probably the shock to most … Continue reading →
I don’t usually write about my dreams, but last night I had one that was so vivid I feel the need to do so. And no, it wasn’t about politics. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve either dreamed less or remembered … Continue reading →
Here’s a very early poem by Robert Frost: “The Tuft of Flowers.” And by “very early” I mean very; Frost was probably about 22 when he wrote it (1896 or 1897). You can tell it’s early if you know anything … Continue reading →
I’m what you might call a mid-level blogger. I’ve been doing this for eleven years, and I’ve reached a certain level of readership that’s more than I ever thought it would be when I began but less than I later … Continue reading →
Here’s the list of the 20 books that people most often think they should have read, say they have read, but often haven’t read. For me the grand total of books on that list actually read is eleven: (1) Both … Continue reading →
…An aged man is but a paltry thing, A tattered coat upon a stick, unless Soul clap its hands and sing, and louder sing For every tatter in its mortal dress… O sages standing in God’s holy fire As in … Continue reading →
That Hillary Clinton might lie is no surprise at all, even to her supporters, who shrug it off or rationalize it. And on the topic of lies and the lying liars who tell them, there was mention in the comments … Continue reading →
It keeps hitting me that this coming election is the last one that matters. Actually, I felt that way last time. But this time the hour has gotten even later. But maybe it was always too late. When we play … Continue reading →