I once read that people either love Bob Dylan or hate him (kind of like pecan pie, only different). If that really is a Bob Dylan rule, then I’m an exception to it because I kind of like him, or … Continue reading →
Phil Ochs was a singer/songwriter, and a leftist of the old sort. Later in his career, he was plagued by mental illness and had a tragic end. But what a beautiful and distinctive voice he had, instantly recognizable. Some of … Continue reading →
Compare and contrast. I’ve cued up a very short (less than 2-minute) excerpt from the beginning of each video of the ballet for the purpose of easy comparison, but you can go to YouTube to watch the longer videos if … Continue reading →
Some years ago – perhaps ten? – I pretty much stopped going to art museums. Most of the exhibits were no longer of art I wanted to see, and even the ones that seemed promising turned out to be an … Continue reading →
The other day the following little ballet to music by Beethoven, set on three women, appeared in my YouTube recommendations. And so I watched it. I didn’t hate it but I didn’t much like it: too static, very “on the … Continue reading →
I grew up in an era in which we had to memorize scads of poetry, some of it of the patriotic verse variety. I’ve written about the experience here. An excerpt: I think it may be a lost pedagogical device, … Continue reading →
When I was a child of around ten, one semi-bored day I came across the light-verse poem “Evolution” in a book on a shelf in my house. Even at the age of ten it amused me and also moved me, … Continue reading →
Country singer Loretta Lynn has died at 90: Just about all the obituaries have the words “coal miner’s daughter” in the headline or prominent in the body of the text, and that’s my impulse, too. Not only was it the … Continue reading →
I find this dance style strange yet rather hypnotic. It’s similar to certain other ethnic dance traditions in that it features a fairly rigid upper body with movement centered in the legs and feet. But in this case, the women … Continue reading →
Being an Everly Brothers fan even as a child and seeing these two names – Felice and Boudleaux Bryant – on so many of their songs, I wondered about them for a long time. Who were they? It’s quite a … Continue reading →
This isn’t going to be the definitive post on guaranteed income programs. I’m hoping to write one at some point, but that point isn’t now. But this development is certainly of interest: Communities throughout the U.S. are experimenting with social … Continue reading →
Which reminds me of this, by Tom Lehrer:
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