Category Archives: Writing

*Meditations in an Emergency*

A poem by Frank O’Hara. It’s the first poem in *Meditations in an Emergency*, 1957: To the Harbormaster I wanted to be sure to reach you; though my ship was on the way it got caught in some moorings. I … Continue reading

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A rare literary find and more stuff you need to see

A papyrus of part of the Iliad has been discovered in a Roman-era tomb of mummies in Egypt. “The papyrus contains a passage from Book II of Homer’s Iliad, specifically the section known as the ‘Catalogue of Ships’…” from the … Continue reading

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Islands in your pocket

In the late 15th and mid-16th centuries, publishers in Venice produced a genre of small books called isolarii . The original publications can be thought of as an encyclopedia of islands containing maps along with text descriptions of significant history, … Continue reading

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Print vs Ebooks

A new paper released last week by the Pew Research Center found that print books continue to be American adults’ preferred reading format, though digital formats continue to make inroads. According to a survey of 8,046 U.S. adults conducted last year from … Continue reading

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the world is exceedingly complex for the simplicity of men.

“Inferno I, 32” — Jorge Luis Borges In the following short story, originally published in 1955, Borges remarks on the use of a leopard in the first canto of The Divine Comedy. What follows is, characteristic of Borges’ short prose, … Continue reading

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Only wait a while and listen.

I recently had a sad conversation with my sister about someone who we both loved who took his own life many years ago. It reminded me of this moving poem by Pulitzer-winning poet Galway Kinnell  addressed to a student of his … Continue reading

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Five Centuries of Vulgarity

Green’s Dictionary of Slang has become available as a free website, giving you access to an even more updated version of the dictionary. Collectively, the website lets you trace the development of slang over the past 500 years. The website allows lookups … Continue reading

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My Magnum Opus

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“Practice resurrection. Part of who you are is who you will be.”

Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front by Wendell Berry Love the quick profit, the annual raise, vacation with pay. Want more of everything ready-made. Be afraid to know your neighbors and to die. And you will have a window in … Continue reading

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I go unrecognized in paradise

Dean Young — “Scherzo”

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