Category Archives: Writing

It’s always nineteen eighty-four somewhere

Posted on June 9, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

George Orwell’s seminal novel turns seventy-five this week. In Nineteen Eighty-Four, Orwell posed a frightening question: could people be conditioned to actually believe (rather than just pretend to believe) the lies they are told ? Here we are 75 years later … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Freedom of Speech, History, Writing | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Stumbling Through Saturday Around the Interwebs

Posted on June 8, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

I am not embarrassed at all to admit that I have spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about things in the Lord of the Rings universe such as : who is in charge of trash collection; and what are … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Books, Europe, Public Transport, Tourism, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Wise Thoughts For Everyday

Posted on June 5, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

Like many folks who were introduced to the writings of Leo Tolstoy through his novel War and Peace, I was, and remain, ambivalent about the Russian author. I found War and Peace a bit of a slog. However, I found Anna Karenina and The Death of … Continue reading →

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Do vampires get sea sick ?

Posted on May 30, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

On a gloomy night in July, 1893, Bram Stoker’s mysterious Count Dracula embarked on a clandestine journey from his Transylvania home aboard the ill-fated ship Demeter. Unbeknownst to the unsuspecting crew of the Demeter, a malevolent force lay hidden in … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Europe, Film, Maps, Tourism, Writing | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Murakami in the Machine or Way back Wednesday

Posted on May 29, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

In the past we’ve covered lots of book vending machine stories, but this one is surreal. The Muzu publishing house in Poland created three vending machines to dispense Polish translations of Haruki Murakami’s newest novel, Colourless Tsukuru Tazaki and the Year of … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Books, Europe, Writing | Tagged , , | 5 Comments

We’re off to see the wizard

Posted on May 18, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is the beloved 1900 children’s novel written by author L. Frank Baum and illustrated by W. W. Denslow. It is the first novel in the Oz series of books. A Kansas farm girl named Dorothy ends up in the magical Land of Oz after she and her … Continue reading →

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By mid-May

Posted on May 17, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

–Mary Oliver  

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Literary Illusion

Posted on May 15, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

 

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Ein Meisterstück Inspires Writing

Posted on May 10, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

The always quirky and entertaining director and screenwriter Wes Anderson has brought his trademark stylized aesthetic and offbeat storytelling to the Montblanc’s new ad campaign. Released to celebrate the centennial of the brand’s Meisterstück pen, the campaign film features Anderson … Continue reading →

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Tell me what it’s like to live without curiosity

Posted on May 8, 2024 by Brian D. Butler

Letter to the Person Who Carved His Initials into the Oldest Living Longleaf Pine in North America by Matthew Olzmann                                           … Continue reading →

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