Well, I’m having coffee. You’ll have to supply your own. Ander Monson, author of the excellent Other Electricities, has an interesting look at the “Essay as Hack:” I have lived the life of accessing networks, exploring PBX systems and phone lines, been publicly punished for it, for my audacity. Illegal access to credit cards, to [...]
In Brooklyn, people look for ATMs. They live in a constant state of paranoia. Does the restaurant take cards? Call ahead to make sure. What if I can’t find a Chase? You know I refuse to pay those ridiculous service fees at the bodega. The cashless economy hasn’t arrived in Brooklyn’s restaurants and bars; thankfully, [...]
Tomorrow will probably feature a write-up of my trip to New York, including a few bookstore visits I made, but as I get caught up on work today, please consider enjoying these fine websites: Jim Carroll, poet, musician and point guard, has passed away. I won’t go on and on about him, but his book [...]
It’s smokey in Pasadena today. We’ve got fires burning all around us, and the air quality is, well, it’s not great. I feel a little bit like I’m working at Sterling-Cooper. On Wednesday, as I walked to the Metro station, a man stopped me and asked when the last time it rained was. I didn’t [...]
What better way to celebrate Tuesday, that most underrated of days (It’s not Monday, after all!), than with a pair of Dan Chaon related stories. As regular readers of this blog know, I’m a big fan of Chaon’s work. His new novel, Await Your Reply, hits shelves today. You can read my review of it [...]
It’s been awhile since I posted one of my classic link posts. I know you’ve all been jonesin like all get up, so here you go: It’s long as hell, but I still highly recommend Eric Harvey’s Social History of the MP3 at Pitchfork. Those in the book business will likely see some scary (and [...]
These cupcakes had peaches in them. They were based on a Julia Child recipe. Completely vegan, fair trade and organic. And so tasty! Yesterday, inspired by Martha Stewart’s Cupcakes: 175 Inspired Ideas for Everyone’s Favorite Treat, we took a break from the literary life and hosted our first Cupcake Bake-off. The rules were fairly simple: [...]
If you’re expecting a lot of analysis here, forget it. It’d be like asking a man who’s just run a marathon to help you move. I started reading it in late April. In between beginning and ending the book, I finished at least five other books, probably more. Was it good? Yes. Was it, at [...]
When you have a moment, click over and check out the new redesign of The Millions. Max has done a great job of combining an up-to-the-minute linkblog with a forum for lengthier, more considered pieces. Plus it looks freakin’ great. Go to the Vroman’s Blog
I was reading Choire’s email newsletter update from The Awl today (which you should subscribe to, if you don’t already), and he was riffing on the idea of how quickly pop culture becomes dated: This is the problem with the pop culture. Even a few, what, months later, the “Sex and the City” clothes are [...]
