Monthly Archives: July 2008

And There is No Map…

One explanation that I hear given for Barack Obama’s success is that a lot of white people somehow hope that voting for him will, in effect, let them off the hook for the long and complicated history of race relations … Continue reading

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Res: Black. Girl. Rocks.

If there’s any justice in the music industry–no, wait a minute, if people have any taste whatsoever–no, that doesn’t quite work, either… Okay. Here’s the deal. The first album by Res, 2001′s How I Do, was as catchy and listenable … Continue reading

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Dining Out: Fiesta Hut

The average “Mexican” restaurant is to Mexican food what Olive Garden is to Italian, offering up bastardized and Americanized versions of the real thing. Your neighborhood Chili’s (and what neighborhood doesn’t have a Chili’s, usually nestled between two Starbucks), usually has an … Continue reading

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Waiter, There’s a Pig In My Soup

Sometimes I get the feeling that someone, somewhere, has decided it’s just not art if it can’t be given a label or title. So imagine the difficulty posed by the works of Michael Sowa. Sure, you can peg him as … Continue reading

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Summum jus, summa injuria.

So says Cicero: Extreme justice is extreme injustice. In his blog Confessions of a Small Church Pastor, Chuck Warnock writes about the recent execution of Christopher Scott Emmett: While I realize there is a lot of disagreement on the issue … Continue reading

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Apple Dump Cake

It’s eighty-odd degrees out, sticky and humid. Don’t ask me why, in God’s name, I’m thinking of baking. I haven’t baked in a while, come to think of it, aside from a batch of brownies over the winter, and I … Continue reading

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Writing on Writing: Let’s Dish.

The dishwasher is the bane of creativity. Just my personal opinion, mind you, but one based on years of evidence. Seeing neatly regimented rows of mugs, bowls, dinner plates and silverware represents lost opportunities; for me, there’s no better time for … Continue reading

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Inspiration Index 7: Happy Accidents

One of my favorite things: stuff that happens only once, completely at random. Those snippets of found sounds, overheard dialog, or improbable phrasing are a sort of assemblage by accident. Reason and design get lost in the kind of haze … Continue reading

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Magic and Loss: The Nick Hornby Songbook, Love is a Mix Tape

When is a music book not about music? It’s a valid question to ask if you stop to consider Nick Hornby’s Songbook, and Rob Sheffield’s Love is a Mix Tape. Both are ostensibly about music, and the role it plays … Continue reading

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McCain’s Flip-Flops: They Ain’t Exactly Jesus Creepers.

Got an interesting email yesterday from Rick Davis, John McCain’s campaign manager. I should note that it wasn’t to me, as such; it’s not like I have connections, I just signed up for the McCain mailing list on the candidate’s … Continue reading

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