Category: Musings

  • Dog is Life/”Hell Hound”/”Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance/More on Authenticity

    I I got a dog a few months ago, and she’s taken a bit of my focus and attention. She’s also brought with her a bit more of a regular structure to things. Dogs are strange, in that they are creatures of routine, but also creatures who very much seem to live in the moment.…

  • Firing the Engines.

    Ok, so, it’s been a minute. There are a few reasons for this: 1) I got a dog. She has taken up a fair bit of my time– walkies and training and just generally vibing are things that the dog life has given me. I read, and started work on an entry on “Hell Hound”…

  • “Between Two Fires”/What I am Reading/What I have Finished

    Regular readers of this blog will know of my fondness for the band Cannibal Corpse. And, to be honest, one of the things I like about them is a consistent product. When you buy the new Cannibal Corpse record, you’re going to hear Cannibal Corpse songs. The newer albums will have better production, and they…

  • We Return to the Wretched Sea, at Last (“Moby Dick”)

    Last time we visited the Wretched Sea, I went on a lengthy side-notion about the idea of Moby Dick as a kind of drone-art novel. I then put the book down and didn’t pick it up for several months: a trip to Thailand, Mardi Gras, and other things interfered, and so when I resumed, it…

  • Mardi Gras/ What I am Reading

    Mardi Gras puts to waste a lot of plans. The annual celebration starts in January, and just kind of… goes on until Fat Tuesday. During this time, I’m busy drinking and parading and dressing like Elvis, for reasons not particularly relevant to this blog. However, it also means I am *not* doing what this blog…

  • Series/”Otherland”/What I am Reading/Future Plans

    Let’s talk a little bit about series. I have a predilection for long works. I’m not sure what this says about me, but if you’ve written an 1,500 page novel, I kinda want to know it exists. If it’s some weird literary nonsense, I probably want to read it. But it doesn’t have to be…

  • Bangkok/What I Read on the plane/What I am reading

    This isn’t a travel blog, but I am in Bangkok right now; it’s just after breakfast time. I had a big bowl of Jok with pork and eggs, and the aunties who run the stall apparently find my lumbering frame and desire to eat Thai food adorable. Bangkok is a unique place; things grow and…

  • “The Other Name”

    As this blog has evolved, one of its tropes has become comparing things to music; music is my other passion, and I’ve spent a lifetime reading and listening to odd things. I have a comparison here, and I’ll get there, but there are a few things to get out of the way: These are the…

  • “Bubblegum”

    I wrote a bit about “Bubblegum” earlier– trying to determine, before I was done, if it was worth it’s own length. It’s 780 pages, which is a fair chunk of reading to commit to, and I had mixed feelings about it while reading it. It’s a work of great imagination, and can be archly funny.…

  • Falling Behind/What I am Reading/Future Plans/Back on the Horse

    I have fallen behind in my reading, which happens from time to time. My band had a gig opening for surf-punks Daikaiju, which I enjoyed a great deal. The book I am reading “the most”, “Bubblegum” is kind of a weird slog– I’m enjoying it, and the story, but it seems overlong. I like long…