Category Archives: literature

Big and Bad

Posted on July 20, 2024 by hnbjr

Recent events — or the media imagery thereof — put in my mind an old Thomas Pynchon article, “Is It O.K. To Be A Luddite?” from nearly forty years ago. There’s a photo that could go with this, but it’s … Continue reading →

Posted in america, decline of empire, electoral crisis, literature, music, punk rock | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

M&M Enterprise Cooking, Vol. XVI

Posted on November 11, 2018 by hnbjr

Two dishes today. One is a variation on the previously-posted risotto-in-a-bag dish. It was “Mexican night” at the cafeteria Wednesday and I was generously given by the server a large quantity of cooked shrimp, presumably for use in shrimp tacos. … Continue reading →

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Sorry, Charlie: Deep Parables of Consumer Capitalism

Posted on May 17, 2014 by hnbjr

There’s no age quite as awkward as the semi-pubescent 11-14 age range which corresponds to what we now know as the middle school years. My own awkwardness at that age can probably best be encapsulated by a rundown of my lunchtime eating … Continue reading →

Posted in america, food, literature | 3 Comments

Two Competing Visions

Posted on March 27, 2013 by hnbjr

From Per Petterson’s remarkable I Curse the River of Time, two visions of death. He seems to think that the first, and not the second is inevitable, yet he spends considerably more effort describing the second, more pleasant alternative, so … Continue reading →

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On the Unremarkable Processes of Life

Posted on March 9, 2013 by hnbjr

I had a relatively minor surgery last week and thus had more than the usual amount of time to sit around reading, especially about healthcare, medicine, and most of all its incredible rising cost. From Craig Bowron’s most recent article … Continue reading →

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Amazon.it Brought to Heel by Levi Law

Posted on August 17, 2011 by hnbjr

While trying to research publication information on the Italian guidebook that profiled my home state, a visit to Amazon.it, which just opened this year, revealed the following warning: Dear Customer, It now seems certain that by September 1, a law … Continue reading →

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Tim Parks Update

Posted on May 11, 2011 by hnbjr

About a month ago, Tim Parks wrote a piece for Italian business paper il Sole 24 Ore about Jonathan Franzen’s popularity in Europe. He referred to the piece in a talk that he gave to Milan’s Stampa Estera.  That piece … Continue reading →

Posted in italy, literature, tim parks | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

So you want to write a book?

Posted on April 16, 2011 by hnbjr

Tim Parks stands out from most expatriate writers on Italy by choosing to write about the daily realities of a life lived among regular people. Lesser writers are enchanted into irrelevance by the cultural, gastronomic and sartorial consumption opportunities afforded … Continue reading →

Posted in italy, literature, tim parks, veneto | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

On Wrestling with Angels

Posted on January 17, 2011 by hnbjr

Have you ever wanted to do something difficult, perhaps out of frustration, or to beat fear?  Maybe you ran a marathon, or took up biking, or read a long book or worked out a difficult puzzle.  What you in all … Continue reading →

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Post-Holiday Post

Posted on January 7, 2011 by hnbjr

Happy Epiphany everyone. I’m just in from an utterly exhausting holiday trip to Rovigo, Louisville and Washington DC, and after yesterday’s 24-hour trip home, I’m too spent to do much other than post this ridiculous 1951 Warner Brothers cartoon featuring … Continue reading →

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