ByGD
Last year I had an attitude adjustment. As a traveler, I have always felt that a trip didn’t count unless it involved a lengthy flight and resulted in at least one new passport stamp.
At last straightened financial circumstances and complex family logistics have combined with the belated realization that people from all over the world dream of traveling (via long flights requiring passport stamps) to see the natural environment in which I live.
ByGD
Björk’s new album is deservedly getting a lot of attention, but there is another, much quieter release from an Icelandic artist – literally quieter. It’s not an album, it’s a poetry chapbook. Wait! Don’t go! I know what it sounds like. It sounds like photocopied, stapled pages sold out of a backpack on the sidewalk by attractive yet poorly groomed, self-absorbed youths. If you buy a copy (out of an impulse to support the arts, and greatness might appear anywhere, even in a homeless kid; or you want to help the homeless; or simply because you’re charmed by the poet’s combination of sincerity and homemade tattoos) inside the pages you will find verses without rhyme or meter or quite possibly, meaning. I know. That’s usually what it means. But I’m talking about Sjón here. Read More
ByGD
My blunt rephrasing of my friend’s thoughtful words:
You have a right voice your stupid opinion. But we don’t have to listen to that shit.
WYS Words
Over on her blog, WYS Words, my friend has written yet another thoughtful piece. Here’s an excerpt:
The public dialogue these days lacks the rigor and depth needed to have productive conversations about important issues. One of the by-products of this laziness is the giving of equal weight to all opinions.
WYS Words
You should read the whole thing.
ByGD
It’s been a month since Christmas, and most of us have already forgotten what presents we got. This old picture captures what we don’t forget amidst the abundance of Christmas gifts.
ByGD
How much should an audience member prepare for a performance? Some of my best memories come from the shows I stumbled into blindly only to be completely blown away. But most of the time, concerts are more fun when you already know the music. It’s no fun to see a David Mamet play without some idea of what you are in for. {2018 Update: It’s no fun to see a David Mamet play.}
Anyone who attends The Marriage of Figaro, as I once did, without knowing the song made famous by Bugs Bunny is actually in The Barber of Seville will be sorely disappointed. In theory, I like to be prepared, but I don’t always find the time for research ahead of time. Read More