Tidbit: Zeus on the Neva (Petersburg)

February 18, 2010

Apollon Apollonovich was in a certain sense like Zeus: from his head there emerged gods, goddesses and genii. We have already seen: one such genius (the stranger with the little black moustache), arising as an image, continued as a being there and then in the yellowish expanses of the Neva, claiming it was from them [...]

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Out East

January 30, 2010

There’s snow on the ground outside our house in London and it’s so quiet that the smallest noises catch my attention. Everyone else is sleeping early on this Saturday morning. Not me. Having just returned from a whirlwind trip to Hong Kong and Singapore, my internal clock is still eight hours ahead. Sadly, I was [...]

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Tidbit: Letters from Iceland

January 9, 2010

Tears fall in all the rivers. Again a driver Pulls on his gloves and in a blinding snowstorm starts Upon his deadly journey: again some writer Runs howling to his art. –W.H. Auden, “Journey to Iceland,” Letters from Iceland

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Notes on “A Gate at the Stairs”

November 21, 2009

I read Lorrie Moore’s latest novel, “A Gate at the Stairs,” a couple of months ago and came away less than impressed. This was not expected. I’ve enjoyed Moore’s past work immensely. And by “Moore’s past work”, I mean “Birds of America.” So, take what follows with that considerable grain of salt. Don’t misunderstand me. [...]

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Bite me

August 20, 2009

Reading about the healthcare debate from afar is hard to take, but probably better for my own health than actually being Stateside. Here’s where I gather we are so far: The right wing is avoiding issues and instead working to frame the debate as fascism vs. independence. They appear to have fooled people into thinking [...]

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Tidbit: Unpacking My Library

August 16, 2009

“I am unpacking my library. Yes, I am. The books are not yet on the shelves, not yet touched by the mild boredom of order. I cannot march up and down their ranks to to pass them in review before a friendly audience. You need not fear any of that. Instead, I must ask you [...]

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Back among the living….

August 15, 2009

So, between being posted to Amsterdam for a while, launching an important new product at work, and moving house, I’ve had no time for anything but a few brief Twitter posts recently. OK, that’s not entirely true. I have spent oodles of time with my lovely wife and dear son and I have been reading [...]

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Minor Rant: Hotel Internet Service

April 25, 2009

I travel frequently for work, most often in Europe and Asia, with the occasional jaunt to Africa or the States. More and more, it strikes me that hotels just don’t “get it” when it comes to the Internet.

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Memory and Technology

April 20, 2009

As I was finishing “Old & Rare: 40 Years in the Book Business,” Leona Rostenberg and Madeleine Stern’s fabulous book on their adventures in the antiquarian book trade, I came across a prescient bit on the dangers of technology as they saw it. A brief digression: If you love books,

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In Africa

April 18, 2009

I once again have let far too much time elapse without posting here. Part of the problem is work. The other is that this remains an unshared slice of my life as far as the family is concerned, so I can only write here in small slivers of leftover time. Finally, Twitter is an unexpected [...]

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