tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-45997198504265258392012-02-16T20:05:48.623-05:00a blog about words: particularly in book form, and also there will be ideas that strike me, and want to be spread, and sometimes i will post videos or show you what i see around me. i think it's fantastic that we all have digital cameras now and can record the beauty of the outside, and take the focus off of our internal eternal i.Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.comBlogger591100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-73546441241944482622011-11-09T12:08:00.001-05:002011-11-09T12:10:16.625-05:00

Hi folks: First a message from my beloved Patty: "A world without books? Unimaginable! And yet there are kids out there in the world who live in exactly that world. You can help! My book club is raising funds for Room to Read, an organization that builds libraries and classrooms, publishes childrens books by local authors in local languages, and even provides support to kids who would

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-21904799711137209062011-10-31T23:50:00.001-04:002011-10-31T23:53:38.021-04:00

but not here. on Cinemart! here's a link: Black Christmas: Home for the Holidays. There's puns and alliterations and word play. i don't expect any more people will read it here than they did over there, but at least i gave it that old college try. :) my life is complete suckage. i just keep thinking: stop this train: i want to get off. only if i got off everybody would get mad because

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-46783307836123264902011-07-10T01:01:00.003-04:002011-07-10T01:15:42.054-04:00

Banned for Life by D.R. Haney My rating: 4 of 5 stars duke haney's writing voice is completely intimate, and mesmerizing, and this is a remarkable debut novel. banned for life moves along at a good clip, keeps you guessing, and pushes you deeper into the lives of his wonderfully wrought characters until you are completely immersed in the world of his book. i talked a lot to this book while

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-88056721735203467032011-07-04T22:22:00.005-04:002011-07-05T02:32:05.650-04:00

Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day by Ben Loory My rating: 5 of 5 stars Raymond Chandler once said that a "good story cannot be devised; it has to be distilled." When I first came to read Ben Loory's stories five years ago, I began to see just what Chandler meant. For me, these stories were, and are, a revelation: in some ways so modern, their brevity suited to our contemporary

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-70023664936906897382010-12-27T17:12:00.000-05:002010-12-27T17:12:00.486-05:00

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-18649245202420289132010-12-26T00:49:00.001-05:002010-12-26T00:49:58.650-05:00

we all tell ourselves stories about ourselves; we invent our reality even as we live it. some of us tell more outlandish tales, but it is predominantly the mundane ones, the simple narratives that are the entirety of a human life story: the simplicity of boy meets girl and a house and some kids and a dog might be the whole thing, and any likely stray need venture past to find the story realized.

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-53440114028390337652010-12-17T16:51:00.003-05:002010-12-19T02:46:32.377-05:00

farewell. i loved thee though i hardly knew ye, and i thank ye for all that ye have left us. (how else does one say goodbye to one with such a pseudonym? :)

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-32491814621891867792010-12-16T00:28:00.001-05:002010-12-16T00:29:19.635-05:00

is the woman who composed the famous dr. who theme. i saw a documentary about her last year, and i think about her a lot. she was a genius. and crazy, of course. :) from the album she collaborated on in 1969. she and two others comprised the band called white noise.

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-63066247377548784992010-12-06T20:21:00.001-05:002010-12-06T20:23:25.790-05:00

many moons ago i got my hands on a collection from easy tempo (an italian label) that was brought together a bunch of great tracks from italian film in the sixties and seventies. most people think of ennio morricone when they think italian composers but there were some other really great ones. the one that really stood out for me in the collection i have is a guy by the name of stefano torossi. i

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-27962871940742326312010-12-06T00:02:00.000-05:002010-12-05T23:44:56.210-05:00

me neither! happily, one of my friends, mr. martyn conterio is a film critic based in england, and he's already seen it! he's posted this review at the filmshaft.com website. you should check it out -- he manages to give an in-depth review without giving anything major away, so it will whet the appetite, and also edify! hurray for martyn! hurray for tron: legacy! tron-to by night (yes, i like

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-15584936058077427202010-12-05T23:22:00.000-05:002010-12-05T23:45:19.650-05:00

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-77004931154013254672010-11-30T17:13:00.001-05:002010-11-30T17:51:09.484-05:00

has me intrigued. of course, had they called it "rutger with a shotgun" i would have been immediately captivated. i'm a sucker for rutger. here's the trailer:

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-30654727678995745492010-11-26T20:20:00.003-05:002012-02-07T23:59:17.075-05:00

... but i'm not sure that i'd care. i am fascinated by what's happening in this video though -- is paul travelling through time? through magic tea? magic telephones? magic glow-in-the dark suitcase? is that one dude jack the ripper? :P

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-1738720944199228892010-11-25T13:15:00.001-05:002010-11-28T00:18:54.516-05:00

i'm not sure if this is a resurgence of interest in the western genre, or just fluke but the remake of true grit is coming this christmas, and i can't wait. i loved the portis book when i read it, and i think jeff bridges will make an excellent rooster. and matt damon as leboeuf! yes! i have high hopes for this one -- let's hope it's not one of the coen brothers' movie i hate, like intolerable

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-36751157637259636982010-11-24T02:21:00.013-05:002010-11-30T17:52:00.860-05:00

i used to demand they play this at the trasheteria when i was in university. it was perhaps the peak of my dancing frenzy: i generally went out to shake my moneymaker four nights a week back then, so you can imagine why they took my requests seriously. well, there was that, and the fact i was helping one of their bouncers (i called him thor), and one of my oldest friends, aaron, run an

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-16387118594540886632010-11-24T02:05:00.001-05:002010-11-24T02:48:53.612-05:00

so i was sitting and thinking about "the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune" tonight, how a reprieve is a happy thing even if it isn't the best thing or even a thing we truly desire. and i wanted just one word that conveyed that sense, rather than the phrase from the bard. and then i remembered a great one, one that makes a lovely sound: vicissitude now, ultimately we can find the root of

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-47446754732840353712010-11-22T07:40:00.003-05:002010-11-22T07:42:35.461-05:00

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-11343963919015567722010-11-20T22:56:00.005-05:002010-11-20T23:01:39.481-05:00

i know people who won't re-read a book, or watch a film, or t.v. show more than once because once they've seen it, they "know" it, and they get bored if they try to watch things again. i am not even remotely like this, and can revisit things i really like over and over, because even though i'm aware of what's going to happen, i so enjoy the anticipation of what will happen next, that it doesn't

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-25600424569695353832010-11-19T18:46:00.000-05:002010-11-19T18:46:16.808-05:00

this artist was featured on comics alliance today, and i am crazy about his post-it note monster scenes. Check 'em all out (embiggened!) here: http://johnkenn.blogspot.com/ but here's a few favourites to give you a taste...

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-60379928515219679582010-11-18T00:17:00.004-05:002010-11-18T00:23:55.423-05:00

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-85502495034281563312010-11-17T13:06:00.000-05:002010-11-17T13:07:11.292-05:00

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-19874567097395046222010-11-16T12:15:00.000-05:002010-11-16T12:16:03.302-05:00

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-32858651038394003172010-11-15T20:56:00.001-05:002010-11-15T21:12:17.522-05:00

one of my all-time favourites. i'd watch a movie of this song. :)

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-16482101810910311802010-11-14T13:20:00.009-05:002010-11-14T14:10:36.275-05:00

the city was blanketed in fog the other night, and as i said to kerry, it smelled like what i think the yorkshire moors might smell like. it was beautiful and earthy, something rich in the decaying ripeness, that vestige of life. there was a remnant of that spark of life in autumn leaves, carried into our nostrils and our pores through the fog.

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-68921322304932375702010-10-29T00:04:00.001-04:002010-10-29T01:06:28.429-04:00

The Transmigration of Timothy Archer by Philip K. DickMy rating: 5 of 5 starswow. well, this is pretty fresh in my mind, and it's been a couple of weeks. that doesn't surprise me though because the ideas that dick toyed with in his last cycle of books are to me the most compelling, indeed the most disturbing and challenging to my mind. dick's narrator angel archer is one of his most resonant,

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-71604617615757929922010-10-26T16:14:00.000-04:002010-10-26T16:15:12.363-04:00

Manservant and Maidservant by Ivy Compton-BurnettMy rating: 2 of 5 starsi wish i could say i liked this more than i did. compton-burnett's novel is very like a play. it is evident that she has a very strong command of the english language, and of dialogue, but it was not enough to carry the book, which left me cold. the bottom line, as it often is, is that i didn't like the people in this book. i

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-38531935764124530932010-10-17T18:12:00.008-04:002010-10-17T20:30:56.016-04:00

At first blush, I was excited to find this anthology because nothing would suit me better than to sit at Jorge Luis Borges' knee, and have him tell what his favourite stories were, or even have him read them to me. Of course, this book was not just edited by Borges, but also Silvina Ocampo, and Adolfo Bioy Casares, who is quoted thusly by Ursula K. Le Guin in the intro, saying the book came out

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-38945445561824241282010-01-31T16:42:00.036-05:002010-02-01T11:02:59.077-05:00

i really want to thank you for all you have given me. i was very confused for a long time but somehow, the one thing i seemed to always get right was finding wonderful people to know, and to love. some of you are nearby, others are hundreds, thousands of miles away, some even suggest that there are planets between us, but i treasure all of the words you have spoken, all the ideas you have shared,

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-84314279470062883762010-01-28T01:45:00.010-05:002010-01-28T22:09:36.076-05:00

there's a place in my chest where excitement starts: rightly enough, just under my heart. and my heart was heavy for so long, and it smothered that place. and my frissons only amounted to fear, in that throbbing thud centred in the spot where excitement starts. it spread its fingers out my back, the prone area that tingles in response. i can feel its borders even now, so sensitive are they in

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-59032621442675074182009-12-25T20:26:00.001-05:002009-12-25T20:28:25.406-05:00

The Obscene Bird of Night by José DonosoMy rating: 5 of 5 starsthemes of identity, humanity, reality, and belonging cycle through and circle the obscene bird of night. it's not really pleasant to read, though there are moments where a smile is not out of order. but most often it's really bizarre, and misleading, horrific even as its compelling. before philip k. dick died he was trying to write a

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-24822006906539800432009-12-25T20:25:00.003-05:002009-12-25T20:29:01.375-05:00

The Magnificent Ambersons by Booth TarkingtonMy rating: 4 of 5 starsthe magnificent ambersons makes you think about how humans value things, and other people, and reputation, for what reason, and in what proportion. it is a book that i want to talk to other people about because i keep rolling it over in my mind, the choices and observations tarkington made in some cases baffle me, and i'm still

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-52699545105127961862009-12-08T03:45:00.006-05:002009-12-11T05:22:15.389-05:00

Penrod by Booth TarkingtonMy rating: 3 of 5 starspenrod is an amusing book. it's not laugh-out-loud funny but the misadventures of this inscrutable and bad boy are captivating, and knowing, and made me smile. tarkington lets us into the hallowed halls of an adolescent male mind which is itching for experiences, and wily in its meeting of any consequence that these experiences might bring.

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-23144269242841336362009-12-04T20:21:00.007-05:002009-12-08T03:41:44.601-05:00

The Sundial by Shirley JacksonMy rating: 5 of 5 starsthis is among my favourite novels. every time i read it i am just as struck by its harmonious discord as i was the first time: this story is to me, a perversely uneven amalgam of a drawing room comedy, and creepy gothic haunted house tale. i think i only like the book more for the fact that the pieces don't quite fit together, and the scene

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-220089521887222372009-11-29T01:30:00.007-05:002009-12-08T03:42:14.103-05:00

Perdido Street Station by China MiévilleMy rating: 2 of 5 starssome interesting ideas in a book that seemed bloated with words to me. i knew it wasn't going to be favourite even into the first four pages that introduce us to the reek of the rivers of the city new crobuzon. i thought it was london at first, a gross yet achingly familiar dickensian london, but as the book unfolded i realized that

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-46291320007728087692009-11-27T15:06:00.002-05:002009-12-08T03:42:45.344-05:00

That Summer in Paris by Morley CallaghanMy rating: 3 of 5 starsthat summer in paris was like old home week for me: i got to visit with hemingway, fitzgerald, and joyce back in the heyday of paris in the 20s which i haven't done in some time. callaghan writes cleanly and well, but sometimes his ego is exhausting. despite the fact i'm canadian as he is, and from toronto, none of his books were on

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-80385014667577380002009-11-23T23:40:00.009-05:002009-12-08T03:43:02.264-05:00

Sharp Objects: A Novel by Gillian FlynnMy rating: 2 of 5 starsi'm not sure what to say about this book because while i think it reads like a bestseller should, i didn't enjoy it. the prose is compelling in that i felt compelled to finish it, and i did. i couldn't put it down but i wanted to get it over with. i think the writing is engaging but nothing special. i will remember no turns of phrase,

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-77174075625786964512009-11-20T15:59:00.009-05:002009-12-11T05:26:11.309-05:00

Girl Meets Boy: The Myth of Iphis by Ali SmithMy rating: 3 of 5 starsa book that plays out at a break-neck pace, except for the moments where the language is allowed to meander into scenes of poetry and gives one pause in the midst of beauty it captures. there is much to love in ali smith's finesse with language. this novel contains re-tellings but i don't think this novel is so much a

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-5624301281288237392009-11-20T14:47:00.005-05:002009-11-20T16:07:57.539-05:00

The worms had risen again in the rain. They were strewn across the pavement. To the unsuspecting eye they might look like long, slightly swollen pine needles, or some other tree relics; mostly inert, merging with the twilight, they showed only in faint relief, except for that one that undulated purposefully across my path and tipped me off to their coming.I stepped gingerly through them, hoping

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-39622963630288301462009-11-11T04:07:00.007-05:002010-01-09T04:54:41.843-05:00

A Handful of Dust by Evelyn WaughMy rating: 4 of 5 starsmuch, much better than the two other waugh books i read: vile bodies, and the loved one. ultimately i would have liked it immensely had it ended about three quarters in, which would have satisfied my need for comeuppance for jerks, and that comeuppance never came. the last quarter of the book is almost a sequel to the first part, and left a

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-92123744248831212822009-11-11T03:57:00.004-05:002009-12-08T03:44:21.899-05:00

All Fires the Fire by Julio CortázarMy rating: 3 of 5 starsi like cortazar's facility with language, and inevitably, as with any latin literature, it resonates with my own understanding of how families operate and cultural proclivities. and yet, for the most part these stories did not move me. there are a few that i admired very much, most of all, the island at noon, the most simply told of the

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-63103238113256772362009-10-28T19:50:00.006-04:002009-12-08T03:44:41.831-05:00

The Dog of the South by Charles PortisMy rating: 4 of 5 starsso far, my favourite portis. it felt like it was of the same tenor of true grit, which i also really enjoyed, and there are parallels: both protagonists are on a journey to retrieve things stolen from them, and travel with men who uphold the law as they see fit. it also reminded me of jim thompson very much. i really do see a

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-76968051314939477882009-10-28T03:13:00.009-04:002009-10-31T01:29:18.517-04:00

Queen Lucia by E.F. Benson i knew about e.f. benson because ben had read some of his ghost stories, and i am wont to read ghost stories just about any where i can get my hands on them. it is not at all astonishing that i would read, for example, a collection of edith wharton ghost stories after i had forsworn reading any more of her novels (for the foreseeable future) because every time i read

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-81719116952709989022009-08-28T00:10:00.006-04:002009-08-28T21:59:09.141-04:00

my apologies for the abrupt silence in this blog of mine. it appears my brain decided to take a vacation and thus, i have trouble typing things that i want other people to read. but tonight i read a very funny little diversion, and i wanted to share it with you all. it's a piece called "isn't it remarkable" from a collection of very short shorts (i imagine they were newspaper columns) written by

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-17940086604838377242009-07-12T18:59:00.019-04:002009-07-13T21:16:50.934-04:00

i usually go to the outdoor art show at city hall every year. i like checking out the art, and there is so much of it to see! sometimes i will go expecting to see friends there, and never bump into them. sometimes i know people exhibiting and i never manage to find their booths. this year, there was lots of beautiful stuff, and signs at the tents suggesting that you get the artist's permission

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-2882211108086915082009-07-04T01:49:00.017-04:002009-07-26T02:04:01.732-04:00

he has the most peculiar personal energy. i think that it's benign but being in his presence is like accidentally walking into a hall of silence. it's as if he emits a dampening field, and your voice is swallowed whole by his calm. or perhaps it's like stepping into a pit that is padded at the bottom, encircled in egg cartons, and just deep enough to blot the sounds above. he carries the aura of

Maureen de Sousa aka modusahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12045263474658205499noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4599719850426525839.post-49849360980468710802009-07-03T22:49:00.006-04:002009-12-08T03:45:16.075-05:00

it appears i can copy and paste my thrilling goodreads book reviews right here into my blog. saves me double duty in a pinch i suppose. i should note that the star convention is goodreads' rating system, and not always satisfactory. in this case, wodehouse gets six of five. Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit by P.G. WodehouseMy reviewrating: 5 of 5 starsanother one that draws the guffaws from a

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my dear friend patty is reading this book, the elegance of the hedgehog. i read it earlier this year, and was very moved by it. it had been recommended to me by someone else i love. yasmine read this book in the original french and was so happy when an english translation was available so that she could share this book with others.i found myself strangely reluctant to recommend it when i was done

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sometimes when i come home late at night when the moon is high and i am alone, i enter the building and feel the last vestiges of the pleasant evening crumble away into the quiet in anticipation of the end. my shoes clap against the tile, reverberate into the silence which seems to edge back, but little.i stop in front of the bank of elevators. they are presumably empty, these elevators. that

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there was a clanging of a bell and the summer sun warmed me outside in, and i was happy. ephemerally, of course. that seems to be all the happiness i am capable of having: plucking it, and blowing it out, like a patch of dandelions, or birthday candles, until i come upon another moment of joy as burgeoning field, or the next rite of passage.the bell that is clanging belongs to a truck that has

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as i've said before, i like archetypes. i am a fan of joseph campbell, and i've always been susceptible to folklore and myth. when i began to read shakespeare i was thrilled by the archetypes of his own creation (hamlet, falstaff are arguably the greatest among many) in addition to his use of ones already in existence; for example, his usage of ovid's characterization of medea to inform his

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everything that a graphic novel should NOT be, is sadly what the last graphic novel i read, is. i finally gave the "graphic novel adaptation" of i am legend a read this week. angela gave it to me for my birthday since she knows how much i love the novel, and its author richard matheson (writer of some of the best original twilight zone scripts, the incredibly shrinking man, and many other stories

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my stomach is beating like a heart. i wonder if my heart has sunk into my stomach, and is causing it to pulse. besides this queer feeling of my stomach beating like a heart, which is bad enough, it would be awful for my heart to become lodged in my stomach because it'd be vulnerable to all the other things in there. it'd be buffeted by the ball of bubble gum i have swallowed that people told me

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i want to balance out this blog now since the last thing i wrote is kind of bleak. it's powerful enough to me that i'm going to leave it up but that's why i'm here trying to tap dance my way out of despair now, so i'm putting together a list of happy things to counteract my sad post:good writing: clearly and most obviously i love books and writing or that wouldn't be the main subject for this

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i taught you to tie your shoelaces. your mother said you were too stupid to learn. i said that was ridiculous and that they should have just been patient with you. and i was so proud when you got the hang of it right away. i thought it proved something. but now i wish i did more. but now it seems like it was the only thing i did for you. but now you are so lost, and when i hear about how you are,

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i was thinking about the word "ripe" today, and how it captures such an epic event: the moment in which something is at its peak before it goes to rot. when we say "the moment was ripe" we mean the time to act has come because it is the optimal time, where our endeavours have the best chance at succeeding. and yet at that same moment, we say "that shit was ripe", an understanding that optimal

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i like transcribing good pieces of writing. sometimes i devote myself with a vengeance and crib whole sections of books: i did all of rolfe humphries' translation of the myth of tereus, philomela, and procne sometime ago because reading it didn't seem to be enough. i'd read it so many times, echoing the words in my mind as my eyes flashed over the words; i had read them aloud too, savouring two

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my master/cat hexter rules the roost here, shrieking about the trough being empty, and giving all my guests the stink eye. to get my own back against him, i have a variety of nicknames i use to coddle and humiliate him, including hexter the molester, sonny dew melon, fatsy cline, nino, and tio chico (i have no idea why i decided to call him by the name of a long dead great-uncle that i've never

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i read the hawkline monster the other day, and i'm still wrapped in it, like a dream. i can't shake it even as i read other books.you have to read it. i was lucky enough to stumble upon it in the bookstore literally around the corner from my apartment, and for four dollars. original cover price was a buck seventy-five but i would pay a LOT MORE for this book. maybe 10,000 dollars. but i'm glad i

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i have had a blog at myspace for a couple of years but now it seems to be the only reason to go to myspace, and when i get there i just feel uncomfortable as the tumbleweeds roll by. my good friend dan and i both thought it would be a good idea to find a new place for our thoughts on life, and since this is about me and my world the blog is called "the mo-centric universe". as the summer kicks in

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