from this point forward

A re-dedication of the blog and some very important announcements. First, I will be publishing my first and probably only novel, Retreat, here starting tomorrow. Second, I’ve uploaded an essay that explains how my… Read More →

the modern lovers: rodin, robin williams, and ryan gosling

It’s almost like he achieved his true meaning. And Drive is similar in the sense that The Driver was meant to become a superhero, and he’s denied all these things—relationships, companionship. And why… Read More →

The Best of 2012, Part 2 of 3

Some people think that only five good things happened in 2012. They are wrong. Twenty good things happened. That’s a difference of 300%! Without further ado, here are the next eight chart-toppers. 6.… Read More →

this message will self-destruct: sherlock holmes and the adventure of the hapless interpreters

The most blatant example is human language, where people often attribute meaning to words in themselves, without being in the slightest aware of the very complex “isomorphism” that imbues them with meanings. This… Read More →

Why English Will Die

(An excerpt from my interview with Christianne McGinn, of Concordia University in Montreal.) CMG: What’s your own educational background? Indeed, I often wonder that myself. CMG: You studied at the University of California… Read More →

The Best of 2012 (First Five)

We’re back. It’s a new day, a time of optimism and sequester. We couldn’t have done any of this without 2012. Let’s talk about the top five ways that 2012 got it right.… Read More →

The Worst Of 2012 (and 20 things you can safely ignore)

Hi there, everyone! Well, it took almost until the end of January, but I’m finally ready to reveal the best and the worst of 2012. It’s not an easy task. It means sitting… Read More →

The New Yorker Turns A Whiter Shade Of Pale: Sasha Frere-Jones on Rihanna

Happy New Year, everyone! I had a great night. I hope you did. In deference to those of you who’ve been reading this blog for a while, I’m going to be completely honest.… Read More →

yeshe chölwa

At theology camp, it was important to seem busy, so we were — the days were just packed. We would have breakfast at seven, woken up by reggae versions of non-reggae songs. Breakfast… Read More →

Idiot Wind: Julia Glassman’s Other Life Forms

In “The American Scholar,” Ralph Waldo Emerson said: As no air-pump can by any means make a perfect vacuum, so neither can any artist entirely exclude the conventional, the local, the perishable from… Read More →