I hate June bugs. Yes, I realize “hate” is a powerful, laden word. I realize that it should not be used indiscriminately or flippantly, for it is the main word we have for ultimate abhorrence. Yes, I realize that I should consider using the word “loathe” or “despise” or “detest” […]
Since my plans for an original Gimbling in the Wabe went a bit off the rails this week, I’m taking advantage of this morning’s snow to dust off a former offering. Even though today’s snow was nothing even remotely like what came down in 2013 (when this essay was first published), it nevertheless […]
Those of us who live in the northern climates glorify in the passing of winter into spring. Evencold weather enthusiasts such as myself can’t help but feel a thrill when waking to the energetic chirping of the birds that have been huddling in abeyance for months, and enjoy the return […]
This is what happens when a long winter, a grey spring and an idea that has lain dormant far too long all intersect. Oh, and reading a lot of Dylan Thomas. That can do it, too. I don’t do a lot of creative writing (and I certainly don’t consider myself […]
It seems like lately I simply cannot wash the dishes without first plugging into my iPod. (Yes, I still hand wash my dishes. I know, call me a Philistine, I don’t mind.) This is true with other housework to a lesser extent, but especially when washing the dishes, I must […]
I enjoy sports, but I love baseball. I mean, I Really Love Baseball. Mid-January through mid-March are barren for me, not because of the cold, snow or ice, but because they are devoid of baseball or even the distraction of football and the holidays. The day that pitchers and catchers […]
On this day, December 3, in 1857, Joseph Conrad was born in Berdichev, Imperial Russia (modern
Ukraine, then a part of Poland). While he settled in England and wrote in English, he always considered himself a Pole. Heart of Darkness, one of the most famous of his 20 novels (which explores colonialism and the attitudes regarding what constitutes a barbarian versus civilized society) is considered one of the best English novels of the 20th century, as is his novel Lord Jim, which chronicles a crew’s abandonment of its disabled ship. Conrad died in England in 1924 at age 66.