My year in books and reading, 2025
To summarize my year in books and reading, I am absolutely delighted to note that when scrolling through the selections, I can find something...
I’m set to write a book about beer, or so this impending contract suggests
(It should be noted that as of October 24, 2025, I have withdrawn from this contract. Things don't always work out like we hope,...
My year in books and reading, 2024
As usual, I’m unsure about conclusions from my year in reading. There is no advance plan apart from challenging myself (cupcakes are fine here...
Diary: Looking for a good biography of Eugene V. Debs? This isn’t it
This being an election year — and accordingly, utterly infuriating on a daily basis for the MAGA stupidity it embodies — I thought it...
Diary: Atlas Shrugged and how Bob Youngblood taught me to appreciate Charles Dickens
At best, I tend to regard Ayn Rand as a sociopath, and yet I’ve read her ball-boiling pot-buster (and seemingly interminable) novel Atlas Shrugged.
Why...
Daphne Phelps and “A House in Sicily”
The struggle to learn the language was wearing, when study necessarily took place after long days of dealing with endless kind visitors who felt...
My year in books and reading, 2023
Just before I was born in 1960, my parents purchased a complete hardbound set of the Compton’s Encyclopedia; furthermore, they subscribed to the annual...
Take me, I’m existentially yours (or, crisis—what crisis?)
This essay appeared as an "On the Avenues" column on January 1, 2019. For those reading from afar, be aware that in metro Louisville,...
My year in books, 2022
Just before I was born in 1960, my parents purchased a complete set of hardbound Compton's Encyclopedia and subscribed to the annual yearbook supplements....
Does New Albany even have an intellectual history?
Originally written and published at NA Confidential on October 30, 2014.
ON THE AVENUES: Does New Albany even have an intellectual history?
The last time I...
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Diary: Upland’s acquisition of FCBC emblemizes a shift in food and drink in downtown...
The following is a stream of consciousness, so there may be errors. Let me know, and I’ll correct them.
So, Upland Brewing Co. has acquired...
Diary: Another fine waterside bicycling morning near (a) river’s edge
In the washing of the water will you take it all awayBring me something to take this pain away
Just like clockwork, every quarter-century or...
A rainy writing morning; time again for “Venetian Vespers”
And might I add, a perfect day for letting my mind wander.
As I write, it is raining, and ponderings about Venice usually come equipped...
