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...
Menu Items: “Tastes of Paradise: A Social History of Spices, Stimulants and Intoxicants”
Originally published at the Food & Dining Magazine web site on 13 September 2020.
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Nothing could be more common than the salt and pepper on...
Roger’s year in books and reading, 2021
When it comes to books, I’ve never seriously attempted to rank a year’s reading in terms of "best of" or the like. To be...
Books: “Bowling for Communism” in Leipzig
Leipzig was among the East German cities to be visited in 1989 during my August working holiday in the GDR, but the group excursion...
Books and politics, with Roberto Bolaño and “The Savage Detectives”
In the year 2015 I ran for mayor of New Albany. During a candidate Q & A, I became the first mayoral candidate in...
Louisville beer, now and then (or, my 2014 review of Kevin Gibson’s “Louisville Beer”...
Because, I really nailed this one.
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Louisville Beer, Now and Then
“Anyone who has groped among the dark beer dungeons which lie for a number...
Latest article
The Songs for a (P&u) Departure (1): “These cameras never lie”
We're told that Nov. 15 will be the last day for Pints&union in New Albany prior to the pub decamping for the Highlands: Here’s the...
Speaking of epitaphs, a wonderful song called “Get Out and Stay Out”
"Get Out and Stay Out" was recorded for the 1979 Quadrophenia film soundtrack and wasn't part of the original album in 1973. That's Kenney...
Here’s the epitaph: “In the end, Pints&union didn’t deserve New Albany”
It usually surprises people to learn that I’ve lived in Floyd County, Indiana my entire life, and in New Albany since the early 1990s....
