My cat disappeared four months ago today. I have become convinced that the true purpose of lullabies is to calm the parents of children who have died. Dastan is the Persian word for story or oral tale, and I will find out what a dandini is. My cat had an Eastern Mediterranean air — Turkish … More Algunas nanas
This is Mictlantecuhtli as seen in the Codex Borgia and uploaded to Wikipedia on a Creative Commons license. I do not know whether I will like the cropped version of his gravatar, so I may change it still. Everything I do gon be funky from now on so I have become Mictlantecuhtli on the suggestion … More Mictlantecuhtli
Our Mayan ancestors, says the Popul Vuh – that sacred text of which this weblog is but a performance – were all great sacrificers and penitents. “Sacrifice and penitence are not for mortals, but for the gods,” says one of my old post-it notes, and I would like to reaffirm this right now. “Everything I … More TS Arlene
The lamplight shines on my sleeplessness, My mind clear, I smell the splendid incense. Deep in the night, the hall rears up high, The wind stirs, and gold is heard to clank. The black sky masks the springtime court, To the pure earth clings a hidden fragrance. The Jade Rope wheels round and is cut, … More Poetry from Chang’an: Du Fu
I have wondered about all these posts put up by people who did not get or have not yet gotten tenure track jobs and are disappointed because they were told they surely would. We, of course, were told we surely wouldn’t and I have wondered who is now telling people they surely will. It occurs … More An Idea
Him, by e-mail: Dear Friend, Last week, the Obama administration announced it would release 30 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The SPR is normally only used during true emergencies, most recently after Hurricane Katrina and the 1991 Gulf War disrupted our oil supplies – but as the New Orleans Times-Picayune … More Oppose Vitter’s 3-D: The Domestic Jobs, Domestic Energy, and Deficit Reduction Act
A. Tree of Life does a good job of filming the dreamlike experience of childhood. It is set in the fifties, but I experienced the world that way, in clips and images, in the sixties. I remember very clearly the day JFK was killed. We prayed and saluted the flag in school. The teachers and … More Tree of Life
Axé.
Dear Professor Zero, It is time once again to remind you to bring _______ in for his yearly vaccination. You may reach our office at ______. Yours, Veterinarian One. Dear Veterinarian One, Thank you for your post card. I regret to say that _______ went out on 2 March of this year and did not … More Post Cards
THEM What I dislike about life in Maringouin is the invasiveness — all the assaults on space and integrity and dignity. You have to have better protection than I do to avoid this, and you have to stay on guard at all times, which is not my personality. That is why I like to go … More On Sexism and Gender Harassment in Maringouin
coldhearted scientist وداد 