December 2009
32 posts
Read This Book
evangotlib:
I forgot who recommended Crude World to me but it was someone on Tumblr. I just finished it. Pretty much a must read. Peter Maass dives into the complex, violent, Kafka-esque and stunningly lucrative world of oil.
The book is both history lesson and current events lecture. I learned quite a bit…mostly that what I thought I knew about oil was either wrong or so superficial as to...
choire:
Be careful. Proceed with caution, as this may upset you. I sent someone to buy After Henry, Slouching Towards Bethlehem, Miami and Political Fictions (IN THAT ORDER) at the Union Square Barnes & Noble today. They do not however carry any of those books at this time.
According to the site database they do have most of those books at the B&N in Union Square (they allow search by...
Best Fiction of the Decade In My Amateur Opinion
A handful of my friends ask me periodically for fiction recommendations (usually around vacation time and holidays) and a few of the same books keep appearing on my recommendation lists, even though I try to tailor books to the reader.
It’s starting to look like I should have a handy list of them somewhere, so here’s my top 10 with a few ground rules:
Rule no 1: Recent contemporary...
Just saw a church sign that said “We don’t need a government bailout. Jesus paid for our sins.” I must have missed the big Obama administration sin bailout. (Was Tiger Woods covered?)
brianvan:
goldenfiddle:
“Up In The Air is bad. It’s a new depression exploitation picture or unemployment porn, but that’s not exactly why it’s a bad film. It’s a bad film because it’s safe and fails to throw any punches. So, George Clooney plays a caddish, single man who doesn’t want to settle down with a troubled past. Hasn’t Clooney played this character in every other film since his career...
Related: last year’s Xmas in Bama post. No update needed, cuz it’s all still the same. Except I’m hoping for more fermented beverages this year.
I envy your ability to forecast the next...
caro:
spiers:
I’m going to assume that this (“I envy your ability…”) was a nice comment since Peter put an emoticon at the end. Even though he’s Gen X.
P. Feld belongs to the Greatest Generation, obvi.
Oh god. I just did the math, and Peter’s actually …a Boomer. (*Shudder*)
I envy your ability to forecast the next...
peterfeld:
:)
whatcriscilikes:
natashavc:
I don’t think the left can be looked at as an agent of social change in my lifetime. Damn.
I’m saddened by this but am also beginning to believe it.
I’m going to assume that this (“I envy your ability…”) was a nice comment since Peter put an emoticon at the end. Even though he’s Gen X.
allthecoolkids:
spiers:
peterfeld:
spiers:
[…] Also from [Doree Shafrir’s NY mag article on netiquette]:
I agree that I’m Gen X (barely) but I don’t think there’s a generational split. Some of the most distinctive dry, snarky voices to crop up it the last few of years—Alex Pareene, Maggie Shnayerson, Foster, Sheila McClear, Moe Tkacik, Meagan Keane, half the writers at theAwl, etc—are Gen...
@boyfriend's eggnog instructional →
As you might expect, it involves a lot of bourbon.
peterfeld:
spiers:
[…] Also from [Doree Shafrir’s NY mag article on netiquette]:
Allison Mooney, vice president of emerging trends at media consulting firm Mobile Behavior, says that there’s also a generational divide at work. “I think Gen X is a very sarcastic generation, and sarcasm doesn’t really translate online,” she says. “Gen Y has grown up interacting with people online. They’ve...
This entire article bothers me. →
soupsoup:
There is nothing wrong with being civil.
My issue is with insincerity. I absolutely can’t stand fake people. I have far more respect for people I disagree with intensely who have the conviction to stand for what they believe, as much as I may think it’s horseshit.
If you allow yourself to get caught up in the “bland echo chambers of ego-stroking,” then you deserve to be there. You’re...
ninety9:
In Ohio for two hours. @parents are working assiduously to undermine @puppy’s heretofore sucessful diet (sorry babe).
I’m actually jealous, considering that @puppy is probably feasting on @ma99’s excellent banana cake.
TheAwl notes that it’s the 25th anniversary of the Bernie Goetz subway shooting. I sat next to Goetz at a lunch a few years ago, which was as weird as you’d think it would be. From my write-up:
Goetz introduced himself and began explaining to Justin Smith that he thought shaking hands was a “awful custom.” When pressed for more information, he began an oral dissertation...
Imagine that.
alexbalk:
“The editor of the book The Simpsons and Philosophy says television and movies about nuclear disasters such as Chernobyl and Three Mile Island have also added to negative publicity surrounding nuclear power.”
Personally, I blame Jane Fonda.
3 tags
I can't take it anymore.
I’m going to have to break down and get one of those hideous giant poofy coats that make it look like you’re wearing a duvet. I can barely feel my hands—and I’m indoors.
3 tags
AAAARGH. 33.
I figure that if I don’t get nailed to anything and left to die, I’m ahead of the game.
"There seems to be an assumption that I am a... →
(via youngmanhattanite)
Well, I know Joe isn’t a beginner/is older than god/has been on the Internet since the dark ages, but getting a “no” from an editor and then “re-asking,” as he puts it, still strikes me as obnoxious—as is throwing the people nice enough to refer you to editors and agents under the bus just because you weren’t happy with the...
"It’s The Harvard Crimson, the The should always... →
(via katiebakes)
I guess it’s a good thing these people are going to Wall Street, because if that email screed is any indication, they’re lacking the basic grammar skills that are generally considered minimal competencies for any sort of job involving writing at an actual salary-paying media establishment. (Even Gawker!) I hope for Wall Street’s sake that they’re better...
Joe Clark is listing everyone he contacts in book... →
katiebakes:
nickdouglas:
Now this is a daring idea. I only sold one book to the first editor I talked to (she was the best possible editor my book could have had), so I really can’t tell if Joe’s project is brilliant or foolhardy. I do hope it gets attention.
I was REALLY excited to read this but when I clicked over I didn’t really understand it. I mean, i GOT it, and I enjoyed it, but I...
A number one ranking is still not going to make me an Alabama fan.
Tumblarity: Beyond Good & Evil
johncarney:
peterfeld:
spiers:
My Tumblarity is now 0. What do I win?
The Internet just went full circle.
I’m pretty sure this means we just hit restart on the internet.
(Also: my tumblarity is 1300, proving that Tumblarity is beyond good & evil, beyond love & hate, beyond popular and despised.)
Now my Tumblarity is 8. Carney and Feld ruined it.
My Tumblarity is now 0. What do I win?