Life in the fast lane--where's the on ramp?

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Wednesday, May 26, 2010

December 24, 1890: Obit For A Fallen Warrior

While I was typing articles on the historic Leclaire neighborhood from archive photocopies of 1890s editions of the local newspaper, I came across this headline. So I had to read the article, which ran the full column and beyond. The Leclaire article, just left of this story, took only half the... Sign in to see full entry.

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Tuesday, May 25, 2010

LOST... it's not really over. ABC is still side-shifting...

I was ready for a 5-hour "LOST" fest Sunday. I'd been anticipating the two-hour series wrap-up, interviews with the writers and the cast. I was eager to see how they explained everything in the two-hour finale, and the commercials promised interviews with the cast on "Jimmy Kimmel Live." So the... Sign in to see full entry.

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Monday, May 24, 2010

Sometimes a glance is all it takes

It's one of the oldest cliches in the book -- that unguarded glance across a crowded room, his eyes meet hers, violins sweeten up in the background, the two hearts beat faster, it's love, it's fate, it's... Hollywood. Or there's that look on Scarlett O'Hara's face the morning after. We didn't need... Sign in to see full entry.

posted by Pat_B at 5:14 AM | add or view comments (7) | leave calling card | link to this | view only this entry

Sunday, May 23, 2010

The armpit of the court system

Not so long ago they called Madison County the armpit of the court system because juries here awarded huge damages to defendants. Lotsa lawyers here; the place is lousy with 'em. Juries seem to be ultra-sympathetic to plaintiffs, especially in the case of a big bad corporation they see as taking... Sign in to see full entry.

posted by Pat_B at 5:14 AM | add or view comments (7) | leave calling card | link to this | view only this entry

Saturday, May 22, 2010

"Joy and Sorrow are brothers.

When one sits at your table, the other is sleeping in your bed." Kalil Gibran, The Prophet. I've had that slim volume on my bookshelf for a "million" years, and I hope I haven't misquoted, but that phrase is something I tell myself from time to time. I love stand-up comedy, probably because the best... Sign in to see full entry.

posted by Pat_B at 5:07 AM | add or view comments (6) | leave calling card | link to this | view only this entry

Friday, May 21, 2010

Change is coming.

It seems to me there's been a not-so-subtle shift in the universe this week. First, and least importantly, I fell asleep during Days of Our Lives. Someone was lying, as usual. Someone else was threatening to expose someone else. There was a devious plot -- yawn -- snore. The second thing is this... Sign in to see full entry.

posted by Pat_B at 12:49 PM | add or view comments (7) | leave calling card | link to this | view only this entry

Thursday, May 20, 2010

It's raining. Again, or yet -- however you want to put it.

The sun came out for a bit three days ago... or was it four? I was fascinated by all the blazing shades of green, the emerald grass, deep blue green of a flowering tree across the alley, and nearby a strange round tree with leaves so dense the inner circle was deep forest green and the fringes were... Sign in to see full entry.

posted by Pat_B at 8:31 AM | add or view comments (2) | leave calling card | link to this | view only this entry

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Sex, Drugs, and Irony

I once typeset research papers for a guy who remarked out of the blue that the be-all and end-all was cosmic sex. He said all human endeavor was designed to procure it. I was surprised by the comment, smack dab in the middle of a Q&A on his scribbled notes. My knee-jerk mental response was that’s... Sign in to see full entry.

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Tuesday, May 18, 2010

The '60s, courtesy of writer Joan Didion...

I found "Slouching Towards Bethlehem" -- a collection of her essays -- on my bookshelf as I was finding the niche for Louise Erdrich's "Shadow Tag." "Slouching" was first published as a collection in 1968, reprinted at least 11 times. The title is a fragment from a poem by W.B. Yeats, and I should... Sign in to see full entry.

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Monday, May 17, 2010

Moment of Hope -- idea for a story

Introduction There’s that interlude of hope that comes just after you’ve done something totally unlike yourself. In that moment you think maybe, just maybe, you’ve gotten away with it. Maybe the fates weren’t watching, maybe Karma was busy elsewhere. There was no witness who knows anyone you know.... Sign in to see full entry.

posted by Pat_B at 10:19 AM | add or view comments (3) | leave calling card | link to this | view only this entry

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Sometimes you have to write it down in order to learn what you really think about life, what it means, how to do what's best. Sometimes you need feedback from someone else to put things in perspective.

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