12 Days I'm Dreaming of a Write Christmas
Robert Birnbaum has become disillusioned, haven't we all?, with the cultural arbiters, the people who we are supposed to turn to for what to read, what to watch, what to listen to. This seems to be the latest entry, 8 December 2002, of a series on his own cultural wanderings, and it deals with the books of the year he enjoyed but no one else talked about.
· List of Lists [ID Theory]
Schlocky world of Christian mechandising
Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen?
· Nowadays you can be cool and Christian.
[Weekly Standard]
Trends Little Water
What does the word 'vodka' mean?
It derives from the Russian word 'voda,' That means 'water.' With 'ka' added, it becomes 'little water.' Recently, vodka has been coming along like a house afire, rising from nowhere to fifth place in this country. This year's sales of vodka are expected to double those of last year, when Americans downed more of the stuff than they had in all previous years combined.
· Vodicka, littlest water [New Yorker]
Literature Litterateur
I don't think I could have written this book earlier. I'm well into my fifties now, and things change for you as you get older. Time begins slipping away, and simple arithmetic tells you that there are more years behind you than ahead of you - many more. Your body starts breaking down, you have aches and pains that weren't there before, and little by little the people you love begin to die. By the age of fifty, most of us are haunted by ghosts. They live inside us, and we spend as much time talking to the dead as to the living. A young person can't understand this.
· Aches [Fail Better]
Goatty Lament
People who want to get published think that publication will give them self-esteem, and peace of mind, make them feel whole and redeemed.But it's a fantasy, like thinking that marriage, or weight loss, or money will make you well. You only look forward to publication and touring the first two times. Then, even thinking about it is like anticipating periodontal work. It's like weeks and weeks of labor, waiting to see if your baby book will look like the next Alice Sebold, or a goat.
And this one's a keeper in the ongoing discussion of Michiko Kakutani: This is my ninth book and I have never gotten a daily review in the Times -- not that I am bitter. Nope, nope, nothing could be further from the truth. It's just that I secretly believe that if Michiko Kakutani likes your work, it means you are a real writer, and you will be happy and and wealthy and stable forever. The one little problem with Michiko, though, is that if she doesn't like your book, she will kill you -- cut your head off with a surgical knife, and play hacky-sack with it until she grows bored. Then, maybe in the last paragraph, she'll pour acid on it.
· Surgical Knife [Salon, Pub, Inn]
Politics Soft, but fresh
Why is it that we test a government's arithmetic but we don't test its heart?
Mr Brogden said that after eight years it was time the Labor Government stopped blaming others, usually the Commonwealth, for its problems and allowed itself to be judged properly.
Bob Carr says Andrew Refshauge's over-developments in Sydney are the fault of immigrants.
Carl Scully says the trains are late because of acts of God.
Craig Knowles says the hospitals are full because there are too many old people in them.
John Watkins blames John Aquilina and Eddie Obeid ... he just says, 'It wasn't me'.
· The Blaming Game [Sydney Morning Herald]
MPs flout frequent-flyer rule
FOUR in five federal MPs are ignoring Prime Minister John Howard's orders to use their frequent-flyer points to reduce the Government's soaring travel bill.
· Flyers [Herald Sun]
Identity Identity thieves
Identity theft is not just a Hollywood horror movie premise, but a genuine and growing threat.
· Tax System Integrity [CTSI]
