Once upon a time, this blog was going to be all about my pet bird, when I got one. But I never did get that bird. So, now this blog is about the beautiful, curious things that keep me in a near-constant state of happy distraction. Ironically, many people find these writings when they wonder what "peristerophobia" means. It's a fear of pigeons. I've made a bird blog after all.
posted by Dr. S at 10:49 PM
Annie Dillard could have been writing about me when she said (of herself), "I like the slants of light; I'm a collector." Or Willem de Kooning: "I'm like a slipping glimpser." And don't forget Brenda Ueland: "I learned that you should feel when writing, not like Lord Byron on a mountain top, but like a child stringing beads in kindergarten--happy, absorbed and quietly putting one bead on after another." But the Beastie Boys might have said it best: "When it comes to panache, I can't be beat." There's a reason I wear a ring that says Badass.
3 Comments:
I always struggled with Dickens. The result is that I haven't picked up anything by him in about 15 years. But if you say so, then maybe I'll try again. Once I actually get to read for pleasure again, that is.
I have found that there are also some weeks you just surrender to Dickens. I'll never forget re-reading Our Mutual Friend. I draped myself every which way over the couch, subsisted on water and popcorn, and when it was all over, walked out on the balcony in the sunshine, took a deep breath, and thought to myself, "wow."
Yes. Yes, precisely. I have, bubbling up within me, a short essay called "How to Read Dickens." I am hoping that said essay will make it possible for more people to go about reading him and enjoying him, even if they've had a bad experience with him in the past (like, say, in high school--did any of us have very good experiences with Dickens in high school? could that possibly be because we weren't old enough to read him yet, and also because our teachers didn't always know what they were doing, and also because there was no time to do all the work that needed to be done if we were going to understand anything at all???). Because he is Astounding, Not to Be Missed.
Post a Comment
<< Home