Today is a day for examining what it is that makes you wonder what it is. This is what I've been thinking a lot about. It's hardly a day to pretend other than that.
Like, what if there's a moonfall event tomorrow?
Like, what if all the birds are more or less finished with flying?
Like, what's that word that's supposed to follow the word you've got stuck in your hand?
Like, how will we all cope now that the bees have gone and flown away to space?
Like, really are you satisfied with the way your beard smells?
Like, if dolphin telepathy is just a couple of years away from completion, what will Big Science do with its free time?
Like, are armies on the march because this battle is finished again and they are coming home or are they going somewhere new?
Like, Friday is just another way of avoiding Saturday for 24 more hours, right?
Like, arms get folded more often than we think but no one's really keeping score, are they?
Like, research research research. Is that all we'll ever read a book about?
But, honestly, let's be honest with ourselves. The pillow remains dry. The stairs keep going up and up. The neighbors have your dog hostage. Relax and live a little, am I right?
Yes, I am.
Forward and onward and upward. Blogging is impossible and for another day.
***
I answered questions about some books I like. I typed "Holy Smokes" twice.
***
I'll be reading in Portland on November 22 with Daniel Bailey and Bryan Coffelt. I think it's with this store, Ampersand, but it might actually occur at a nearby coffee house. When I know more, I will tell you more.
***
Shane Jones's new book, The Failure Six, is very good. I have read about four of the failures. I am up to number five. You should buy The Failure Six. And you should read it in a room with a cat watching you read it.
Song for The Failure Six:
***
Brother Blake has a story here. It's one of my favorites of his.
Someone told me about visiting a museum in Russia that had a room full of jarred still-born fetuses. Someone had sewed tiny lace ruffles around their wrists, and tiny lace collars on their necks.
***
Frickin' Burch is frickin' awesome.
Showing posts with label shane jones. Show all posts
Showing posts with label shane jones. Show all posts
Monday, November 02, 2009
Monday, February 02, 2009
Tongue
I like to interview people. But I don't always get to use all my questions. Sometimes I have leftover questions.
I hate waste.
So here is an unused interview question. In order to not waste, I will ask it to me:
Hey, Mr. Who Couldn't Blog, I have a vacation coming up. Where do you think I should go ?
That's a great question. Have you considered visiting your own tongue? I have to tell you, a number of years ago, my partner (pictured here)and I decided we would go for a nice long vacation, and having never been there before, I suggested maybe we should go to my tongue?
Oh, it was great. We arrived early one morning at the tip of the tongue, got to our hotel (two and a half stars!), checked in, ate the mints on our pillows (there were TWO each!), and went out hiking.
We got a local guide, someone who really knew his way around my tongue. He brought us all around, showed us all the flora and the fauna and such. Showed us the parts that taste the sweet and the sour and all that. My partner (pictured here) and I learned a lot.
On night, after my partner (pictured here) had gone to sleep, I snuck out and took a walk on my tongue on my own. It was probably sort of a dangerous thing to do, to walk around on my own on my tongue, walk around at night with no guide, there in a foreign place. But I left all my money back in the hotel. And I left my shoes there, too. It was a lovely night, a little humid. Stars glowed in the firmament/roof of my mouth. I took a little rest in that long central seam on my tongue. Just leaned back into it and watched the stars spin over head.
Consider that next time you have some time to take some time away.
***
Google image search of the day: fissured tongue
***
I would like to do is call your attention to this really really good post on HTMLGiant by Justin Taylor. It's about George Saunders and is one of my favorite things ever to appear on the site.
Flannery O'Connor comes up in the essay, and here's a nice O'Connor review from BOOKFORUM.
***
You can buy Shane's book Light Boxes now. It's shipping.
Read a section of Light Boxes here.
***
Hot Wire My Heart - Crime
I hate waste.
So here is an unused interview question. In order to not waste, I will ask it to me:
Hey, Mr. Who Couldn't Blog, I have a vacation coming up. Where do you think I should go ?
That's a great question. Have you considered visiting your own tongue? I have to tell you, a number of years ago, my partner (pictured here)and I decided we would go for a nice long vacation, and having never been there before, I suggested maybe we should go to my tongue?
Oh, it was great. We arrived early one morning at the tip of the tongue, got to our hotel (two and a half stars!), checked in, ate the mints on our pillows (there were TWO each!), and went out hiking.
We got a local guide, someone who really knew his way around my tongue. He brought us all around, showed us all the flora and the fauna and such. Showed us the parts that taste the sweet and the sour and all that. My partner (pictured here) and I learned a lot.
On night, after my partner (pictured here) had gone to sleep, I snuck out and took a walk on my tongue on my own. It was probably sort of a dangerous thing to do, to walk around on my own on my tongue, walk around at night with no guide, there in a foreign place. But I left all my money back in the hotel. And I left my shoes there, too. It was a lovely night, a little humid. Stars glowed in the firmament/roof of my mouth. I took a little rest in that long central seam on my tongue. Just leaned back into it and watched the stars spin over head.
Consider that next time you have some time to take some time away.
***
Google image search of the day: fissured tongue
***
I would like to do is call your attention to this really really good post on HTMLGiant by Justin Taylor. It's about George Saunders and is one of my favorite things ever to appear on the site.
Flannery O'Connor comes up in the essay, and here's a nice O'Connor review from BOOKFORUM.
***
You can buy Shane's book Light Boxes now. It's shipping.
Read a section of Light Boxes here.
***
Hot Wire My Heart - Crime
Monday, December 29, 2008
Seven
Here are seven things about me. I was tagged by Evelyn.
1. I was born outside of Columbus, Ohio, in Gahanna. My mom used to say: "If you can say banana, you can say Gahanna." For a while, I thought she was referring to Gehenna, which is a way of referring to Hell.
2. Sometimes I'm honestly a little uncomfortable with my admiration for Black Metal. But only sometimes.
3. In elementary school, a kid told me not to sit with him and his friends at lunch even though I was "a nice guy and all." I'm still sort of bugged by the fact that I said, "Okay," and got up and left. I even continued to be nice to that guy. (I even remember his name: Nate Elam.)
4. When I start to get stressed out before a flight, I think about Joe Kittinger to make myself feel more courageous. I am considering getting a Joe Kittinger tattoo.
5. Here are some questions I ask myself:
6. When I sit down to write, as I am about to write, up to the moment I begin hitting keys with my fingers or scratching on paper with a pen, I hate writing. It is only during the act of writing, and after I have spent a period of time writing that I actually like writing.
7. I try to update this on Mondays, but quite often I do it on Tuesday instead. This is because I am often tired when I get home from work, and never really want to finish the posts I work on Monday afternoon.
Seven people: Shane Jones, Ken Baumann, Shya Scanlon, Catherine Lacey, Travis Nichols, Ross Simonini, Gene Morgan.
1. I was born outside of Columbus, Ohio, in Gahanna. My mom used to say: "If you can say banana, you can say Gahanna." For a while, I thought she was referring to Gehenna, which is a way of referring to Hell.
2. Sometimes I'm honestly a little uncomfortable with my admiration for Black Metal. But only sometimes.
3. In elementary school, a kid told me not to sit with him and his friends at lunch even though I was "a nice guy and all." I'm still sort of bugged by the fact that I said, "Okay," and got up and left. I even continued to be nice to that guy. (I even remember his name: Nate Elam.)
4. When I start to get stressed out before a flight, I think about Joe Kittinger to make myself feel more courageous. I am considering getting a Joe Kittinger tattoo.
5. Here are some questions I ask myself:
6. When I sit down to write, as I am about to write, up to the moment I begin hitting keys with my fingers or scratching on paper with a pen, I hate writing. It is only during the act of writing, and after I have spent a period of time writing that I actually like writing.
7. I try to update this on Mondays, but quite often I do it on Tuesday instead. This is because I am often tired when I get home from work, and never really want to finish the posts I work on Monday afternoon.
Seven people: Shane Jones, Ken Baumann, Shya Scanlon, Catherine Lacey, Travis Nichols, Ross Simonini, Gene Morgan.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Shillin'
Sorry. I'm a little late. I don't have much to say this week, so I will just shill.
Vote for Obama.
A shill is a person who promotes something for because s/he has a personal interest at stake in the thing promoted. It is, generally, a epithet.
I am embracing the word. I have a personal interest. I would like to spend four years not cringing every time the leader of my nation opens his mouth to speak. I would like affordable health care. I would like a sensible tax policy. I would like scientific literacy from the people whose job it is to make decisions about the wise use of science and technology.
I am a shill.
***
Errol Morris is a really interesting filmmaker. He made this. It shills for Obama.
***
Shepard Fairey is a really interesting graffiti artist and designer. He made this:
Barack Obama x Z-Trip x Shepard Fairey x Fresh Pressed from Barack On! Obamathon on Vimeo.
It shills for Obama.
***
My folks don't usually vote for Democrats. They live in a very small town. They put up an Obama sign and some kids ran it over and threw a rotten pumpkin at their house.
They put up another sign.
They are shilling for Obama.
***
A friend of mine has big hair and glasses. She made this blog.
It shills for Obama.
***
Justin Dobbs came up with a Facebook group called Moose for Obama. After Sarah Palin became John McCain's running mate, others jumped on the bandwagon not realizing the bandwagon already existed.
Moose shill for Obama.
***
Blake Butler sold his very good book Scorch Atlas to Featherproof Books.
Sadly, he does not shill for Obama. I like him anyway. And can't wait to see the finished book.
***
Shane Jones, one of only two people I have let guest blog for me, has a chapbook from a new press.
I hear it is going fast, and you should order it now. And Ken Baumann's. And Jimmy Chen's. And Blake's. And Brandi's. And Nick's. All of them.
I am unclear on the "shilling for Obama" status of these people and would love to hear about it from them.
***
Drunk person shills for Obama.
Frankly, if I had known there would be drinks at the call centers, I would've volunteered.
***
That's all. Vote Obama.
Vote for Obama.
A shill is a person who promotes something for because s/he has a personal interest at stake in the thing promoted. It is, generally, a epithet.
I am embracing the word. I have a personal interest. I would like to spend four years not cringing every time the leader of my nation opens his mouth to speak. I would like affordable health care. I would like a sensible tax policy. I would like scientific literacy from the people whose job it is to make decisions about the wise use of science and technology.
I am a shill.
***
Errol Morris is a really interesting filmmaker. He made this. It shills for Obama.
***
Shepard Fairey is a really interesting graffiti artist and designer. He made this:
Barack Obama x Z-Trip x Shepard Fairey x Fresh Pressed from Barack On! Obamathon on Vimeo.
It shills for Obama.
***
My folks don't usually vote for Democrats. They live in a very small town. They put up an Obama sign and some kids ran it over and threw a rotten pumpkin at their house.
They put up another sign.
They are shilling for Obama.
***
A friend of mine has big hair and glasses. She made this blog.
It shills for Obama.
***
Justin Dobbs came up with a Facebook group called Moose for Obama. After Sarah Palin became John McCain's running mate, others jumped on the bandwagon not realizing the bandwagon already existed.
Moose shill for Obama.
***
Blake Butler sold his very good book Scorch Atlas to Featherproof Books.
Sadly, he does not shill for Obama. I like him anyway. And can't wait to see the finished book.
***
Shane Jones, one of only two people I have let guest blog for me, has a chapbook from a new press.
I hear it is going fast, and you should order it now. And Ken Baumann's. And Jimmy Chen's. And Blake's. And Brandi's. And Nick's. All of them.
I am unclear on the "shilling for Obama" status of these people and would love to hear about it from them.
***
Drunk person shills for Obama.
Frankly, if I had known there would be drinks at the call centers, I would've volunteered.
***
That's all. Vote Obama.
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