May 2012
96 posts
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“The most common of all follies is to believe passionately in the palpably not...”
– H.L. Mencken
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“We may come to realize that chastity is no more a virtue than malnutrition.”
– Alex Comfort
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“Chastity: the most unnatural of the sexual perversions.”
– Aldous Huxley
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on the evolution of desire
Married Love
by Liz Rosenberg
The trees are uncurling their first green messages: Spring, and some man lets his arm brush my arm in a darkened theatre. Faint-headed, I fight the throb. Later I dream the gas attendant puts a cool hand on my breast, asking a question. Slowly I rise through the surface of the dream, brushing his hand and my own heat away. Young, I burned to marry. Married, the...
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... on the perfect specificity of certain foreign... →
German drinking song/chant:
“Saufen, saufen, saufen, saufen, saufen, fressen und ficken!”
Saufen and fressen are both verbs which don’t really have single-word equivalents in English, though ficken means simply, “to fuck.”
Saufen essentially means to drink to excess. To drink for the purpose of becoming very, very drunk. Fressen means to eat, but more specifically...
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Laughing with Kafka →
Because I worry that someone might fail to read David Foster Wallace’s footnotes, I have to quote this little tidbit:
You think it’s a coincidence that it’s in college that most Americans do their most serious falling-down drinking and drugging and reckless driving and rampant fucking and mindless general Dionysian-type reveling?It’s not. They’re adolescents, and...
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The Word Collectors →
The first volume of the Dictionary of American English (DARE) was published in 1985, after 20+ years of research headed by Frederic Gomes Cassidy. The scope was so enormous that it took another 27 years before the final volume was completed and published this March. To celebrate, Lapham’s Quarterly tells the story behind the book.
“Aaron’s rod” to “zydeco”—between these two verbal bookends...
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'...at this point, things have deteriorated to the... →
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Alternative Family Structures in Utah (no, not the... →
This is a nice little piece on polyamory (not polygamy) in Utah, of all places. It offers a respectful look into alternative family structures — a good starting point for someone who might not be comfortable with the idea of nonmonogamous romantic love.
The picture has nothing to do with the actual article. I’m just a nerd, and it amused me.
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The Right Way to Debate Someone on the Internet →
The Atlantic has a unique and sensible perspective on the recent battle-of-the-facts between Alex Knapp of Forbes and The Oatmeal, which resulted from some inaccuracies in the Tesla comic you must have seen by now.
If you somehow managed to miss it, have a look. But the most intriguing part of all of this is the conclusion drawn by The Atlantic. There may be an important message here about the...
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Body Language: An Essay on Gestures →
The Anthropology Club at Massey University posted a link to an article about gesturing, the different forms it takes in various cultures, and how it enhances our ability to communicate.
A few notable snippets:
Also, these quotable gestures—emblems, as Efron called them—function quite differently from words. They almost never play the role of nouns or verbs. There are gestures that seem like...
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Worth another read: Who Killed Tyler Clementi? →
Reflecting on the Ravi verdict today, I revisited a Slog post from late last year which posited the question: Who killed Tyler Clementi? His answer, by the way, is not Ravi.
As is so often the case, Dan Savage’s point is presented in that pissed-off voice which will alienate uncertain readers who might otherwise have been swayed by the logic of his argument. But either way, I appreciate his...
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on inspiration and the limits of time
I need to remember:
It is not possible to do everything at once, and that is perfectly fine.
I tend to find inspiration in massive, unruly bursts that are very difficult to contain. All at once, I am compelled to…
- write a beautiful letter to a cousin I haven’t seen in years but whom I love very much
- outline a chapter for the book that is slowly forming in my mind
- finish the...
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"The Inexperience Advantage" by Daniel Gulati →
Instead of forging the impression of experience, I’d rather we turn the tables and use our inexperience as an advantage in the organizations we work for and the companies we start. In other words, we need to start playing to our strengths.
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If you haven't read this book, you're doing it... →
Earlier this year, I had the immense pleasure of attending a Second Base Party at Supperclub in San Francisco where Christopher Ryan spoke about his brilliant book, Sex at Dawn: The Prehistoric Origins of Modern Sexuality.
For the sake of context, I should mention that ever since stumbling across this book when it was first published I have been toeing the line between big fan and alarmingly...
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The Campaign Against Women →
Whether this pattern of disturbing developments constitutes a war on women is a political argument. That women’s rights and health are casualties of Republican policy is indisputable.
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“Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet, and the winds long to...”
– (via serenadeofanclecticloversmirage)
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I may be showing my age, but I really don’t like this whole blinky gif thing.
I’m not that old, by the way.
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on the downside to compromise →
This is a short but thought-provoking overview of David Schnarch’s main argument in his new book, Intimacy and Desire. Ridiculous surname aside, he has an interesting and potentially very useful perspective that I look forward to exploring in more depth.
The fascinating thing about “everything is leftovers” is that it isn’t really about sex at all. It’s a...
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Show this woman some love. →
Dan Savage is, as always, opinionated as hell. But this has rarely troubled me, because I generally agree with him and because I believe it is his passion even more than his wit, intellect, or style that makes what he says so powerful and compelling.
Have a look at his response to a distraught lesbian woman confronted with the hateful family she hasn’t seen or spoken to in 10 years, after a...
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Justice Dept. seeks to protect LGBT inmates from... →
gaywrites:
The Department of Justice yesterday finalized a rule against sexual assault in federal prisons, making a specific note to protect LGBT people.
LGBT people, especially trans people, are considered more vulnerable to prison rape than other groups. This rule is the first federal attempt to set standards at different jail facilities, and it requires that training and screening protocols...
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“When I read a book I seem to read it with my eyes only, but now and then I come...”
– W. Somerset Maugham (via sheddingpetals)
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All That Is Interesting: The Best Insults In... →
all-thats-interesting:
Winston Churchill
The extremely witty and much-loved British Prime Minister Winston Churchill tops the list with his verbal spat with Lady Astor. The conservative dame forever admonished Churchill for his cigars and alcohol habits, and Churchill was not one to take the insults lying…
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“We must respect the other fellow’s religion, but only in the sense that we...”
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—H.L. Mencken
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“A great many people think they are thinking when they are merely rearranging...”
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—William James
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“I like persons better than principles and I like persons with no principles...”
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—Oscar Wilde
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“What am I in the eyes of most people — a nonentity, an eccentric, or an...”
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—Vincent van Gogh (via xzxcuzx-me)
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“And then there are my friends, and they have their own lives. While they like to...”
– Elizabeth Wurtzel, Prozac Nation (via flentes)
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“I became aware of the world’s tenderness, the profound beneficence of all that...”
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(via montanablackart)
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What the Living Do
What the Living Do
Johnny, the kitchen sink has been clogged for days, some utensil probably fell down there. And the Drano won’t work but smells dangerous, and the crusty dishes have piled up waiting for the plumber I still haven’t called. This is the everyday we spoke of. It’s winter again: the sky’s a deep headstrong blue, and the sunlight pours through the open living room windows because the...
