Until the other night, I'd given hardly any thought at all to the names of the stars, aside from the very brightest or most prominent. Polaris, Vega, Arcturus. The names of the constellations, though, was a different matter. On dark nights with my wits about me, I could easily locate Orion or the Big Dipper. … Continue reading On the star names of the Big Dipper
Category: Cultural Comment
On the joy of a dumpster in front of your house
It may be a side effect of suburban living: you always have too much stuff. There's always stuff you want to throw away. But you can't—because you never remember to toss it, or your trash removal service won't take it, or it's simply too bulky to get rid of. Enter the dumpster. A dumpster is … Continue reading On the joy of a dumpster in front of your house
On toddlers and Nirvana T-shirts
I've been seeing this a lot: A toddler, or little kid, wearing a t-shirt with the iconic Nirvana smiley face. It's bewildering on a few fronts to me, the first one of which is merely temporal. For, assuming that the parents of young kids (younger than, say, five) are not much older than 40, then … Continue reading On toddlers and Nirvana T-shirts
On knowing the roads where you live
It took three years, but I finally have it. Facing an unusual destination—not my regular commute or typical errand—I can now think (without needing to think): I know how to get there. Or, better: I know multiple ways to get there. I find this magical. This thought may sound absurd to people who live where … Continue reading On knowing the roads where you live
Ebook announcement! On twenty-six CDs I found cleaning out my 2009 Subaru Outlook after a car accident
Woo! After months of fussing, I have finally completed a brief book of essays inspired by an old CD case I found after my car was totaled last May. Here's the introduction: A few days after the accident, we drove to the auto body shop to say goodbye. The adjuster had totaled the car—the repairs … Continue reading Ebook announcement! On twenty-six CDs I found cleaning out my 2009 Subaru Outlook after a car accident
On being a normal dad and getting compliments from strangers
“Super dad here!” The male cashier’s comment threw me. Super dad? I was in the local King Soopers on a Friday afternoon with my five-month-old son and a stroller-ful of groceries. Three weeks earlier, I was pushing the stroller listlessly around the aisles of a Byzantine antique store when a passing older woman commented: “What … Continue reading On being a normal dad and getting compliments from strangers
On the information-action ratio
Perhaps my most important takeaway from Neil Portman's Amusing Ourselves to Death is the information-action ratio: How often does it occur that information provided you on morning radio or television, or in the morning newspaper, causes you to alter your plans for the day, or to take some action you would not otherwise have taken, … Continue reading On the information-action ratio
On the value of a good whiskey origin story
I like whiskey—the bite, the burn, the sphere of ice lolling around the glass. But I'm also suspicious of it. While some whiskey is better than other whiskey, I have my doubts that some whiskey is worth thousands of dollars more than other whiskeys. (I have the same doubts for wine and other luxury goods, … Continue reading On the value of a good whiskey origin story
On the unseen ownership of processed food brands
In splitting an English muffin the other morning, I noticed the owner of "Thomas" in small font on the package: "Bimbo Bakeries USA." Bimbo Bakeries USA? Wikipedia informed me that Grupo Bimbo is a Mexican multinational food processing conglomerate that owns not just Thomas, but also Arnold, Oroweat, Sara Lee, and Entenmann's. Grupo Bimbo is … Continue reading On the unseen ownership of processed food brands
On the odd joy of used book sales
I’m not sure if there’s an event I love more than a used book sale. Getting more books on the cheap is the main draw, obviously—but there’s also the oddball browsing experience. With no time to assert the order and coherence of a library or bookstore, the books at a used book sale are jumbled … Continue reading On the odd joy of used book sales
Taylor Coe 