I have watched a lot of people overpack. Friends who bring seven pairs of shoes for a weeklong trip. Backpackers whose bags are so heavy that they have to sit on them to zip them shut. Travelers who pack for every possible scenario instead of the one they are actually walking into. I understand the […]
I have a tattoo on my hand. It is a small asterisk, the kind you might see at the bottom of a page pointing to a footnote. Most people do not notice it. The ones who do usually ask if it is a star. I tell them it is a reminder. Kurt Vonnegut started his […]
I first picked up Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita because of my 100 Greatest Novels project. I knew its reputation: beautiful prose, impossible subject matter. I assumed the experience would be academic. I would admire the sentences from a safe distance and return it to the shelf. Instead, it broke something in me. Not because I sympathized with Humbert […]
So I’ve never done this before, spotlighting a single author’s work. There’s not often when I come across an author, I immediately need to rush through their whole bibliography. Also, if something like that happens, it’s not often that the author doesn’t seem to be read or even known by many readers. That last sentence […]
Three months ago, we had an addition to our family. A son was born, happy and healthy, here in Shanghai. It’s been an experience trying to figure out fatherhood, a new baby, and everything that entails while being abroad. Our families visited during the first month but since then, it’s just been us. The amazing […]
It has been an impressive 5 years since my last “Music You Need in Your Life” post. I apologize. So let’s restart this series by introducing to you one of my new favorite bands: FIZZ. They are an independent “supergroup” specializing in chaotic, fun indie pop out of the UK. This group includes Orla Gartland, […]
Hello all… I know it’s been a bit. Over 3 years since my last post, this website has been lying pretty dormant. The domain even stopped working for a bit and I didn’t even realize it! So it’s time to get it going again. I’ll try my damnedest to keep fresh content coming more regularly. […]
What a crazy year. Personally and globally, lots of things going on. Either way, we all still listened to music (even if we couldn’t see it live). So I guess it’s time for my annual list of my favorite albums of the year. As always, numbers 20-11 will just be title and a video. The […]
As we get closer to the end of this year, it’s time for my annual list of my favorite albums of the year. As always, numbers 20-11 will just be title and a video. The top 10 will have some notes from me included. All titles are also links to the album on Apple Music. […]
My ongoing, dramatically inconsistent series of “Music You Need in Your Life” continues today with a new singer/songwriter: J. S. Ondra. First, a little biography. Ondara grew up in Nairobi, Kenya, listening to Bob Dylan and other folk and rock artists from America. Around the age of 20, Ondara wins the green card lottery and […]
Tyson Peveto 