Remembering Walt

I swear the earth shall surely be complete to him or her who shall
be complete,
The earth remains jagged and broken only to him or her who remains
jagged and broken.
- Walt Whitman
(May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892)

Guitar Hero

Sometime in the early part of the year, with a stiff resolution to do my bit for the National Reading Campaign, I purchased the much-awaited-most-talked-about autobiography of the century. Wait. Ok, I’m exaggerating. Well maybe not that much-talked about, and definitely not that much-awaited; and autobio of the century is stretching the canvas more [...]

Wincing the Night Away

The wife’s back; safe, happy and about 5kg lighter… (what’s with this new fangled quest of pound-shedding these days? No surprise why the French aren’t taking this lightly…scuse’ the pun)
More importantly, I’ve gotten quite a bit of stuff from her Connecticut trip which has made a week’s-boredom somewhat palatable. Mark Twain memorabilia, clothes, chocolates, champagne [...]

For You III

WifeSisterLoverFriend:
I write this with a heavy heart.
Our dear Friedrich has left on the tide of darkness towards the island of souls. I continue to try and postpone from moment to moment my inevitable entry into the world of guilt and sorrow.
What can I say? You’ve been away too long.

For You II

Reader: I must refrain from dramatics. So let me gently say that it was pleasing to hear from the wife across the miles.
WifeSisterLoverFriend: After an unnerving hiatus, you’ll be glad to know that I can now lay me down easier with the knowledge that you’re safe and comfortable in the land of Twain.
Nick, equally [...]

For You

It is the hour of departure, the hard cold hour
Which the night fastens to all the timetables.
The rustling belt of the sea girdles the shore.
Cold stars heave up, black birds migrate.
Deserted like the wharves at dawn.
Only tremulous shadow twists in my hands.
Oh farther than everything. Oh farther than everything.
It is the hour of departure. Oh [...]

Oh My God-dess

Shooting has begun in the Polesine region on Sangue Pazzo (lit. “Crazy Blood”), the new film by Marco Tullio Giordana. Starring the Goddess, the film, scheduled for an end-May release, explores the artistic and human arc of two actors from the Fascist era, Luisa Ferida and Osvaldo Valenti.
Áve Monica.

After the Fire

Quite quickly, and almost unreadily, the weekend has been ziplocked and discarded into oblivion. Thinking now about it, I can’t help but sense the ‘it-almost-never-happened’ feeling that’s usually encountered after a short sleep. The Saturday barbecue session went perfect with the exception of those damn charcoals that refused to get alight, which saw Ramli and [...]

Nothing’s Shocking

As predicted, it’s been quite a week. Long hours of work, wicked deadlines and dreadful surprises. Allow me to ignore, just for the sake of my sanity, the inane details.
The weekend’s outlook: A much-awaited barbecue on Saturday and a baptism on Sunday. The marriage of heaven and hell.
I don’t know if I’ll make it home [...]