I recently finished reading Wendell Berry’s collection of short stories, The Wild Birds. It’s another installment in his series of fictional stories of fictional people of a fictional town called Port William, Kentucky. But somehow, it all feels so real! The characters … Continue reading
Ben Folds is one of my favorite artists. I was first introduced to his music at Grumpy Dave’s in downtown Bowling Green, back in the late-1990s. Some aspiring young artist was doing a live performance of some piano-heavy alternative rock … Continue reading
I recently finished reading Pekka Hämäläinen’s history, Indigenous Continent: The Epic Contest for North America. It’s a fascinating corollary to the last book of American history that I read, Evan S. Connell’s history, Son of the Morning Star. The author comes from Finland, … Continue reading
We were out over the Atlantic Ocean, on our way from the Netherlands to the United States. I decided to rewatch the “Sunflowers” (Amsterdam) episode of Ted Lasso — now that our family had concluded the show’s third and final … Continue reading
I recently finished reading Wendell Berry’s novel, Andy Catlett: Early Travels. It’s another installment in his series of fictional stories of fictional people of a fictional town called Port William, Kentucky. I got my start with this author and this series after … Continue reading
My sister-in-law Jacqueline comes from Virginia. She recently visited us in Ohio. And while she was here, she told me about a podcast called Alabama Astronaut. I just finished listening through all eight episodes (plus the forward and a bonus … Continue reading
I just mowed my lawn for the first time this Spring. It’s kind of a chore. Still, I also kind of enjoy it. It’s one of those things where I get to bring a little bit of order to the … Continue reading
I recently finished reading Weike Wang’s debut novel, Chemistry. It was recommended (in a group setting, some time ago) by my friend Gera. So I kept it on a list of “Books to Read” until I started scrolling through the list last … Continue reading
I try not to get overly-enamored with my personal translation projects. In fact, I’m so low-key that I still haven’t “published” my translation of The Good News According to Mark. Even though it took me a year and a half … Continue reading
Do you remember the “Arab Spring” from a couple years back? It was a time when many Arabs across the Middle East and North Africa took to the streets in protest. Some countries deposed their authoritarian regimes. Others continue to … Continue reading