“I have two moments of intense concentration in my life. One is when the waiter describes the specials, because it's very hard to hear him, and what he's describing is something I didn't grow up with. The mixtures are so complex! And the room is so noisy!”

PARIS, TEXAS (1984) - Wim Wenders’ American masterpiece of loss, love, and redemption. With hauntingly beautiful cinematography by Robby Müller, it’s one of the great films of all-time and one that lingers like a dream. Showing TOMORROW at midday and next Sunday night. 🎟️ : buff.ly/XFwjA7B

Ah, 9 November – a sad one, this: 59th anniversary of the day Paul McCartney died, forcing the other Beatles to replace him with an orphan they had trained to impersonate him, and then (obviously) put clues in songs and on album covers so people could find out anyway

Been looking at old diner menus and am convinced if I incant these words 3x over a cauldron, I'll be transported to 1978 Pennsylvania: Rye bread, stuffed cabbage, fried clams, open-faced turkey sandwich, flounder, meat loaf, Monte Cristo, croquettes, chicken parm, chipped beef, pierogies, goulash.

Relistened to this to hear Backlisted discuss Sylvia Townsend Warner's WW2 stories and wow, what a trip. By turns brilliant (Andy describes Celia Dale as a cross btw Barbara Pym & Entertaining Mr. Sloan), heartwarming (Nicky's 1st time reading aloud) & a little sad (lockdown). Were we ever so young?

Album cover... vehicle... do it

Another shot of Alain Delon & his pigeon friends, by Jack Garofalo, Venice, 1962

Anyone who loves Angel Heart is a friend of mine.

Look at this photo.

The Pope is going full Dickens “But you were always a good man of business, Jacob,” faltered Scrooge… “Business!” cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. “Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business.”

I think a lot about the story Carl Reiner told: he’d have been a sewing machine repairman if not for a free WPA drama class. That led to other theater work, to Sid Caesar, to Mel Brooks, and all the rest. All because of one free class paid for by a government that felt the arts were worth teaching.

Good writeup here.

Good night to Ken’s brother, one of the earliest Merry Pranksters.

#BirdOfTheDay #lunchtime theme: I once watched a small conspiracy of ravens open a cooler that was sitting in the bed of a pickup truck, remove its contents, unwrap them from their packaging, and consume it all within about 60 seconds of the truck occupants parking and walking away. 🪶

Two brilliant uses of comma splice in Tessa Hadley’s short story Funny Little Snake, showing in its slapdash punctuation narrator Valerie’s instructive dismissal of her awful professor husband Gil’s self-serving tales.

What do I care about anything when I can lie on the bed and pull the past over me like a blanket?

I took this photo in front of his Mill Valley, CA home, where he was living when he won the Pulitzer for Buried Child. I love his prose most, but everything he wrote illuminated some aspect of the American myth. Sam Shepard Born Nov. 5, 1943

Day 5 of the #NoirvemberChallenge - A #filmnoir you would show someone who's never seen one... The Night of the Hunter (1955) dir. Charles Laughton 🎬 Quite simply one of the best movies ever made! #Noirvember #filmsky #moviesky

Illustrator Ella Baron nailing it in The Guardian: www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Humanities degrees can also do a thing or two to cultivate empathy and help your communication skills.

Ooooh, this season’s Orion magazine is about “the natural rhythms of hip-hop” and features work by Jesmyn Ward, Hanif Abdurraqib, Questlove, Missy Elliott and Ross Gay!

Portland, you can rent out the Clinton Street Theater!

Remembering Sam Shepard on his birthday 🎂 📷 Mike Piscitelli, Santa Fe "There are these territories inside all of us, like a child or a father or the whole man, & that’s what interests me more than anything: where those territories lie."

Happy birthday, Sam. We’ve never had more need of you.

What a day to be teaching classes on Gramsci’s notion of political hegemony. Optimism of the will!! 👊🏻

Last night I went to the Puca Festival in Trim, Ireland. It's all fun and games until someone unleashes a giant demonic hare.

This person took this when they called the race

Mamdani's speech was just a banger. Proud, unapologetic, fearless and humble. It finally feels like we are climbing out of the deepest, darkest hole.

Normal people are just sick to fucking death of the cruelty and meanness

Bluesky rn

Eugene Debs mentioned in Mamdani's first sentence!

They're playing Eddie Murphy's "Party All the Time" in the ballroom while waiting for Mamdani to come out and give his acceptance speech. That may be the most unexpected result of the whole evening.

GO OFF, AOC

You get a repost, you get a repost, everybody gets a repost!

100%. As a brown New Yorker, the day dick cheney died and zohran won feels like a toxic fog blowing out to sea.

UK friends, sorry for so many political retweets, but hopefully there can be some vicarious joy for you.

I mean this is so far pretty close to a 10 out of 10 night for Democrats. Winning everywhere! Statewide in PA and GA, huge margin in VA gov race. Sherrill tracking double digits as well! Mamdani above 50% in a the highest turnout in NYC since 1969. Big pick ups in VA House of Delegates.

This is why Chuck has NO REASON to come back to the table. Let them twist. If you're coming back with wins this big during a shutdown, the people know where their bread is buttered. Don't throw them a lifeline. These aren't tiny margin wins. They're blowouts.

Yes, this is a good time for progressive/Dems and Trump haters, but it’s also a big night for Candidates who Talk Like Normal People.

Basically going about as well as progressives/Democrats could possibly hope.

Dick Cheney dies, Zohran Mamdani wins, a beaver moon shines in the sky… I just know the Etsy witches have been busy.

[Exit Clown.]

I think a thing we'll learn tonight is that people fucking hate what is going on and they will straight ticket vote against anyone involved in starving people while pillaging the country and kidnapping their neighbors. I don't think it matters at all who that person is.

Normal People Don’t Want This Shit is running away with the vote tonight

IT’S HAPPENING!

Dick Cheney shot his friend in the face the right way. by Ezra Klein

Retirees are dangerous in the same way students are: neither group is fully invested in the system; they aren’t beholden to employers or to protesting outside work hours.

Study of a fir tree, c.1842 by Emily Brontë, best known for her classic novel 'Wuthering Heights' #WomensArt