Off to see Neko Case again. My resolution is the same as it was last year-support the arts as much as I can afford to

do not let your mother talk you into watching Song Song Blue.

Got into Charlottesville right before the snow started. Suddenly, a beautiful night in town.

What a win that is.

"Standing in what was once a small, otherwise forgettable town, I came to understand how folly, mistake, calamitous hubris, neglect, and plain stupidity—could all be weapons in an arsenal to rewild and reforest the Earth"

watching more Stellan Skarsgård films this year. Started with Sentimental Value, and I loved it. There's a tenderness/vulnerability to it that resonates.

Rainy afternoon completely free, so read the first half of Bryan Washington’s latest novel, “Palaver." It's so good. Love all the transitions in time & place. Done rather seamlessly.

President Trump “is pushing our country toward an international crisis without valid reasons,” the editorial board writes after the U.S. attack on Venezuela was announced on Saturday. “If Mr. Trump wants to argue otherwise, the Constitution spells out what he must do: Go to Congress.”

watching the final of Stranger Things and thought it was ending 2x already, but 37 minutes to go.

liked Weapons- mostly for the humor and the structure. The final chapter is really satisfying, but then the film just ends. Curious about that choice.

A good old fashioned New Year's Eve stand off.

the It's Always Sunny Christmas episode remains undefeated

I went too far, but they delivered.

“I wish to God you could pay more money.” I wrote about F Scott Fitzgerald’s Christmas wish, and how his difficult final year led him to produce some of his best work: the irresistible, cynical, revealing and very funny Pat Hobby stories.

making the gin & tonic a winter drink

was gifted John Malkovich socks, and I love them. I guess I talk about him a lot more than I realized!

"What is inarguable is that Shepard possessed iconic beauty, whose “imperfections,” such as the crookedness of his teeth, only added to his allure." Thought immediately of Days of Heaven as I read this line. www.wsj.com/arts-culture...

Got Boxer Rebellion right at trivia night and feel like a star

First reporting I've read that includes Barron as an active participant, and he chose these assholes. www.nytimes.com/2025/12/10/u...

Best Cynan Jones book to read first?

Happy to have an essay from my forthcoming collection up @literaryhub.bsky.social today! "The time a library lends, I suspect, is a little like love: the more it gives away, the more comes back to it in kind."

Good book- www.irishtimes.com/culture/book...

Listened to a ton of This is Lorelei (my preference) and Water From Your Eyes this year- uproxx.com/indie/this-i...

Having my snow day with hot tea, 2 beagles, and Enter Ghost.

Antique store find-a stained glass Christmas train. Why not.

I've done a deep dive into the Trump family's global moneymaking campaign. The White House says there's no conflict of interest. But from Serbia to Vietnam to crypto it's being called "pay to play" on a vast scale. If you have info, get in touch @theguardian.com www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...

Watched Richard Ayoade's film,Submarine and charmed much like I was by Harold & Maude and Rushmore. Loved the use of color.

when you realize Obama was president when Stranger Things premiered

Have had a 3 hr lunch outdoors. Warm enough, gin & tonics, Nikki Giovanni talk, etc. Feels good to be alive day.

“‘To grieve in peace’ is a common phrase but it’s a peculiar one, is it not? A contradiction, a demanding, even unachievable stasis state.” Joy Williams on Gene Hackman’s last days. harpers.org/archive/2025...

watching "Bad Day at Black Rock" and it's very small town with a dark secret

Voted and 5 of the poll workers are people I run into every day when we're all walking our dogs on the 6:30 AM shift.

Very exciting! Margaret Atwood’s Book of Lives is coming out next week! #MargaretAtwood @margaretatwood.bsky.social www.theguardian.com/books/2025/n...

Costumes so good, they needed to confirm identity

saw this in previews a few weeks ago. If you get a shot, take it. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/30/t...

Making the most of my insomnia and reading Angela Flournoy's 2nd novel, The Wilderness. Like the structure- each section is divided by year and by voice, a different female friend is centered each time.

Nobody smokes better than Robert Mitchum (Watching Out of the Past)

Im watching a friend's puppy while he is at the ER, and it has come to this. Fences. Agatha in the chair like a little gargoyle, and Luther doing his best If this gate weren't here, I'd... Meanwhile, the puppy is finally asleep after 3 hrs.

Had a few flights over the long weekend and read both "These Days" by Lucy Caldwell and "Dominion" by Addie E. Citchens. Perfect flight books/under 300 pages.

going to see Neko Case this week and just read that she currently composing the musical theater adaptation of 'Thelma & Louise.'

In the wake of this excellent report by the New York Times's Matthieu Aikins into a culture of lawlessness that has suffused parts of US Special Operations Command and some of its vets I was left wondering how many with such broken SOF CVs have been recruited into ICE www.nytimes.com/2025/09/30/m...

"We have robbed the past of its privacy" has hooked me. Looks like I will be reading another McEwan. Thought I'd tapped out after 4. open.spotify.com/episode/0vHO...

Have had H.O.O.D stuck in my head every since I saw the Kneecap verdict

I was here for the worst start of Skenes career. Please clap.

Uber driver wants to talk to me about advantages of AI. Talks, talks some more. I bring up water consumption, and a moment later, he turns on the radio. Scene.

Flight book. The Benefactors/Wendy Erskine.

I wrote a thing. As someone who survived the 1970s and kept the receipts.

rewatching Enlightened, and Laura Dern is so reliably good in this, everything. Also the show where I learned Luke Wilson can act.

you knew they'd find a way to blame women for autism