Inevitably and with curious necessity, the recitation of trivia turns to the subject of death-counts. This is because the death-count is the ne plus ultra of trivia: “how many people died there.”
As _Avatar_ gradually accrued its second billion dollars in the last few weeks, coverage of the film itself (rather than its receipts) sank from complacent praise to idle speculation. Was the film racist? Well, accidentally. Is there going to be … Read More
I grew up in Newton, Massachusetts, a quiet settlement eight miles from Copley Square. The Marathon’s route follows Commonwealth Avenue through Newton into Boston. My house is a block from the Marathon’s 20-mile marker, in the middle of Heartbreak Hill, the most notorious of a series of four steep ascents that runners must endure as they pass through the city.
We are in assembly. Voices intermingle with deep jazz that drips from speakers stationed all around the house. Something beneath my sternum vibrates silently. The lights are colder than I know you’d prefer. But I’ve got candles at home, with … Read More
With a half-eaten, white chocolate tampon pretzel in hand, I perused the Menstruation Celebration, picking up free condoms and nearly choking when I read “Period week = blow job week” on a poster debunking period myths.
I spent this past week in the basement of Friend, in a windowless computer cluster, working on a lab report for Chemical Engineering. Pizza came in and Excel spreadsheets came out-a perfect mass and momentum balance. I happened to notice … Read More
A hump of grass bulges into the spray of Victoria Falls is one of the world’s seven Wonders are easier to count than to Think of the woman on the bulge Gardens usually accept water like hands into a Hand … Read More
