The path to paradise begins in hell. -Dante AlighieriEach time I go to Greece it's as if I fall under a magical spell. It's a place of pristine blue skies, endless sunshine and food that fills both my heart and my belly with nothing but joy. I feel like myself, as well as a better,…
A more apt title for this post might have been a step backward, but somehow that just didn't seem right. You see, after last week's minor pity party (colds and dissertations don't mix well), I decided that humanity had to be restored. So I cut back on my library hours and got down to the…
I never intended to take a break from blogging, but it was just one of those things that happened. Since I last checked in here, I've edited roughly 60 single-spaced pages. Not only have I been confronted by embarrassing typos that I never even realized I made on a regular basis (betweeeen), but I've also…
Hello from Dissertation Land! It's been a while, longer than I expected, but Dissertation Land is a hard place to escape from--even if only temporarily. As one would expect, in these final stages of writing and rewriting, life has taken on a surreal quality. Most days I sit in front of a computer screen for…
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who…
While the world at large seems as unstable as ever, in my little microcosm, life has been relatively calm these past few weeks. In part, this is because I found out shortly after spring break that I received the grant that I had applied for, which will allow me to finish my dissertation in the…
The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails. -William Arthur WardI've always considered myself an optimist--a great believer that things will work out for the best, that people will do the "right" thing, that there is good to be found in every nook and cranny of…
Although the facts of time and place have receded into legend, like many historical records of the birth of Modernism, it is certain that a packet of Japanese prints arrived in Paris around 1860 and instantly created a widening wave of amazement, incredulity, and exhilaration. The shock of encounter was so great, and the moment…
Gracious words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul and healing to the bones. -Proverbs 16:23-25I love holiday weekends. For the past three days, I've been sleeping in and relaxing, hoping that, by Wednesday afternoon when I board the flight to New Orleans, I'll be cough-free and almost 100% healthy. Truth be told, it seems…
Writing things down really seems like work. They say work makes a man good and honest. Well, here's a chance, at least. -Fyodor Dostoevsky (Notes from the Underground)Time management has never been my strong suit. While I'm a person who gets things done, I often find myself completing tasks in the margins of time--when I…
Dining with Dostoevsky 