SIR PAUL’S STAGE DESIGNS
NO SURPRISE, THERE’S A LIVERPOOL BEATLES MUSEUM. In its three levels, the museum contains more than 1000 bits of Beatlemania. A surprise, though, is to find an example of little … Continue reading
ON CHATBOTS AND OTHER HALLUCINATORS
KNOWING JUST A TAD ABOUT LARGE LANGUAGE MODELS, I’m not surprised that they occasionally “hallucinate.” That is, spout out erroneous stuff. I’ve known other B.S. artists all my life. Here … Continue reading
THE LIMOS’ DEMISE, BUT….
“ONCE THE SYMBOL OF AFFLUENCE, the stretch limo has largely fallen out of favor…,” writes Jesus Jiménez in “The Long Demise of the Stretch Limo,” The New York Times, April … Continue reading
KATIE’S AEROPLANES—AND MINE
KATIE HOUNSOME IS A TALENTED ILLUSTRATOR with an evident love of classic aeroplanes. “My parents think it’s hilarious that I’m so retro,” she told Mick Walsh in Classic & Sports … Continue reading
SALISBURY STEAK
HA! I ENJOYED THE NEW YORK TIMES RECIPE for Salisbury Steak (though reading only the recipe, not the background information). Here I was, all ready to describe my own tasty … Continue reading
LAKE CHARGOGGAGOGGMANCHAUGGAGOGGCHAUBUN-AGUNGAMAUGG
A RECENT SAM SPADE REBROADCAST on SiriusXM “Radio Classics” reminded me of my undergraduate years at Worcester Poly in central Massachusetts. Nearby was the town of Webster, with its lake … Continue reading
PARROTS ZOOM VIRTUALLY
PARROTS LOVE TO FLOCK TOGETHER as part of their social, cognitive, and emotional needs. Yet, as reported by Sarah Kuta in Smithsonian Magazine, April 24, 2023, “… when kept as … Continue reading
HEADS—RED AND GRAY
TALK ABOUT KARMA (with no pun intended): I write about the Ferrari Testa Rossa and then read that “Redheaded People May Require More Anesthesia.” This in turn led to a … Continue reading
VIVE LES LOANWORDS FRANÇAIS!
WE HAVE LOTS OF WORDS inherited from the French, at least in part because of the 1066 Norman Conquest. A bunch have been added later as well: pococurante, from Voltaire’s … Continue reading
FERRARI TRC—THE ORIGINAL RED HEAD
“ ‘SUITABLY IMPRESSED’ SEEMS HARDLY an adequate expression,” R&T wrote in December 1957, “to describe our crew’s thoughts after testing the newest Ferrari, the 2.5-liter TRC (Testa Rossa Competition).” Here … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 