YOU CAN’T PLEASE EVERYONE
I’VE BEEN ENJOYING Nick Slonimsky’s Lexicon of Musical Invective: Critical Assaults on Composers Since Beethoven’s Time. Its theses are two-fold and clear: You can’t please everyone. And critics write for … Continue reading
A CARRIAGE FOR THE KING
HERE’S A TALE of transportation fit for a king; indeed, named for one. Yet, in the last decade, this 1911 Hispano-Suiza Alfonso XIII Double Berline twice went begging at auction, … Continue reading
LETTERS AS ENCOURAGEMENT
I WAS READING the Letters column in the August 13, 2020, London Review of Books, with nary a serious thought in my head. Then I encounter several communications that didn’t … Continue reading
CHURCHILL’S COOK PART 2
YESTERDAY Georgina Young chose kitchen service as scullery maid no. six in a fairly grand household. Today, she marries, learns from, and thrives with chef Paul Landemare. And has wartime … Continue reading
CHURCHILL’S COOK PART 1
THE ENGLISH SATIRIST Saki wrote, “The cook was a good cook, as cooks go, and as cooks go, she went.” By contrast, Georgina Landemare was more akin to Mrs. Patmore, … Continue reading
HAPPY (BELATED) EIGHTH BIRTHDAY, SIMANAITIS SAYS!
THIS WEBSITE STARTED on August 13, 2012, with “1990 Mazda MX-5 Miata.” Things were a lot simpler back then. There have been occasional anniversary celebrations since. “A Year in Review” … Continue reading
THREE SCIENTISTS WALK INTO A BAR….
SOME PEOPLE THINK that scientists are inarticulate. Counterexamples are abundant, and I might wonder who are the inarticulate among us. Here’s scientific wisdom, wit, satire, and social commentary from three … Continue reading
1967 VOLKSWAGEN BEETLE 1500
THE YEAR 1967 was a memorable one. The Graduate, with Dustin Hoffman driving a cool Alfa Romeo Spyder, was a hit movie. The Beatles brought out Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s … Continue reading
BILL MACLEAN WOULD HAVE LIKED THIS SCIENCE ARTICLE PART 2
YESTERDAY, WE GLEANED details of the anole lizards of the Caribbean, as discussed in Elizabeth Pennisi’s report “Meet Lizard Man, a Reptile-Loving Biologist Tackling Some of the Biggest Questions in … Continue reading
BILL MACLEAN WOULD HAVE LIKED THIS SCIENCE ARTICLE PART 1
THE ANOLIS LIZARD is a timid little rascal known to hide behind picture frames and cavort with a spinning LP record. The male will occasionally show off his expanding dewlap. … Continue reading
Simanaitis Says 