Dec 5, 2021Member-onlySeeing Clear to PismoHomeless in California’s rural interior A man sat on the curb outside the Valero gas station in Lost Hills, California. He was wearing grubby jeans. His head hung low as though under the weight of his grey hoodie, and a cigarette burned between his fingers. …24 min read24 min read
Oct 28, 2020Member-onlyMy Failed New Yorker Shouts & Murmur Ideas, Part III: “The End of Shampoo”I loved this popular satire section of the magazine, so I tried to write some funny satire myself. All my attempts fell flat. Or did they? You decide. An introductory note: I wrote this one in the form of a high school newspaper article. “Poopooing Shampoo, Before It Was Cool.” …Satire6 min readSatire6 min read
Oct 19, 2020Member-onlyRemoving Beethoven’s Wig: A Classical Music Reading ListAP Photo/Capital City Weekly, James Brooks I know as much about classical music as I do car mechanics, which is close to nothing, but I do know I like it. Not choruses. I’m not a fan of things like Bach’s choral works. And as much as I appreciate Mozart, his…Readinglist13 min readReadinglist13 min read
Oct 12, 2020Member-onlySmoking: A Legal Weed Reading ListAP Photo/Richard Vogel It’s always 420 somewhere, especially here in Portland, Oregon, where a cannabis dispensary seems to stand on every other corner. I smell weed while biking with my daughter through quiet residential neighborhoods. I smell weed while driving with my windows closed. I smell it at the food…Drugs8 min readDrugs8 min read
Oct 7, 2020Member-onlyDown the Rabbit Hole: A Psychedelic Reading ListJahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post via Getty Images “On psychedelics,” Dr. John Halpern, head of the Laboratory for Integrative Psychiatry at McLean Hospital in Massachusetts, told The New York Times Magazine, “you have an experience in which you feel there is something you are a part of, something else is out…Readinglist9 min readReadinglist9 min read
Sep 24, 2020Member-onlyA Genre of Myths: A Jazz Reading ListTommy Potter, Charlie Parker, and Max Roach performing. William Gottlieb/Redferns I am a jazz devotee, the kind with shelves of jazz books and photos of John Coltrane and Charlie Parker in his home office. …Jazz15 min readJazz15 min read
Sep 20, 2020Member-onlyTangled Up in Bob Stories: A Dylan Reading ListMusic legends from Tom Waits to Joni Mitchell immediately heard Dylan’s genius in songs like “Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands,“ but not me. It took me two decades to warm to Bob Dylan. It’s a common story. He’s one of those artists that people say will “grow on you,” or…15 min read15 min read
Jun 20, 2020Member-onlyUnity and Resistance: The Message of Bad BrainsRevolutionary times call for revolutionary music Those of us who love the Bad Brains always will, but recent vocal protests to end the violent, systematic oppression of Black Americans have revitalized the band’s message of unity and resistance. Founded in 1977 by four Black men in Washington D.C., Bad Brains…Punk Rock20 min readPunk Rock20 min read
Apr 3, 2020Member-onlySublime Played Their Most Powerful Song at Their Last Show“The Ballad of Johnny Butt” is one of the California band’s most moving songs, even if it’s the least-serious sounding “Lovin’ is what I got. Said remember that.” –Bradley Nowell For a perpetually stoned band that took very little seriously, the California band Sublime played some seriously powerful music. Twenty-plus…Music59 min readMusic59 min read
Feb 26, 2020Member-onlyWhy I Love the Japanese Fast Food Chain MatsuyaInexpensive beef bowls make good friends while traveling in Japan. Matsuya is a 24-hour beef and rice bowl chain that has over a thousand stores across Japan. You pay at a ticketing machine, called a shokkenki or kenbaiki. The cook takes your ticket when you find a seat, and after…Japan7 min readJapan7 min read