My parents have been binge-watching the Paramount show Yellowstone, which is not about the infamous National Park but rather is a kind of cowboy Game of Thrones in the modern American West. I can’t stomach […]
Tag: essay
On Misanthropy
My buddy the engineer clings to the nobility of man, presumably because we invented mathematics. He accuses me of misanthropy. But I am not a misanthrope. A misanthrope hates mankind, which I do not. Neither […]
(Curiosity) My Dungeon Shook
My Dungeon Shook: Letter to My Nephew on the One Hundredth Anniversary of Emancipation from “The Fire Next Time” (1963) by James Baldwin, a potent and lyrical essayist. Dear James: I have begun this letter […]
(Feature) Nations of experience
No matter how long I make a study of it, I cannot stop marveling at the slippery imprecision of English. It is not the most poetic language, but it is the most poetical in that […]
(Feature) On the proper way to eat sushi
Most of Japanese TV is about food, which is odd considering that Japan consumes fewer calories per person than any other major industrialized nation. (It’s on par with developing, largely agrarian countries like Vietnam and […]
(Curiosity) Wabi Sabi: Notes on the Japanese Aesthetic
I am not that species, the Common Western Japanophile. I first visited in 2001 because my friend, who is a Japanophile, was teaching English in Kyoto and offered a free place to stay. I didn’t […]
