When Artemis II looped around the Moon a few days ago, the astronauts aboard captured a photo of the Moon as it eclipsed the Sun from the astronauts' perspective. Jules Verne had described such an eclipse in his 1870 novel, "Around the Moon," the sequel to his earlier "From the Earth To the Moon." In … Continue reading Artemis II Around the Moon
My favorite read of 2025 was actually my re-read of George Eliot's "Middlemarch". But sticking to new works as usual: I read 38 works of fiction and nonfiction for the first time in '25, and of those I've picked out again my favorite ten. This year I went somewhat dark, for me. I took in … Continue reading My favorite reads of 2025
second Death Starsecond world warsecond atomic bombsecond frontsecond blitzsecond tower second wonderSecond Templesecond sitesecond kingssecond princesecond armysecond populationsecond citizenssecond history second looksecond chancesecond surgerysecond opinionsecond principlesecond explanationsecond introductionsecond sightsecond beautysecond homesecond cropsecond firesecond stormsecond snowseconds to go second birthsecond thoughtsecond soundsecond tracksecond timesecond lifetimesecond attachmentsecond proposalsecond polesecond noonsecond startsecond sidesecond handsecond choicesecond bestsecond bestiesecond voice … Continue reading on the second hand
I dreamt about 9-11 early this morning, having watched Stanley Kubrick’s “The Shining” last night. I don’t know why, because there’s nothing in the movie that obviously connects to such an event. And I didn’t think or read about 9-11 yesterday, so I think in some way this movie did something. I'm not even a … Continue reading Dreaming with classics
My favorite read of 2024 was actually my re-read of The Lord of the Rings. But sticking to new works as usual: I read 28 works of fiction and nonfiction for the first time in '24, and of those I've picked out again my favorite ten. For each book, I've listed some excerpts, not necessarily … Continue reading My favorite reads of 2024
Very near the end of the "Divine Comedy", Dante and his beloved Beatrice leave behind the planets of our solar system and enter what was known as the sphere of the Fixed Stars. "Before you enter further here," Beatrice tells Dante, "look down and see how vast a universe / I have put beneath your … Continue reading Dante’s Pale Blue Dot
Recently I rewatched the entire "Lord of the Rings" trilogy with my kids, in the extended editions. That's over 12 hours of movies, but my kids were not bored for a minute. After “Fellowship” my son was gushing about how clearly the story was told; and about how the music made him feel, particularly the … Continue reading Rewatching the Lord of the Rings
To start this short post, two moments from last week's totality, separated by three minutes: 3:23 pm, moments before totality. That's my son running around. 3:26 pm, the sun's disc just beginning to reemerge And how does one prepare in the weeks before a total eclipse of the sun? So glad you asked. With a … Continue reading totality times toys
I invited my family to see the April 8 eclipse, and we found a place on a bay in the St. Lawrence River. We had ourselves a grand little reunion up there on the Canadian border, and a great couple of days together. And we got to see a total eclipse, a first for each … Continue reading Reflecting on the total solar eclipse of April 8
Below are my ten most memorable reads of 2023, fiction and nonfiction, out of my 33 first-time reads. Actually I've thrown 11 chariots into the race, and an honorable runner-up. For each book, I've listed some excerpts, not necessarily the "best" -- there are countless great quotes in all of these -- but just a … Continue reading Favorite reads of 2023
