Monthly Archives: July 2009

Won’t be posting for 2 weeks…

From Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Fact Sheet: Symptoms usually start gradually, with frequent burning, tingling, or itching numbness in the palm of the hand and the fingers, especially the thumb and the index and middle fingers. Some carpal tunnel sufferers say their fingers feel useless and swollen, even though little or no swelling is apparent. The …

July 27, 2009 – 10:55 am | By ashok | Posted in personal | Comments (10)

On Human Progress: Thoughts on Kay Ryan’s “Turtle”

Turtle (from poetry 180) Kay Ryan Who would be a turtle who could help it? A barely mobile hard roll, a four-oared helmet, She can ill afford the chances she must take In rowing toward the grasses that she eats. Her track is graceless, like dragging A packing-case places, and almost any slope Defeats her …

July 23, 2009 – 10:54 pm | By ashok | Posted in poetry | Tagged | Comments (3)

Just wanted to say thanks -

- quite a few of you are helping me promote on Stumbleupon, Digg, Reddit and a few other places, and it’s working to dramatic effect right now. Traffic had found new lows this month: one of the days I was in Sacramento I got 61 hits total (think about how insulting that is as one …

July 21, 2009 – 6:46 am | By ashok | Posted in blogging | Comments (1)

Links, 7/21/09

Don’t touch ‘A Moveable Feast’ (h/t Josh) – one of my favorite books gets a defense for the form it is in. There’s a new edition out that is less than perfect, to put it mildly (this may require nytimes registration – use bugmenot to fix that). More from the nytimes (h/t aldaily.com) – Tom …

July 21, 2009 – 2:31 am | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (0)

A Thought on Stanley Kunitz’s “The Abduction”

The Abduction (from poets.org) Stanley Kunitz Some things I do not profess to understand, perhaps not wanting to, including whatever it was they did with you or you with them that timeless summer day when you stumbled out of the wood, distracted, with your white blouse torn and a bloodstain on your skirt. “Do you …

July 20, 2009 – 1:45 am | By ashok | Posted in poetry | Comments (5)

Links, Super Right-Wing Edition, 7/18/09

You’ve been warned: Re: “Obamacare” – Democratic Senators who have opined that this is the greatest system they’re about to implement will not vote Senate coverage to include it as an option (WSJ); more WSJ – the taxes needed to even begin funding this thing “would raise the top marginal federal tax rate back to …

July 18, 2009 – 8:09 pm | By ashok | Posted in links, politics | Comments (5)

An Open Letter To Sarah Palin

Dear Governor Palin: After reading that awful nonsense by Peggy Noonan which seemed to assert you were Anti-Christ, and more measured responses by Ron Radosh and Mark Barabak, I realized something: it isn’t enough to take a measured response in your defense. The attacks on you are far too personal, unrestrained, and self-justifying: the people …

July 15, 2009 – 7:51 pm | By ashok | Posted in politics | Comments (7)

On Alice Shapiro’s “The Twittering Machine”

The Twittering Machine (painting by Klee here) Alice Shapiro “A line is a dot that went for a walk” – Paul Klee Clock. Time’s machine twittering off each glassy moment fragile soundings faraway at the nape of memory reminding, rewinding. O clock, o’clock machine of mornings to wash, to work, to win against your ticking, …

July 15, 2009 – 3:51 am | By ashok | Posted in poetry | Comments (1)

Remarks made in Sacramento, California 7/12/09

For Paul and Liza Drozdowski It is customary for the best man to say something embarrassing about the groom, complimentary towards bride meeting groom, and toast the couple’s happiness. But there is nothing embarrassing to divulge regarding the 15 years I’ve known Paul, and he and Liza are of such character they could vouch for …

July 13, 2009 – 11:50 am | By ashok | Posted in personal | Comments (3)

Links, 7/9/09

Two links from Josh that are very, very good: Scarcity & Abundance re: Technology – technology has a way of getting cheaper and more abundant; treating it like a more valuable resource than, say, time defeats the purpose “Zero money down, not subprime loans, led to the mortgage meltdown:” more fta – “51% of all …

July 9, 2009 – 4:47 pm | By ashok | Posted in links | Comments (1)