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July 06, 2012
These brutal Thursday summer nights are ruining my health.
The best thing about summer nights in the authentic American cities? All the girls walk by dressed up for each other, and the boys do the boogie-woogie on the corner of the street.
Posted by Holden Oliver (Kitzbühel Desk) at 10:01 AM | Comments (0)
July 05, 2012
Herbert Lomas (1924-2011)
Recently, I learned that Herbert "Bertie" Lomas, a Suffolk-based poet, editor and translator, died on September 9, 2011 at the age of 87. I met Bertie in England in 2003. We became pen pals. Sometimes we'd exchange books. He was highly respected, followed, read and affectionately regarded as a writer and human being by a variety of European communities throughout his life. This piece in The Independent that appeared on September 15 comes as close as any of the many obits or tributes I've read about his passing of capturing the kind of person he was--and his unusual life and role as poet, writer and participant in the events that forged Europe in the last century.
Posted by JD Hull at 11:22 AM | Comments (0)
July 02, 2012
The Economist: The start-up TechChange, mobile phones and "Geeks for Good" in Africa.
Query: Where Africa's vast human and natural resources are concerned, why do many of us generally trust techies and NGOs more than we do mainland China and other governments? See "Geeks for Good" in The Economist:
TechChange has taught more than 600 students in more than 70 countries through their online classroom. Its most popular course to date has been “Mobiles for International Development”. Enterprises such as Ushahidi and FrontlineSMS have developed open source software that lets NGOs collect information via text messages and look at the results in real time. Students gain hands-on experience, for instance by analysing data gathered by mobile-phone surveys in Tunisia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Those interested in conflict resolution can dig deeper by enrolling in a special course designed around case studies from Libya and Syria.
Posted by JD Hull at 12:26 PM | Comments (0)
July 01, 2012
Dog Days: Humid, High 90s with Increasing Existential Dread by Monday.
And the Humans Grew Mad. Summer. The Economy. It's not only tough times right now. It's hot, and bloody hot in much of the U.S. However, every year's been the same this time of year for centuries. So if you live in the Northern Hemisphere and feel a bit strange and out of sorts--and you're not too much of a whack-job or flake to begin with--that's probably okay. The six week period between July 1 and August 15 was named by the both the ancient Greeks and the early Romans after Sirius the Dog Star, the brightest star in the sky. In the Mediterranean region, the notion of linking that star to oppressive summer weather dates back well over 2700 years.
It's also a slightly weird time of year. Could be just the heat. But "Dog Days" were also associated with Chaos: "the seas boiled, wine turned sour, dogs grew mad and all creatures became languid, causing to man burning fevers, hysterics and phrensies". Brady's Clavis Calendarium, 1813. Just two thousand years ago, and after he had given up the study of law that his family had foisted on him, Ovid (43 B.C. - 17 A.D.), the playful poet writing during Octavian's long reign, gave us a more famous--and less grim--take on Chaos in Book I of Metamorphoses.
Posted by Holden Oliver (Kitzbühel Desk) at 11:59 PM | Comments (0)
Happy Anniversary to my Parents, John and Penny Hull.
Arlene Reemer "Penny" Hull, Spring 2011.
Posted by JD Hull at 07:48 PM | Comments (0)
Seattle's Richard Chiem: "We Are a Gold Mine".
Richard Chiem, 25, a friend and already a celebrated young American writer now based in Seattle, wrote this for his love, Frances Dinger, 22. I met Richard two years ago when he lived in San Diego--and eventually met Frances just before he moved north to join her. Frances is smart, ambitious and similarly accomplished. Writer and editor, she just graduated from the University of Seattle with two degrees. Frances is currently in Naples, Italy with her family. She is as wonderful, lovely and soulful as Richard describes. This poem-video moved me the first time I saw/heard it. It's about a year old. This morning I asked Richard on the phone if I could publish his "We Are a Gold Mine" here. Listen to the writing. And listen to Richard's voice.
'We Are a Gold Mine' (for Frances Dinger) by Richard Chiem
Posted by JD Hull at 01:47 PM | Comments (0)