Elinor Nauen

Is it even possible to make a movie set in the past that doesn't point out how much harder it was for women then? It is, however, eminently possible to entirely ignore non-whites, especially in a British movie, I suspect. Here, they would give a few minor supporting roles to people of color, even if it were historically inaccurate.

Which is not to say  Read More 

I am getting sick of my long hair.
It grew when I wasn't paying attention.
Some people pick a do & stay with it.
Two to three years is about as long as I can stick with a cut.
I've gone from long to short to long to medium to long to short to black to red to blond to calico to creamsicle to lavender-gray.
What's left?
 Read More 

It's not my hobby or anything, but I like going to funerals of people I don't know—synagogue people, say, or the parents of friends. You learn a life story, you get some cathartic crying, & when it's over, you haven't been broken.

So I was thinking I might like to be a professional mourner,  Read More 

Charles Blow in today's Times talks about "how expensive it is to be poor," in James Baldwin's phrase. One point (of many excellent ones) is that if you don't have enough money to maintain a bank account, then you pay to have your checks cashed & for money orders (& stamps) to pay your bills. Poorer people may spend $1,200 a year in financial services;  Read More 

Before I go to sleep, I remind myself to remember my dreams, which I hadn't for a long time. After a few days of doing this, I woke up with my dreams in hand. It inspiring to discover that bedtime intentions can work. Every day the dreams are getting more colorful & exciting (but boring if you're not me so I'll leave 'em in my notebook).  Read More 

We've been friends for such a long time that we're always in tune with each other no matter how often or seldom we hang out, and it seems that whatever topic comes up is exactly the one we need to talk about. It's always some version of how to live our lives. We're good at reminding one other of what's important. We need to live like we did in our 20s, she said, when time was timeless; we need to read & write timelessly. She had a burger & I had a portobello sandwich.  Read More 

Two recent articles pointed out that the Jews of South Dakota are hanging by a thread. One was on the fact that SoDak is the only state without a Chabad, and the other that there are only 390 Jews in the state, fewer than any other state, in fact statistically zero. Fifty years ago there  Read More 

7. A Week Since I

sat on a bench
remembered my pre-World War I life
wanted a peach
destroyed the evidence
found money
ate at Tre
jubilated
brushed my teeth
stuck out my tongue

Every once in a while last summer I would jump on the subway, get off at a random stop, & walk around to see what I saw. In Williamsburg it was the Manhattan Special factory, clanking quietly, a combined funeral home–bakery, and a lovely grotto on a quiet street commemorating someone named Vito Abate (1890–19 3 (there's a missing number on the sign)).

I found a lovely piece by Abate's grandson that explained  Read More 

This is from an entry on "Russian mystical anarchism" in Douglas Messerli's Project for Innovative Poetry blog. When he posted it a while back, Facebook "recognized" the picture as being me. As far as I know, our family isn't Russian at all, but every once in a while, I find a similar, striking correspondence. If this were from the Jewish side, I'd be less puzzled, but he looks like my English half; some of my cousins have researched our genealogy, & we're English all the way back. Is the resemblance an example of an archetype of facial expression? It makes me think of how in some old paintings, people occasionally have what seems to me like a modern air. Is that all this is, layered on a common facial structure?  Read More 

On this date in 1915 Colonel (National Guard) Jacob Ruppert and Colonel Tillinghast L'Hommedieu Huston purchased the Yankees for $460,000. Huston sold his share to Ruppert 7 years later for $1.5 million (some sources say $1.25 million). Huston was a captain in the 16th Regiment of Railway Engineers in Cuba during the Spanish-American War, and commander (as Lt. Colonel) of the same regiment in France in WWI. Read More 

In my ongoing New Year's Snow'n'Throw (for once more Throw than Snow!), I came upon a giant box of family photos—but not my family. Beau's is entirely gone—there might be a distant cousin but I have no one to give these to. He died in 1999. I can't bring myself to dump the box, but what do I do with all these pictures? His racecar-driving dad at Sebring & other classics.  Read More 

I think it's that we all felt the same way about the House & knew that we did. Not every single person who passed through the doors, of course, but a lot of us. Most of us? That we are willing to say it. That we still & always felt & feel it.

Steve followed up with this reminiscence. All of it & more: Read More 

These Air Force (Farce) name badges of friends from long ago are of interest only to me (& a few others), I do know that, but that time in my life is still so alluring & resonant. Everything about it is in my cabinet of fascinations, and if I find (out) something new, I can live on it for days.

I remember so much yet knew so little about any of the guys. Maybe when we were 20 there wasn't that much to know. We had no pasts except  Read More 

Frustrated that I dropped a book in the slot at the library & they say it's still checked out. The other one I returned has stayed returned. How can they lose a book AT the library?

Also, it seems I ate a few too many veggie chips. My goodness. Can you become 9 months pregnant from veggie chips or does it just look like I am?

Update: The book finally showed up as returned. Should I quibble about the 75¢ they say I owe?  Read More 

It's being eager, excited to start. It's going to sleep reminding yourself to remember your dreams, & waking up with them intact. It's that same dream of the George Washington Bridge, the good one where you hitchhike & get a ride, not the  Read More 

I just finished reading, for the first time, House of Mirth. I put off everything I had to do today to stay with it, so no time to do more than offer some snippets. I'll think about it here later on. I ran into a friend just after I got to the end, who said, Are you OK? A devastating novel.  Read More 

Snow in Arizona, snow in Alabama, snow in Las Vegas, snow in the Carolinas, snow everywhere except where it's needed (wanted) (OK, by me) most—right here in New York, New York. C'mon.... please! It'll probably snow in Hawaii before it snows here.

I love starting the year with all-day poetry: Just came from 6 straight hours of poems & performance at the annual Poetry Project Marathon. Annabel Lee & I sang a work made out of lines from Emily Dickinson to the tune of "Yellow Rose of Texas."

Twice recently I've tossed off flippant remarks that were picked up & flung right back at me: challenges that burst into art. I love knowing people who can see possibilities, love being goaded to do more, do better.

Another one bites the dust.

And we're still here.

Here's to art, joy, adventure, the highwire, croissants, love, friendship & so much more.

I'm putting together a cento to read at the Poetry Project's New Year's Day Marathon (come! it'll be great! starts at 2 goes on till 150 poets have read/performed), & I remembered this one, which I wrote long before Rodriguez's troubles began. I don't even remember why this was for him, I guess his name sounded appropriate, like a Greek column. I mean, I don't remember ever loving him.

ODE FOR A-ROD
A Cento from the Greek Anthology

Let no mortal even seek to be a god
O blessed man
If I love boys, what is that to the muses of Helidon?
May Dio warm this your horn, that hits its target well
The fine sturdy Heracles club laments because it is polluted by your shoulders
This thing, which before stayed unbending, is now flabbier than a boiled carrot
Ever may the ivy that adorns the stage dance with soft feet over thy polished monument
Tears, the last gift of my love
A little dust of the earth is enough for me Read More 

My best-ever title & I've never used
It!
Even though that's what all my poems are
About!

Hundreds of fireflies may settle on a tree and flash in synchrony, all blinking on, then going dark over several seconds. Is their blinking governed by a single controller? This can be seen in southeast Asia and in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

I admit I do not understand a lot of this book (Bioluminescence, by Thérèse Wilson and J. Woodland Hastings), since I have zero background in biochemistry, but I'm fascinated by the topic. The picture (left, from the book) is of cells in a mouse's brain, colored by fluorescent proteins in random mixtures that make it possible to see each cell and its branching processes.

Fun facts about bioluminescence:
* It occurs primarily in marine organisms.
* It functions as defense, offense,  Read More 

* And because we have absolutely nothing to do today. Because we don't have to get dressed till 4 in the afternoon, if at all.
* And because if you're lucky, your sister sent you a big tin of homemade shortbread. Mmmmmm!

* We like to sing Christmas carols, and we know all the words. We're OK with saying Jesus and we replace "Christ" with "Chrysler," so we're OK with singing that too.
* No family melodrama.
* No need to travel at this time of year.
* Time & a half because we don't mind working.
* Chinese food & movies.
* We love our non-Jewish brethren, who might be celebrating sincerely.
* Strings of lights, the smell of fir & balsam, presents.
* The Yule Log on TV!  Read More 

There's a thing that if you're born on, say, the 18th of the month, your "golden birthday" is when you turn 18. My youngest sister's the only person I know who knows this. But if it's true, today is my (our) golden anniversary: 23 years married on the 23rd of December. I was happy then but I'm radiant now. It gets better. So lucky.

We take turns being in charge of celebrating. I always leave things to the last minute, so it's gonna be dinner & that's about it.

[Note that yesterday I couldn't get into site-builder so was unable to post.] Read More 

My Torah chanting was fine, the brand-new shul publication I edited got a shoutout (& got mailed out while it's still Hanukkah), & there were latkes at kiddush. In the afternoon I went to a wonderful East Village party, full of familiar faces from the 'hood & a few people I know, in a great high-ceilinged apartment on St Mark's Place; more latkes. Late pizza with my wonderful, adorable, smart, fun, affectionate grandson Luke; man, I love that kid—the main reason I had a good day.

That was yesterday. Now it's the shortest day of the year; they'll start getting longer tomorrow all the way into June. I worked out early, and am going to knock off some $$ work before it's due. I called my mother, deleted emails. Getting ready for 2015 (& very ready to see the end of crappy ol' '14).  Read More 

Having grown up in eastern South Dakota, I feel a love & affinity for the native plants of the prairie, most of which are some type of grass. It's difficult to get folks from elsewhere to appreciate how beautiful, various, & subtle grasses can be. But not obvious: you can spend a long time imagining that the prairie is monochromatic, but if you keep looking, all the variety and color suddenly jumps. We had lawns, sure, but we also had wild mixes of grama, bluestem, clover, pasque (the state flower), and many others that I didn't (& don't) know the name of.

I feel such hope today, because the brilliant & patient artist & Philadelphia native Matilda Essig (an old friend I recently reconnected with) does get it. She's restoring 5 acres of damaged grasslands in Arizona, and her art these days is intense closeups of grass: big enough that even the impatient can see. I've been reading & rereading a piece she wrote (link is in photo caption). Read More