What is there not to like about a shapely thigh? A chicken thigh is almost all meat, has only one bone, is hard to overcook, and can be easily made flavorful in a way that no bland breast can match without marinade or heavy seasonings. The chicken thigh is the canonical chef’s choice. […]
Things have been hard, in some ways, for a friend. Others have it worse. He was always employed, for example. But it was a decade: debt, bankruptcy, tax problems, moves, marital conflict. He works with his hands, often outdoors, and the work, in addition to his troubles, was nearly the match of his […]
I was at the Schnucks after lunch on New Year’s Eve, picking up finger foods for later. The checkout line was longer than I have seen in four years of living here. It ran the length of impulse buys, about a third of the width of the supermarket, from coffee and filters, past […]
I was invited to read from my new book this weekend by old friends John and Lois Palen, who host a literary salon in their home for thriving poetry and writing communities in Champaign, Illinois, home of the flagship university in the state. John is a poet and Lois a musician. It was […]
On Thanksgiving Day, Disney+ released The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, a 44-minute short written and directed (as the Guardian movies have been) by James Gunn. In it, “the Guardians, who are on a mission to make Christmas unforgettable for Quill, head to Earth in search of the perfect present.” Nearly a […]
The interregnum of the seasons has arrived in the Midwest. Laurel leaves have fallen from their crowns, and snow and ice have yet to make diadems in the new reign. Big things are gloomy—the overcast sky, the dull landscape, the empty fields. What rules now? Small, lively things. The fat squirrel that sits […]
The same month I started writing here, four years ago, an old friend moved his art business to Los Angeles so he could get more “theatrical” (narrative film) and commercial work as an actor, which is his second job and main ambition. He calculated it would take him seven years to get significant […]
I was in the library when I heard the young man talking on the phone: “I got our one-billion-dollar lottery ticket, so I feel like we have to be prepared. ‘What would you do?’ my wife asked me, but to be honest I’ve been a little lost. “It sounds flippant, but I […]
When people talk about making America great again—again, or something—the best I can summon are memories of old-school customs from my own life, such as Halloweens when I was a kid. In my day, in a defunct little coal town in the Midwest, we had a hell of a good time. That time […]
I have always been a fan of Jeff Bridges’ acting but was surprised to learn this week he is an accomplished art photographer and sculptor whose work has appeared in Premiere and Aperture magazines, at galleries in New York, Los Angeles, London, and Italy, and at the Museum of Photographic Arts in San Diego. […]
