culture

May
06
Dante’s nine circles of hell, updated

Dante’s nine circles of hell, updated

Dr Essai has been brooding on an update to the esteemed poet’s nine circles of hell. The result may be less than a foundation for epic verse, but at least he feels better.
2 min read
Apr
03
Super-stuffed bookshelves surrounding a blue-green door.

The book report for March 2023

I made my way through a couple of door-stoppers this month, including an American classic. Yes, I am feeling pretty good about myself.
2 min read
Mar
23
Did not foresee going to work in a Montréal bank

Did not foresee going to work in a Montréal bank

Or, the pleasures of writing in a cavernous space rife with data streams Cold, rainy late March Montréal, city of
3 min read
Mar
03
The book report for February 2023

The book report for February 2023

Or, seriously, Tao Te Ching twice? Lingering covid-19 symptoms, plus a new cold and possibly bronchitis, provided Dr Essai with
2 min read
Feb
27
G-L-O-R-EYE-EYE-EYE

G-L-O-R-EYE-EYE-EYE

Coiled in the 2:37 of that track was all the explosive energy and carnal appetite and wild joy that the grownups in charge had been trying to tamp down since Plymouth Rock.
4 min read
Feb
14
Happy break-a-tooth-on-a-hard-candy-heart day

Happy break-a-tooth-on-a-hard-candy-heart day

A Christian martyr named Valentine was executed around 270 CE by Emperor Claudius II Gothicus, despite having healed his jailer’s daughter of blindness. Talk about ingratitude.
2 min read
Feb
07
In the Reactocene, no one can hear you scream

In the Reactocene, no one can hear you scream

Dr Essai observes that digital technology, plus the tireless and unselfish work of cynical opportunists in politics and business, has ushered in a new social epoch.
5 min read
Feb
01
“He always has his nose in a book,” said his mother

“He always has his nose in a book,” said his mother

Nothing increases one's literary consumption like a coronavirus.
3 min read
Jan
26
We have all been there before

We have all been there before

In his 60s and 70s, David Crosby stared himself down, squared up to what he had become, got clean and as healthy as he was going to get, and forged the most artistically productive years of his life.
6 min read
Dec
07
On Christopher Columbus's diary

On Christopher Columbus's diary

Or, somebody's mom just threw out history When wind and current and vague navigation brought Cristoforo Colombo to
5 min read