Random things in the middle of February, no particular order:

From time to time, I catch some of the Lannan Foundation broadcasts on a ride to or from work courtesy of our local public radio station.  Today, they rebroadcast an earlier round table discussion with some estimable persons on the topic of Walt Whitman and his work.  Instantly, as I enjoyed the back and forth of the host and his guests, my head became light and bobbed ever-so slightly, similar to the feeling one gets after cutting off all their long, thick hair and your neck adjusts and overcompensates for the lack of weight.

One of my secret pleasures is to find and read articles or reviews of artists that the reviewer confesses an undying love/admiration of, but attempts to maintain a modicum of objectivity.  I especially enjoy said articles/reviews when said objectivity falls away less than one hundred words into the review.  Currently I’m reading a piece by David Foster Wallace wherein he writes about David Lynch’s body of work and the rare instance of a “columnist” (he was permitted the set of Lynch’s Lost Highway with the help of Premiere Magazine) allowed onto one of his sets to observe the director in his element.  It’s great.  You can see Wallace relax here a bit, warm to the subject with little effort, and let his considerable talent for contrast and compare (the little academic in me squeals in delight) contextualize the greater movements of American cinema as a foil to Lynch’s idiosyncrasies and influence.  Plus, he tells a fantastic story.  While he contextualizes.

Unseasonably warm, clear days in February create the most eggshell-blue skies in northern New Mexico.